{"id":5199,"date":"2022-08-08T08:44:25","date_gmt":"2022-08-08T08:44:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.silverbirdsafari-africa.com\/blog\/uncovering-the-true-value-of-omnichannel-retailing-and-servicing-for-airlines\/"},"modified":"2022-08-08T08:44:25","modified_gmt":"2022-08-08T08:44:25","slug":"uncovering-the-true-value-of-omnichannel-retailing-and-servicing-for-airlines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.silverbirdsafari-africa.com\/blog\/uncovering-the-true-value-of-omnichannel-retailing-and-servicing-for-airlines\/","title":{"rendered":"Uncovering the True Value of Omnichannel Retailing and Servicing for Airlines"},"content":{"rendered":"

Business travel is back \u2014 not to pre-pandemic levels, of course, but companies are encouraging their employees to hit the road<\/a> and get real face time (not to be confused with Apple\u2019s video calls) with vendors, partners, and potential new customers. As airlines take big steps toward a better future with investments for sustainable fuel<\/a> and pay increases designed to solve the labor shortage<\/a>, it\u2019s time for the industry to focus on making a difference long before any of those business travelers arrive at the gate with better booking and service processes.<\/p>\n

Plenty of corporate travelers opt to book direct, preferring the same experience they are used to on their favorite carrier\u2019s website or mobile app. However, it\u2019s no secret that the process is often more complicated than it needs to be. Since a corporate traveler will often appear as any other regular customer, policies for expenses aren\u2019t available. Then, they might have to submit their expenses \u2014 only to discover that their tickets or ancillaries are not eligible for reimbursement. Plus, travel managers aren\u2019t even aware about the booking in the first place. It\u2019s a mess of disjointed information that creates headaches and frustrations for everyone involved in the process.<\/p>\n

Navigating Around the \u2018Iceberg\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

That deep cavern of information is what Kyle Moser, director of multinational sales at American Express Global Business Travel, compares to an \u201ciceberg.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOnly about 10 percent of [a travel reservation] is visible,\u201d Moser said in a recent episode of Airlines Reporting Corporation\u2019s (ARC) Omnichannel Chatter podcast<\/a>. \u201cThere is a mass of stuff that goes on underneath that most people don\u2019t get.\u201d<\/p>\n

Omnichannel retailing and servicing helps sync all that information and turns a turbulent booking journey into a smooth ride. ARC acquired nuTravel in 2020 with a focus on making omnichannel a reality for the aviation industry, and now, nuTravel has unveiled Universal Connect \u2014 the first open and agnostic integration platform that enables direct booking capabilities with access to corporate rates and travel policies. United Airlines is already part of the beta, with American Airlines coming onboard soon.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf a traveler\u2019s company is registered with nuTravel\u2019s Universal Connect,\u201d Joe Ascanio, vice president of marketing and digital strategy at nuTravel, told Skift, \u201cthat traveler can go to a participating carrier\u2019s app or website and book their travel with their corporate negotiated rates, payment methods, and travel policy information available, creating a consistent experience with corporate or TMC booking tools.\u201d<\/p>\n

For business travelers who are tired of dealing with a cumbersome booking process, the chance to book that flight to next week\u2019s big meeting the same way they booked that flight for their summer vacation is a breath of fresh air. Finally, they can enjoy the ingredients that have seemed elusive for so long: flexibility and freedom.<\/p>\n

Taking a Cue From Consumer-Facing Brands<\/strong><\/p>\n

An omnichannel approach might sound new for the corporate world, but Sarah Boyd, senior manager of airline retailing solutions at ARC, highlights that all those business travelers are quickly getting used to frictionless planning and purchasing in every other facet of their lives. Consider how Amazon \u2014 the ultimate name in ecommerce \u2014 has embraced a brick-and-mortar approach to give customers access to services away from their screens. The company operates physical counter locations where customers can easily pick up packages, drop off returns, and get in-person assistance. The experience that a customer might begin on their smartphone or laptop picks up right where they left off when they walk into the store. And if a customer doesn\u2019t have access to an Amazon counter location, they can head to a dedicated Amazon counter at Kohl\u2019s.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not just Amazon, either. Consumers can browse for eyeglasses in store and then buy them in an app with Warby Parker, and they can try on makeup in an app and then buy it in store with Sephora. It\u2019s a buy anywhere, service anywhere model that customers love.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday\u2019s traveler expects an omnichannel experience since they receive that with other products,\u201d Boyd said. \u201cCustomers don\u2019t understand why they might not see their corporate rate if they book directly with the airline or why they don\u2019t have access to certain ancillaries through travel agencies.\u201d<\/p>\n

Simplifying the Servicing Aspect \u2014 And Keeping Everyone Informed<\/strong><\/p>\n

The initial booking decision is just one critical piece of the omnichannel puzzle. When corporate travelers want to make changes \u2014 opting to extend a trip to have their family join them, for example \u2014 that adjustment shouldn\u2019t require retracing any steps to get back to the original booking channel. \u201cWhen customers need to manage their booking,\u201d Boyd said, \u201cthey can do that through whichever channel is most convenient and have access to the same options and policies.\u201d<\/p>\n

While it\u2019s important to make the traveler\u2019s life easy, it\u2019s equally essential to make sure that corporate policies are applied and the travel manager is in-the-know, too. \u201cIf a traveler books through an agency using a direct connection with an airline, like NDC, but needs to make changes at the airport with a customer service representative, the airline can then use NDC messaging to push those changes back to the agency,\u201d Boyd said.<\/p>\n

Speaking of change, it has never come easy in a corporate travel space that often seems unmovable \u2014 a characteristic that makes Moser\u2019s iceberg comparison even more appropriate. While Boyd acknowledges that shifting to an omnichannel model is a \u201ccomplicated challenge\u201d for airlines and agencies, she believes it is essential for the future of travel. She explained, \u201cThe members of the travel industry who best keep pace \u2014 whether airlines, agencies, or travel managers \u2014 will be best positioned for success.\u201d<\/p>\n

Source: Skift<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Business travel is back \u2014 not to pre-pandemic levels, of course, but companies are encouraging their employees to hit the road and get real face time (not to be confused with Apple\u2019s video calls) with vendors, partners, and potential new customers. As airlines take big steps toward a better future with investments for sustainable fuel and pay increases designed to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[66],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5199","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-travel-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.silverbirdsafari-africa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5199","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.silverbirdsafari-africa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.silverbirdsafari-africa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.silverbirdsafari-africa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5199"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.silverbirdsafari-africa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5199\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.silverbirdsafari-africa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5199"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.silverbirdsafari-africa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5199"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.silverbirdsafari-africa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5199"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}