Amadeus has announced the roll out of its Extreme Search shopping tool to online travel agents.
Extreme Search has been designed to offer a more intuitive form of search for travel products aimed at consumers early in the buying process who have not yet decided on details of their trip.
The new tool allows consumers to shop for travel products based on their desires rather than pre-determined attributes of their holiday as is the case with most conventional travel sites.
For instance it will allow agents’ sites to answer questions like: “Where can I go on a beach holiday in Europe for less than €600 per person?”
Many travel companies are vying to be the first to perfect this form of advanced search including the new venture from Comtec co-founder Simon Powell who revealed details of his new travel.co.uk website last week.
Amadeus said the concept is backed by the findings of a PhocusWright study, which discovered that 40% of European travellers do not have a destination in mind when they start planning their trip.
Extreme Search means consumers can base their search around their budget, the type of activity they like, or geography all on a single page. The program is then able to give immediate relevant responses. These are based on Amadeus’ real time flight pricing and availability data.
Stephane Durand, director online & leisure at Amadeus, said: “Extreme Search is the natural evolution of today’s consumer practices, overthrowing established search methods based on destinations and dates.”
“It is an opportunity for the online travel agency to differentiate itself from the traditional “book it” button which is visible on every website today.
“Travel sellers are able to capture the traveller’s attention early in the search process due to the unique search experience, by inspiring and engaging them into a booking, thereby growing their share of the leisure market and ultimately increase conversion and customer loyalty.
“Furthermore, Extreme Search provides invaluable business intelligence on how customers search, helping online agents to respond instantly to new trends and target new customer segments.”
Currently, Extreme Search only handles flight data but Amadeus said it is working to integrate high speed rail, more low cost carriers.