To try to take on every aspect of the big data world is a recipe for disaster, says Miles Morgan, managing director of Miles Morgan Travel
We seem to love our buzzwords in the travel industry, the latest being ‘big data’.
Travel Weekly’s Lucy Huxley wrote a great piece a couple of weeks ago about this new jargon.
She rightly said that while all this data offers opportunities, instinct and experience are still hugely valuable in the travel industry.
Back in the day, clients queued up to book in high street travel agents as they had no real alternative.
We captured their name, address and phone number and, at the next brochure launch, we simply wrote to them to tell them about it and followed it up with a call – easy!
Then and now
So what is now different in 2014 with the world of big data?
Clients’ options to book travel are vast and multichannel, across shops, phone and internet.
Communication with them is via the old address and phone but also now via email, web and social media.
They can contact us via all of these channels and we are expected to track, follow and react to their behaviour to get the best results and all with the same margins and staffing as the old world; quite a challenge for us all.
While I happily look at my Google Analytics report some evenings, divorce would be pending if this were a daily occurrence.
Each of these areas requires time, knowledge and expertise, and as a small or medium-sized travel agent, just how can you do this within budgets you can afford?
External consultants will tell you that it will self-fund through the extra bookings this knowledge and power will give you – but for a small agent like me, this is too brave and bold a move without more insight first.
Simple approach
Our approach at Miles Morgan Travel is a simple one: remember who our target clients are, keep talking to them and understanding where they are looking and getting their information, and do a really good job in those areas. To take on every aspect of the big-data world and do them all at only 50% is a recipe for failure, in my opinion.
Don’t be scared to say ‘no, we just don’t do that.’
It is quite amazing how the role of the travel agent has changed over time. To run a successful travel agency you used to need to be hot on customer service and be friendly, engaging and knowledgeable about destinations. These days you need to add social media guru, SEO expert, Google Analytics interpreter and direct marketing specialist to the armoury.
The great thing is the resourceful, enthusiastic high street travel agent always seems to find a way through this ever‑increasing list. Long may we continue to thrive and prosper.