“In the same way that our current version captures information from the four global distribution systems automatically , and handles the accounting for those bookings, the new version will be able to capture sales information from major tour operator packages on viewdata,” said managing director Chuck Richardson.
“It saves on time and paperwork as agents will not have to search for information from viewdata which is time consuming and prone to errors.”
The target market for the software package is agencies with between four and 15 users.
“Dolphin for Windows is ideal for one and two-branch operations. It is a standard system for small to medium enterprises that don’t have the budget to develop their own package,” said Richardson.
“The software is suitable for business and retail agents, and those who put together tailor-made travel and small consolidators.”
He estimates the number of potential users at over 2,000 agencies who still work with paper-based systems of cards and files.
The system takes care of the paperwork that an agent needs to complete after making a GDS booking. It creates a new folder on screen for each client, which contains the name, destination and departure date.
Agents do not need to type this information in as it is captured from the GDS. Each agent gets a daily ‘to do’ list, which will include reminders to chase outstanding client balances, issue tickets, pay tour operators and confirm hotel bookings.
“Paperwork for a booking that would usually take 20mins to finish takes around 3mins with our system,” claimed Richardson.
Dolphin also automates monthly accounting, and smooths reconciliation of statements from the Bank Settlement Plan that agencies use to pay airlines for flights.
Agency managers can also print reports to keep a tally of how much business their company places with each airline.
“You can run reports and pull out information to help keep track of volume, so you can negotiate a bigger commission. We also have other reports for business travel agents that can generate a breakdown of a corporate client’s spend by destination or by department,” said Richardson.
The system was developed in 1995 and tested out in Copenhagen in 1996.
“Scandinavia is a smaller geographical market, so it was easy to reach our target market. We moved the company to London in 1998,” said Richardson.
Dolphin for Windows was launched at last November’s World Travel Market.
Agencies have two ways of paying for the software.
A low upfront fee combined with a monthly subscription, or an outright payment.
For a five-person agency, the former option would work out at around £900 for installation and training and £60 per user per month.
To buy the system outright, it costs £900 for training and installation, and £1,200 per user, which works out at £6,000 for a five-person agency.
Installation takes one day, and Dolphin recommends a one-day training session for each staff member, with up to four people in a class.
A second session is necessary two to three weeks later. “Once agents have been using the system, they generate questions – the follow-up is an advanced session,” said Richardson.