Spain’s future contains traces from the past. Taking an important key role in the economic growth of Spain’s future is the tourism industry. According to data from 2017, tourism accounts for more than 15% of local GDP. Hence, this industry must implement innovative contact center solutions for travel and tourism to optimize their businesses.
Transforming the industry and improving customer experience
Tourism relays very heavily on Contact Centers, especially the wholesale sector. Tour operators are relying more and more on multi-channel Contact Centers for the majority on their sales. There is a 50% / 50% split between online and contact center sales, according tu current studies. Predictions that stated we would see the disappearance of travel agents and tour operators and prefer to purchase travel completely online just hasn’t happened. It’s true for “air only” sales and local destinations like “city break” or theme parks. However, today’s consumer no longer fears making these purchases online.
Some customers prefer direct contact with a professional and still buys “off-line”. However, destination travelers, conventions or the adventure traveler, don´t. Hence, direct contact with a skilled travel professional remains critical. Travel agents have gone from order taking to specialized professionals. Knowledgeable of the destinations, hotels, and capable of recommendations, highly valued by the client and grateful for the expert customer service.
Contact Center as a tool for staying competitive
Travel in the midst of a crisis is also making the Contact Center for tour operators key to growth. Especially when inbound strategies and skills based calls can be routed to the most knowledgeable professional agent chosen by destination. You can also add the “corporate traveler” to this segment. Corporate travel agents can help companies control cost and maximize business travel.
Spain’s tourism industry faces growing challenges with more and more travelers using smartphones and travel apps on higher speed networks (4G). Meeting a customer’s needs for professional expert travel services in a timely reliable manner requires access multi-channel solution. Fierce competition in today’s tourism industry makes having the right tools for your contact center available a must. Modular scalable multi-channel solutions are the best way to maximize any contact centers service and profitability.
