Whether they’re on the road for work or pleasure, travelers expect their experience to be easy, digital, and tailored to their individual preferences – from the time they book their trip until they return home.
Travel demand continues to swell post-pandemic, with a huge rebound in 2022 to near pre-pandemic levels, and it shows no signs of slowing in 2023. This trend presents great opportunities for travel brands, it also a major challenge: meeting rising customer experience (CX) expectations while also cutting costs wherever possible.
So, how can you make sure the customer journey with your brand is a great one? And how can you trim costs without sacrificing customer experience along the way?
As 2023 begins, focus your CX strategy around your customers’ top intents – the reasons they’re interacting with your brand. The top five travel customer intents, according to a TTEC analysis of more than 1 billion conversations, are:
- account management
- booking
- cancellation or refund
- trip details
- membership
Once you have a firm grasp on customer intent, the right mix of people and technology can help you improve you delight customers, retain top employees, and keep costs in line.
Make messaging your go-to CX channel
Travelers want to navigate their trip planning and details on their own time, which is why messaging is becoming the fastest-growing channel of choice. Messaging gives customers more control over interactions, even letting them pause a conversation if they need to and come back to it when it’s convenient for them.
Messaging delivers speed, efficiency and results other channels just can’t match when it comes to handling customer inquiries – and it’s well-equipped to handle travel’s top intents. It enables quicker and better customer experiences, lets associates service multiple customers concurrently, reduces wait times, and drives more conversions – all while reducing costs.
Adding messaging to your CX mix (or improving how you’re using it) will lead to happier customers who are more likely to keep booking with you. Companies that don’t have a strong messaging strategy in 2023 will lose out to those that do.
Empower associates to help customers quickly
No one has time to waste when it comes to planning a trip, confirming details, or canceling if something unexpected happens. Customer inquiries can become even more urgent when travelers encounter problems during their trip and need quick resolutions.
Speed is critical to providing a smooth travel experience, and associates need all the necessary tools at their fingertips to get information quickly and work effectively.
Travel brands need to invest in workforce optimization (WFM), workforce optimization (WFO), and knowledge management to help ensure associates have fast access to the information they need, when they need it.
These are just a couple of the trends we’re predicting for travel brands. For more on what to expect in 2023, the insights driving these trends, and what it means for your business, check out our strategy guide, "CX Trends 2023: 10 predictions shaping the evolution of customer and employee experience.”
