There was once a time when travel agents used to thrive – not just big corporations but individuals too. The time when traveling apps were relatively new, and the internet and smartphones were not advent. So, people let other people decide on their behalf.
However, apps did change so many sectors. And the travel industry is no exception. Average travelers now could plan a trip, book a flight and manage their entire itinerary from the comfort of their home.
But at the start, due to the transparency issue, local agents did thrive. Not until 2019, when travel scenes around the world changed significantly. Now after looking at the number of travel-related apps, one thing we can gauge is that “Travel app has become a necessity for many travel agents and corporations” if they want to survive in the market.
With all this, there has been a significant shift in people trusting travel apps more than their local agents. Let’s see the differences that resulted in such a shift of preference.
1. The easier plan customization
A person may have varied interest and varied budget to choose from. A travel agent might not have options to suit as much plethora of requirements. However, travel mobile apps simply filter out options and choose the ones which fit their preference the best.
Plus, apps are so advanced that provides live chat and call support options too which can further help one refine the plan by providing the much needed human touch.
2. Cheaper travel options
Needless to say that given the excessive competition that has now come up in the travel domain. The pricing of all the travel apps is supposed to be competitive. Also, most of the travel apps have funding from a venture capitalist. Thus, allowing them to sell the properties at a loss, just as to gain more customers.
3. Plethora of options and ease of usage
Another thing that local agents did lack is the number of options they could give. Most local agents provided their contacts. They did not have a large team to support them with the knowledge too. For the travel app, a large-scale team collects information from various locations and places; thus building the inventory on them.
In addition to this with continuous notifications, one can select from literally the best options for their travel convenience, irrespective of all the travel aggregators they are listed on.
4. Accommodation of last minute plan changes
Want to book a last-minute ticket to a safari or a show? Pulling this with a local agent might not be possible. But some apps are well versed and connected at helping you out with such engagement with just one click at the button.
As they say “last minute travel plans are the best!” but it’s because of availability and easy accessibility of travel apps
5. Availability of supporting content
With so many variations and specialties, these travel apps make your work easier. Many apps help people in planning their flights; some apps only help in planning their itinerary. Finally, with Google maps, reviews – the entire plan can be made as accurate and custom curated as possible.
6. Easier local contacts
As mentioned earlier, the local agent doesn’t have a sales team catering to them. Hence options available with them are limited and commonly famous. What gives an edge to travel apps, especially apps like Airbnb, which provides personalized home stays too; which help them in experiencing local flavor. And this is what makes traveling and exploration worth it.
7. Neutrality of suggestion
A travel agent would usually go for options from where they get a maximum commission. A travel app doesn’t have any such motivation. Thus one can expect that what is shown on the app is the best option as per your choice.
Today everyone wants ease right from the place where they are sitting. Such travelers want to explore but don’t want to take pain for it. And thus it is only obvious that today’s mobile app for travel is here to stay.
How travel apps are transforming classic agent booking process
Developing an app for travel is an easy task with ON AIR APP Builder. So, to benefit from the success of a travel app and ease of making it, you should start now by creating an app that will help you with that.
