To move the industry towards a closer understanding of travellers in the Asian region, Amadeus has launched Journey of Me Insights, an Asia Pacific traveller study spanning 14 markets.
Albert Pozo, President of Amadeus Asia Pacific said, “There is no traveller today quite as important as the Asia Pacific traveller. Yet the irony is that even as we talk about the ‘Asia Pacific traveller’ – it doesn’t exist. The diversity we see across nationalities, gender and generation in this region is astounding. More than that, our research has showed us that the preferences, behaviours and demands of travellers vary enormously from one country to another. The industry must come to grips with this. The one-size-fits-all approach is a thing of the past.”
As part of the Journey of Me Insights project, Amadeus today publishes a report on Indian travellers titled ‘Journey of Me Insights: What Indian travellers want’. From when and how Indian travellers plan and book their trips, to how and why they want to stay connected while travelling, to how frequently they use sharing economy services, and the types of new technologies they would be most interested in, the study takes a multi-faceted look at what Indian travellers want. The findings unveiled four themes for travel providers to focus on:
The personalisation-privacy paradox – 64 per cent of Asia Pacific travellers interviewed are open to sharing personal data for more relevant offers and personalised experiences. Somewhat more cautious, 71 per cent of Indian travellers feel the same. For travel providers, the mandate is clear – personalisation must be carefully balanced against rising privacy concerns. They will need to respect and protect personal data and the need for privacy at all times. Above and beyond adhering to legislation, travel players must be able to articulate ‘what’s the value?’ to get travellers to share their data.
In the world of travel, every engagement point matters. Beyond personalisation, connecting with travellers in a timely and intuitive manner is equally important. While the vast majority of Indian travellers would be interested in receiving travel recommendations from the moment they consider a trip all the way up to while they are on the trip, travel players must consider carefully how to connect with them and with what content. 34 per cent of Indian travellers prefer to receive updates and recommendations about their trip through e-mail, with only 9 per cent happy to be contacted via phone call. Recommendations that help ensure personal safety was the top choice for Indian travellers (33 per cent), while itinerary tips were less popular (19 per cent).
Rakesh Bansal, chief executive office, Amadeus India added, “At Amadeus India, our goal is to help the travel industry thrive by putting the traveller at the centre of everything we do. That’s why we’re investing to understand who they are and what they want. The India report gives us many interesting insights – some expected, others less so. One key observation was how important finding staff, newspapers and TV shows in a language they can understand is to Indian travellers. Similarly, respondents from India want to eat familiar food while travelling overseas. This is a good reminder to travel players about the importance of accommodating local preferences at the destination. With Amadeus Journey of Me Insights, we hope to help our customers and partners shape a future of travel that travellers want.”
Journey of Me Insights was conducted in collaboration with YouGov across 14 markets in Asia Pacific including Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.