I must say, this is my first trip into the wonderful world of blogging. I am pretty amazed with the vast amount of blogs out there and the research and time put into them.
This blog will center around the travel industry, mainly the online travel industry. Why? According to the New York Times, in many measures, travel has become the Web’s most developed category. Compared to retailing, where as of 2005 only about 5% of retail shopping was done online, the travel industry was experiencing about 30% of its bookings done on the web. Even with the setback the travel industry had to endure from the September 2001 terrorist attacks, the travel industry saw a growth in the next two years, up to about $43 billion, according to Forrester Research.
The face of traveling and tourism was revamped with the growth of the Internet and its opportunities. Besides my obsession with travel and my desire to see the world, the enormity of the online travel industry is what made me interested in researching this topic and blogging about it. I am amazed at the transformation from personal travel agents booking your entire trip with you sitting at their desk, and multiple phone calls over weeks, to the simplicity (and disintermediation) of visiting a site like Expedia.com and being able to book your entire trip yourself in one night.
Over the next couple weeks, I will be discussing branding/product issues, online communication strategies, the online traveling community and CRM, online security issues dealing with traveling, pricing, and any other interesting information I may come across in my research.
Specifically, I hope to learn more about the top players in the industry, such as Expedia, Travelocity, Orbitz and Priceline, and their goals and strategies pertaining to marketing on the Internet. I’d also like to look into the growth of the online travel industry over the past couple years, and where it might be headed in the future. I’m looking forward to researching the markets that the online travel industry focuses on. In the past, it has mainly been directed at domestic travel, although since 2005, growth in foreign travel has occurred and many of these online booking agencies have been opening doors to this opportunity. In addition to this, I think it will be interesting to look at some of the new security issues that come along with these opportunities. Customer service is also a large aspect of traveling aids, and I know this is why personal travel agents were so very helpful. It’s hard to have that same “personal touch” when selling and buying online, and I’d like to see how some of these sites close this gap.
Overall, there is a lot to look into with the online travel agency, and I’m looking forward to getting my feet wet. Bear with me, though, as it’s the first time I’ve used this “blogging” structure and the first time I’ve really looked into the online travel agency. Feel free to add comments / constructive criticism. This is promised to be a learning experience.
