Travel search on the cusp of a new era
Speaking at Arabian Travel Market (ATM) this week in a session on “How To Build Influence with Gen Z in Just 30 Seconds”, Marc-Antoine Simon, industry manager, Travel and Tourism – MENA, TikTok, shared insights on the latest trends in community-led marketing.
“Travellers need a search platform that offers fast results with visual content that is mobile and community-led. By creating their own platform, they have eliminated major barriers to travel that once hindered the pre-booking journey, and these communities are making destinations viral overnight,” Simon said.
Brief yet powerful content can significantly influence travel decisions, he suggested.
“Travel is one of the most sought-after pursuits in people’s lives, so much so that they would sacrifice just about anything to get away. Unfortunately, the high likelihood of a trip leading to unwanted disappointment is why, ahead of a trip, people go the extra mile to ensure that the reward is maximised and the risk is neutralised,” Simon explained.
He said this desire to take control of the search experience sees travellers swapping keywords for human words, queries for communities and information for immersion.
“This allows them to discover, on their terms, and transform a daunting endeavour into an enjoyable journey, proving that travel is at the cusp of a new search era fuelled by people.”
Motor-bike ride-hailing platform arrives in Thailand
TADA, the Singapore-based zero commission ride-hailing platform, is expanding its transportation ecosystem in Thailand with the addition of app-based motorbike ride-hailing services.
TADA currently operates in Singapore, Cambodia and Vietnam and is part of the group of companies under MVLLABS Pte. Ltd.
The announcement comes two months after the official TADA launch in Thailand with coverage growing to cover the entire Bangkok Metropolitan Area.
Sean Kim, CEO of TADA, said, “With the strategic addition of motorcycle services we continue to develop the transportation ecosystem in Thailand. We are focused on creating additional income opportunities for more Thai motorcycle drivers with our commitment to 0% commission.”
TADA says by moving from commission-based fees to a more sustainable model for drivers and passengers, will ensure “continued growth and underscoring TADA’s dedication to providing services that are right for the country”.
“This strategy allows the company to create a fairer, more transparent and financially rewarding ecosystem.”
The registration for bikers is now open and can be download at the TADA Driver App.
Expensify eyes chat-based super app
Expensify, the financial management super app for expenses and corporate cards, is launching a new travel platform: Expensify Travel.
Expensify has partnered with Spotnana to create a new travel offering in Expensify, built on top of Spotnana’s cloud-based Travel-as-a-Service platform.
The early release includes extensive booking and management capabilities in the Expensify web and mobile apps, with 24/7 Expensify support.
Longer term, the offering will integrate Spotnana’s cloud-based infrastructure directly into New Expensify, Expensify’s chat-based super app. Customers will then be able to book and manage trips, manage travel expenses, chat with colleagues – all in one place.
Expensify Travel customers will also benefit from Spotnana’s self-service capabilities for managing flight changes, cancellations, and unused ticket credits, as well as comprehensive travel management capabilities.
A token answer for busy airports
Speaking at Arabian Travel Market this week, Kashif Khalid, regional director, Africa & Middle East, IATA, said innovation was essential for enabling the industry to accommodate significant growth in air traffic.
“Without innovation, the future will be very challenging. We cannot continue building bigger infrastructure with the level of passengers we anticipate, so we must look at how we manage passengers and cargo differently through digital solutions and innovation.”
He said the industry is working on several innovations, not only to make aviation more sustainable but also to use infrastructure more efficiently.
“One of these solutions is One ID, where we digitalise tokens for passengers, which enables us to facilitate passengers seamlessly. How we use the traditional infrastructure of airports is going to change dramatically,” Khalid said.
IATA One ID is a digital identity that consolidates a variety of travel documents, such as passports, tickets, and boarding passes, into a single digital token, eliminating the need for multiple physical documents.
New Saudi airline will encourage start-ups
Riyadh Air, Saudi’s new national carrier, due to launch in 2025 will be the first digitally native airline, according to Abe Dev, vice president, digital and innovation, Riyadh Air.
He said technologies such as AI and cloud computing had matured in the last few years, along with customer expectations, “so we have a unique opportunity to deliver a technology-enabled guest experience that has never been seen before”.
Dev said Riyadh Air would provide a solid platform for start-ups to collaborate with the airline, providing further opportunities for innovation.
