Tours, attractions and activities vary so wildly in size and type, the segment has faced more than a fair share of struggles in its attempts to enter the online travel game.
An estimated 82% of bookings in the segment are still handled via manual processes, according to Phocuswright. On top of that, companies (of every size) within the different categories of the tours and activities segment likely conduct their businesses very differently from each other.
It is seemingly impossible to develop an online system that would allow businesses the flexibility to manage themselves and their distribution, in a single space.
That’s not to say it isn’t worth a try. Brothers Chan Chee Kong (COO) and Chee Chong (CEO) founded GlobalTix in 2014 after noticing that the tours and activities segment did not have a GDS in the same way airlines and hotels do.
Hoping to tackle the challenge themselves, they built GlobalTix – a cloud-based e-ticketing and B2B marketing platform, with a specific focus on digitalising tickets for tourist attractions.
What sets GlobalTix apart is how it aggregates tickets for multiple attractions into a single QR code. For the customer (and tour guides), it eliminates the hassle of multiple paper-based tickets and allows groups to be covered by the same code for any amount of attractions.
On the business front, GlobalTix wants to act as a cloud-based marketplace for merchants and travel agents by acting as an open platform, its ticketing system being the unifying element. Travel partners and merchants can manage their distribution and revenue as well as collaborate and create appealing ticket bundles that effectively target consumers.
“Apart from providing a common distribution platform, the partner also benefits by having to visit only one website instead of multiple websites, to put together customised and innovative packages for customers,” said Chan Chee Chong.
Merchants can use the system to make distribute tickets seamlessly to customers, as well as build new distribution channels through GlobalTix’s travel partners.
When asked why merchants should opt for using the GlobalTix system over developing or simply sticking to their own, Chan (CK) drew a simply analogy.
“We think of ourselves as – it doesn’t matter if you buy an Asus or Lenovo, you have the same Intel chip… [in the same fashion] our tickets all have a logo that says ‘powered by GlobalTix,’” said Chan (CK).
“We haven’t had any pushback because we are very open… without a cross-platform like ours, there is no chance to bundle [multiple attractions] under a single ticket… it also benefits the merchant because you don’t need to train frontline staff to deal with many different systems.”
GlobalTix launched in 2014 but recently underwent a ‘renovation’ and re-launch late last year
Chan stated that data sharing was key to helping attractions within the segment develop relationships. Currently, Chan says they have only explored sharing data on an aggregate basis with partners but “we haven’t milked it per se.” Partners are only able to access their own data.
GlobalTix insights allow companies to develop campaigns that can effectively target their key demographics. Chan recounts the example of KidZania – an indoor role-play theme park for children – that embarked on a ‘Back to School’ campaign specifically targeted at adults.
“Through us… they realised they were getting a lot of traction from university students. So, with that insight, they’re going to launch a promotion code for students to encourage them to go [to the next one]” said Chan.
More than that, it invites the opportunity for different players in the space to create different attraction bundles and cross-promotions that may appeal more to travellers. It makes partnerships between smaller players and larger agencies far more straightforward, by eliminating the need to reconcile different modus operandi.
Inevitably, a key obstacle is their ability to scale. Far more effective collaborations can occur only once the marketplace contains a significant amount of players. Impressively, GlobalTix already works with all major attractions in Singapore and over 200 travel partners. Beyond Singapore, it has expanded its services to Bali, Bintan, Bangkok and is even making a footprint in Japan.
When it comes to their own stake in the game, Globaltix monetises through a simple transaction fee structure. That fee can change depending on the volume that travel agents and attractions generate.
At this point in time, Chan says “We’re cash-flow even… we haven’t turned a profit yet, but we hope to soon… The value of our tickets sold is about $45-50 million each year, so we’re not small by any means.” GlobalTix also closed USD$2 million in Series A funding in August 2016.
Chan Chee Kong and Chee Chong’s ambitions are now extending into the F&B space… but not as a reservations system per se.
“The way we think about travel – attractions are primary but the younger generation is going for ‘experiential visitation’. And that inevitably involves food… all they do is take the same QR code, go to a restaurant and they get a nice [pre-selected meal].”
Lead photo courtesy of Randy Heinitz via Flickr
