Travelmole eWire Q&A with Roberto Da Re

Roberto da Re is president of sales and booking management solution providers Dolphin Dynamics

Q: What are the biggest challenges that the travel industry faces today technology wise?

A: The biggest challenge when it comes to technology does not actually come from technology itself, but the lack of investment funds and appetite for investment. Most companies have systems that have evolved over time and are not necessarily integrated or particularly sophisticated. Because of the low profit margins of the industry, small and mid-size companies especially struggle to be able to make the investments to bring their operation onto a modern platform and are caught in the spiral of having to employ people to carry out manual back office operations to make it all hang together. It is a vicious circle that even some of the larger companies are caught into and struggle to break.
 
Q: Are travel suppliers getting the cross channel experience right?

A: Most companies these days are trying to address their customers in a multi channel environment but the challenge is that most systems were not built or designed in a way to facilitate such an approach. When you compare the multi channel experience that other sectors provide to their customers (Tesco on-line for example) there is still a long way to go for most travel companies, but this is an area that is seeing a lot of activity at the moment and most of the tender requests that we receive these days have a multi-channel element to it. The problem is that in order to really get it right, a radical approach is most times necessary in terms of systems replacement and this is something that most travel companies approach with a lot of hesitation.
 
Q:  Recent research from Hitwise showed that travel consumers are now searching online using brands, suggesting they are brand loyal. Do you think this is the case? What are your views on how the online travel consumer is evolving?

A: I tend to agree just partially. I think that when it comes to travel, consumers are brand aware now that they have realised that off-line brand owners are also active in the online space. But I do not think that this has such a big impact in travel distribution, because there are strong brand names that are intermediaries such as Expedia and Lastminute and traditionally travellers have bought branded product via travel companies in the high street. The exception is probably in the airline sector where direct sell is very strong, but again this depends on the type of product the traveller is looking for. When looking for a flight to Italy to visit friends, they would buy direct; when booking the family holiday, they would buy a tailor made or a package from a travel company, inclusive of air transport.
 
Q: Is the changing landscape in the travel industry forcing travel agents into becoming tour operators too?

A:Yes, but it is more due to the fact that tour operators have started to push their direct distribution. Travel agents in order to maintain and improve margins have been forced to become tour operators themselves, be that real or virtual operators (using only dynamic packaging and not actually sourcing product directly). I think it is a good thing because it is something that drives out of the business those companies that add no value, encourages consolidation in order to achieve some economy of scale and the end result is that the remaining travel companies are much more reliable and rounded businesses.
 
Q: If you could change one thing about the travel industry today, what would it be?

A: The obsession with discounting. It doesn’t do anything for brand recognition or loyalty in the long run.
 
Q: With so many companies out there offering so many technology solutions, how should agents pick through the fine details to discover what suits their agency the best?

A: There is no easy answer to this. When it comes to technology the devil is in the detail and unless a company goes through a proper due diligence process and spends the time to look at the detail, they might as well pick blind. Even the fact that a solution might be perfect for one company does not mean it is for another. So, when searching for a system there are no magic formulas and if something looks too cheap to be true normally it is because there is a catch somewhere..
 
 
Q: What’s the USP of Dolphin Dynamics?

A: For several years now we have embraced an open approach to system design and our USP is the ability to offer a truly multi-channel solution that from a central system allows small and large travel companies to address all distribution channels (online, off line; direct sale and via resellers, for travel agents and tour Operators) while at the same time deliver efficiency in product procurement and back office automation.