How Artificial Intelligence is Improving Tourists’ Experience

Artificial intelligence has entered the everyday lives of a large number of people, since the latest version of ChatGPT became available. 

This app is an artificial intelligence program that has been trained to write text autonomously. It has been designed to generate text in a natural and coherent way, similar to how a human writes. It is used to create automatic responses, narrative text and conversations for chatbots. It is advanced technology that helps to make conversations with computers more similar to those with people.
Artificial intelligence can improve the tourism industry in various ways, for example by enhancing the travelers’ experience with chatbots.  

Here are some examples: 

• 24/7 assistance: Chatbots can provide information and assistance to customers at any time, even outside of human operators’ working hours. 
• Bookings and information: Chatbots can help customers book flights, hotels, and activities, providing information on availability, prices, and special offers. 
• Personalized recommendations: Chatbots can use machine learning to provide personalized recommendations to customers based on their preferences and needs. 
• Language: Chatbots can communicate with customers in multiple languages, making the interaction smoother and more accessible to a global audience. 
• Cost reduction: Chatbots can help reduce customer service costs, as they can handle a large number of requests simultaneously and automate many tasks. 
• Data analysis: Chatbots can gather and analyze user data to help companies better understand their customers and provide an even more personalized and targeted service. 
• Seamless interaction: Chatbots can provide a seamless experience for users, allowing them to continue the conversation across different channels like SMS, Email, Social Media. 
• Customer satisfaction: The ability to offer quick and personalized assistance can increase customer satisfaction and loyalty. 

This is what we wrote in 2017 on this topic, imagining the era of BOTA, a neologism that we coined by combining Chatbot and O.T.A, and envisioning the use of this technology to create greater value in the distribution chain of the tourism industry. 

IT’S TIME FOR BOTA!

Technology and a good dose of creativity can create room for new solutions and, in particular, new brands

Artificial intelligence and robots are catching on in the Travel & Tourism industry, starting to change users’ behaviour, services and, above all, business models. The robot which serves meals in hotels is here. Its name is AURA, it is owned by M Social, and we can find it in Singapore. Nowadays we can also find robots in airports, in particular in Asian ones, and are able to provide several services, from the check-in to giving information. Robots are increasingly being developed in other sectors, too. Recently, eMarketer realised a survey in the USA and UK, discovering that more than 90% of respondents thinks that being able to chat with the hotel is very useful. Perhaps this is the reason why, in February, Mercure launched a BOT for Messenger, following Expedia, Kayak and Skyscanner, which has also signed an interesting deal with Skype. There are many new startups, such as SnapTravel, HelloHipmunk, Mezi, KimKim, Pana or BoltFare… and the list would be longer than this.
Many groups of users, especially the youngest ones, think that chats are a very immediate and efficient tool, and we can expect that their usage will be unrestrained. In fact, it is perceived as quick, discrete (if compared to voice assistants) and, in particular, it fits into the mobile trend, which definitely became the most used tool for online researches and will soon become the preferred one for booking. We are already observing new distribution business models based on chatbots, actual mobile-focused OTAs, namely chatbOTAs… that we are going to call BOTAs! In fact, in spite of the consolidation phase which saw the rise of integrated colossus in the USA, such as Expedia, Priceline and Aribnb and in China, such as Ctrip and Alibaba, technology and a good dose of creativity can create room for new solutions and, in particular, new brands.

Twissen