Flight Booking Software Innovation

Airlines have led the travel industry by developing ways to offer special perks to their most loyal customers. Flight booking software that allows for Users to pre-select a seat on the airplane has been around for decades, however, many airlines have recently found innovative ways to charge additional fees to reserve the best seats onboard.  Seasoned airline passengers know the extra legroom that an emergency exit row seat automatically brings and have been grabbing these roomy seats for years. Aisle and Window seats tend to be the most popular with passengers overall and first to go.  Most airlines were quick to capitalize on these trends and began to charge a premium to passengers reserving these seats in advance.  Except of course for the most loyal frequent flyer program members who have been given access to “preferred seating” for a long time.

Distinguishing the experience for coach passengers must have been a success since it wasn’t long before airlines began introducing new “premium coach sections” to offer passengers perks like extra legroom and preferred positioning within the coach cabin.  Suddenly it has become apparent that not all coach seats are equal and the pricing options available when selecting a seat for some airlines today clearly reflect this.  How much extra a customer is charged to pre-reserve a particular seat or whether they are even charged at all can be determined by their loyalty program status.

But the special perks and treatment customer loyalty programs offer today are not limited to preferred seating.  Your preferred customer number may determine a customer’s experience throughout their entire journey.  Starting at the airport, a customer’s frequent traveler number can determine which line they wait on at the airport to check-in, whether they pay to check a bag or not, even their priority when it comes time to board the aircraft.  Once onboard, important things like which the seat they are actually seated in or whether they receive complimentary drinks and a meal can all be determined by their loyalty program status with a specific airline.  As airlines continue to invent new ways to provide a higher level of service and comfort for their most loyal customers, your flight booking software needs to be able to keep up and provide this information during the booking process.

Capturing and sharing a customer’s loyalty program information has always been important to only ensure individual customer loyalty programs are credited, but today this information may determine much more.  Everything from which line they have to wait on at the airport to check-in, the order they are allowed to board the plane as well as where they sit on the plane and even onboard service perks like complimentary drinks and meals that they may be entitled to.  Flight booking software needs to provide the right combination of product features to manage your travel agency business and provide operationally efficiencies that increase sales and reduced costs.  It should be easy to use for both agents and customers and provide live access to content.

Airline Reservation Systems Should Be Easy To Use

There are so many different places that consumers can go to purchase the same product, ever wonder why someone would choose to purchase an identical product from one vendor versus another?  The answer usually comes down to price, service or convenience.  Whether you are selling a bottle of designer cologne or a ticket on the airline, odds are consumers will base where they make their purchase based on one or all of these criteria.   Choosing one airline reservation system over another is no different for today’s online traveler.

If you want to reach price-driven consumers, make sure you offer the best value and price.  Your online booking engine must be able to search the best sources for content quickly and cost-effectively for you to offer a competitive price.  This includes the ability to adjust the selling price quickly and easily as well as offering value add offers right in the fare availability display.  Accessing the low rates offered by air consolidators is another way to get the best fares for your clients.  Different air consolidators specialize in different regions however, so you may look for an airline reservation system that allows you simultaneously search multiple air consolidators for the best fares.

Travel agents can be a great resource to consumers trying to make sense of all the options available and find the best deal possible.  To provide the expertise and service that only a professional travel agent can offer.  Your customers look to you for your expertise in travel, so make sure your clients get the VIP treatment they deserve.  Make sure your application allows them to select seats, request meals and add loyalty program information to their airline reservation.  Be sure to negotiate the best fares possible with the airlines and promote any special deals or amenities that are made available.

Make sure your airline reservation system is convenient for customers to use how and when they choose.  Today’s consumer has become accustomed to shopping using a variety of devices.  Some exclusively use their smartphone to research and purchase travel online.  Others may start their initial search using their handheld device but switch to a tablet or laptop to complete the purchase.  And you will always have the more traditional consumer who may research options online, but prefer to speak with a travel agent to make the actual booking.

To serve all these customers, your airline reservation system must allow you to distribute your products and serve your customers via several online channels.  For applications that support customers via a call center, you will want to consider an application that is easy to use and requires little agent training.   For those consumers shopping via your website, you’ll need an application that allows you to promote special deals and value add offers.  And for those “on the go” mobile consumers, you’ll need a mobile-ready application that adjusts the screen display to fit various devices.   Ease of use and convenience are important when deciding on the right airline booking solution for your travel business, choosing the right technology partner can be even more important.

Airline Booking Engine Options Can Vary

Most airline booking software can provide “live” connectivity with airlines so that the most up to date pricing and availability is used. Some air booking engines even have the ability to search multiple content sources simultaneously for the best price, allowing agency owners the ability to combine their own content with content from other sources. Many travel agents look for an online booking engine that allows them to customize the branding such as headers, footers and style sheets to reflect their agency’s unique identity and provide a seamless online experience for their customers shopping online.

So many of today’s airfares come with specific rules attached to them that choosing the right fare can be confusing.  Some fare rules are important for Consumers to be aware of such as the ability to change their itinerary, class of service or receive a refund on their ticket.  While other fare rules may only make sense to the Travel Agent such as published verses private fares, fare basis codes, combinability, and other GDS information.

The flexibility to choose which information your airline booking engine displays to specific types of users of the application can prove to be an important and valuable tool.  Whether you choose to display the information directly from the GDS or customize the display to contain only the information you want to display can be left up to you.

Look for an airline booking the engine that allows you to set up and control what rules are shown to the user. Many of today’s applications allow you to set up different rules for published verses private fares for example.

The business management tools that an airline booking engine includes is an important factor to consider and something which can vary greatly from system to system.  Most applications include the ability to adjust a product’s selling price, but the level of flexibility defining business rules is where systems can vary tremendously. Most have the ability to adjust selling fares by the airline, but some go much further and allow for Rules to be defined by itinerary, class of service, travel or booking dates and much more.

The ability to easily run reports to track your business and help you make adjustments along the way is also an important consideration when evaluating any air booking engine.   Who are your top customers?  What are the top destinations your customers are interested in? Are your customers finding what they are looking for on your website?  Many applications include reporting tools that track your bookings, but some can even provide search statistics that can let you know quickly and easily what your customers are looking for when they come to your website.

This can be valuable information for a business owner to consider when reviewing their overall product offering as well as negotiating preferential rates with Suppliers.

Choosing an airline booking engine with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision.   Finding a technology the partner that will help you reach today’s mobile consumer with the content they are looking for can be just as important.

Travel Agent Software Needs A B2C Component

It should come as no surprise that the travel industry has been focusing more and more of its resources on e-commerce solutions as consumers increasingly rely on the internet for booking their flights, hotels, ground transportation, and even cruise vacations online. However, many travel companies have had challenges developing online booking solutions, especially those that are still using travel agent software built on legacy technology. Many businesses struggle to add new content or make simple changes to their User Interface. The rigid architecture legacy systems use is not at all like the flexible architecture of today's distributed and layered applications. In most legacy systems, business policies and decisions are hardcoded using inflexible, predefined process flows which makes any integration with external internet-based applications difficult and sometimes just impossible. To make matters worse, these legacy systems use old technology and it has become increasingly difficult to find developers willing to work with applications written in languages that are not widely used in today's technology.

As a result, the online revolution has been the driving force behind the switch away from legacy systems. E-commerce sales save a business time and money making it the most cost-effective method to deliver products to consumers. The "state of the art" travel agent software available today provides flexible & fully scalable applications that easily grow with any size travel agency. Some even provide the ability to customize the application to maintain an agency's own unique brand identity.

Experience has shown that some of the best travel agent software is the result of collaboration. Software developers, suppliers, and travel Agents all provide valuable input that can help design and develop the ultimate travel booking engine. Each of these entities plays an important role in the process and any solution should meet each of their specific individual needs.

To serve today's growing number of consumers who use their mobile device to purchase travel products as well as those that switch between devices during the research and booking process, many companies are building applications that use responsive technology that automatically adjusts the screen layout based on the type of device being used. For those looking for a dedicated Mobile App, there are several companies designing and developing custom Apps. Some offer mobile applications as an optional "add-on" to an existing booking engine while some develop them independently. Either approach offers consumers the ease and mobility of using a smartphone. Mobile Apps and mobile responsive technology can now provide any size travel agency affordable applications built on the latest technology with the powerful tools to they need.

So whether your travel agency needs an airline booking engine, a cruise booking engine or a hotel booking engine, be sure your travel agent software is built using the latest responsive technology. Finding a travel booking engine with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the content they are looking for can be just as important.

Airline Booking Engines Automate Business

Is the airline booking engine your travel business is using designed to automate processes, increase revenues and reduce time and effort required to complete a transaction? Technology continues to evolve at lightning speed and so has the software and applications that power today's online travel booking solutions. There are technology companies dedicated to developing applications to address the demand for travel technology solutions that automate operational processes and provide the ability to customize an "out of the box" solution to support a client's unique brand identity. Many have researched market requirements, worked closely with customers to identify their specific needs and discovered new and innovative ways to increase revenues while reducing expenses.

Online Booking Engines are often "out of the box" solutions that are hosted by a third party technology company but allow the headers, footers and style sheets to be customized to maintain a client's brand identity and provide a seamless online experience for customers. There are also private label versions where a technology partner can change the complete layout of an air booking engine so it is customized to meet a client's specific requirements. And it seems like just about everything in between.

User templates are designed to streamline the selling process for Users and make it easier for agents and agency financial staff to manage bookings. Live access to airline content is often provided via Global Distribution Systems to provide the most up to date availability and pricing. Robust business management tools allow application owners to preset rules that automatically mark up or mark down a product's selling price by airline, itinerary, class of service, travel or booking dates and more. Promotions capability allow agency owners to include specific marketing messages and value ad offers right in the availability display. Some even allow for the setup of promotional codes that can be redeemed in the booking process. Time saving administration tools that cross check bookings with Suppliers automatically compare a booking made by the airline booking engine with the Supplier's system.

Dynamic Packaging products have become a popular option for many travel booking engines as consumers look to create their own unique travel experience. If you plan to sell to today's online consumer, you need to keep pace with the multiple ways that they research, shop and book airline reservations today. Some will use responsive technology for greater support of various mobile and tablet screen sizes so customers can easily view and navigate through the booking process regardless of the type of device they are using. There are even a "state of the art" mobile air apps available that take advantage of the powerful features today's online Air Booking Engines offer combined with the ease and mobility using a smart phone or tablet.

Finding an airline booking engine with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer with the right content and tools to automate your business can be just as important.

Innovation is Key to Booking Airlines Effieciently

From the beginning, airlines have been driving efficiency through innovation with systems designed to automate processes and reduce the time required to complete an airline reservation. These systems have been providing travel industry professionals the ability to book air travel directly for decades. Early on they began to offer the ability to search schedule availability and price for flights by a variety of search criteria such a specific airline, flexible travel dates, nearby airports, nonstops only, etc. As the volume of an airline's business grew and they began to offer more service options in advance, the airline reservation system quickly began to include these features as well. Advance seat Selection, special service requests, ordering onboard meals in advance all became additional options in an online booking engine as well. Credit Card validation, AVS checks, Airline blocking, ticket type checks as well as consolidator and negotiated fares soon followed.

Many travel companies have found that the airline booking engine they can license from an experienced travel technology company to be more powerful and cost effective than developing, hosting and maintaining it themselves. For those looking to control their own user interface, some technology companies provide the capability for Clients to host all User interfaces on their own server while using a web services interface to their booking engine hosted by their technology partner.

There are many types of hosted solutions available including everything from the basic "out of the box" airline reservation system to more customizable applications that include unique sub-domains for your specific version of the application to minimize the appearance customers are being redirected from your website. The best of these allow for booking engine's headers, footers and style sheets to be customized to maintain your brand identity and provide a seamless online experience for your customers. Some travel companies may require a fully custom application where they design the complete layout to meet their own specific requirements. Mobile apps are now available that can extend an airline booking engine to a dedicated app. Many clients are also choosing mobile ready applications built using responsive technology that automatically provides support of various mobile and tablet screen sizes so customers can easily view and navigate through the booking process regardless of the device they are using.

As is the case with many things, the more that you need customized, the higher your costs are likely to be. So remember to evaluate the benefit that customization brings compared to the associated additional costs.

Live access to content is critical for any airline reservation system. Some air booking engines even have the ability to simultaneously search multiple content sources for the best price, allowing an agency to combine their own content with content from a partner agency. Management Tools include the ability to mark up or mark down a product's selling price by airline, itinerary, class of service, dates and more. Some even allow for promotional codes to be set up that can be redeemed during the booking process.

Finding an airline booking engine that can help your online business drive efficiencies through innovation is important. Finding the right technology partner to help make this happen is the key to success.

Taking Flights Online with Flight Reservation System

As more and more people change how and where they shop, nearly every industry has seen a surge in online sales. The airlines were early pioneers in expanding their business online and helped pave the way for the rest of the travel industry. Today you can purchase just about anything online whether it be retail merchandise or making travel arrangements.

As more travel agencies are forced to close their traditional brick and mortar locations in search of more cost effective options, there has been a surge in online travel agencies or OTAs. One of the most important tools these new businesses need to succeed in today's crowded marketplace is a good online flight reservation system.

Whether a client is looking to buy an airline ticket for a business trip or family getaway, the right airline booking engine can help get it done quickly and easily. Today's online booking engines are equipped with amazing functionality and features that have been specifically designed to make the booking process with airlines quick and simple. The right flight reservation system can play an important role in streamlining the entire airline reservation process as well as provide the control a travel agent needs to manage their business.

Every online travel agency has it's own unique style and way that it prefers to conduct it's business. A complete online booking engine often comes with several flexible features that can be easily changed and modified based on individual customer requirements. Things such as website headers, footers and style sheets can be customized to provide a seamless online experience for customers. Complete private label version are also sometimes available that allow clients to change the complete layout of their online booking engine.

Today's travel software must be designed to provide the flexibility to serve consumers when and how they choose. Mobile ready applications that are built using innovative responsive technology can help with this since the template screens automatically change to fit the type of device the customer is using to access the booking engine. Some will even provide you with a dedicated air mobile app that takes full advantage of the powerful administrative features and functionality your flight reservation software offers combined with the flexibility and ease of use a handheld device offers.

The new breed of air booking engines can also equip travel agents with easy to use revenue management tools that allow them to quickly adjust a products selling price by website, airline, itinerary and even class of service. Many of today's travel booking engines support multiple languages and currencies, a critical feature for those looking to expand their travel business into new markets.

An online booking engine is an important investment for anyone operating an online travel agency. Choosing the right flight reservation system will not only help your business automate the airline booking process, but it will increase your company revenues while reducing the time and effort required to complete a transaction. Finding an airline booking engine with the right combination of features can be critical to the success of any travel business. Finding the right technology partner can be even more important.

Air Booking Engines Are About Options

Air travel has exploded over the past few decades with more of the population traveling much more frequently than ever before. For many, hopping on a plane to go visit a friend, attend a quick meeting or just to enjoy a show has become as the common place for some of us as taking a bus or train.

I was reminded of this while on a recent weekend trip. I was settling in my seat on a flight to New York when the lady seated next to me said hello and asked if I lived in New York. I said no, but that I was going there for the evening to have dinner and attend a show with a friend. We had a nice conversation about the show I was seeing and where I was planning to stay, etc. She even recommended a few places to eat and go for a drink after the show. We had a nice conversation during the flight and she shared some good suggestions on how I might spend my time in New York. We said our good-bye at the end the flight and headed our separate ways.

I was in ta cab headed to my hotel when I began to think of how casual taking a trip to New York had become. My friends had just called me the day before letting me know they scored tickets to a great show and here I was in New York City the very next day heading to my hotel to get ready before the show. Planning the trip was simple using the air booking engine available on my travel agent's website. I was able to quickly find and book a flight that fit my schedule and the application even included the option to book a hotel room at a reasonable rate. I was all set!

Access to an airline booking engine is a critical part of any online travel business, so you'll want to research the options available in the market. And there are plenty of options out there, so be prepared to do your homework. First, you'll want to understand your customer and determine their travel needs and shopping preferences. Next, do some quick research on the different booking engine options available. For example, consider using an air booking engine that can also help your clients book a hotel room. This may be an excellent way for you to expand your overall sales volumes while helping you serve your customers better and build up customer loyalty in the process.

The airline booking engine you choose needs to be able to provide your travel business the access the airline content your customers need at the price they are looking for. It needs to include business rules capability for you to easily adjust a product's selling price and offer special targeted promotions. And most of all, it needs to be easy to use and mobile ready to meet the demands of today's consumer.

Finding an air booking engine with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's mobile consumer where and how they shop for air travel can be just as important.

Flight Booking Engines Need Content And Features

As online travel technology solutions continue to advance, more and more people are using some type of Flight Booking Engine to research and book their air travel arrangements. Whether looking to just book airline tickets for a business trip, to visit friends or the annual family vacation, there are online air booking engines available that can help guide just about anyone through the entire research and booking process.

There are countless airline reservation systems and booking engines in the market today. A little research up front about the options available will save you a lot of time and aggravation in the long term when choosing the best application for your business. There are airline booking systems designed to meet the requirements of just about anyone selling travel online, finding the one with the right combination of content sources, price and product features for your business is the key to success.

It is always a good idea to start with evaluating the way you currently make airline bookings and identify any improvements that can be made there. Is your business operating as efficiently as it could when making airline reservations? Is your product priced competitively and easily available for your clients to book? Has your technology kept pace with your competitors?

As consumers continue to shift just about all their purchases to online sales, you may want to make sure your online booking engine is mobile ready so you can avoid the need to develop a separate, expensive dedicated Mobile APP in the future. For this you will want to make sure the Flight Booking Engine you choose is uses responsive technology that will automatically adjust the screen size based on the type of device being used.

Next, consider how your customers like to research and book their airline reservations. Whether your customer prefer to research and book their flight arrangements online or speak with an experienced travel professional, a Flight Booking Engine should be designed to make it quick and easy to use for travel agents and customers alike. The application should be a simple design that does not require the user to input or remember complicated GDS formats. Researching and booking an airline ticket online today should be as easy as just a few clicks of the mouse.

Access to live pricing and availability is key in order to ensure your customers are being provided the most accurate and up to date information available. Access to the best content and price can be critical in today's price driven marketplace, so an airline booking engine that can simultaneously search multiple content sources live for the best price can be extremely valuable feature to have.

You will also want to ensure that any application you choose provides the business management tools that you will need to properly control and manage your business. At a minimum you'll need the ability to adjust the selling price as well as offer targeted sales promotions or include "value adds" to customers using your services.

Identifying the right combination of content sources and product features for your Flight Booking Engine can be a critical decision, finding the right technology partner can be just as important.

FUNCTIONALITY + THE RIGHT CONTENT = SUCCESS

Finding the right online airline booking engine with access to the content sources you are looking for can be a difficult and confusing process for even the most experienced and seasoned professional.

There several types of online travel booking engines available in the market today. Some offer specific travel products such as airline or hotel reservations and many provide the ability to target multiple selling channels including Business to Business (B2B), Business to Consumer (B2C) and even Business to Business to Consumer (B2B2C). A more advanced online airline booking engine might even utilize innovative responsive technology that supportsvarious mobile device screen sizes so customers can easily view and navigate through the booking process regardless of the device they are using.There are even state of the art Air Mobile Apps available that allow any agency to expand their brand’s presence to hand held devices with dedicated Air Mobile Apps. Understanding how your customers prefer to research and book their travel arrangements along with some research on the different options available will help identify the right type of airline reservation system for your business.

Finding the right online booking engine to match your distribution channel needs is only part of the solution. Content is key when it comes to the success of any online business, including those selling airline tickets online. Identifying and securing the right sources to access the airline content you need can be just as critical to the success of your airline booking engine.

Many agency owners choose one of the Global Distribution Systems (GDS) like Amadeus or Sabre to check availability and confirm airline reservations using their own specific agency GDS credentials. Accessing fares and availability via a GDS using an agents specific ID allows users to access not only the “published” airfares available in the market, but also any “private” or “negotiated” rates a specific agency may have with an airline. If you plan for your booking engine to use your GDS ID to make airline bookings, you’ll first want to find a technology partner who can connect the booking engine you choose with your GDS ID.

Others may choose to align themselves with Air Consolidators in order to access the lower, preferential airfares that these airline aggregators are able to negotiate. By aggregating sales from several smaller agencies, many Air Consolidators are able to drive significant volumes with airlines and as a result they are able to negotiate deeply discounted private fares as well as preferential fare rules and better commissions on published airfares. Some air booking engines even have theability tosimultaneously search multiple content sources for the best price, allowing an agency’s airline reservation system to combine their own content with fares and content from other sources such Air Consolidators or affiliated agencies they may work closely with.

With so many distribution channel options combined with the numerous airlines with what seems like countless different fare options, finding the right airline reservation system with the right content sources can be an important and critical decision that determines the success of your online business. Finding the right technology company to partnerwith can be even more important.

Air Booking Engines should be convenient and easy to use

There are so many different places that consumers can go to purchase some products, so why would someone choose to purchase an identical product from one retailer verses another? The answer usually comes down to price, service or convenience. Whether you are selling a bottle of designer perfume or a ticket on an airline, chances are consumers will base where they choose to make their purchase based on one or all of these criteria. Choosing one airline booking engine over another is no different for today’s savvy, online traveler.

Make sure you offer the best value and price if you want to reach price driven consumers. Your online booking engine must be able to search the best sources for content quickly and cost effectively for you to offer a competitive price. This includes the ability to adjust the selling price quickly and easily as well as offering value add offers right in the fare availability display. Accessing the low rates offered by air consolidators is another way to get the best fares for your clients. Different air consolidators specialize in different regions however, so you may look for an airline booking engine that allows you simultaneously search multiple air consolidators for the best fares.

Provide the expertise and service that only a professional travel agent can offer. Travel agents can be a great resource to consumers trying to make sense of all the options available and find the best deal possible. You are your customers travel expert, so make sure your clients get the VIP treatment they deserve. Make sure your application allows them to select seats, request meals and add loyalty program information to their airline reservation. Negotiate the best deals possible with the airlines and promote any special deals or amenities that are available.

Make sure your airline booking engine is convenient for customers to interact with how and when they choose. Today’s consumer has become accustom to shopping using a variety of devices. Some exclusively use their smart phone to research and purchase travel online. Others may start their initial search using their handheld device but switch to a tablet or laptop to complete the purchase. And you will always have the more traditional consumer who may research options online, but prefer to speak with a travel agent to make the actual booking.

To serve all these customers, your online booking engine must allow you to distribute your products and serve your customers via several online channels. You will need an application that supports Business to Business (B2B) for those customers using call centers. For this, you will want to consider an application that is easy to use and requires little agent training. For those consumers shopping via your website, you’ll need a Business to Consumer (B2B) application that allows you to promote special deals and value add offers. And of course for those always “on the go” mobile consumers you’ll need a mobile ready application that adjusts the screen display to fit any device.

Ease of usse and convenience are important when deciding on the right airline booking solution for your travel business, choosing the right technology partner can be even more important.

In this article author writes about Odysseus Solutions.Different air consolidators specialize in different regions however, so you may look for an airline booking engine that allows you simultaneously search multiple air consolidators for the best fares.

Localize Your Air Booking Engine When Going Global

Think your online airline booking engine is ready to go Global? Well there are the obvious things that you will need to consider such as local language and local currencies. As many expanding internationally quickly learn however, there are a lot more things your business will need to address before your global expansion will be successful.

A centralized application managing Live connections with Supplier content along with flexible Business Rules to manage the product offered customers is key for any online travel business. But launching airline reservation software in global markets involves a lot more than an online booking engine with multi-currency and multi-language capabilities. As many businesses quickly learn, there is a difference between “globalizing” a product so that it is generic enough to work in several markets verses “localizing” a product. Just as the languages and currencies used in different countries may vary, so do many of the regulations regarding consumers and the disclosure of information during the selling process.

Many market requirements dictate a unique sales flow and some may need access to specific local content only available in that market. These variables require an airline booking engine with a layout that can be quickly customized to meet local requirements combined with easy access to critical local market content to complement “global” content providers.

While simply translating an application into a new language may be a quick way of entering a new market, there is some danger with his approach. Lost in Translation, your brand message may be unclear or miscommunicated. Many have learned that Languages often need to be customized or localized to account for regional dialects. The Portuguese spoken in Brazil is much different than in Portugal. The Spanish spoken in Latin America can be dramatically different than that in Spain. Remember when Chevrolet launched the Chevy Nova in Latin America, not realizing at first that the cars English name (No-Va) loosely translated to “No Go” in Spanish?! Even English sounds different when spoken by the British verses an American. Although as an American, I do have to admit the British always sound better!

Some travel businesses may even want to offer a discount to customers who book online and encourage bookings via this cost effective channel. Or perhaps a lower the price based on the time of day or the day of week a booking is made. The possibilities are endless and your ideas should not be limited by the constraints of your booking engine.

As today’s consumers have more and more options, targeted messages and custom offers have become a key marketing approach used by many successful travel companies. Access to airline reservation software that can quickly and easily target special offers by departure city or destination can be a critical tool needed to communicate where the best deals are or where a specific offer can be found.

Finding the right technology partner to help take your business global is important, finding a technology partner who understands the need to localize before you can globalize in even more important.

Is It Time To Retire Your Legacy Technology?

It is no secret that the travel industry has been focusing more of its resources on e-commerce solutions as more people rely on the internet for booking their flights, hotels and even cruises online. However, many travel companies have had their own, unique challenges developing online booking solutions. A lot of companies are still using travel booking solutions built on legacy technology, which does not allow them to easily add new content or make simple changes to their User Interface.

This is because the architecture used by Legacy systems is not at all like the architecture of today's distributed and layered applications. Business policies and decisions are hardcoded using inflexible, predefined process flows in most legacy systems which makes any integration with Customer Relationship Management systems and Internet-based business applications difficult and sometimes just impossible. On top of that, it is just basically old technology that has become increasingly difficult for anyone to find developers who want to work with applications written in languages that are not widely used in today's technology.

As a result, the Internet revolution is usually the driving force behind a company's decision to switch away from a legacy system. E-commerce sales can save a business time and money making it the most cost effective method for many to deliver products to customers. The “state of the art” technology available today helps software solution providers design, develop and deliver flexible & fully scalable applications that easily grow with any size business. Some even provide the ability to customize the application to maintain a company's own unique brand identity.

Experience has shown that some of the best travel agent software solutions are the result of collaboration. Software Developers, Suppliers and Travel Agents can all provide valuable input to help design and develop the ultimate travel booking engine. Each of these entities play an important role in the process and any solution should meet each of their individual needs.

To serve today's growing number of consumers who use their mobile device to purchase travel products as well as those that switch between devices during the research and booking process, many companies are building applications that use responsive technology. Now, regardless of the type of device a customer uses to access a website, applications built using responsive technology can automatically adjust the screen layout based on the type of device being used.

For those looking to have a dedicated Mobile App, there are several companies designing and developing custom Apps. Some offer mobile applications as an optional “add-on” to an existing Booking Engine while some develop them independently. Either approach offers Consumers the ease and mobility of using a smart phone or tablet. Mobile Apps and mobile responsive technology are no longer for big brand names either. Travel software companies can now provide any size travel agency affordable applications built on the latest technology with the powerful tools to they need to compete with any size online travel business.

So whether your travel business needs an Airline Booking Engine, a Cruise Booking Engine or a Hotel Booking Engine, is sure your travel booking solution is built using the latest responsive technology.

Are You Using The Right Air Booking Engine?

With so many online airline booking systems available in the market today, it is difficult to know which one is right for your business. Most applications are designed to automate processes and reduce the time and effort required to complete an airline booking. Many offer live access to airline content to be sure the most up to date availability and pricing is used. However, finding an airline booking solution that protects your brand identity can be a challenge.

The airline reservation system developed by Odysseus Solutions is hosted by Odysseus, with the headers, footers and style sheets customized with your specific branding to provide a seamless online experience for your customers. Complete private label versions are also supported where Odysseus can change the complete layout to meet your specific requirements.

The Odysseus Solutions' airline booking engine provides live access to airline content to be sure the most up to date pricing and availability is used and even has the ability to simultaneously search multiple content sources for the best price. It includes revenue management tools that provide the ability to mark up or mark down a product's selling price by airline, itinerary, class of service, travel dates and so much more. Multiple languages and multiple currencies are easily supported while optional currency exchange management tools can display a single price to customer regardless of the currency the fare is sourced in.

All booking related Email communication uses your agency's email address and logo when communicating with customers and provides easy access to the booking so customers can add things like payment information. Reminders can even be set up to send automatic emails to Customers' as well as Agents based on various parameters including when payment is due. The booking application even provides the flexibility to search by dates, nearby airports, etc. allowing clients to narrow their search criteria. Robust reporting tools provide you the information you need to run your business and include the ability for you to generate graphical reports showing Search and Booking Statistics such as the Top Origin/Destination cities searched and the booking ratio for each.

If you are looking to enhance or update your website so it is more compatible with customers using a Smart Phone or Tablet, Odysseus Solutions offers innovative responsive technology that automatically adjusts the booking engine's display based on the type of device being used to access website.

Odysseus Solutions is a Miami based Travel Technology Company providing some of the most comprehensive and innovative online booking solutions available in the market today. Contact Odysseus and learn how they can help you find the right online booking engine for your business. Visit http://corp.odysseussolutions.com/ to learn more and request a product demonstration.