An XML Booking Engine May Be the Solution

Today’s online technology solutions need to be fast, easy to use and flexible.  With so many competitors offering so many special deals, your online booking solution needs to provide an easy and efficient way for you to manage the various special pricing or value add offers in order for your business to remain competitive.  Sometimes this requires that you use an XML booking engine that will allow you the ability to customize the application as you choose.

The XML booking engine can provide fast and easy access to content such as live schedules, availability, and pricing for hundreds of airlines.  Some of the more sophisticated include the ability to easily define pre-set business rules to help you manage a specific products’ content source as well as adjust a selling price or include any value add offers.  Some of today’s online booking engines allow Users to build a package shell to be sold online and manage business rules with full flexibility occupancy dates, sale dates, block hold milestones, etc.

And with today’s competitive marketplace, it has become increasingly critical for today’s business manager to track their business and identify trends quickly.  Not only will you need basic booking reports to track your sales revenue, but you’ll need to keep track of your costs to properly manage your business as well.  Many of today’s travel technology solutions come with reporting tools easily available to track not only the inventory you have available along with associated bookings, but can also track individual Supplier sales as well to assist you with booking payments or managing inventory.

And to reach today’s mobile consumer, some use an XML booking engine to power dedicated mobile applications.  Others skip over the APP and choose an online application that is “mobile-ready” so they can serve these clients regardless of the type of device they choose to use or when they choose to shop.  Using an XML travel technology solution can also provide you the flexibility to be easily customizing your User Interface to support your own brand identity and unique selling style.  And if you are looking to expand your reach with affiliated agents, you’ll want a solution that can quickly add affiliate users and websites, perhaps with the ability to easily customize the look and feel for each as well.

You should also ensure that any application you choose provides the business management tools that you will need to properly manage your business both online and off-line.  At the 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.

Any XML the booking engine you choose should have a quick response time and supported by a technology partner that is responsive to your needs.  Consider a travel booking solution that uses a secure, scalable online booking platform that can easily expand with your business as it grows. Finding travel technology with the right combination of content, product features and flexibility for your business can be a critical decision, choosing the right technology partner can be just as important.

XML Booking Engine Option

Decades ago, a good retail location with plenty of foot traffic and a few newspaper advertisements featuring special offers were enough to drive customers into your agency. The online revolution has dramatically altered this reality, changing the way consumers shop for everything, including their travel arrangements. The booking solution a travel business chooses is a key element of its operations and must support the larger overall company strategy. A review of your current systems and processes will help you find the solution that’s right for your business.

Do you need an “out of the box” fully hosted booking engine that uses standard templates with customized headers, footers as well as colors and fonts? Or are you looking to customize the booking engine templates yourself with an XML Booking Engine?

A good place to start may be reviewing your existing customer base and determining how you might serve them better or offer them additional services. After all, research has proven that it is less expensive to sell to an existing customer and avoid the additional resources required to secure a new customer. For example, have you considered adding a hotel option to your travel booking engine for those customers using your air booking engine? What about a packaging engine that can book a Cruise and then add other travel products such as air, hotel accommodations or even activities during and around the Cruise dates? Do you know how your customers prefer to make their travel arrangements? This is an important question to answer if you want to make sure the travel booking engine you choose will access the distribution channels you need to serve your customers.

Most call center applications give Agents the tools they need to research the best options and quickly assist customers on the phone or visiting their agency. Mobile-ready applications allow consumers to research and book options online at their convenience. It is all about consumer choice today and your business must be ready with a travel booking solution that is ready to serve today’s mobile consumer. An XML Booking Engine can even be used to expand your reach further by interfacing your booking engine with the various metasearch sites in the market.

Once you have determined the specific content to include and the various distribution channels you need to access, it’s time to consider your technology options. Will a simple out of the box solution work for you or does your business need something a little more customized? For those looking to design and control the layout of their booking solution, an XML Booking Engine may be the best solution. It allows you to host all of the Booking Engine’s User Interfaces on your own servers while using the XML connection for business logic as well as live pricing, availability & booking. This simple XML interface can combine multiple sources into a single interface, eliminating the need to maintain multiple connections if you work with a host agency or consolidator as well as using your own agency credentials with the Supplier.

Finding a travel booking engine with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that drives efficiency through innovation can be even more important.

Booking Engine Customization & Mobile Readiness Becoming Critical

Flexibility in how an online travel booking engine can be customized as well as where and how it is made available have become important factors when selecting a technology partner for your travel business. “Out of the box” online booking engines may work for some travel agencies, but more and more are looking to tailor their customer experience and branding with custom online booking engines.

An XML booking engine can be an ideal solution for those in the online travel business looking to customize the layout and flow of their booking engine without taking on the complex development of live connectivity with travel suppliers or the multifaceted business rules engine most need. Many of today's Air XML booking engines can provide a travel business owner much more than a simple “live” connection to check pricing & availability or to book a flight. These innovative products can provide any size travel business the ability to take full advantage of the powerful business logic and processing capabilities of an established booking engine while customizing the User Interface to their own specifications, at their own convenience. Customers can host all User Interfaces on their own servers while using the Air XML for business logic as well as live pricing, availability & booking capability. An XML booking engine can take full advantage of the powerful features an established booking engine provides such as the ability to easily adjust a products selling price easy price and robust reporting capabilities.

For those looking to service those customers who are always on the go, a mobile booking engine is an option you may want to consider for your travel business. All signs indicate that the general population will increasingly use their smart phones as more and more people become constantly connected to social media. As a result, mobile technology is becoming increasingly important for any business looking to reach them. People are not only using today's mobile devices to interact with each other, they are also using these devices to make a significant number of purchases online.

Some consumers may use various different devices as they research and eventually purchase products online. For instance, many consumers may start their initial research using their smart phone, but switch to a Laptop to complete the purchase. Others will choose to use their handheld device exclusively and access a mobile booking engine via a website or dedicated mobile App that they have downloaded on their device. Either way, your business needs to be ready to serve these customers on the device they choose to use.

Today's state of the art mobile booking engine can take full advantage of the easy access to content and powerful features that an online booking engine offers combined with the ease and mobility of using a smart phone. Finding an online booking solution 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 consumer where and how they shop for travel can be just as important.

In this article author writes about Odysseus Solutions. An advanced online Travel Booking Engine will allow for you to make price adjustments and extend special offers that target a specific sales channel such as B2B or B2C.

Flexibility Drives the Mobile Revolution

There has been revolution in online commerce and suddenly there are Mobile Apps for everything. The travel industry is no exception, with state of the art mobile apps available to book anything from an airline ticket, a hotel room or even ground transportation. These mobile apps are not just offered by the big online travel agencies (OTAs), but also small and midsize travel companies who have joined the revolution and are now offering a mobile booking engine of their own.

With so many people spending so much time looking at their mobile devices today, just about any website needs to be mobile friendly in order to fully compete in the online market. Many of today’s consumers start their research for travel products using their mobile devices, so it is critical that any online travel website and associated booking engines be mobile friendly as well.

Many online retailers offer more than just a mobile-friendly websites, and several of the small businesses you may interact with everyday probably have their own dedicated mobile apps. Whether it is your favorite restaurant in town or a big online retailer, companies are leveraging the mobile revolution mobile booking engine and making their products available and visible to potential customers at all times.

There are several companies specializing in the development of online booking engines complete with mobile apps for booking travel. There are also some offering the tools for those looking to customize the User Interface of their online booking engine and mobile app themselves. The XML booking engine options that are available today can provide clients all the powerful business logic and processing capabilities that an online travel booking engine requires while allowing for the customization of the User Interface at their own convenience. When flexibility in design and client control of the User Interface are key requirements for your travel business, an XML booking engine may be something you want to consider.

With the average person spending over two hours a day their mobile device, there are added benefits that a dedicated will bring your business when it comes to brand image which you may not have considered.

One of the benefits of having your own dedicated mobile app is the ability to provide your customers with information such as special discounts and promotions right on their mobile device. Plus the fact that each time a user scrolls through their device searching for an app they want to use, your app icon will there for them to see whether consciously or unconsciously!

The added value that a mobile booking engine can offer your customers will simply help your travel business build brand recognition and expand the ways that you interact with your customers. There is no doubt that mobile apps will soon be a standard component of any online retailers business model, the question is when will your online business be ready with the tools you need to succeed? Flexibility is key in today’s online world, so finding a technology partner that can provide the tools needed to revolutionize your travel business is more important than ever!