The Flight Booking Software Evolution Revolution

The flight reservation system has been around for decades, started many years ago by the major airlines in an effort to automate bookings as their flight networks and number of bookings grew at an amazing pace. Initially these internal systems were used by airline reservation staff to confirm bookings across their vast flight networks, but it was not long before the airlines began offering Travel Agents their own version of these systems. Today's online air booking engines are a result of years of technological evolution and have helped lead the online revolution in selling travel. Today's online booking engines can provide the tools for any size agency's website to compete with even the major online players.

There are a countless number of online travel solutions available in the market today and choosing the right air booking engine for your travel business can be critical decision. You need to identify what type of travel and how your clients prefer to book and decide what content you'll need access to.

You'll also need to consider any alliances or preferred relationships you have with suppliers or other travel agents. Over the years, many travel agencies have been forced to consolidate with another agency or form a closer working relationship with other individual agencies or large Consortia. The ability to expand distribution of an agency's airfares to affiliated agencies quickly and easily is an important tool for many air consolidators in the market today. Most agency owners still want to maintain their own unique company brand with their customers however, so the ability to easily expand the access of your flight reservation system to affiliated agencies while maintaining their individual brand identity can be crucial.

With so many airfares and so many agencies forming alliances, the ability for flight booking software to simultaneously search multiple content sources for the best airfare is a critical advantage for many. In today's competitive market, agency owners need the flexibility to control a products selling price and maintain their competitive edge. Today's travel agency flight reservation system sallow for the selling price to be adjusted based on a wide range of criteria including travel or booking dates, supplier or class of service booked and even based on the distribution channel that the booking is made.

Applications have even kept pace with the consumer trend to use mobile devices to research and book airline tickets. There are Air Mobile Apps available for those travel agencies looking for a dedicated app for their individual agency brand. For those who are simply looking to make their website and associated online booking tools “mobile friendly”, there is flight booking software available that can automatically adjust the screen size and layout of an air booking engine based on the type of device being used.

The time you invest in identifying your product requirements and researching the different options available to you will be time well spent. With technology advancing as quickly as it is, maybe it is time to consider whether your travel technology needs to join the travel booking software evolution revolution.

In this article author writes about Odysseus Solutions. Today's travel agency flight reservation system sallow for the selling price to be adjusted based on a wide range of criteria including travel or booking dates, supplier or class of service booked.

Travel Agent Software Continues To Evolve

Travel Agents remain an important part of the travel industry and have been evolving the way that they interact with Suppliers and Customers along with the rest of the industry. Travel booking solutions such as airline booking engines, hotel booking engines and even cruise booking engines were introduced into the market years ago and have been evolving ever since. The transition to online commerce has been crucial for many agencies to remain in business. The online booking engines available today provide agents or their customers the ability to book just about anything online including an airline seat, a hotel room or even a cruise vacation.

With just a few clicks of a mouse, today's travel agent software can access the information agents or their consumers need to research which particular hotel best meets an individual's needs. Hotel searches can be narrowed to a specific neighborhood within a city, the hotel star rating or price range. You can even research whether a hotel property has banquet facilities, a restaurant or room service. Air travel searches can be specific to an airline, time of day or even class of service. Online searches for cruise vacations can be specific to a Sailing region, such as the Eastern Caribbean, a specific cruise line or cruise ship and even by the cruise length. Cruise ship and cabin photos along with detailed descriptions are integrated into the booking engine to help agents and customers make the right choice. They can even select which seating time option they prefer for dinner or alert the cruise line of a special occasion such as a passenger's birthday or anniversary.

Different types of clients may have different requirements for an online booking engine. For example, the online booking engine needed to service corporate clients can be dramatically different from those for leisure travel. Corporate travel policy may dictate which specific airline, class of service or routing can be used by an individual passenger's position or title within the company. There may be a limit to which hotel chains can be used or the type of room that can be booked. Leisure travelers may look for a tool that's somewhat less restrictive in these areas but perhaps searches multiple content sources to ensure they get the best price for the airline seat or hotel room they decided to choose. Regardless whether a travel agency services corporate accounts or leisure clients, there are travel booking solutions available today that can help automate processes and increase revenues.

Like much of the travel industry, consolidation has forced many travel agencies to merge with other agencies or form new closer affiliate relationships. The ability to expand distribution of your agency's airfares to affiliated agencies quickly and easily can be a powerful tool in today's competitive airfare market. And while many agencies are forming new alliances and joining Agency Consortia, most still want to maintain their individual agency's unique branding with their customers. The travel agent software available today can easily provide the tools for any size agency to compete with the major online players.

In this article author writes about Odysseus Solutions. The travel agent software available today can easily provide the tools for any size agency to compete with the major online players.

Hotel Reservation Software to Fit Your Business

The internet has changed the way the travel industry conducts business and the way hotels are researched and booked today is no exception. However, there are so many options available on the market that it can be overwhelming for many. This is where working with the right travel agent can be important and finding a travel agent with the right hotel booking solution even more important.

Travel agents are a great resource to help consumer's research options and can find the best deal possible and ensure get you the VIP treatment you deserve upon arrival. They are experts in the industry and many have negotiated special deals and amenities for their clients. Many have launched their own online booking solutions that allow you to research and book your travel when and where you want while still enjoying the benefits of using a travel agent.

Hotel reservation software should be easy to use and provide Users the functionality they are looking for. The ability to narrow the Search to a specific neighborhood within a city near a specific point of interest may be important for some. Easily finding the property that includes the specific amenities a client may be looking for such as free internet or perhaps concierge service may be important for others. The ability to find a hotel that has a restaurant or banquet facilities may be key for those planning an event. Hotels offer varying levels of comfort and service, so matching a client with the right hotel is also important. The ability to sort a search for hotel rooms by a particular star rating or the average nightly rate can speed up the process dramatically.

With just a few clicks of a mouse, today's hotel booking engine can access the information to research which particular hotel best meets an individual customer's specific needs. Search for a hotel room by a specific neighborhood within a larger city or by price range and even star rating. You can even research whether a hotel property has free internet, a restaurant or SPA services.

Recent industry consolidation has forced many travel agents to form affiliate networks or join a travel agency consortia, so the ability to extend hotel reservation software to affiliated agencies quickly and easily is key for many. However, most agency owners still want to maintain their own unique company brand with their customers. Here the ability to easily expand the access of an online booking engine to affiliated agencies while maintaining their brand identity can be crucial to the success of launching an online booking engine.

The hotel booking engines available on the market today include links to media files & rich content to assist with selecting the right hotel property during the shopping process. Some applications even use innovative responsive technology that automatically adjusts the screen display layout based on the type of device being used to access the booking engine.

In this article author writes about Odysseus Solutions. So not matter what size your travel agency is, there is a hotel booking engine in the market today to fit your business. 

The Right Travel Agent Software Will Have Your Agents Selling More

The travel business has gone through significant changes over the past few years and travel agencies have had to adjust their business tools along the way. Finding the right travel agent software can help an agency owner get agents trained and selling quicker while streamlining the agencies overall selling process. The travel agent booking engines available today are easy to use and are designed to help agency owners automate processes, increase revenues and reduce time and effort required to complete a transaction.

Today's applications provide an agent view (B2B) for travel professionals to use as well as easy to use consumer views (B2C) for an agency's website. Many use the same application for each view, eliminating any concern an agency owner may have with syncing up passenger records with two separate systems. The travel agent view provides agents using the application with important information such as commission amount, fare basis codes used, etc. While these fields are visible to travel agents using the application, they are hidden to the consumer who would not understand the relevance anyway.

Flexible and Customizable, online booking engines can be easily customized to support each agency's own brand identity and unique selling style. Many online booking solutions include revenue management tools to help an agency owner control the selling price and maximize revenues. The ability to define unique business rules allow an agency to feature special deals and value add offers to their customers and adjust theses offers along the way.

Knowing what your customers are purchasing online is important, but knowing what they are looking for on your website can be even more important. Most of today's online applications include the ability to track bookings made online, but some also have the ability to track specific search criteria, which will show what customers are looking for. This can be valuable information when identifying travel trends and ensuring that you have the right product at the right price available for your agents and customers alike.

The right travel agent software can also enable agency owners to expand their clientele base while reducing their overall operating costs. For example, there is often no limit to the number of users or websites that can access an online travel booking engine and some can even handle multiple languages and currencies to allow travel agencies to quickly expand their business into new markets.

An online booking engine is no longer something that only large travel companies can afford and there is an online booking engine available today to meet the needs of any size travel business. So if your agency needs an air booking engine, hotel booking engine or a cruise booking engine and whether your customer books directly with a travel agent (B2B) -or- they prefer to shop and book online (B2C), there is a travel agent software available to help you service them quickly and easily. All you need to do is find a technology partner that has the tools that your business needs to compete.

In this article author writes about Odysseus Solutions. The added value that a Travel 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.

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!

How Helpful Is A Hotel Booking Engine?

Today you can research and buy just about anything online, and travel is no exception. Whether you are looking to book an airline ticket, reserve a car or make a hotel reservation, chances are there are several places you can go online. This major shift in consumer behaviour has forced many travel agents to adjust the way they interact with their customers.

Let's face it, most people today will start their research online whether they are purchasing a book, a new car or planning a trip. Today's traveller can go online from just about anywhere to research what a destination has to offer, review various flight possibilities, consider hotel options and find things to do during their trip. Whether a traveller is looking for a good restaurant in a distant town or interested in the nightlife a certain city may have to offer, chances are they will be able to find the information they are looking for online.

The right hotel reservation software can allow any size travel agent to compete with the largest online travel company while providing the personalized service that only an individual travel agent can provide. Whether customers book directly with a travel agent -or- they prefer to shop and book online, hotel reservation software is a key tool that any travel business will need in order to serve customers looking to reserve a hotel room quickly and easily.

Finding the right hotel booking engine can help any travel agency automate the hotel booking process, increase their agency revenues and reduce the amount of time and effort required to complete a hotel booking for their customers. The online booking engines that are available in the market today can even be customized to an agency's specific needs and branded to provide a seamless online experience for those visiting an agency website.

For today's traveller, researching and booking hotel accommodations is easy when using an online hotel booking engine. Many are designed with the capability to search the rates and check availability at multiple properties within a given city or location. Most hotel reservation software will include various hotel images and room descriptions to help decide which hotel and room type is best for a specific traveller. Some booking engines even have the ability to search multiple websites to find the best deal at a specific hotel property. The different website options available seem endless and can sometimes overwhelming for many shopping online. Using a travel agent can certainly help, finding a travel agent with the online tools that allow their customers to research and shop for hotel accommodations on line can be even better.

So how important is an online hotel booking engine for a travel agent's customers today? How important is an online booking engine to a travel agency business? I would say very important for those travel agents that are looking to serve the millions of travellers who are already researching, shopping and purchasing their travel arrangements online today.

Make Hotel Bookings Online With Minimal Effort

Today, no online travel solution is complete without a hotel booking engine. Researching and reserving a hotel room is quicker and easier than ever for anyone with access to the internet. With just a few clicks of the mouse, travelers are able to research hotel properties across the globe, check up to the minute room availability and rate information, view pictures of the actual hotel property and even confirm a reservation. Finding the right hotel is an important component of planning a trip and with so many online booking solutions on the market today, it's difficult to know where to go to get the best deal.

Booking with a travel agent has always been a great way to find the best deal at just the right hotel. Not only are travel agents familiar with the variety of different hotels and amenities available, but they can often get you the best deal on a hotel room. Travel Agents can help you get the best rate, extra amenities and even room upgrades. A good travel agent can also help with your entire trip including VIP access to local attractions, restaurant reservations and airport transfers.

Using a travel agency online booking tool can give you the best of both worlds! A travel agency online booking provides the ease and accessibility of an online booking engine combined with the security and expertise you get when booking with a travel agent. Today's hotel booking software can allow any size travel agent to compete with the largest online travel agencies while providing the personalized service only a travel agent can provide.

There are countless online hotel booking engines available in the market today, but the key to success is finding a solution that fits your particular business needs and then developing an online marketing strategy to drive customers to your website. After all, a travel agency can have the best online hotel booking engine available in the market, but if their website visitor traffic is low, so will their bookings! Hotels have been successful driving customers to their website booking engines with guarantees of the “lowest price”, special offers for past guests and even promotional offers. Price is a determining factor for many shopping online, but special value add offers, superior customer service and convenience are also important.

If an agency does plan to compete on price, they need to keep a close eye on what their clients are looking for and ensure that they have access to the best room rates. Some hotel booking software comes with robust reporting capabilities that not only help easily track what customers are booking, but also what customers are looking for. This information can be really valuable when considering relationships for hotel content and help determine what markets and hotel brands are most important to your business. In this case, a little research with a minimal investment can result in significant rewards once your booking engine is in place and you've launched your website marketing campaign.

In this article author writes about Odysseus Solutions. After all, a travel agency can have the best online hotel booking engine available in the market, but if their website visitor traffic is low, so will their bookings!