Publication:- Travel Trade Gazette

Date:- 24 March 2005

Make that vital connection

E Commerce loves the travel industry - while steadily more agents are taking a shine to the web. Travel is the biggest sector of the British online economy and there is a new awareness among travel agencies that they must get web-wise - or else lose out to the big chains and online outfits. A good website is virtually equivalent to having permanent free advertising to a potential worldwide audience. Hooking up to a white label website or launching your own can be done with little or no technical knowledge. Alternatively, specialist companies will help to design effective websites and suggest add-on marketing products. However, a productive website has to save the agent time and money, and increase profitability. The right innovative technology will drive more sales to your site and give you a clear indication of where your sales are coming from. Bear in mind that rival companies will be constantly scouring the market for better systems that will increase their efficiency and ultimately increase their profits at your expense. Search Engines Search engine optimisation has proved a boon for innovative travel agents who jumped on the opportunity to invest in buying keywords to drive traffic to their websites. Yes, as big players move to ring-fence their brands, and massive companies dig deep to pay more for phrases that generate results, the good times are drawing to a close. Agents will soon find themselves unable to compete in the race to top search engine optimisation lists, where money, often running into thousands of pounds, decides who comes first. The web was founded to provide individuals, small businesses and retailers a low-cost medium through which they can promote their products and services. However, the internet has not yet found the lowest cost denominator - search engines and listings sites favour companies with the deepest pockets. Search results based on revenue, as in Goggle's bidding for keywords system, don't necessarily provide the consumer with the most suitable feedback. In this way the internet is disenfranchising small companies and becoming a province for those who pay most. High-street agents will find it impossible to compete with the online travel companies, vertically integrated groups and large operators who will ensure that their product is seen first and viewed the most by potential buyers. Online, the trade needs a back-to-basics approach to succeed. One solution could be The People's Web, a reaction against the commercialisation of the internet. This organisation charges companies, regardless of size, just £100 a year to upload their entire product range and users just £5 a year to create their own shop window. All adverts are unlimited and free. In the example of travel, consumers are connected with agents by scoring their search request against possible results. Users from Birmingham looking for holidays to Mallorca are connected to agents in their region who are selling that break. All search results are untarnised by paying for keywords. Traditional travel agents are becoming increasingly marginalised online because they don't have the cash to ensure they can be seen through search engines. Paid-for search engine marketing allows you to monitor spend, calculate return on investment, and develop campaigns to maximise results, right down to individual keyword.

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