How the Travel Industry is Tackling Transformation

22.07.2024 - 19:03 / breakingtravelnews.com / Itb Berlin

ITB Berlin’s new Travel & Tourism Radar, set up in partnership with Ostfalia Hochschule, analyses the business outlook in the travel industry and reveals external factors as the main forces driving digitalisation and sustainability efforts. The actions of global travel companies are driven more by external influences than economics where important aspects of the transition are concerned. The Travel & Tourism Radar survey shows that the approximately 330 travel companies interviewed worldwide offer a generally positive economic outlook. It also gives an insight into their investment plans and how they see their ability to compete.

A positive business outlook and stable investment plans for digitalisation

The respondents were generally positive about their current situation in this year’s second quarter, particularly when compared with the previous three months. The outlook for the immediate future also appears good. Accordingly, the companies polled were optimistic about developments in the next quarter. The survey’s organisers noted stable investment plans and identified the direction that future investments might take.

Online presence and digital marketing were the areas most frequently mentioned, accounting for around 44 per cent of the responses. Aspects such as training courses made up nearly 29 per cent. Collaboration and engaging stakeholders ranked third at slightly over 28 per cent, with responses divided evenly between IT/software and customer relations management. Much less emphasis was placed on new infrastructure and buildings or purchasing digital hardware.

Asked specifically about factors influencing their ability to compete, most companies said the competition was mainly within their own market and country. They regard digitalisation as having neither a positive or negative impact on their competitiveness, while in terms of equality and diversity they see themselves as fully meeting their goals.

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The political and economic situation has the biggest influence on companies

The survey offered an interesting look at external factors and how tourism companies are influenced by them. The most frequent response was the political and economic situation, including inflation, given by around 62 per cent. (Digital) marketing and product development was the second most frequent answer (54 per cent), followed by AI and digitalisation (51 per cent). Sustainability and the climate were similarly frequent responses.  

External pressure is the driving force

According to the ITB Travel & Tourism Radar, companies see efforts to promote sustainability in the environment, economy and society as all being equally important. In that context their activities appear to be motivated primarily by