Customer service and staff productivity are the leading concerns for the travel industry, however businesses are slow to recognise how technology can help, according to a new survey.
The ?Unified Communications in Travel 2014? survey was carried out by unified communications provider, Elitetele.com and UC manufacturer Swyx, in conjunction with Travolution magazine. It set out to investigate uptake and usage of advanced communications technology in the travel sector.
Polling more than 80 IT and senior travel professionals, the research uncovered a range of key trends that are seen as important to the sector, but it also showed that there was a lack of awareness over how IT such as ?unified communications? (UC) can help to support current and future operational challenges.
More than 80% of respondents cited customer service and staff productivity as primary business drivers, however nearly three quarters of UK travel businesses are unaware of the benefits of UC; a technology that converges telephony and IT to reduce costs, enhance service and boost overall employee productivity.
Matt Newing, CEO and founder of Elitetele.com said: ?Surprisingly the research shows a clear lack of knowledge on what unified communications can offer the travel sector. Whilst most could pinpoint the benefits and business drivers of upgrading current systems, they didn?t know what unified comms was or how it could significantly impact their operations.?
Ralf Ebbinghaus, CEO at UC Vendor Swyx who co-sponsored the research, said: ?UC is the ideal tool for an industry that prides itself on customer experience and loyalty, yet still wants to increase productivity and the volume of bookings. The concept behind unified communications is simple; it provides all the information an advisor needs to communicate, by integrating all systems together ? from the call centre through to the back-office systems and even social media. This means that the customer always gets the best and consistent experience possible and at the same time there efficiencies and cost-savings too. It?s a win/win situation. With cloud based UC now available there are even few barriers to adoption because no upfront capital investment is required.?
To view the full report visit www.elitetele.com
