Business Operation of a Travel Agency-Free-Sample for Students

Question: Discuss about the usage and value of Information and Communication Technology in the everyday Business operation of a travel agency. Answer: Travel agency includes private retailers that provide facilities to the customers related to the travel and tourism on the behalf of the suppliers. Information and communication technology has usage and value in the travel agency for the daily operations. The increase in the usage of the internet by the people made the companies to use the internet in their working. ICT brings change in the professional as well in the personal lives. The travel booking system is changed with the emergence of the ICT. Everyday business operations are possible because of the use of the information and communication technology (Yiu, Law, 2016). Below given are some of the value and usage of the ICT in daily operations of a travel agency. Coordination- Advance information and communication technology provided a wide scope to the travel agency. With the help of internet connections, the travel agency can easily coordinate with the customers as well as with the business partners. Agency can give the details related their travel by communicating them (Pappas, 2015). Apart from proper coordination, the speed of information transfer will also improve. Organization working- Computers, hardware, and software help the travel agency in the working. ITC advanced age brought software and computers with the help of which travel agency can store data on daily basis. Enterprise-level software like Unit4's Central Command permits travel agency to manage the business data, this brings efficiency in the working of the travel agency. The booking process is taken care by the agencies with the use of ICT. Video text system is used by the UK 97% Travel agents (International Federation for IT and Travel Tourism, 2017). Online booking- Travel companies are selling their travel package on the online website. This might bring a decline in the business of the travel agencies. Though, Questex travel group said that still 55% of the airline travel bookings, 73% of the package travel bookings and 77% of the cruise bookings are possible because of the travel agencies. This is possible because of the adaptation and implementation of the advanced technologies. Value added to service- Travel agencies are preferred by the customer because nowadays these agencies are adding value to the services. Travel agencies try to bring improvement in the user experience. GPS tracking technology builds the trust of the customers on the travel agencies. Many companies use GPS tracking not only in travel but also in transportation for the daily purpose. Technology supports agencies to track the customer's activities with the help of the CRM system and Personalize service. Australian travel agencies provide a mode of sharing feedback with the customers through which agencies will be able to identify the problems (Meriague, 2014). Then, agencies can take corrective steps to improve the services. Turnover increases- Travel agencies turnover increased after using the updated technology. Agencies used CRSs/GDSs increase the productivity of the travel agencies. For example- In Germany, travel agencies introduced the German START system could lesser their traditional communication charges- 22% and increased their turnover- 17% (International Federation for IT and Travel Tourism, 2017). Computer Reservation Systems and global distribution system is part of the daily Operating's of the travel agencies. References International Federation for IT and Travel Tourism. (2017). Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism. Viewed on 2nd August 2017, https://www.ifitt.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/ICTs-in-Tour-Operators-and-Travel-Agencies.pdf Meriague, O.E., (2014). The Role of ICT in the Tourism Industry. Viewed on 2nd August 2017, https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2014/01/121365/the-role-of-ict-in-the-tourism-industry/ Pappas, N. (2015). Internet use and destination preferences: evidence from Crete and Cyprus. In Strategic Infrastructure Development for Economic Growth and Social Change (pp. 218-236). IGI Global. Yiu, M., Law, R. (2016). Technological impacts on knowledge sharing: A case study of three travel agencies in Hong Kong. Tourism Recreation Research, 41(1), 2-15.