By Klaus Kohlmayr, Chief Evangelist
If you aren’t leveraging AI to automate your revenue operations, you will be left behind
The next generation of machine and software interaction is upon us. With each advance, machines are learning faster than we mere humans can ever hope to. The reality is the human brain can no longer keep up with the influx of data being generated by today’s technology.
We have also witnessed a rapid uptick in newcomers to the hospitality & travel markets. Startups have disrupted the playing field and made the booking and customer experience more personalized, leading the way toward greater engagement and satisfaction.
Now is the time to lean in and tap into the additional power you can gain by fully leveraging AI technology, not only to stay ahead of the competition, but also to satisfy your customers.
Like It Or Not, AI Is Everywhere
The direct integration of AI into our everyday lives has become so pervasive we now take it for granted. In retail, for instance, add-on items are more effectively suggested. In cybersecurity, fraud can not only be prevented, but also detected. And in healthcare, the success of specific treatments can be more quickly understood.
In the hospitality & travel industry, the initial trend has been in the customer experience. That’s because it is engaging, easy to demonstrate, and satisfies consumer expectations in any myriad of ways.
I think the more intriguing use of AI, however, is the emergence of technology platforms that consolidate data. For instance, some revenue management platforms now allow you to expand your revenue optimization practices beyond just hotel rooms or airline seats into other areas, such as parking facilities, function space booking, event centers, ticketing, and more.
By leveraging advanced analytics, we can see the potential to provide better decision-making power to those who need it. Technology platforms that consolidate data to increase efficiency and enhance AI systems will not only help you make better decisions, but will enhance the customer experience.
It’s a Brave New World
The convergence of technology into our daily lives is no longer novel. It has become the norm, particularly as it relates to customer experience.
In the same way we have seen rapid technological advancements occur in restaurants, retail and healthcare, we are seeing a direct crossover into hospitality & travel. From big data to AI, from chatbots to the ever-present Internet of Things, from the cloud to biometrics and robotics, innovations are rolling out at a dizzying rate.
The real advancement emerging in the industry today is in integrated distribution strategies and their intertwined relationships with sales, marketing, loyalty programs and revenue management.
So as we head into this brave new world, how should companies prepare themselves?
- Remember, AI is only as good as the data that feeds it. If you are not already working on consolidating, aggregating, and futureproofing your data, you won’t get the full benefit and efficiencies out of automation.
- Fear not! All this new technology is supposed to make your life easier, not replace you. A lot has been written about how we will lose our jobs as the machines take over. In my opinion, it is really more about establishing the right balance between human and AI. With an ever-present, analytical assistant right at your fingertips, taking over your most mundane and repetitive tasks, you can concentrate on adding value by setting the right strategies for the long term.
The rise of the machines is upon us, and it is time to lose the fear of giving up control. Instead, we need to embrace these changes and invest in the infrastructure and tools needed to become efficient, effective, and empowered. We must let AI do what it is supposed to do, learn to trust the results it can bring, and then leverage the results to make human interactions even richer.
- On Discovery, On Distribution, On Data & Analytics – with Kalibri Labs - December 10, 2020
- Unconstrained Conversations – An IDeaS Podcast - April 16, 2020
- Welcome to the Future - January 23, 2020
