Digital Tools: Their Value and Use for Marketing Purposes

Abstract

Professional lecturer, Master International Hospitality, Graduate School of Management (IAE Nice), Learning objectivesAfter working through this chapter, you should be able to:-have an overview of all the digital tools used in the the tourism related industries -define social media and have a better understanding of their uses and objectives -have a precise idea of which tools are useful for independent tourism providers / businesses and also discuss the opportunities for independent hotels to use some specific digital tools IntroductionAirlines, major hotel groups and especially online travel agencies were the first to develop digital solutions to improve the user experience and increase their online sales. The explosion over the last fifteen years or so of large OTAs (Online Travel Agencies) such as Booking.com or Expedia.com has been linked to the budgets they have invested in Research and Development and in marketing efforts. They quickly offered tourists simple and ergonomic solutions to compose their journey. They were among the first to propose reservation systems on their websites, to develop applications, to offer packages with car rental companies. Today, airports are setting up internet of things to improve the experience within their walls. The hotel groups create 100% digitalized itineraries, allowing tourists to prepare their entire stay without leaving 2 their smartphones and to avoid wasting their vacation time with administrative procedures.Finally, the major tourist resorts are also developing digitalized experiences, in particular through the use of connected objects such as beacons or bracelets allowing to pay for their services without a credit card nor cash. In most of small tourism businesses / enterprises / providers, human and financial resources are missing to engage in digital development. It is by taking into account multiple constraints that many start-ups deploy specialized products, offering a monthly package rather than an annual cost that is far too high for small businesses.Hotels have at their disposal a very important arsenal of technological tools to facilitate their operational and managerial management. Some of them make the most of it to streamline their staff's experience and achieve substantial savings, but existing software and tools represent a new burden on hotel budgets and they often have to opt for one tool rather than integrating tools for each department of the hotel.In this chapter, we will therefore take a look at all the digital technologies that Tourism providers can deploy in the back-office for all marketing and team management processes internally. In the following section, we will describe main technologies that a hotel can deploy in front office for all face-to-face operations with the customer and communication actions. In the last section, we will propose recommendations for small independent businesses, highlighting the minimum required to take full advantage of the digital features, with a reasonable budget. Use of digital back-office technologies At ...