From the results of recent interviews with LET organisations, IDC positions the industry in the midst of a major transition phase from legacy to next-generation services and technology. This Executive Brief highlights the major technology and business trends taking place in the LET sector, and outlines the advantages of adopting new technologies and services in comparison with other industries.
I D C E X E C U T I V E B R I E F
T h e L e i s u r e , E n t e r t a i n m e n t a n d T r a v e l I C T T r a n s i t i o n : H a r n e s s i n g T e c h n o l o g y f o r C o m p e t i t i v e A d v a n t a g e September 2007 Giorgio Micheletti James Eibisch
Sponsored by: Easynet moc.cdi Introduction .www The leisure, entertainment and travel (LET) industry is diverse, including hotels, restaurants, tour operators, museums and sporting 001 bodies. It is also geographically dispersed, with large numbers of 7.7 mobile workers. Companies in the sector rely heavily on their 898 relationships with customers, through booking, account management .02. and customer services, and they need IT and communications 44 systems that can support these processes reliably and cost-+.le effectively. T .K. Yet IDC has found that the overall LET industry is not as advanced U , as other sectors in its adoption of some new technologies and EA4 services. From the results of recent interviews with LET 4 organisations, IDC positions the industry in the midst of a major W ,n transition phase from legacy to next-generation services and odn technology. oL ,da This Executive Brief highlights the major technology and business oR trends taking place in the LET sector, and outlines the advantages of hgi adopting new technologies and services in comparison with other H k industries. ciwsihC 1. Major Trends in the LET Industry 983 , According to IDC's vertical markets analysts, the most significant AE technology-related trends taking place in the LET industry today ME include the following: CDI . Avoiding commoditisation - Travel, hospitality and entertainment companies are focusing on new product and service developments in order to differentiate their offerings from competitors. This is becoming critical as a growing proportion of customers are buying services and comparing services from different providers online.
EB06P . Increasing IT investment - Although lagging behind other sectors, the ability of technology to drive business value is starting to be better understood by all LET companies, currently under-resourced in IT terms. While small companies remain anchored to their local environments, larger companies (especially in 250-499 employees segment) are now competing in a wider geographic area. For this reason, connectivity will grow strongly in importance in order to allow LET organisations to better operate internationally.
. Understanding customers - CRM-style applications that support marketing, account management and service delivery are changing and adapting. Most important is the ability to deliver personalised, one-to-one information and services, tailored to individual customers. Overall, this is increasing the value of the relationship between supplier and customer, and is giving many LET companies a real competitive edge.
. Implementing direct online sales and distribution - Direct online sales between supplier and customer are outmanoeuvring online intermediaries, due to greater brand trust and the relative ease of implementing robust, high-quality and secure Web storefronts. In addition, online distribution is growing rapidly, with online booking becoming a critical tool for accommodation services, restaurants, spa resorts and museums when planning their occupancy and visitor rates well in advance.
. Building self-service capabilities - Customer online self-service capabilities are spreading from large, full-service hospitality and entertainment organisations down to midmarket companies. This expansion will drive the need for a consistent multichannel approach to self-service, including the Web, kiosks and wireless devices.
These technology trends are taking place against a backdrop of macro trends affecting different areas of the LET sector - high oil prices, responses to climate change, food/health scares, terrorism, political instability - as well as those that are affecting consumer spending - high debt levels, rising interest rates and US dollar rates.
2. Views From the LET Industry IDC recently conducted a survey of 90 LET companies to better understand these issues. Despite the abovementioned significant challenges, 73% of companies regard their ... [download for more]
