TDS Asia 2008 Special, SingaporeFavorable macro-economic conditions, fast expansion of air capacity and major investment plans of the hotel industry for Asia will require alignment of distribution capabilities to cater to the fragmented demand pools and different product types in the time to come.

Published: 18 Mar 2008

TDS Asia 2008 Special, Singapore

Favorable macro-economic conditions, fast expansion of air capacity and major investment plans of the hotel industry for Asia will require alignment of distribution capabilities to cater to the fragmented demand pools and different product types in the time to come.

While acknowledging the need for multiple languages and multi-market marketing strategies, Cyril Ranque, Vice President Partner Services Group Asia Pacific, says that intra-APAC demand is projected to overtake America and Europe.

Speaking during the inaugural session of EyeforTravel 's Travel Distribution Executive Conference, being held in Singapore, Ranque said online and offline will become more complementary.

"APAC suppliers will directly benefit from global OTA's (in terms of investments in each source market, balanced seasonal production from all continents, global marketing reach at no cost if no transaction etc). But customer preferences and needs will always include offline-friendly characteristics in terms of factors such as surf online and book offline habit, complex itineraries and non-credit card payment preference," said Ranque, adding that each player in the distribution landscape will enhance its core service proposition and channel share will align with customer needs and profiles.

Among the other trends emanating from the region, he referred to price consistency tightening across channels and online becoming suppliers' top marketing channel.

"Suppliers will leverage travel websites's global reach and qualified audience to advertise, and travel websites revenues will come from a mix of transaction fees and media value proposition," he said.

Ritesh Gupta
EyeforTravel.com