How to Pick the Perfect Online Booking Tool
Looking for an OBT? Here's what you need to look out for...How do you know if an online booking tool is right for your organisation?
Quality travel technology is one of the key pillars of any travel management company worth its salt. But getting it right isn’t easy. The evolving nature of travel and the shifting needs of travellers means that tech can’t stand still – if it’s “tacked on” as an afterthought it will quickly fall behind in the wake of new trends and innovations.
One of the most important parts of any travel technology suite is the Online Booking Tool (OBT). At Gray Dawes, our OBT, YourTrip, gives clients access to a wide range of travel content from an unrivalled number of sources such as NDC and direct from suppliers.
But there are dozens of OBTs on the market, each one with its own strengths, weaknesses, functionalities, and ways of working. With so many options, picking the right tool for you and your organisation can be a daunting prospect. In this handy guide to picking the perfect online booking tool, we take an in-depth look at all of the factors you need to consider so that you can rest easy knowing you’ve made the right choice.
First, Consider the Benefits of Using an Online Booking Tool
Before you start your search, it’s important to understand what benefits an online booking tool (OBT) can offer you and your organisation. In general, a good OBT will:
- Enable you to see and control the flow of staff travel. Where are they going and when?
- Allow you to see and analyse why and how travellers are booking e.g. are they mainly booking on the go?
- Be easy to use and make the complicated parts of booking travel seem simple.
- Give you the power to book within the boundaries set by company budget and travel policy.
- Be flexible enough to adapt to any sudden changes in a travel programme.
This is just a brief snapshot of what to look out for and is a good rule of thumb when picking an OBT. We go into further detail about each of these points later on, but it is vital to remember that the benefits of an OBT are only benefits if they suit your needs.
In other words: If an OBT excels in a feature that you or your organisation might not need, then consider whether the tool is the right choice.
Easy to Use
There’s nothing worse than having to use a digital product that is clunky to use or requires specialist knowledge to navigate. Look for an OBT that has a clean interface which gives everything a travel booker and traveller needs at their fingertips. Labyrinthine menus and complex designs benefit no one. You want a traveller to WANT to book through your chosen OBT and remove the temptation to go alone and book on an external website.
Why is this important?
When travellers book independently, you cannot control what fares they will opt for and whether the costs or routes fit with your policy – people tend to make decisions based on what is best for them rather than what is best for the company.
Clear Ownership
One question that you might ask yourself in the search for an OBT is whether you should opt for a third-party tool as opposed to one owned by an agency or travel management company (TMC). The answer largely boils down to the pros and cons of ownership. If you are planning on going for a third-party tool, how much control will you have as a client and, subsequently, is having a higher level of control important to you? On the flip side, if you are leaning towards using the tool of your TMC, how strong is the relationship between the two?
Why is this important?
Figuring out who owns what and how much control you have is crucial for times when things go wrong. If your OBT stops working, who do you go to? Your TMC? The OBT supplier? Someone else entirely?
Ian Currington, Director of Account Management at Gray Dawes Travel
“No two online booking tools are the same. Nor do they deliver the same content.”
“While some TMCs might be hesitant to release content if their online booking tool (OBT) is unable to handle the volume or variety of fares, our YourTrip platform presents content from GDS, supplier-direct, NDC, Expedia, and Booking.com all in one place, without any friction.”
“One of Gray Dawes’ big selling points is that the OBT we provide to our clients is the exact same tool our offline teams use when booking travel. This ensures a consistent delivery between online and offline services.”
Business Compatible
Before you make any decisions on an OBT, ask yourself the following questions: What does my business want to achieve? What travel problems do we face? What does “Perfect” look like to us? There are plenty of booking tools in the market and they all do things slightly differently. Each one has its own set of pros and cons which need to be weighed up – are you looking for a tool that excels in policy control? Are you more concerned with user experience? Make sure that whatever OBT you choose delivers on all of your must-have requirements.
Why is this important?
If an OBT fits neatly with your current needs and future goals, it will be far easier to implement and roll out to your travellers. Don’t bend over backwards trying to figure out how incompatible parts might connect – make the OBT work with and for you, not the other way around.
Device Friendly
Over the past decade or more, the requirement for technology to be compatible with smartphones is almost unavoidable. Naturally, any conversations regarding software and mobile devices will veer towards the ubiquity of apps. After all, there’s an app for everything nowadays, from food shopping to door locking. But the question remains: with people’s phones so full of apps, will an OBT app get lost in the noise? A good OBT will not rely on app compatibility alone – it needs to work across devices and platforms.
Why is this important?
Not everyone uses an app to book their travel, and those who do might lose the OBT in their growing library. Having an app is a nice bonus, but having an OBT that can auto-resize depending on what device a traveller or travel booker uses is far more useful.
Explore YourTrip
YourTrip is our powerful online travel booking tool and app. It provides a wide range of features to enhance your business travel experience at every stage. To find out much more about how YourTrip can support your business travel programme, visit our YourTrip webpage.
Data Driven
Having an OBT which allows travellers to book their trips quickly and easily is great, but how do you know whether your organisation is getting the most out of every trip? Having a platform that effectively collects travel data is a game-changer – it allows you to analyse trends, see how your travellers prefer to travel, and allow you to make tweaks to your programme to squeeze every last ounce of value out of it.
Why is this important?
Travelling for business without collecting data is like walking into a pitch-black cave without a torch – you are forced to make decisions based on what feels right as opposed to what the numbers tell you. An OBT with the power to collect and collate data will allow you to spot trends and help you identify areas which might reduce future costs.
Climate Concious
As a global TMC, we are conscious of how our work and the travel of our clients can have an impact on the environment. A good OBT will help guide bookers towards alternative, greener products where possible. This includes modal shift options, for example substituting a particular air route with a more sustainable rail one. It will also encourage you to list a traveller’s reasons for travel and collect information data which will allow you to report on sustainability goals or effectively offset carbon.
Why is this important?
“Sustainability” is far more than just shorthand for “reducing CO2” – it’s an all-encompassing philosophy which covers the protection of the natural environment. An OBT which empowers you to make greener choices is always a bonus.
In Conclusion
Selecting the ideal Online Booking Tool (OBT) is a critical decision for any organisation. It’s more than just choosing software; it’s about aligning technology with your unique travel needs and business goals. By carefully considering factors like functionality, user experience, data insights, and cost-effectiveness, you can find an OBT that streamlines your travel management process, enhances traveller satisfaction, and delivers significant cost savings. Remember, the perfect OBT is one that empowers you to make informed decisions, control travel spend, and ensure compliance with your travel policy.
So, take your time, evaluate your options thoroughly, and choose an OBT that truly works for you.
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