4.3 The e-customised offer
Internet marketing greater advantage is the tourist active
role meaning that he creates value for the marketer. As a matter of fact, the
tourist is enabled to display its expectations such as individual preferences
or specifications of holiday packages through feedback web forms, email
messages or even "clicking" patterns. Consequently, the tourism marketer can
better suit its needs by developing new products or customising existing
products. From this perspective, we can say that the Internet was one of the
major shift factor of the offer from a mass products offer to customised and
information based products.
The self-servicing aspect of the Internet is not limited to
transactions online and costs reductions. The customer is really active in the
production process itself. The e-customer is enabled to assemble his own
product according to its own specifications which is of great help in the
marketing of package holidays.
Tour operators web sites offer modular products and services
(e.g: flights, rooms, tours, car hire..). Thanks to these possibilities the
e-customer is enabled to participate in the development of its specific holiday
packages through the simple use of a menu of options. The e-customer can
"create" its own holiday package.
From a pricing point of view, the tour operator is enabled to
offer lower "parts" prices to e-customers, as they negotiated and bought the
components of the holiday package in a bulk. The Internet increases the
reactivity level of the tour operator who is able to adjust the prices of the
holiday packages in "real-time" according to the level of the customer demand.
As a result, tour operators provide low cost and flexible holidays packages
meaning that they are can sell individual and high quality products at a unit
cost level of mass production!!!!!
The improvement of existing products is also possible with the
use of Internet technologies. For instance, tourist attractions (e.g museums,
galleries) can use wider format options for electronic presentation and they
can also show web collections.
4.4 Electronic ticketing and ticketless travel
During the booking process, the e-customer acquires the right to
use a seat or room or a holiday for a specified time period. When he goes back
home the tourist does not bring back tangible products but experiences.
Consequently, the only thing which was transported during the whole process is
travel tickets and the tourist himself. This specific feature of intangibility
is a great advantage from an e-marketing perspective as the only cost of online
sale will be transaction processing expense and a little postage cost.
Electronic-ticketing or even ticketless-travel is becoming
more and more popular. Ticket-less travel means that check-in is achieved by
proof of identity and a booking reference number which can be considered as an
added value for enterprises and e-customers. In fact, it saves the ticketing
cost which includes stationery, printing and postage. It also speed up the
check-in process at airports as the passengers are able to self check-in at
check in machines with a credit card. Ticketless-travel benefits to the
e-customer as it is a time saving process and less expensive. For instance,
Bristish Airways has even announced that from 2000 travellers will be charged
£25 for a printed ticket where e-ticketing is available for the flight. It
could also cost the traveller £50 to replace a lost paper ticket.
Electronic ticketing seems to be a key development of the
tourism industry which is going to accelerate the acceptability and convenience
of air travel booking via on-line travel agents. As an e-ticket seller do not
need to deliver a physical ticket to deliver, he can potentially sell from
anywhere in the world to anyone.
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