You’re standing at the airport, getting ready to embark on your latest trip – boarding pass, hotel bookings, and Google Maps all in hand on your mobile phone. With a scan of your smartphone, you’re through to the departure lounge. A scan of your passport and you’re through immigration and ready to board. You pay for some duty-free with your digital wallet, then you board your plane, where your prebooked seat and meal are ready for you to enjoy.
This seamless experience highlights a simple truth, as stated by Sir Arthur C. Clarke, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” This shows us that digital tools have woven themselves so deeply into our lives that complex tasks like travel now feel effortless, almost magical, entirely redefining what we expect in terms of convenience and efficiency.
For today’s tech-savvy traveller, a mobile-first digital experience is no longer a nice-to-have, it’s a necessity. Gone are the days of booking travel over the phone, printing boarding passes and hotel confirmations, and relying on paper maps and guidebooks. Now, there is quite literally a mobile application for everything, and travellers are keen to use them.
In fact, according to a recent survey conducted by Allianz Partners, only 7 per cent of travellers in the UAE would not use a travel application. Of the remaining 93 per cent, research revealed that the number one use for travel-related mobile apps (45 per cent) is to store travel documentation. The use of a digital wallet was the second most desirable function (38 per cent), followed by trip planning (34 per cent) and maps (34 per cent). In fact, the travel app market is said to have generated $629 billion in revenue last year, a 13 per cent increase on the previous year, and is only expected to grow in the coming years.
Against this backdrop, travel providers are faced with both challenges and opportunities. The challenge is to ensure a mobile-first, digital approach. The opportunity is to leverage advanced technologies to become a real-time travel companion, one that anticipates needs and provides solutions proactively.
From airlines and hotels to booking platforms and other travel providers, the use of technologies such as AI, IoT, and data analytics can be leveraged to provide travellers with personalised and real-time, seamless solutions and interactions around the clock. And in fact, those travel providers that fail to take this approach as consumer expectations evolve in line with digital trends run the risk of becoming redundant.
Nowhere is this more relevant than in the insurance sector, where advanced technologies are now enabling providers to become proactive as opposed to reactive. Historically seen as a reactive, paper-intensive process, travel insurance is now being reshaped by the same digital transformation redefining the wider travel industry.
Take, for example, a bad weather warning. Location-based alerts, powered by data and automation, can automatically rebook travellers on alternative routes in anticipation of delays. Or take for example, the traveller that has a medical need. Digital advances have now enabled virtual medical consultations, removing the need to visit physical facilities and wait in long queues for assessment. Finally, where travellers have to submit a claim, digital tools now ensure the process is faster, data-driven, and more transparent.
With everything available at the touch of a button, consumers no longer want to wait in a long queue, be placed on hold on the telephone, or carry around vast quantities of paperwork. The future of travel is digital, and travellers now expect a seamless service tailored to their personal needs. By anticipating their needs and delivering proactive services, travel providers will not only gain a competitive edge in the market but will increasingly define the future of travel.
In the future of travel, advanced technologies mean that travel disruptions can be kept to a minimum, allowing travellers to kick back, relax and enjoy their holiday with peace of mind. For the insurance sector, that means delivering seamless, effortless, and personalised services enabled by advanced technologies for a truly digital-first experience. As the travel landscape continues to evolve, one thing is clear: the winners will be those who not only keep up with digital expectations but lead the way.
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