Why should Travel Agents use text messages?

Press release as featured in the Travel Trade Gazette

Mobile phone communications are the perfect method for reaching travel agent customers, especially when they are on the move. The simplest way to reach consumers on their mobile is via a text message. Text messages are simple, low cost and have readership rates of over 90%. The average SMS reaches its intended recipient 720 times faster than an email (the average text is read in four minutes, an email in 48 hours), so an SMS is an incredibly efficient way of getting your message across. Text messages can also be sent to virtually any customer with a phone, they don’t have the same compatibility issues as other mobile marketing techniques which may isolate the high percentage of the population who don’t own smart phones. But because of their concise nature an SMS message will only take moments to read, which equates to maximum impact with minimum inconvenience.

Recipients can receive, digest and act on a text message in a matter of seconds. It is this real-time nature of the SMS that makes it such a good way for travel agents to engage their customers. A number of travel agents such as Thomas Cook and The Co-operative Travel have started to send text messages to communicate a range of information from updates about flight status, booking confirmations, and last minute deals to gate information for flights. Other uses include welcome messages for customers arriving in new countries which include local information, translation services advice, and further service enhancing messages. For savvy travel agents such solutions will serve to strengthen the relationship between the customer and agency. Text messages are the tool that will help agents reclaim ‘ownership’ of their customers at a time when the threat of the web enabled ‘self help world’ has never been greater .

Rapide has helped its travel industry clients achieve significant ROI and attract new customers. Innkeepers Lodge used a text message shortcode in its national advertising campaign to promote a special offer. The advertisement asked interested readers to request a brochure either by calling an agent, sending an email or texting their details to the shortcode. Although the shortcode was the smallest call to action on the page it alone achieved 300% of the expected response rate.

SMS is a proven communications channel which can provide a degree of timeliness and interactivity that no other medium can offer. It offers an unrivalled ability to reach people on the go for a truly instant experience. It seems that, as in the mid nineties, when many executives did not fully understand the way in which the internet could help their business, the true power of SMS is an unknown entity to many. 2011 is the prime time for brands to explore the potential SMS holds for them, or else risk being left behind.

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