In February 2013 we relocated our headquarters to Dubai. The aim was to use it as a launch pad for our expansion into international markets, and we now operate in eight source markets, with plans to increase these in 2015.
There is no doubt that it has been an exciting and challenging 18 months. Following the move, I learned an incredible amount - both in my personal and professional life. I couldn’t have imagined I would find a place that made civil servants and local government workers in the UK seem like enthusiastic grafters.
What has struck me most however is how incredibly good the service levels are in the UK. I never thought I would actually miss call centres and how efficient they can be in resolving a query or helping you.
We read of UK high streets struggling and how a way to combat this is to make shopping in a store an experience for the customer - offering them a service rather than a commodity. I couldn’t agree more. Commodities can be bought so easily, and usually more cheaply, online.
However, living elsewhere in a cultural melting pot has offered me more of an objective view on what the UK does well and how highly the service levels are rated by those from all over the world.
“I booked an apartment for WTM on Airbnb, and found it brilliantly straightforward”
My best advice would be to grasp what you’re good at and sweat it - make it work for you and pick the battles you can win. Going head to head with the Expedias of this world on price alone may not result in much success, but if you give your customers what they can’t, you will soon reap the benefits.
I read with interest Noel Josephides’ comments two weeks ago about the “sharing economy”. I understand that some in this industry are traditional, and any innovative way of customers acquiring what they want seems to be immediately held up as something to be feared, fought and legislated to death. But we should also applaud innovation and welcome change, as it keeps our industry relevant. I just booked an apartment for colleagues and myself for WTM on Airbnb, and found it brilliantly straightforward.
It doesn’t seem so long ago that the internet was held up as the “plague” that was going to doom us all in travel. The sector my business operates in, commonly referred to as “bed bank”, has been brandished as a “cowboy” sector and “dangerous”, simply for innovating and offering agents and customers a choice in how they wish to arrange holidays.
I hope there will be more balanced views on changing demands. Thinking you can dictate to customers how they have to book their much-loved holidays is no less barmy than thinking you can stop the tide coming in.
In validation of the importance of service, it seems fitting to end with a gloat about our TTG Travel Award for Accommodation Only Provider of the Year. It was our third consecutive year of winning this award - the only time a company has managed this in our most hotly contested category. We’ve built our business on our delivery and reputation, and the UK travel trade has paid us back time and time again. Thank you to my team, and to all you
TTG readers - we’re very proud!
Matt Stuart is managing director at Getabed
