Travala Case Study - Digital Technologies In The Visitor Economy

Not sure if you already noticed, but I can talk about a wide range of subjects or topics. This is because my educational background shifted and changed trough my life. From sports to management, from physical education to travel and tourism. Spoiler Alert ... PVM also has a bachelor degree in International Tourism Management and even there I mixed the subject with cryptocurrencies and blockchain solutions. 

I always had this dream that one day I will book my holiday paying with crypto and take advantage of the growing E-Tourism trends. E-Tourism is the link between IT and the travel and tourism sector. The integration of IT and ITC in the hospitality sector is used to improve booking, online reservations, online reviews and to design tourism apps and social media marketing

I invite you to read a case study about Travala, and the impact of digital technologies in the travel and tourism industry. This was a research I've done in 2020 and I accidentally found while deleting some of the 3000 emails I had clogging my account! It looks like this will be one of my long and boring articles, just because it's an academical research! 

Introduction 

According to Fuchs and Hopken (2020) E-Tourism is the link between IT and the travel and tourism sector, and the potential of tourism development with the help of technology. The integration of IT and ITC in the hospitality sector will be used to improve booking, online reservations, online reviews and to design tourism apps and social media marketing.

However, Goecke (2020) considers that E-Tourism is the digitalization of the whole hospitality sector and the tourism infrastructure. E-Tourism is a method to enhance classical tourism by reducing seasonality and low communication between the customer and the service provider. The use of Internet and the technological evolution changed the structure and the principles of the tourism sector. The customer can chose the destination according to the budget, and plan the whole trip from the comfort of his home.

The tourism and hospitality sector evolved due to technological development. The traditional travel distribution, with travel agencies branches on the high street is not relevant in 2021, as the majority of businesses in the sector are now focusing in online and social media marketing.

Ivanov (2019), highlighted how technology made travel easier. The third party has been eliminated and bookings engines are the tool used by customers to compare prices and book transport and accommodation. The newly created online agencies are assisting the customer to plan and book the holiday, providing the best options for accommodation, transportation and activities.

Booking platforms such as Hotels.com , Booking.com , Travala, etc were created to fill the demand for online holiday planning. The introduction of smartphones and mobile apps improved the tourism industry and the social media platforms are helping travelers to research and gather data about chosen destinations.

According to Khudoyberdievich (2020), the innovation technologies are revolutionizing the tourism industry and the way consumer travel. The holiday is upgraded based on tech usage and the intangible parts of the vacation are made easier to book.

Travala (2021) is a SMTE founded in 2017, that focuses on e-commerce and blockchain technology to solve two problems that traditional booking platforms are facing, the service providers and the easy access for customers. Innovative ideas were integrated in the platform to empower reasonable pricing and to allow smaller suppliers to compete with big companies.

According to the Travala whitepapers (2017), the start-up integrated blockchain based booking platform to provide services for travelers worldwide. All types of properties and accommodations are available with prices up to 40% cheaper than traditional travel agencies. Frictionless travel booking is integrated on blockchain and the customers are receiving tokenised rewards. AVA is the native token of the Travala network, a token that is used alongside traditional payment options, providing transparent pricing.

Travala’s vision (2021) is to offer modern and hustle free travel bookings with the full benefits of decentralized technology. This vision promotes accessibility and peer-to-peer transactions based on open-sourced technology.

Literature review

According to Moriuchi (2019) social media marketing is part of the e-commerce. Online strategies are created to improve the consumer experience. Social media and mobile apps are constantly used for promotions and to improve the travel and hospitality industries. It is trending because offers free marketing and it is accessible to every person with a Smartphone.

Atherton (2019) considers that social media strategies are part of the modern marketing and the cheapest way to obtain customer engagement. Social media can be user to search for locations, to ask for directions, to find transportation or to read reviews about hotels.

Media communications, such as emails, texts or QR codes, are used to keep the customer pool updated with offer deals and news. This modern communication is used to boost the relation between businesses and companies, using the synergy between technology and tourism.

Buhalis and Laws (2001) studied the tourism distribution channels and according to their research, the communication in the tourism industry played a crucial role in the evolution of worldwide travel. The development of search engines and online advertising has increased the capacity and speed of reviews available to potential customers. The information is used to plan their holidays and created a higher level of customer satisfaction.

According to Kabassi (2010), the tourism offer of attractions, transportation, accommodations and restaurants is enhanced by technology. E-Media is used to provide information about airlines, car rental, accommodation, etc, and creates opportunities for small companies to advertise their products for free. Online travel agencies emerged due to the growing demand for fast and easy online bookings. Other companies, such as LastMinute.com, used a different approach to target a more flexible type of travelers.

Lazar (2019) highlighted the support given to e-tourism by the interned. The current data shows that 71% of tourists will use the internet to prepare their holiday and 32% of them are doing the preparation using the smartphone.

The effect of digital transformation in the tourism sector was analyzed by Sinno (2019). According to his study, the internet has become the predominant channel of distribution. The new digital trends are online bookings and cashless transactions. This type of bookings are empowering the tourist, giving them total control for all aspects of the package, from payments to transportation and extras. The feedback received by hotels can be easily checked, as the customers will share the experience and publish photos or videos from the holiday. The hi-tech interactive platforms are replacing the websites, giving customers the opportunity to share their media with the future customers.

According to Kayumovich (2020), the digital tourism development is linked to how the companies are using shared experience as free advertising. Millions of pictures and videos are shared each day on social media, and Instagram is one of the social media platforms that is used globally to share photos of tourism destinations, landmarks and trending restaurants.

Social networks changed the trends in the sector, creating the new tourism industry. The tourism of the future is driven by independent travellers, the tourists that adopted the technology and use it to improve the holiday experience.

According to Poddubnaya (2019), the use of internet technology in tourism marketing created a closer relationship between companies and customers. Internet analytics are used by tourism entities to target customers more effectively, by creating profiles for clear market segments.

Travala (2021) is using the most advanced technology in a quest to add cryptocurrency payments a mainstream option for the travel and tourism sector. By offering equal support for both fiat and crypto payments, Travala offers transparent bookings, no hidden costs and a reward system for customers.

Travala Case Study

According to Crowdcube (2017), Travala is an easy to use online travel agency (OTA) with an unique infrastructure. The customers can pay for services using traditional payment options and 30 of the most popular cryptocurrencies. The $AVA token is used to reward users and turns them into Travala promoters.

Travala (2021) commits to best prices guaranteed on 2.2 million rooms in hotels and accommodations, in over 230 countries and territories. The range of accommodation includes hotels, apartments and even luxury resorts.

The travel, fintech and the blockchain experts from Travala’s created a system that has transparent pricing, enhanced security and efficient stakeholder interaction with all the benefits of open source technology.

According to Mejia-Dorantes (2019), the qualitative approach will enable the understanding of critical variables. Secondary research will be used to revise the company framework and avoid critical mistakes.

Travala (2021) completed the research activity using the successful frameworks from top companies in the sector. All the information was collated to create a development plan for social media platforms, which will lead to a higher rate of online bookings.

According to the Travala Whitepaper (2017), AVA is the native token of the Travala platform and as the customer pool continues to grow, the AVA use is gaining momentum. The whole booking process is based on earning AVA tokens as a reward for using Travala. The potential customer must register on the website to use the Travala services. New users will receive a sign-up bonus in AVA tokens. Once the registration is complete, the users can start the booking process and receive promotional prices, discounts and cash back.

The AVA token can be used for payments, and if the full amount of the booking is pay with AVA, the user will get an additional 3% discount on top of all other offers and discounts. The user will get 2% cashback in AVA for every completed booking and a 8.04% interest is paid to all AVA locked in the platform. The AVA tokens have shopping attributes as they can serve as a method of payment at over 5000 e-commerce merchants worldwide.

According to Agyeiwaah (2019), sustainability and convenience are leading the new trends of tourism and hospitality. The customers will use the internet for booking and research and Travala simplifies the whole booking process.

Discussion

Travala (2021) completed a record breaking Q2, with $9,800,000 in total revenue. This was possible due to the existing technology that enables direct interaction with tourism suppliers. The Travala App enables consumers to access enhanced information about their choice of holiday.

According to Mols (2001), the effectiveness of new distribution channels is conditioned by how the project will be accepted in the region.

However, Eren (2021) considers that new distribution channels are adding value to the service and will create an effective competitiveness between travel and tourism agencies.

According to the Travala My Smart programme, users can get up to 10% savings on their bookings. I activated the Smart Level , which will discount my bookings with 2% and will pay 2% cashback on all bookings. All locked AVA is paying interest at 8.05% APR. If the whole package is paid with AVA, an additional 3% discount is applied to the booking.

The e-tourism keeps expanding and this new way of thinking will require a clear framework regarding customer feedback. The majority of tourists will use smartphones, computers or tablets for holiday planning and payments.  They will also share their opinion and experiences before, during and after the trip.

The information and rich content will be than implemented in commercial advertising. The way Travala must advertise their commercial will follow the development of the whole Travala system.

The idea behind Travala is innovative and involved users will take advantage of the excellent referral system. I locked my TVL at Smart Level 2 for the free monthly bonus, and up to date 1.67 and 3.35 AVA where rewarded directly to my wallet.

According to Software Advice Study (2014) almost 20% of US travellers are choosing their destination from Facebook. Travala comes as extra support and the Travala app was created to make the search of custom made holidays even easier.

Facebook has over  2 billion registered users and travel booking platforms are using it to boost the numbers of customers through constant communication and updates. Every potential customer has the opportunity to use the access travel companies to find a new destination or the cheapest hotel.

The travel companies are using Facebook to promote their hotels, to share special promotions and even book holiday packages directly through the platform.

Travala (2021) is a medium tourism business with a good social media presence. They use Facebook to create an interaction with the customers and upload media for the customer pool. The users can view and book hotels through Facebook, check special promotions or taking virtual tours of the chosen destination.

The Travala’s Facebook (2021) account attracts new users by creating up to date news about the company, new destinations or new events. The Facebook page also encourage customers to upload images or videos from their holidays.

Travala’s Facebook page has 45,000 followers, a huge pool of new and existing customers. Offers and promotions are constantly uploaded by the admin, encouraging travellers to engage, ask questions and upload content from beautiful locations.

Twitter is one of the most popular online methods to search for the travel destinations. With over 300 million monthly users and  5000 millions of daily tweets, Twitter is a great addition to holiday planning. Online travel shoppers are constantly using Twitter to gain a deeper understanding of the hotel offer, checking genuine feedback and tweets from previous travellers.

According to Van Liere (2010), a twitter travels worldwide faster than any other social media update. Over 70% of the holidaymakers will tweet something about their hotel once they reached the destination, while 50% will tag the accommodation in their tweet.

The amount of users relying on Twitter for travel ideas is growing constantly and Travala took advantage of the modern trend by setting up an interactive and well maintained Twitter account. The account was set up in February 2018 and now has 93,900 followers. The high numbers are the result of constant communication between the provider and the customers, as they created a strong bound and a trusted relationship.

The tweets must be engaging and to reflect the offer, as stunning views of hotels, nightlife or local attractions will create a positive image in the customers mind. The existing customers are contributing to the positive image by uploading their photos and by tweeting their feedback.

Potential customers can join the discussion and get faster feedback from hotels on Twitter than by email. It is easier to share visually appealing content due to Twitter’s visual layout, therefore the shoppers can create a clear expectation from the chosen destination.

Instagram (2021) was over one million active users, being one of the fastest growing social media platforms. Over 50 billion pictures were already shared, with an average of 100 million shared daily.

According to Terttunen (2017), a picture shares emotions, feelings and can describe a place better than words. Visual aspects of travelling are constantly shared on social media platforms and Instagram’s influence on travel planning recorded an important growth in the last years,

Travala is heading towards 47,000 followers, social media users using Instagram as a source of inspiration for future holidays. The account is constantly updated with news and pictures from the available range of accommodations. Customers are also uploading beautiful images tagging both the hotel and Travala, therefore being an active asset in promotion and marketing. 

Travala New Social Media Strategy

The Travala development team publishes roadmap updates every quarter. The 2021 Q3 was published and contains a new social media strategy, along with many other planned updates.

Travala (2021) plans to add direct messaging between the customer and the property, advance search filtering, several business improvements and advantages for app users. This set of improvements will improve the holiday experience and will accommodate the customer’s needs in a more person centred way.

The new social media strategy is focused on the mobile app usage, with better rates and more tools for the customers that downloaded the app. The business improvements and concierge booking services will be tested on the app before being added to the website.

The Travala blog (2021) focuses on highlighting the social media updates and upgrades. It has a low maintenance cost and reaches higher levels of efficiency. With over 200,000 followers across all social media platform, Travala’s target audience is the modern traveler.

According to Sengel (2021), the modern traveler is the individual that can easily use the internet, modern technology and social media to enhance the holiday experience. He/she will use the available tools to avoid the pumped prices in the highly competitive tourism market and to find the cheaper, but most rewarding package. The new social media strategy must focus on the current trends and demands in the tourist sector, focusing on ways to increase the revenue through social media channels.

Sarsby (2016) considers that the SWOT analysis is the right tool to understand trends, risks and opportunities. The SWOT analysis is a strategic planning tool used to asses and identify strengths and weaknesses. This will also reflect the threats and opportunities based on facts and out-of-the-box thinking. The analysis will provide realistic feedback and will be the stepping stone of any framework development.

Strengths

• The mixed payment method in both fiat and cryptocurrencies

• High interaction and activity on social media

• Positive image and good reputation

• Constant innovations for the tourism sector

Weaknesses

• Cryptocurrencies are not globally accepted

• The lack of history in travel and tourism as Travala was created in 2017

• The difficulty of older generation to use and understand social media

Opportunities

• The constant growth of online bookings

• The integration of cryptocurrencies in day to day living

• The demand for booking options that will match the modern trends

Threats

• The decline of the travel and tourism sector due to Covid-19 pandemic

• Cryptocurrency market volatility

• Social media scams and fake accounts.

According to TrustPilot (2021), Travala has an excellent rating, 4.7 stars from 955 reviews. New customers will instantly appreciate the brand, as the excellent rating is difficult to achieve. All the reviews on TrustPilot are from verified customers and the overall information will give a realistic feedback for Travala.

The current TrustPilot rating means that the current social media strategy used by Travala is efficient. The well developed communications strategy must maintain the focus on social media, and avoid oversaturation. The updates must maintain professionalism and attract attention

The new social media strategy must focus on mobile friendly technology and user friendly social media accounts. This focus is required by the move from laptops and desktops computers to smartphones.

According to Saragih (2020), mobile devices are used as a medium for promotion and the tourism sector businesses are using mobile applications as advertising and booking tools. The benefit of mobile apps and social media is visible in the effectiveness of online marketing.

Travala (2021) activity on social media will integrate the new strategy, focusing on brand awareness and brand engagement. The information provided on platforms such as Facebook, Twitter or Instagram will be backed by customer’s engagement through word of mouth, likes, shares and social validation.

The success of the business is linked to customer satisfaction and the way the development of a strategic tourism plan will identify the future demands. The increased use of technology and social media will change the focus from printed media and television to online platforms and free of charge advertising. This new social media strategy will help Travala, and the businesses integrated on the platform to communicate effectively and reach global publicity. All the involved stakeholders will ensure that the customer perception will support the brand and will increase the interaction on social media channels.

Shuffling through the Trust Pilot feedbacks (2021), it is clear that Travala achieved all the above as customers are posting positive reviews. The most common reviews are praising the easy booking system, the cheaper price compared to other websites and the beyond excellent customer service. Travala is called “simply the best”, “a breath of fresh air in travel” and  “10 out of 10 experience”

According to Buhalis (2019), technology in tourism and smart tourism are moving the travel experience in the era of innovation. Information and communication are bringing the tourism sector closer to a sustainable approach. The tourism innovations are different then innovations brought to products and packages as they improve the socio-economic aspects of tourist destinations.

Decelle (2014) considers that the dynamic approach towards innovation will rejuvenate the whole travel sector. In Travala’s case, the desire for innovation comes from the desire to grow and from the scalability of cryptocurrency powered payments. The system set by Travala is innovating the online booking experience, skipping the intermediaries. The customers can find accommodation at cheaper rates through the increased social media channels and check real customers feedback, either positive or negative.

Travala (2021) integration of over 30 cryptocurrencies in the payment system can be considered a niche, which from a management perspective is setting the company a step ahead of many competitors.

Promoting crypto-payments as part of the new social media strategy will help Travala to empower the brand. When cryptocurrencies will become mainstream, Travala will be considered the pioneer of the sector.

According to Effing (2013), the social media strategy design must contain a summary of all the actions planed for social media channels and the goals that the company wants to achieve. The strategy must be specific, concise and measurable.

Travala social media strategy for 2022 will follow six stages that will lead the company in the most recognizable brands in the tourist sector.

Step 1: Setting goals – Travala aims to increase brand awareness through social media. Engaging social media channels will create a special link with the customers and authentic long lasting brand awareness. Generating sales and brand audience are secondary goals, both achievable from higher brand awareness. Growing numbers of followers will create engagement that will boost the bookings, user generated content and traffic on the Travala website or mobile app. The social media strategy must set S.M.A.R.T. goals as a measure for success. The strategy must establish specific and measurable goals that are attainable, relevant and time bound.

Stage 2: Research – Social media analytics tools will be used to understand the audience. The results will be used to create social media marketing strategies that will apply to them. The data and social media insights will include Google search and customers feedback.

Travala interaction and activity on Facebook and Youtube are the prime platforms for ads and promotions. Instagram and TikTok are used by younger generations, those that can understand the technological evolution. Twitter started to become a platform for free advertising to global audience. Travala will create a social media dashboard to follow the interaction on each channel.

The audience is the key for social media campaigns, as the target customer must be identified by age, location, average income and interests. Travala must also know the competitors, a task easily to achieve as social media is open for all. Following and analysing the competitive market will help Travala to spot opportunities.

Stage 3: Establishing KPI – The social media strategy created by Travala must be data-driven, focusing on metrics and analytics. Each social media platform must be rated according to reach, clicks and engagement.

Metrics like likes, retweets and the number of subscribers are easy to track but is no formula to prove their real value.  Social media goals should be set based on overall marketing goals.

The hastag performance for Travala must provide a clear count of organic engagement and a clear feedback on how the customers considered the marketing campaign. Effective social media promotions are based on numbers and stats.

Stage 4: Create and maintain engagement  - Travala must maintain the engagement at higher standards. The published content must follow the company brand identity and maintain the themes. It can use images and creative touches to attract the customer’s feedback but must avoid memes, poor content and plagiarism.

Travala social media marketing should publish innovative content and must consider the modern social media trends. The “stories” tool can be used to make the social feed more personal, while short videos can dominate the social space and create high engagement.

Stage 5: Time efficient social presence – Travala marketing on social media must consider timeliness and time zones. Fresh content must be timed for the desired market segment. The social media community managers must be available to answer to any questions. Customers are expecting quick replies from Travala and the answers must be meaningful as the social customer care will increase the brand image.

Stage 6: Improve what is working well – Travala social media interaction is at higher standards and this strategy must be maintained. Monitoring the marketing metrics will maintain the growing expectations and the KPIs must match the company goals.

The social media engagement on Travala’s accounts is at higher standards and this level must not be reduced. Customers and potential customers are appreciating the quick answers and the engagement to their questions.

Conclusion

Social media platforms integrated multimedia, videos and are helping customers to create a more realistic image for the destination. Travel and tourism businesses, such as Travala, are using social media to promote the brand and to obtain market advantage.

Travala, as an emerging e-tourism business, innovated the tourism industry with the addition of cryptocurrency payments. Content marketing technique, relevant distribution and quality content are used to create engagement.

The target audience and viral marketing are the most important aspects considered by Travala’s social media presence. The dynamics and insights obtained from customer feedback is used to create relevant content and new products to match the demand.

A new social media strategy is required, as the society keeps evolving. Travala has to adapt to the new wave of technology by integrating new technology whenever the demand changes. With the launch of the mobile app, the company tapped the ever-growing pool of travelers that are using the smartphone for all the holiday related activities.

What changed since 2020?

I got myself a bag of Travala ($AVA) and activated my Smart Membership, becoming eligible for cashback, rewards and perks. The Level 1 entitled me to 8.04 % interest on my tokens, 1% discount on bookings and 2% discount on Smart accommodation bookings. I decided to make a sweet deal and upgraded to Level 2! 

I joined Travala just in time to be eligible for the TVRL airdrop, few days before the snapshot. I was informed that smart members will be eligible to participate in a series of airdrops totaling 10,000,000 $TVRL tokens.

I received the tokens few days later, getting 39 $TRVL straight into my Metamask wallet. I will hold them until they will turn into a valuable asset. Activated diamond hands at 0.089 USD per token, and hopefully 2023 will see some growth. Time will tell!

Travala kept up with the Metaverse evolution and invited the holders to vote in DAO like proposals. I voted for a brand refresh and also received $10 travel credits. The proposal was set to approve the withdrawal of $200,000 from the Community Pool, and use them for a comprehensive rebranding and perpetual growth.

I was enjoying the ecosystem even more and I upgraded my Travala Smart Membership to Silver. I now have more voting power, more discounts and I am eligible for higher airdrop rates.

Travala Smart Silver status gives 3% discount on travel bookings, 3% loyalty rewards as cashback in $AVA, and another 3% discount when paying for the booking with $AVA. This set of perks will make my bookings 9% cheaper then the price paid by a non-member. I can claim stamps and badges through the Proof of Travel NFT program, and I raised my voting power to 1625 votes. Now is time to travel and use my crypto to earn crypto.

Constant innovation and customer involvement are part of Travala's success. Battle tokens were implemented, and Smart users were able to vote on which token will be added as payment method. The first token battle was the result of community voting, and decided that $CAKE to be listed as a payment method for over 3,000,000 travel products worldwide.

This was followed by Floki v Shiba Inu, and even a memecoin noob like me knew that SHIBA would win this duel. I was one of those who voted for SHIBA as the winner of the 1v1 duel, and as a result I had 1.0049 AVA credited in my account. I like this type of engagement and I am sure all $AVA holders are feeling appreciated. It looks like 2023 came with a crypto rejuvenation, and the market is green again. It's time to go on Travala and book some holidays! 

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