Abacus International, a leading service provider in travel solutions is bearish about the potential generated by a greater use of high tech devices in the Filipino market.
MANILA – The growth in the travel industry and mobile use in the Philippines has created opportunities for travel agents in the country to capitalise on this growth and differentiate themselves from the competition, says Abacus International, one of Asia’s leading providers of travel solutions and services.
Travel and tourism in the Philippines are expected to record continuous positive growth rates of inbound arrivals, and domestic passenger numbers are expected to grow by 10 % this year. Abacus booking figures support this growth trend, especially in terms of domestic passenger numbers. Domestic bookings demonstrated a 12 % growth for May 2012 (year-to-date) over the previous year.
Mobile use in the Philippines is also rising rapidly with subscribers expected to reach 117 million by the end of 2016 and even to surpass the 100 % mobile penetration rate by the end of 2012. This increase has fuelled the increase in the number of mobile Internet users, with 35 per cent of Filipino using their mobile device to access the Internet. The Philippines is now in third position in South East Asia for mobile Internet usage.
This will play a positive effect on the travel industry: “The availability and use of mobile devices has not only improved productivity but also increased customers’ expectations on turnaround times for their enquiry. As such, travel agents need to be equipped with the appropriate technology to ensure that they can provide the best customer service even when they are on the go,” said Brett Henry, Vice-President, Commercial and Marketing of Abacus International.
“The growth in mobile and Internet technology has resulted in consumers relying on their mobile devices heavily, and this is even more evident when they are travelling. It is important for travel agents to adapt to this change in behaviour to be able to manage the multiple demands from customers even while out of the office,” said Gerry Samuels, CEO of Mobile Technologies Ltd. “The ability to continue to provide the level of service expected by customers anytime, anywhere, creates a huge opportunity for travel agents to differentiate themselves from the competition. Travel agents need to be equipped with the best mobile solutions to be able to do this effectively.” Abacus looks at boosting its market share by proposing to travel agents its Abacus Mobility suite, a series of mobile solutions developed to cater to the demand from travel businesses.
Luc Citrinot a French national is a freelance journalist and consultant in tourism and air transport with over 20 years experience. Based in Paris and Bangkok, he works for various travel and air transport trade publications in Europe and Asia.
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