Bulgarian and EU Tourism in Figures
Tourism is one of the leading sectors in Bulgaria. Every year, millions of Bulgarians travel around the country and abroad, while inbound tourism continues to grow.
Let’s start off with a few interesting statistics about tourism in the EU and Bulgaria during the current and past years, according to data from the National Board of Tourism:
Unlike sectors that deal with tangible products, the tourism industry revolves around selling memorable experiences. It’s precisely this emotional element that elevates customer relations to a leading role in this field. And here comes the key role of CRM…
CRM System for the Tourism Sector and Its Capabilities
The main directions of CRM in the field of tourism are managing customer relationships, improving service and generating sales.
Thanks to the capabilities of the software, travel agencies, tour operators and airlines document complete information about offers, bookings and previous visits, which gives them a complete, 360-degree view of each customer.
Stored data helps to get to know customers and their interests and preferences – valuable information that can be effectively used to meet customer expectations and overall increase customer satisfaction.
The CRM system has tools for conducting outbound campaigns by phone and email, the ability to integrate with the existing reservation system, as well as detailed customer files that document the complete history of communication from different channels.
Functionalities such as delegation of tasks, the use of calendars for client meetings and events, and the digitization of company documentation help to improve overall work processes in the travel agency.
In terms of sales, Sales CRM solutions have the complete toolkit for their management – from identifying leads and opportunities, to operating with Sales Dashboards that give a complete picture of the status of every deal with every single customer at any given moment.
So far we have mentioned just a part of the capabilities of the CRM system. More specific features that would be beneficial to the travel industry are:
The Advantages of Using CRM in the Tourism Field
CRM systems are proving themselves to be the primary tool for personalized customer service. Through them, travel agencies, tour operators and airlines get to know their customers in depth and offer them exactly what they want and expect.
In addition to effective relationship management, a well-built and successfully implemented CRM system can improve the entire customer experience – from the first contact, to leaving feedback after the journey is over.Let's start with the most important thing - the main advantages of CRM solutions for the tourism industry and how they help to achieve the goals that travel agencies set for themselves.
1. Productivity Increase
Efficiency is crucial when it comes to handling customer requirements and organizing travel. CRM smooths out internal company processes by enabling their standardization and consistency, thanks to available tools, templates and automations. This way, it saves time and human resources, without this being at the expense of the quality of the tasks.
2. Centralized Database (on Cloud)
Whether the agency's employees are on-site in the office or working remotely, they all have access to unified data, and in real time, which minimizes the possibility of inaccuracies and provides all the necessary information in one place, as well as its absolute security. The interests and preferences documented in each customer's file are successfully used to predict client expectations and increase satisfaction.
3. Targeted Sales Activities
The CRM system allows for a more personalized approach and greater precision in sales activities, thanks to the detailed segmentation available. Automated lead categorization, combined with detailed targeting when running outbound campaigns, ensures a balance between scale and personalization. CRM identifies the best salespeople and gives a complete view of the sales cycle and volume at any given moment.
Here are some Sales CRM statistics that prove the effectiveness of the software solution in the field of sales activity:
4. The Role of Feedback
Data based on customer feedback helps shape the marketing strategy and direction of the campaigns themselves. Detailed Feedback, which is also documented in the CRM system, allows agencies and tour operators to understand in-depth the preferences of their customers and respond to their needs.
5. Customer Retention Enhancement
The detailed communication history stored in CRM customer files enhances personalized interactions and promotes trust and loyalty. Loyalty programs and follow-up communication by agencies create a feeling of exclusivity among customers and positively influence their decision to use the company's services again.
6. Customer Service Improvement
CRM systems have a number of effective functionalities that help to improve the quality of service - from multi-channel communication, including Phone, Email, Web Chat (including Chatbot) and Viber, to tools for the successful implementation of outbound marketing and sales campaigns with personal messages and individual approach.
7. Reporting Based on Real Data
CRM solutions offer a number of options for generating reports and template reports that are based on various combinations of the documented information. Real-time monitoring also helps analyze contact and customer data, and tools like Sales Dashboards give a complete view of sales activities in the travel agency.
Summary of CRM Benefits in Tourism
This is how we can summarize the benefits of using a CRM system in the tourism business and how it contributes to its improvement by increasing the quality of customer service:
- Effective communication with tourists and travelers
- Getting to know customer wishes, preferences and interests
- Identification and management of potential clients
- Performing marketing initiatives
- Documenting the complete customer data
- In-depth study of customer behavior
- Identification and resolution of customer cases
- Predicting customer preferences for the future
- Reservation management through Booking integration
- Analyzing feedback and improving services
InfoServ CRM is a complex software solution, rich in functionalities, which a number of businesses in the field of tourism in Bulgaria have already implemented successfully.
One of these businesses is the travel agency Elfy Tours. They have reported growth in new customers and doubled customer inquiries processed in the first quarter of 2023.
Learn more about the system's features and capabilities by requesting a free demo HERE.