Review: Impact of Information Technology advancements on Travel & Tourism Sector
Dr. Simar Longia II CPHR II SHRM-SCP II
Ph.D II MBA II Author II Sr. HR Professional II Professor II Business Consultant II Founder/ Director- Ideaz & Solutionz & Hiring Solutionz
Abstract
Information technology advancements are having a significant impact on the travel and tourism sector. This study examines how travel and tourist businesses that offer information about package's, itinerary and air travel use the internet as a relational tool. The findings of the empirical research demonstrate the function that the internet plays in boosting sales as well as the various relational tools that businesses employ to win the trust and loyalty of the customers.
Both tourists and travel service providers have noticed a significant impact from the internet.
The majority of modern businesses use e-commerce to accomplish a variety of objectives, thus keeping an excellent website is essential if a company wants to improve its client relationships and do well in business dealings. The information-intensive and customer focused character of the travel and tourism sector makes it seem particularly well suited for the adoption on e-commerce. According to the study’s findings, many ways have been started to analyse the growth of tourism websites in addition to the long standing recognition of the value of analyzing content on websites. Further research opportunities, and business repercussions are discussed in the study’s conclusion.
Introduction
India is a wonderful country with a multitude of tourist attractions like diverse landscapes, exuberant cultures, and abundant sights.
It is without a doubt a land of marvel home to over a billion people, 15 official languages, and a brilliant fusion of cultures, races and religions. its diversity transcends any limitations. Indians enjoy variety in their daily lives and thrive on it. There is variety from a mud house to a palace. India offers countless options for tourism due to its abundance of large mountain ranges, intriguing national parks, attractive rivers, roaring seas, silent valleys, thrilling waterfalls, historical sites, sacred temples and distinct tribal culture as well as the friendliness of its people.
For both, domestic and foreign travelers, Rajasthan is one of the most well liked tourism sites in India. Rajasthan’s tagline “Padharo Mahare Desh(Welcome to My Land)”, draws tourists with its medieval forts, palaces, art and culture. As a capital of Rajasthan, and one of the three cities that make up the Golden Triangle, Jaipur-also known as - the Pink City- is a very popular tourist destination.
Among the top vacation spots for many travelers, both domestic and foreign, are the palaces of Jaipur, the lakes of Udaipur and the dessert forts of Jodhpur, Bikaner and Jaisalmer.
Importance of Tourism
A growing number of locations have opened up and made tourism related investments over time. Making contemporary tourism a significant contributor to socioeconomic development by fostering businesses, jobs, infrastructure development and export revenue. Tourism has grown to be one of the primary international commerce sectors. For many developing nations, tourism exports ranked fourth in terms of exports, after fuels, chemicals and automotive items, and up to 30% of all commercial service exports worldwide. It is one of the key sources of income and the top export product, providing small islands with much needed employment and growth prospects.
Website Layout:
We looked at a local website (www.rajasthantourwala.com)?that offered travel and itinerary related information to learn more about Rajasthan tourism. We decided to run a website performance test after experiencing some trouble scrolling through the menus when browsing the website. The metrics are listed below:
Despite the website’s less attractive style and layout, it delivered the necessary information. The graphics were also interesting and pertinent. The website’s content is both educational and user-friendly with some limitations to it. All of the menus were simple to access on both desktop and mobile devices as well as tablets.
Content Assessment:
Content reigns supreme on websites. Good content guides the user through an engaging narrative and is clear, succinct and conversational. Typography, colors and images are used in web design to set the user’s emotional expectations from the content. ??
Content Quality
The website’s content was easily accessible and provided most of the details required for local travel. It provides precise details about the nearby areas which can be investigated.
Content Organization
The website’s information is thoughtfully organized under the ensuring categories and subheadings, giving visitors a wide range selection of tours to choose from. Long paragraphs contained sufficient information to allow readers to fully delve into the subject matter. It was basic and straightforward to understand the terminology used in the text. Well written and grammatically verified, the information is flawless.
Variety of Content
When we decided to pursue the tours and packages after learning more about the website and the diversity of content it offered, we noticed that while the majority of the information was provided in the itinerary, there is no information provided about the accommodations. Additionally, no options are provided for selecting the kind of rooms.
Multimedia Content
However, the website offered a variety of images to view from the gallery about each area, but it did not offer any videos or virtual tours to interest visitors and make it easier for them to choose a trip.
Interactive Features
After looking at the interactive features, we found that the website lacks chat, booking tools and other interactive features. It only offered a single Whtsapp chat button, and in order to utilize it, a user must link their account to their desktop, which is a laborious process, especially if they are working on desktop. The website needs to update its features to become more interactive in the age of AI.
Testing Reservations
Further examination reveled that the website is missing information regarding reservations for bookings. When we clicked on the booking link after browsing one of the tours shown on the website’s homepage, it redirected us to the “Enquire about this tour” page, which is once more a time consuming task for website visitors.
Integration with social Media
The website was connected to other social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Linked-in and Whtsapp, but it was not connected to Instagram which is one of the easiest social media sites to use for business promotion. Reels are frequently used by enterprises to promote themselves.
Additionally, after looking through every tour package, we found no customer review or ratings, which again does not provide outsiders a clear impression about the location
Local Information
The local markets, cuisines, modes of transportation within the city, and host of other aspects of the area’s native culture and language were not covered in the content provided on the website.
领英推荐
No information was given despite Rajasthan being known for its vibrant, rich culture, traditions and festivals.
Tips and Safety Information
Additionally, lacking was information on local hazards, such as weather, dust storms and other natural disasters. Additionally, travel advice and a does and dont’s tour itinerary were not offered.
Review and Feedback
As was also previously said, the website was not offering any reviews, ratings or responses from current customers, which is a major worry for the company. People typically analyse a destination and its surrounding environment using reviews from those who have visited and shared their experiences.
Response to Feedback and Review
Regarding responses and reviews, the website merely offered corporate details along with a local map, address and contact form. No headline or subheading existed where a customer may provide suggestions and feedback. When it comes to reviews and ratings, the website appears to be less responsive.
Key Findings
The saying “you believe what you see” is well known marketing, and Rizkey et al. (2017) claim that customers often buy what they see in stores. As a result, every business strives to make its items more noticeable in the marketplace. People prefer to buy a product as it becomes more widely known compared to a compositor's goal.
Following this logic, employing tourism websites can enhance the destination’s reputation. When a tourist searches for information , the destinations online presence should be updated to provide sufficient cognitive knowledge about the location. The visibility of the place should be increased on the official tourism websites so that all prospective visitors may view it together with enticing information. It will alter their behaviour, and there is good probability that they will put the place on their list of places to travel.
Conclusion and Recommendations
The study sheds light on the significance of official tourism websites as a source of tourism information and a crucial element in shaping the perception of a location. The perception of a destination affects how many tourists choose to visit it, as well as their likelihood and motivation to do so. As a result, marketing strategies that focus on educating tourists about the destination and offering them useful content have a significant impact on these factors.
The study’s overall findings strongly suggest a favourable relationship between tourist’s decision making and the creation of mental images of a place and Rajasthan’s tourism website as a source of cognitive information about the latter. It a appropriate to frame the study with following recommendations:
1. The study supports that, In General the information provided on the tourism websites has a positive impact on how potential tourists perceive the destination as a whole by outlining its benefits and listing the advantages that a visitor might experience while visiting. However, when it comes to offering information on making hotel reservations and other things, the website should be more accurate and dynamic. To get a better understanding of the location, further virtual tours or films should be included.
2. Based on the research findings, it can be said that websites are now a crucial component of the process of developing a destination’s brand and presenting it to the rest of the world as a result of the Internet’s and E-tourism’s growing strategic relevance. Additionally, the website should offer information on currency conversion and payment options using PayPal or other relevant tools in order to draw in more overseas visitors. The company may also enter their GST/TIN number in the payment sections in order to compute taxes and discounts when making a package reservation.
3. Based on the information they provide to tourists, this study supports the value of official tourism websites. Besides, they ought to provide details about “Rajasthan on Wheels” one of the main tourist attractions in Rajasthan. Exploring Rajasthan is a remarkable and once in a lifetime experience.
The Venice Simpelon-Orient Express received 89.92 points, followed by Euro star with 86.92 points and The Pride of Africa, Roves Rail with 84.25 points, placing The Palace on Wheels on Fourth place.
References and Citations
Rizky, R. M., Kusdi, R., & Yusri, A. (2017). The impact of e-WOM on destination image, attitude toward a destination, and travel intention. Russian Journal of Agricultural and Socioeconomic Sciences, 61(1)?
Lee, W., & Gretzel, U. (2012). Designing persuasive destination websites: A mental imagery processing perspective. Tourism Management, 33(5), 1270–1280
?"Not so royal revenue from royal trains in Rajasthan".?The Economic Times. 13 January 2018. Retrieved?3 July?2023.?Both the trains are operated by the Indian Railways in association with the Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation (RTDC)
^?"Royal Rajasthan on Wheels to be launched in Dec".?The Times of India. 26 August 2008.
^?"Railways to launch Royal Rajasthan on Wheels". HT Mint. Archived from?the original?on 27 October 2014. Retrieved?28 March?2020.
^?"Super luxury train 'Royal Rajasthan on Wheels' flagged off from New Delhi".?The Times Of India. 6 September 2010. Retrieved?28 March?2020.
Note: This is the author's personal opinion, which is unaffected by any other person or group.