Sabre recently gave travel consultants and suppliers across the airline, hotel, rail, cruise and car rental industries a sneak peek at its new Sabre Red Workspace.
The software solution will harness the changes in the industry and provide both retailers and suppliers with a content rich marketplace, intelligent decision support tools and predictive data insights that enable agents and suppliers to more easily create personalised experiences for travellers.
Developed on Sabre’s merchandising platform providing access to its award-winning GDS, travel consultants around the world will benefit from a more intuitive way to book travel, while airlines, hotels and other industry suppliers are now empowered to market their brands in the same way they market in other channels.
“Data, analytics, personalisation and mobile have been trending in the marketplace for some time and offer exciting opportunities for buyers and suppliers to meet changing traveller needs,” says Sean Menke, president of Sabre Travel Network.
“Travellers want more than an itinerary; they want to feel confident about their purchases and expect a trip built around choice. That’s why in addition to a superior user experience, our new Sabre Red Workspace provides travel consultants with data insights, relevant offers and price transparency.
“Data and analytics are critical assets to increase productivity and efficiency in the retail world, and our travel insight engine will help drive decision-making, revenue optimisation and true personalisation.”
Sabre will begin upgrading travel agency customers in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) to the new solution in early 2017, after a pilot later this year.
“Europe, Middle East, and emerging regions like Africa may have very different growth rates and characteristics, but they are united by a desire to make better use of technology in their business operations and for their travellers,” says Harald Eisenaecher, senior vice president, Sabre Travel Network, Europe, Middle East and Africa. “Our new Workspace is a step change for agencies and suppliers looking to strengthen their retail capabilities.”
Agents and suppliers who have been involved in the development of the innovative solution have helped drive the user interface of the new travel marketplace solution, combining the look and feel of a consumer-focused website with insights, tools and features that help drive more personalised offerings to sell travel more effectively.
“Traveller attitudes are changing, and there’s now much higher expectation to provide unique value, whether that’s remembering how many bags they usually take on their London to New York monthly trip, or giving instant hotel recommendations based on their preferences and activities,” said Julie Oliver, MD of Business Travel Direct.
“Sabre’s new solution addresses all these things, putting data insights, customer profiles and merchandising capabilities right at our agent’s fingertips, making it much easier and more efficient to provide that something special at every stage of the travel lifecycle. Sabre’s made great strides with their new Sabre Red solution, and we’re very excited to roll this out.”