As the world of travel here in India and most parts of the world turned on its head, a new business endeavour in the form of very powerful words—’ Destination Management Company’—got added to the Indian travel lexicon!
The transition from being a humble travel agent to a Destination Management Company was almost immediate. The once travel agent who catered to his network of consumers today has evolved into a wholesaler, who has now transformed to reaching out to his travel-agent elite, who then distribute further to their set of consumers. The complete distribution network now mirrored their manufacturing counterparts. Once you were helping families and holidaymakers plan their next holiday adventure; now you are negotiating rates with companies and organisations to sell your product on net rates and, in some cases, encapsulating a commission structure. As you transit from a B2C to a B2B module, you now discover that the margins are lower, though the game has now become volume-based.
With more companies now embarking on a Destination Management Company model, it is only fair to make sense of the business. Skill sets are different; credit lines and revenue models vary, and the urge to be a hidden face of a business transaction takes over your aspiration.
Be a destination specialist: This always accounts for an array of services that go into creating a travel experience, such as hotels and dining, attractions, guides, and ground transportation. The ability to bring together services and offer them to a discerning travel agent who was willing to pay an apt price for it, and thereon still manage to make a buck. As leisure reaches newer heights and as consumers get more confused with offers flying their way on their screens, being a specialist in a destination or a segment such as beaches and islands, adventure and the hills, culture and heritage trails, or religious travel, which is still India’s Numero Uno sector, will help create a niche business opportunity.
As the world of multi-product, multi-destination, multi-everything becomes more specialised, DMCs offering sporting events, adventure tours, women-only tours, or, for that matter, those specialising in school and college tours will only grow bigger. The more niche your DMC gets, the more opportunities there are to scale it and make it available in different geographies. This will enhance our business’s opportunities to secure funding and make it more acquisition-friendly.
The continuous ‘over the top’ bombardment of information will help travel agents to buy in from a specialist, rather than someone who wants to sell everything to everyone. What goes into a travel agent’s mind before zeroing in on a DMC? Does the DMC have enough knowledge of the local culture and local logistics scenario, and does it have strong relationships with its vendors? Can he get your client out of trouble if such an occasion arises? If he answers yes to the above, then you have found your DMC!
The world of technology – As the world shrinks onto a screen in your palms, there is an increasing number of travel agents for whom their mobile phone is their office. You create itineraries, make and share quotations, and receive and send money all through this magic gadget. As a DMC, there is a need and a necessity to make your website adaptable to meet your travel agent’s mobile configuration! Even though your expertise lies in creating curated experiences, there is a market need to give live quotations for regular iterations to your network. The more time you take to get back to your clients, the more likely the travel agent ends up with your competition, who has figured out a way to get back faster. The travel agent and, therefore, the end consumer most of the time will close the deal with a quote that has been received faster, even though it may not be the cheapest one. It also helps if, as a DMC, you do not bombard your travel partner with too much information about a destination if you are in the space of curating customised itineraries. Bring value as you get to add another day to the travel schedule.
The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has now helped travel agents to curate itineraries and give more options to their discerning leisure clientele. As a DMC, offering a white label opportunity will help bring in credible support to your travel partners. The timespan to close deals has shrunk, thus amplifying the role of technology.
As a DMC, the need to reach out to your feeder market is nothing short of a proverbial necessity. The world of travel also brings in several media platforms that will add value to your product portfolio. Using a mix of travel publications, exhibitions, roadshows, and targeted digital campaigns will help amplify your products and help build relationships with the travel trade. B2B marketing in the hospitality, travel, and leisure space is also about building strong brands. As the saying goes in Hindi, ‘Jo Dikta hain, woh bikta hain!’ The ability to be in ‘out of sight, out of mind’ mode can be suicidal to any business, and the DMC business mindset is not any different.
Conflict of interest issues: Navigating the Indian travel sector between those who work in the B2B space and those who work with end consumers is often a very thin line separating them. When partners become competitors, there is very little leeway for a successful business deal! The Indian travel trade, presenting flying high with a renewed boom in travel, finds navigating between the genres quite normal! The lines are presently blurring with weekly contractual obligations. Maybe it is food for thought for the multitude of Indian travel-trade associations to help the industry out here.
The Indian travel-trade post-covid never had it so good. Make it better, make it count, make it fair!