Travel fintech trends to watch in 2023
David Doctor, EVP of payments at Amadeus and CEO of Outpayce (Amadeus’ new payments business), wrote a post on how the travel industry might benefit from advances in fintech and, conversely, where can the fintech sector find new growth opportunities in the travel industry. He highlights 4 topics: embedded finance; currency volatility; biometric authentication; Central Bank Digital Currencies and stablecoins. Read more: Travel fintech trends to watch in 2023
You might also want to take a look at the Travel Fintech Investment research report that was published by Amadeus in 2022, based on a survey completed by senior leaders at 70 large airlines and travel agencies (annual revenues > €500 million). The report covers the main challenges, new capabilities and opportunities in travel fintech as defined by the larger players in the travel industry.
Emotion by design
Emotion by Design is a book by Nike’s former CMO that shows how Nike built strong emotional bonds with consumers. Nike uses the entire range of emotions -happiness, sadness, fear, surprise, anger…- to forge powerful and deep connections with consumers that transcend sports. These 12 visuals by Stefan Morris Hernandez (a product designer and visualizer) shows some of the ways how Nike creates emotions by design. This could serve as inspiration for travel brands to use emotions by design to connect with consumers on a deeper, more human level. After all, few activities can elicit more emotions than travel. Read more: How Nike create emotion by design in 12 visuals
Corporate travel’s purpose
Business travel must evolve to have “higher impact, lower footprint and greater inclusivity,” according to the 15-page document posted on LinkedIn by Eric Bailey of Microsoft Travel. The document titled Corporate Travel’s Purpose – a Platform for Change is the result of a 6-month effort led by Microsoft and was coauthored by more than 20 travel managers and suppliers.
My interpretation of this document (cutting through all the buzzwords and lofty goals and promises) is: we need to get back on the road. In a tough business environment, virtual meetings won’t do the trick, and the strongest relationships, be they personal or professional, are built in real-time and face-to-face. Emotions create strong bonds (as the previous Nike story suggests) and they are most powerful and long-lasting in person as opposed to virtually.
From the report:
We must understand that the value from most business travel comes from the benefits of meeting in person. The key drivers for business travel include:
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Building trust and social capital with new and existing contacts
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Demonstrating commitment of time and dollars to partners, customers and employees.
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Creating new ideas or opportunities that come from serendipitous conversations.
The 4-letter code to sell anything: MAYA
Raymond Loewy, the father of industrial design, believed that consumers are torn between two opposing forces: neophilia, a curiosity about new things, and neophobia, a fear of anything too new. As a result, they gravitate to products that are bold, but instantly comprehensible. Loewy called his grand theory “Most Advanced Yet Acceptable”—MAYA. To sell something surprising, make it familiar, and to sell something familiar, make it surprising. Read more: THE FOUR-LETTER CODE TO SELLING JUST ABOUT ANYTHING
Spirit Airline pilot on a mission
Conversation between traffic control and a Spirit Airline pilot. Make sure to click on the image to see the video. Fake (pretty sure) but still funny.
Spirit Airline Pilots ready to risk it all at any moment 🤦♂️🤣 pic.twitter.com/kektPzUQzL
— Daily Loud (@DailyLoud) December 26, 2022