Travolution

📢 Custom Travel Solutions (CTS) announces new Membership Engagement team aimed at increasing B2C user engagement. The team's purpose is to boost frequent usage, travel savings, and support recurring revenue. Mike Putman, CEO & Founder, emphasizes the critical role of member engagement in successful membership organizations and loyalty programs. Corlia Mocke, with a decade of experience and a Bachelor of Commerce, and Amina Mazhar, with over a decade in B2B strategy, join the CTS team. CTS focuses on optimized marketing campaigns for client sales and B2B marketing strategy. Future expansions and hires are anticipated.

🏗 B2B travel tech startups don't need to chase unicorn status; bootstrapping can lead to success with the right market fit, a recurring customer base, and profitability. Bootstrapped companies like HotelPORT focus on customer needs, efficient client acquisition, long-term contracts, predictable revenue streams, and strategic investments, allowing them to grow sustainably without needing billion-dollar valuations. Solid business fundamentals, rather than rapid, venture capital-driven growth, can build resilient, impactful businesses in the travel tech industry.

💳 Book on Wego (BOW) partners with UATP to extend its Online Travel Agency platform beyond the MENA region. This collaboration enables BOW to be accessible to more airlines and travel partners globally, simplifying payment processes and expanding payment capabilities. Customers will benefit from a user-friendly interface and an extensive network of partners, leading to better price comparisons and travel decisions. Wego's Chief Flights Officer, Dean Wicks, emphasizes the commitment to simplifying travel and fostering tourism growth.

✈ Royal Air Maroc (RAM) partners with Amadeus to expedite its digital transformation, deploying Amadeus Reference Experience for modernizing digital services, enhancing customer satisfaction, and improving loyalty. The new app offers end-to-end flight bookings, check-ins, and solutions for disruptions. RAM aims to serve all customer segments globally by 2037, with plans to expand its fleet beyond 50 aircraft and accommodate 32 million passengers annually. CEO Hamid Addou emphasizes technology's critical role in RAM's strategic overhaul.

🏃 Travelier, an Israeli digital firm, announced its H1 2024 results with continuous sales momentum, selling 3 million tickets per month through B2B and B2C platforms. The company recently launched Travelier Connect, a GDS for intercity transportation. After acquiring DeÔnibus in May 2024, Travelier expanded its reach in LATAM, with the brand connecting to 300 operators and 36,000 routes in Brazil, representing 80% geographical coverage and serving 30 million travelers annually. Now offering over 0.5 million routes via 12,000 operators, Travelier achieved a 10% growth in operator partners since January 2024, also appointing new CEOs Sebastien Malbarn and Ante Dagelić, and chief human resource officer Yael Yehudai. CEO Noam Toister emphasizes the team's dedication and innovation for these accomplishments.

📨 Guesty launched ReplyAI, an automated messaging tool integrated into its Unified Inbox, for guest-host communication across email, WhatsApp, SMS, and booking channels. ReplyAI uses Generative AI algorithms and Natural Language Processing to analyze and reply to messages, considering the customer's entire history. Over 40% of accounts use ReplyAI since its soft launch in February, with high-usage accounts utilizing it for 50% of incoming messages. This indicates a market need for AI automation to enhance efficiency and guest experience. Guesty CEO Amiad Soto highlights AI's role in elevating guest experience and streamlining host workload. ReplyAI joins Guesty's AI-powered PMS features, including PriceOptimizer.