Interview with an OTA expert: Christian Becker
Which type of clients does your business unit mainly work with and what services do you offer them?
Here at Tripadvisor we have two sales service units: Enterprise Sales and Small Medium Business. I am looking after our enterprise clients or as we call them, key accounts. These partners can be hotel chains, third party intermediaries or online travel agents (e.g. Expedia). The enterprise sales teams operate as a high touch end to end sales service unit across all of our B2B products for our clients. At the core we are offering products to acquire leads (traffic) from Tripadvisor to the client’s platform with buying intent for all kinds of accommodation
Covid-19 must have slowed things down at the beginning of the year, when and where do you see consumer demand coming back to the market?
Indeed, the travel sector has been hit extremely hard by the Covid-19 pandemic. We have been seeing green shoots since June and July, because people want to get away from home, but it’s been tough given the news of rising infection rates. On the plus side the whole industry has been humbled by this experience and there is a new found level of togetherness in all our partner relationships. If anything, my network only grew stronger by going through this level of adversity
Now that travel restrictions are gradually being lifted, do you sense that your clients are able to begin to resurrect their businesses and resume advertising in traditional ways?
I would say yes and no. Marketing budgets are hard to come by and every dollar spend gets vigorously scrutinized by the finance departments across all our major business partners. In saying that, there is a good short term run for last minute and summer holidays. We are seeing a big shift towards domestic, drive and stay holidays, predominantly for vacation rentals (holiday homes). This all makes sense, because you have maximum flexibility with your own car and self-catering, whilst still seeing a different place from home. Particularly in the UK, travellers seem to embrace the idea of “getting to know my own country a bit better”
Do you have anything new to offer clients that are looking to make up some of the shortfall in bookings during the Covid-19 lockdown and what do clients need from you to feel like the partnership is successful?
Right now the key is to listen, build out these personal relationships and understand your partner’s needs. Once you have done that you can support them with some tailored insights. What we are seeing is that people love their data and additional insights, sometimes they just want another perspective to confirm or challenge established thinking within their business. We at Tripadvisor always offer a very welcome point of view on the travel landscape
Do you see clients favouring products with certain business models and why do you think that this is?
I would say a consistent revenue stream is key during these difficult times. A subscription model is a relatively safe income stream. If you look at our CPC (cost per click) meta auction, it’s our flagship product, but a lot of partners fear that traffic sent to them from the traveller’s click will not convert for them. So I would say all business models that are risk-averse are favourable, whether that’s a revenue share deal or a cost per acquisition (i.e commission) model. All this comes down to insights and trust in your decision making
Do you have ideas as to how travellers’ booking habits might change after Covid-19?
This is just my personal opinion, but I am confident that the travel industry will fully recover and people will make sure that their bucket lists are ticked off sooner than later. I wouldn’t call it a travel boom, but I fully expect a desire to travel coming back across all established travel markets as soon as “after Covid” has arrived
How do you think your clients will have to adjust their online marketing strategy to meet these changes?
We always recommend a “testing” mentality. You have to iterate and see if what you offer still meets the demand every single day. Our more successful partners consistently test and tweak their campaigns to see what is working, and to then quickly move on from what is not working. This becomes a far harder process if you don’t have that culture established in your marketing teams. If you do not, you had better start looking for talent or supplier side partners that can help you accomplish that
Do you see that travellers are influenced by anything other than the lowest price when they book a hotel?
Good question and the answer for me is yes, but price will always play a big role. Everyone likes a good deal, whether you shop for a campsite or a luxury resort. Apart from price I would expect things like “safety & trust”, ‘convenience’ and ‘flexibility’ to be important factors for travellers
How can clients promote their green credentials on your platform?
In the past we offered sustainability programmes and whilst sustainability will be maybe the biggest trend and differentiator for this generation, short term, with Covid-19, we are seeing a momentary shift for concern over safety and health rather than sustainability. One thing you can do at Tripadvisor is to speak to your account manager and they can help you to create batches, features and text on our site to promote great things you do for the one world we have and need to look after
What type of personalities and skill sets have successful careers with online travel agencies (OTAs)?
I would say first and foremost, you have to have an analytical mind. What I mean by that, is that you don’t need to be a professor of mathematics, but you do need to enjoy legitimising a decision based on numbers and to use numerics to tell a particular story. It’s not for everybody, but OTAs operate at scale. Since it’s a very transactional relationship with OTAs, ultimately based on the next best $ spent, you will very quickly be talking about efficiencies, costs and resources. In contrast, and I am certainly not saying that this is bad, but in comparison with the hotel chain clients you still see a little more the “personal relationship” at the heart of the partnership – maybe this will change a little with the resulting pressures from the current pandemic
At an OTA, do you think it is possible to start from the bottom and to work your way to the top?
I truly believe that this is possible everywhere. You need a few things going for you. Hard work, resilience, a good network will build a strong foundation for you. I’m not saying anything new if I tell you that there is an element of luck involved, but I also see strong careers develop for people that take opportunities when they arise. Be prepared for your opportunity!
What advice would you give to candidates starting their careers at an OTA?
Take everything in, see the bigger picture of learning and development and find out for you what you like doing and do more of it
Can you see a time in the near future where the travel, hospitality and leisure industry are on the rise and that travel companies are hiring again?
I absolutely do. Travel will recover sooner or later. It offers fantastic products that are wanted all over the world and these travel products are perfect to market and sell in the digital / ecommerce space, because upon purchase you cannot physically touch it. There is an infinite amount of tech and data knowhow required to make the end to end processes simpler, more convenient, and put simply, enticing and valuable for the traveller. So there will be plenty of opportunities to get experience, whether this is for an OTA , hotel chain, airline, experience or any other player in the industry
How did you book your last holiday and where did you go?
Germany. I knew where I wanted to stay so I simply booked the hotel via a very large website that has blue as their primary color (I have to stay partner neutral in my job 😉 ) and for the flights I went straight to the airline’s website. I also booked a rental car directly at the car rental website. And of course, I did all of my research on Tripadvisor
Personal Interview – Get to know the OTA expert better
I worked with Christian for 3 years during my time at Tripadvisor. We predominantly serviced key account hotel chain clients such as Red Carnation Hotels, Premier Inn and Nordic Choice, helping them to maximise their presence and marketing initiatives on the world’s largest travel site. Key to getting on so well in the workplace was the sense of fun and constant humour Christian brings to the room in everything he does. I don’t think that he would be particularly insulted if I said that he’s not your everyday German. We are now great friends, and I can vouch that he is even more fun out of office, especially on the golf course where we have been finding ourselves getting together in recent times
Do you remember your first job in the travel industry?
My first venture in the travel industry was in January 2011 at Thomas Cook. Unfortunately this iconic company doesn’t exist anymore, although there are rumours about the brand being bought by venture capitalists. It’s very surreal for me to think about that
Do you collect airpoints or participate in any other travel loyalty programs?
I have a few, which is a little counterintuitive to “being loyal”. But If I don’t forget, I like to collect my points. Everyone likes to feel like they are getting a deal
Economy or business class?
Economy by and large. I have a friend who recently holidayed in Norway flying business class. One of the people on the plane tested positive for Covid-19 and all of the passengers were tracked and traced and asked to confine themselves to their hotels rooms for a week. That was an expensive way to kill a week abroad!
Hotel or self-catering?
I prefer the comfort of a hotel but self-catering with children has its merits
Package holiday or independent traveller?
Currently package holidays, but that’s because of my little toddlers. I see myself as an independent traveller through and through 🙂
A memorable meal from your travels?
Puh, that’s a tough one – I had wagyu steak, while I was staying in a desert oasis resort. That felt like a very weird, but rather extraordinary experience
An experience or attraction that you’d highly recommend?
I would say try the gibbon experience, if you happen to be in the jungle of Laos, otherwise the London Zoo is not at all bad 😉
Do you travel more than other members of your family?
I do, but I have been working in the travel industry for ten years, and I am part of a team that has regional offices in Boston, Singapore and London, servicing clients all around the world. Internal and client meetings have taken me to some far flung places
Your best recent holiday?
Just seeing my parents and old friends in Germany during the pandemic. We stretched it out over 3 weeks and it was nice to have some quality time at home away from the hustle and bustle of London.
And the worst?
Anything that is hyped up and overcrowded, for example the Statue of Liberty in NYC or The Eiffel Tower in Paris…you get the idea!
Do you think about your carbon footprint when you are travelling?
Not too much, but more than let’s say 5 years ago
Did you have to cancel any trips this year due to COVID-19?
I had to cancel a trip over Easter, but I could choose to get all of my money back or to rebook, so I didn’t really have anything to complain about
Where can you recommend domestically for those preferring staycations?
Oh dear, I don’t know the UK too well to be honest, but I would recommend the Lake District to anybody
Have you ever visited anywhere that you think you would be a place to retire to?
I love San Diego, California. It’s a little far away from my friends and family, but I would take a beach house for my retirement
Have you ever bumped into anyone famous on holiday?
Not that I am aware of, but also I’m not the type of person to pay too much attention to that type of thing
What technical innovation would make travel easier?
Beam me up Scottie 🙂
When you are about to travel what can you not leave the house without?
My passport!
What is your guilty travel indulgence?
On a flight I never accept the offer of the headphones that are handed out by the cabin crew. It has to be my own, currently the Bose, noise-cancelling headphone set. They have their advantages when travelling with a young family!
What is the short and mid-term outlook for the travel industry?
I think we are already seeing recovery from a very deep crisis, and that this will go on for 2-3 years, if you trust the travel industry analysts. In 5 years, I am predicting a travel boom, above 2015-2019 levels. Why? I just feel that people want to make sure they get the most out of their lives and travelling certainly gives a lot of people a lot of meaning and a sense of fulfilment
Any advice for people just starting out in their professional travel careers?
Don’t be too picky. Just start, work hard, learn and develop from there…sounds simple, but it takes a little more to realise it and to make it come true.