#xml booking engine

Today’s online technology solutions need to be fast, easy to use and flexible.  With so many competitors offering so many special deals, your online booking solution needs to provide an easy and efficient way for you to manage the various special pricing or value add offers in order for your business to remain competitive.  Sometimes this requires that you use an XML booking engine that will allow you the ability to customize the application as you choose.

The XML booking engine can provide fast and easy access to content such as live schedules, availability, and pricing for hundreds of airlines.  Some of the more sophisticated including the ability to easily define pre-set business rules to help you manage a specific products’ content source as well as adjust a selling price or include any value add offers.  Some of today’s online booking engines allow Users to build a package shell to be sold online and manage business rules with full flexibility occupancy dates, sale dates, block hold milestones, etc.

And with today’s competitive marketplace, it has become increasingly critical for today’s business manager to track their business and identify trends quickly.  Not only will you need basic booking reports to track your sales revenue, but you’ll need to keep track of your costs to properly manage your business as well.  Many of today’s travel technology solutions come with reporting tools easily available to track not only the inventory you have available along with associated bookings but can also track individual Supplier sales as well to assist you with booking payments or managing inventory. 

And to reach today’s mobile consumer, some use an XML booking engine to power dedicated mobile applications.  Others skip over the APP and choose an online application that is “mobile-ready” so they can serve these clients regardless of the type of device they choose to use or when they choose to shop.  Using an XML travel technology solution can also provide you the flexibility to be easily customizing your User Interface to support your own brand identity and unique selling style.  And if you are looking to expand your reach with affiliated agents, you’ll want a solution that can quickly add affiliate users and websites, perhaps with the ability to easily customize the look and feel for each as well. 

You should also ensure that any application you choose provides the business management tools that you will need to properly manage your business both online and off-line.  At the minimum, you’ll need the ability to adjust the selling price as well as offer targeted sales promotions or include “value adds” to customers using your services.

Flexibility in how an online travel booking engine can be customized as well as where and how it is made available have become important factors when selecting a technology partner for your travel business. “Out of the box” online booking engines may work for some travel agencies, but more and more are looking to tailor their customer experience and branding with custom online booking engines.

An XML booking engine can be an ideal solution for those in the online travel business looking to customize the layout and flow of their booking engine without taking on the complex development of live connectivity with travel suppliers or the multifaceted business rules engine most need. Many of today's Air XML booking engines can provide a travel business owner much more than a simple “live” connection to check pricing & availability or to book a flight. These innovative products can provide any size travel business the ability to take full advantage of the powerful business logic and processing capabilities of an established booking engine while customizing the User Interface to their own specifications, at their own convenience. Customers can host all User Interfaces on their own servers while using the Air XML for business logic as well as live pricing, availability & booking capability. An XML booking engine can take full advantage of the powerful features an established booking engine provides such as the ability to easily adjust a products selling price easy price and robust reporting capabilities.

For those looking to service those customers who are always on the go, a mobile booking engine is an option you may want to consider for your travel business. All signs indicate that the general population will increasingly use their smart phones as more and more people become constantly connected to social media. As a result, mobile technology is becoming increasingly important for any business looking to reach them. People are not only using today's mobile devices to interact with each other, they are also using these devices to make a significant number of purchases online.

Some consumers may use various different devices as they research and eventually purchase products online. For instance, many consumers may start their initial research using their smart phone, but switch to a Laptop to complete the purchase. Others will choose to use their handheld device exclusively and access a mobile booking engine via a website or dedicated mobile App that they have downloaded on their device. Either way, your business needs to be ready to serve these customers on the device they choose to use.

Today's state of the art mobile booking engine can take full advantage of the easy access to content and powerful features that an online booking engine offers combined with the ease and mobility of using a smart phone. Finding an online booking solution with the right combination of options for your business can be a critical decision. Finding a technology partner that will help you reach today's consumer where and how they shop for travel can be just as important.