Data Analytics: Practical Guide to Leveraging the Power of Algorithms, Data Science, Data Mining, Statistics, Big Data, and Predictive Analysis to Improve Business, Work, and Life

Chapter 22: The Way That Data Science
Improves Travel
One of the travel industry’s favorite things is data.  Well, it might not be
exactly its favorite, but the world of travel has always collected lots of data,
even when stakeholders aren’t actually looking for that information. 
Storing all of that information has been a challenge, but now getting the
data analyzed and improving how that information is used is another major
challenge.
The amount of data that can actually benefit the travel sector is already
huge because all facets of life are involved in travel.  Culture, air fares,
security all over the world, hotel pricing, and the weather are all taken into
account when people travel.  Because of how much information is involved,
the entire sector cannot ignore data science and how it can help them deal
with all that data and optimize its use.

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Data Science in the Travel Sector
Big data has had so many different uses in other sectors, but there are some
very specific ways that it can be optimized for the travel sector.  This
optimization is entirely possible for those that have a data scientist working
with them.  The list of those benefits for the travel sector is quite long:
Ability to track delivery of goods.
This ability is entirely possible, regardless of how the shipment is moving. 
It could be anything from a freight shipment, someone on the road, or even
a voyage.  Major online companies, like Amazon and Etsy, use this tracking
for their benefit.  The tracking can be used for not only the customer but the
seller as well.  The customer being able to track shipments usually inspires
more confidence in the company and how they get their deliveries out to
their customers.  For online companies, this means that the sellers are more
likely to come back, which is great for everyone.
Analysis done at each data point.
Doing analysis often is a way of increasing business.  Different stakeholders
will have the ability to share information that’s gained from the analyzed
data.  This will ensure that nobody is getting information that is irrelevant
to what they’re doing or full of redundant values.
Improving access to travel booking records.
Mobile phones are making inquiries, bookings, and payments even easier
than before.  People can schedule travel and stays even easier to get
organized.
Ease of access to information.
There’s easy access to information like profiles, itineraries, feedback, and
more data from internal sources.  There’s even easier access to information
from social media reviews, weather, traffic, and everything else that would
come into play when working on creating a trip or working out what you
want to do.  The travel sector works well with big data since it merges data
from internal and external sources in order to find solutions to problems
happening right now.  That data helps everyone involved in the process
anticipate what’s going to happen based on the past. 

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The travel sector has been able to drastically cut their costs of operations
because they’re better able to make good choices based on the data that
they’re analyzing in a timely manner.  Data science is making this entirely
possible.  Big data is interesting to the travel sector because that
information can make them even more lucrative, which it is projected to
become even more rewarding in the future.
People are traveling even more.  There are projections that the growth will
be so sharp that by 2022, the value of the sector will be 10% of the world’s
GDP.  The travel sector realizes that the value of big data and optimization
of it is important because it will help them get the best business intelligence
to work with.  This knowledge will help them make the most money that
they can.

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Travel Offers Can be personalized because of Big
Data
A few years ago, travel was based on general classifications of customers. 
If you were in the high-income bracket, then you were given
recommendations for certain facilities, but if you traveled regularly with
kids, then you were targeted for different offers.  This was true for almost
every group of people.  This method did increase revenue slightly, but the
impact of that method was smaller than what is possible now with big data.
Big data is becoming more and more significant in the travel industry today
because it enables travel companies and agencies to tailor offers for their
individual customers.  They’ll be using complete views of customers to
look at their different customers.  Offering ultra-personalized packages and
facilities to individuals is not that hard when big data is at play.
The data sets that can help create a complete view of the customer are
many:
Data based on customer’s reading behavior
How they look at this is really based on how often people go online and
what websites they’re looking at often.
The customer’s posts on social media
An analyst could establish what travel people are talking about.  They can
also look at who is talking to other people about travel, whether it’s through
social media messages or through the reviews that they (or their friends)
have posted.
Location tracking data
Itineraries and connected data
Customers’ shopping patterns in the past
How people are using their mobile devices
Information and data gathered from image processing.
This list is rather short, but that’s because there’s just too many places that
information come from to create a complete customer profile.  Anything

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that is even remotely related to travel would be added to this list. 
Depending on how new or old the customer is will also change what data
sets are taken into account.  If you’re looking at buying habits and other
historical patterns, then the target you’re going to be able to work with best
is one that has already bought from you.  But if you’re looking at a new
customer, you will want to focus on the data sets about their behavior. 
There are some data sets that overlap most groups and others that are much
more useful for smaller groups.  It just depends on who the company is
looking at.

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Safety Enhancements Thanks to Big Data
It’s quite easy to ignore how much data also helps with safety in travel.  The
information goes from those who are coordinating the travel to the pilots, to
the control tower who speaks back to the pilot, then to the driver, then to the
fleet headquarters, then to traffic headquarters, then to all travelers.  Data
passing through so many hands is actually one of the life savers of the
travel sector. 
Vehicles of all kinds, including planes, have sensors attached that detect,
capture, and send information on a real-time basis.  This information can be
used to see all sorts of things about the travel experience.  It may be
specifically about airmanship, the behavior of a driver, the state of parts of
the vehicle, the weather, and much more.
A data scientist can design algorithms that would allow travel institutions to
be able to tell when a problem might happen based on the information that
the sensors are gathering.  Sometimes, a data scientist can even create
something that will prevent the problem before it actually happens.  There
are many common problems that big data is helping companies address:
Whether or not there is a faulty part on the vehicle.
Being able to detect this information helps the company replace parts before
the damage inflicted by it is too hard to salvage.  Replacement and repairs
are also the best way to prevent accidents.
To tell how well drivers or pilots are doing.
If the sensors detect that steps are being skipped or done out of order, then
the company can pull the person and send them through some additional
training.  A company will probably do this to maintain their high standards
for performance.
Identifying problems midflight.
There are some problems that crop up while a plane is in the air.  There are
some problems that can be fixed while the plane is the air.  However, if the
problem is hard to address in the air, the company can bring in a
maintenance team for when the plane lands.

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The ability to deal with problems so quickly shows just how crucial a role
big data plays in the travel sector right now.  It doesn’t matter how you’re
traveling, the exchange of information allows you to get your destination as
safely and quickly as possible.  If everyone is in the loop, then all parts of
your travel plans will move smoothly, weather permitting.

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How Up-Selling and Cross-Selling Use Big Data
Big data can be used in not only up-selling but cross-selling.  Vendors up-
sell customers when they try to convince you of buying a pricier version of
a product that you were looking for in the first place.  Cross-selling, on the
other hand, is when vendors try to convince you to buy something in
addition to what you were looking for.
If you start looking at flying somewhere, you’re going to start seeing offers
that complement the one that you were originally looking for.  There are
many ways that this could happen:
There might be an offer for a hotel (especially ones that are partnered with
your airline of choice) in the area that you are going.  This would be cross-
selling.
You could be booked as Economy Plus or the equivalent for other airlines. 
This would be up-selling.  They are offering you extras like legroom and
room to recline, but you have to give them even more money.
You might also get an offer for food, courtesy of a steward, and receive a
coupon to use.
During the flight, you’ll likely see ads during the in-flight entertainment
that are trying to push you towards specific companies.
Companies, especially those in tourism, are using big data to cross-sell with
each other.  Most often you will see this with airlines, hotels, tour van
companies, and taxi services.

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