A report from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), suggests that the majority of travellers are more likely to share their data in order to experience a more seamless travel journey.
According to WTTC’s Megatrends report, whilst 57% of consumers are willing to share information when they feel they are getting a fair exchange, more than nine in 10 (92%), are more likely to share their data, when businesses give them control over what is being collected.
Furthermore, WTTC’s latest research asked international travellers from five key European markets (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK), to what extent they would be willing or unwilling, in advance of travelling outside their country, to provide their photo electronically, to organisations that may require seeing their passport or photo ID. The research revealed that on average, four in five international travellers (79%), would be willing to share their photographs in advance of travel, in order to speed up their journey.
From a traveller’s perspective, this vision is exemplified by a journey during which the traveller no longer needs to present travel documents and boarding passes multiple times to a variety of stakeholders at different stages of their journey. Rather, they will be able to book transportation, check-in, proceed through security, cross borders, board their aircraft, collect luggage, rent a car, check in and out of their hotel, and access myriad destination services, simply by confirming their identity and booking data.
According to the report, a seamless end-to-end travel experience enabled by technologies including biometrics, has five overarching benefits:
• Relieving pressure on infrastructure and enabling travel growth
• Improving safety and security through better authentication and reduction of fraud
• Reducing and avoiding costs by ensuring it serves legitimate travellers
• Enhancing customer satisfaction by eliminating friction and bottlenecks across the journey
• Integrating all touchpoints of the journey enabled by technologies
For the international traveller, benefits include improving the overall experience through more efficient processes, the elimination of redundant document checks, the reduction of waiting times and the implementation of a harmonised approach throughout the journey,
Gloria Guevara Manzo, President & CEO of WTTC, said: “Our research shows that consumers are willing to share their data, including photographs, if it results in a more seamless travel experience.
“With the number of international travellers forecasted to grow by 50% by 2030, there is a real need to create enabling frameworks and processes. At present, a seamless and secure journey is not guaranteed, and this must be addressed jointly by the public and private sectors through investments in infrastructure."