Let's be honest here, virtual reality was somewhat of a fad in the 80's and 90's. Clunky headsets, poor visuals and disappointed geeks spring to mind when you cast your mind back to the VR tech of times gone by.
Now though, with the onset of new technology including 360 video, virtual reality is here in a big way. Many experts have hailed it as the future of gaming industry but with the tech now producing clear and often stunning visuals it has begun to be utilised as a futuristic marketing tool. No other industry has managed to harness the power of VR as well as the travel industry.
The travel industry is essentially all about selling experiences, what better way to market those to prospective travellers by allowing them to fully immerse themselves and explore locations that may interest them.
An exhilarating helicopter ride over the skyscrapers of NYC, stargazing under the canopy of a Moroccan bedouin or cruising down the Amazon in a wooden kayak with only the sound of the rainforest for company all without leaving the travel agency and perhaps even in future, as tech improves, the home?
"We see virtual reality as an innovation that will change the travel business," says Marco Ryan, chief digital officer for Thomas Cook. "The closer you get to the destination, the more excited you are to have that experience for real". The Cook Group recently rolled out their own VR offering, an opportunity to 'try before you fly' concept with interactive 360 videos filmed inside their jets. The brand also flirted with the technology last year when they gave customers a chance to explore their international resorts from their London concept store.
“We’re changing the way travel suppliers and agents use virtual reality,” said Abi Mandelbaum, CEO and co-founder of YouVisit, a company that has been developing virtual-reality experiences for more than six years, including work for Alaska, Croatia, and Carnival Cruises. Mandlebaum believes that in a travel industry saturated with ultra-competitive advertising, utilising VR can be a major differentiator and lead to an increase in sales.
The facts speak for themsleves. YouVisit measure a consumer's online viewing time for it's VR experiences. “We’re seeing an average time spent of over 10 minutes and perhaps more importantly, a customer conversion rate of more than 13%.'
For consumers, it’s also a new way to plan: Imagine walking through a hotel room before you book, or exploring a location’s sights and sounds as you narrow down a shortlist of holiday destinations, all from inside your home and using your phone.
It's a truly exciting time for consumers and travel professionals alike. The future is here and it is VR.
Virtual reality tech may be in its infancy, but that hasn’t stopped the travel sector grabbing hold of this opportunity and realising its benefits. For the majority of consumers, their first introduction to VR technology will have been with the Oculus Rift headset and its conception as a Kickstarter in 2012. The buzz generated from various viral videos and the hype online when the technology was bought by Facebook in 2014 have all helped to promote VR devices and piqued the interest of marketers worldwide. Whilst VR is still in its fledgling years as a technology, marketers and advertisers should be looking at how this new realm of storytelling technology can be utilised as a platform.
https://accordmarketing.com/blog/virtual-reality-and-the-travel-industry
unknownx500
