6 Must Have Features in a Travel Portal

All businesses are coming online, and the travel business is no exception. If you are into the travel business, it is high time that you plan to invest in a travel portal solution. Having both a website and a portal will be the best for scaling your business.

The website will have information on a high number of topics, and the portal will have specific information. If you already have a website and want to invest in portals, you must keep in mind its responsiveness, UI, integration with maps and payments gateways, etc. Here we have discussed some must-have features if you are planning for travel portal development.

Responsive Design

A responsive design is essential for all websites and portals. Make sure your portal is easily navigable whether they search it from a laptop, computer, tablet, or mobile phone. From all the kinds of devices, you will have the largest user base who uses a mobile phone to access the portal. So to improve their navigation experience, you can design specific customizations for mobile users. For example, keep CTAs noticeable and clickable for mobile phone users. Responsive websites and portals are not just for SEO but also to increase the reach of mobile users.

Easy to Use UI

The navigation of the portal must be such that the user can easily view and search whatever they are looking for. Highlighting standard features like adding origin, destination, date of travel, single or return trip, etc. will give quick access to the main features. They should be able to view their booking history, details of the trip, etc., easily.

Customers like to search on the page also. So, having an in-page search option can help them find whatever they are looking for. Predictive search is the functionality you can surely add, which gives customers suggestions when they write one-two letter of the name of the place. This will reduce the search time for customers.

Integrate Google Maps

Customers love websites and portals that are fast and convenient. For example, if your customer wants to search a particular area. If your portal does not have the map integrated, they will have to go to another application to view the map and then come back.

This process is cumbersome, and your customer will surely not like this. Instead, if you integrate the portal with Google Maps, it will be easier for them to view maps, and it will keep them engaged.

The other advantage of integrating Google Maps is that it will show nearby places like hotels, restaurants, etc., which will help customers plan the trip better. Just turning on the GPS and a few clicks will flood them with all the important details.

Multiple Payment Gateways

If your customers choose to order the flight or bus or whatever from your portal, having multiple payment options will ensure they don’t abandon the checkout process before making payments. You can also allow them to save and update card details for future bookings. This will help with making transactions faster because they won’t have to enter the details every time they book the tickets. Ensure you have integrated all the popular payment platforms in your region so customers can confirm the bookings.

Easy Verification for Customers and Agents

Customer identification is a must when it comes to any kind of ticket booking. If you provide customer identification online then it will save you from manually identifying the customers during boardings. Similarly, there must be an easy verification process for travel agents who register on the travel portal. Agents must be able to upload the required documents for online verification and digitally sign the required documents.

Customer Support

For an online platform, small or big, it is essential to have 24X7 customer support. Make sure you provide customer support in your travel portal solution. You don’t necessarily have to hire a support team to work for 24 hours. You can provide a knowledge base, FAQs, etc., for them to refer to and solve their queries themselves. You can add multiple communication channels like calls, emails, social media, etc., for your customer's convenience.

Conclusion

Investing in a travel portal will really help you scale your business as customers will get all the required information on the same platform. Features like responsive design, inbuilt identification verification, customer support, integration of Google Maps and payment gateways, etc will fulfill all the needs of your customers. And they will love visiting the portal again and again.

Mr. Maulik Shah is the founder & CEO of CRMJetty, a hub of innovative customer relationship solutions, provides ready to CMS integrate portal solutions for SuiteCRM, Sugar CRM, Salesforce, and Dynamics CRM including WordPress Customer Portal.