Restarting the Travel and Hospitality Industry: An AI-powered Solution

This post is authored by Rob Anson, CEO of Loop Insights

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There’s no doubt that the pandemic has devastated the travel and hospitality industry. A recent policy brief from the United Nations reports the COVID-19 pandemic will cost the global tourism industry over $1 trillion in losses and threaten 100 million jobs. Today, 50 countries are completely closed and another 92 are partially open with mandatory quarantine upon arrival, according to Kayak. Even as measures and lockdowns around the world ease up, many travelers are postponing their plans or canceling altogether. The complexities of reopening stretch far beyond navigating the restrictions. We need to get the world back to traveling soon, and to do that, we must prioritize both guest and operator safety.

Since the onset of the pandemic, we’ve been working with AWS to develop a solution that will allow for a safe reopening of the economy, particularly within the travel and hospitality industry. Our customers in the industry are looking to maintain a safe and secure environment to welcome back their guests. Operators dependent on large crowds, including hoteliers hosting business travelers for conferences or other large events, face greater challenges. Although hotels have adapted to follow stringent health and safety measures, continued technological innovation is needed to further reduce occupancy limitations and host large groups again.

At Loop, we specialize in connecting customers across both the physical and digital space. Our technology enables our partners to create a smart engagement platform to their customers based on their point-of-sale data. The unique connectivity and integrability of our technology lent itself to solve the challenges faced by operators admits the pandemic. We innovated our platform to include contactless check-in processes and a unique venue management solution for operators.

We provide a complete end-to-end COVID-19 management solution consisting of rapid mobile testing, integrated lab results, and exposure alert capabilities. This technology can be integrated into any physical environment, allowing any venue including airports, hotels, cruise ships, restaurants, or retail stores to safety reopen and operate. Our transformative AI solution does not require an app and does not track the user 24/7, requiring only a simple tap of the user’s mobile phone to check in and verify their Digital ID through their mobile wallet. This functionality provides the ability to deliver real-time notifications on top of a user’s lock screen, including real-time reporting and exposure notifications to ensure the travel bubble provides end-to-end protection.

AWS is an established global leader when it comes to both data security and AI applications. Our collaboration has enabled Loop to streamline and enhance our AI functionality by leveraging the power of the AWS Cloud. We’ve been able to offer many key non-functional requirements including reliability, scalability, and performance that come built-in with the security of AWS Managed Services.

Through Amazon QuickSight, we’ve been able to create and publish interactive dashboards embedded into our portals, allowing us to expand across verticals and support all types of operators in the travel and hospitality industry. We’ve also leveraged the power of Amazon Pinpoint to better connect with users, ensuring they receive accurate exposure notifications, and allowing operators to better engage with their guests.

Technology has the power to transform the travel and hospitality industry in these uncertain times. From checking in at the airport, to opening your hotel room door, travel includes contacting a multitude of high-touch surfaces. In fact, a number of major industries stand to benefit from digital, contactless solutions. According to Hospitality Technology, 62% of hotel guests have noted that the ability to request services through a mobile device is very important to them. Similarly, 70% of millennials said they are more likely to book a hotel with tech amenities including keyless entry and mobile payments. By introducing contactless solutions as a way to stay in business during this time, Loop Insights opens the door to engage with an increasingly tech-savvy market.

Contactless solutions also present the unique opportunity to build customer loyalty through targeted marketing systems linked to a customer’s unique ID. Our fully automated platform enables brick-and-mortar retailers to provide the same level of service and customer experience as their ecommerce competitors. In the travel industry, this platform can be leveraged to connect with guests at every step of the travel experience—from the moment they book their trip, to the moment they check out of their hotel. Using triggers based on location, time, and past travel behaviors, business owners and operators can push promotions uniquely tailored to customers via their mobile pass. With seamless connectivity across platforms, operators can easily interact with customers and guests however they choose. The travel and hospitality industry can no longer afford to wait out the pandemic, and a global restart solution is urgently needed.

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Rob Anson is the CEO of Loop Insights, an Internet of Things (IoT) technology company that delivers transformative AI automated marketing, venue tracing, and contactless solutions. Its unique IoT device, Fobi, enables data connectivity across online and on-premises platforms to provide real-time, detailed insights and automated, personalized engagement. Its ability to integrate seamlessly into existing infrastructure, and customize campaigns according to each vertical, creates a highly scalable solution for its prospective global clients that span industries.

Rob Anson has served as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the board at Loop Insights Inc. since January 2018. Mr. Anson has also served as CEO and Founder of Fobisuite Technologies Inc., a private British Columbia technology company, since October 2017. Previously Mr Anson was Founder and CEO of One Team Media a Private Vancouver based media company with Digital and TV Production Assets.