Why travel brands need composable DXPs

The travel industry is finally bouncing back after the COVID-19 pandemic as people return to leisure travel in droves, booking everything from family vacations and destination weddings to long-awaited cruises and getaways of a lifetime.

While revenue growth is welcome news for travel brands, consumer expectations have heightened. Travelers are savvier than ever and want travel brands to meet their needs through every customer journey stage. Research indicates they are willing to pay more for great experiences.

Competition is stiff among travel industry brands that have weathered the pandemic, and much is at stake. According to Statista, global travel industry revenue is projected to reach more than $850 billion in 2023 and $1,016 billion by 2027, when it’s forecast that 74% of total travel revenue will be generated from online sales alone. 

In this article, we’ll take a closer look at how composable digital experience platforms (DXPs) powered by headless CMS can enable travel brands to rise to the task of delivering unmatched customer experiences.

Travel has evolved and continues to change

According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce State of the Travel Industry in 2023, the travel industry has proven resilient despite changing significantly since the pandemic. For instance, while leisure travel is recovering nicely, business travel has been slower at returning to pre-pandemic levels and isn’t quite there yet.

Booking windows are also much shorter now, indicating that some travelers are wary of unforeseen events that might occur if they book their trips too far in advance. More people are also taking “blended” trips for multiple purposes. They may combine business and leisure activities into one vacation, for example.

Amadeus, a leading travel technology company that provides search, pricing, booking, and other services, predicts travel engagement will continue to be enhanced by virtual online experiences that give potential travelers a taste of what their trips will be like before they open their wallets.

And when they decide to book, travel news outlet TravelPulse predicts that alternative forms of payment like ApplePay and GooglePay will increasingly become more mainstream for travel-related expenses, from upgrading flights to paying for in-flight meals and train tickets.

Why travel brands need a composable DXP

To stand out from the competition, the right DXP with a headless CMS can enable a travel brand to deliver engaging customer experiences at every stage of the buyer journey now and into the future.

With a headless CMS, where the front end is independent of the static back end, a brand’s marketing teams can quickly make changes on all the channels where they engage their audience without any technical expertise or fear of impacting functionality.

An API-first composable DXP can be integrated with internal and external systems that connect multiple data sources for more seamless content delivery and personalized experiences. When integrated with analytics tools, for example, a DXP gives marketers the speed and agility to react quickly to customer feedback and unpredicted changes. These can range from weather-related closures flight updates, and booking cancellations.

By integrating localization and analytics tools, content can automatically be delivered in the correct language based on the user's location and in the correct format for their device. 

Composable DXPs also enable travel organizations to swap out functionality and design elements as technology evolves into the future. As the name implies, an organization can “compose” its unique tech stack by choosing the best solutions and services for its DXP based on its current business goals and then changing up as often as needed. The old days of taking down outdated websites and building new ones every few years to change design and functionality become a thing of the past. 

How three very different travel brands benefit from composable headless CMS

Here’s how three real-life travel brands benefited after switching from legacy platforms to composable DXPs built on the Contentstack headless CMS. 

Golfbreaks

Golfbreaks, a leading UK-based golf vacation company, needed a consistent source of truth for content across multiple sites, and its previous CMS wasn’t up to the challenge. Another issue was accessing and formatting data to be leveraged by other applications.

Case study

Icelandair

After switching to a headless CMS, Icelandair saw a 90% decrease in the time it took to push out promotions, and it was also able to simplify integrations between the airline and its translation platform. The result was a 70% faster translation delivery rate and a more straightforward process for the content team.

Case study

REWE Group

The REWE Group, a diversified retail and tourism cooperative based in Europe, needed to dismantle a Java-based, monolithic platform that had undergone a decade’s worth of customizations and extensions.

Case study

Key considerations before making the switch to a composable DXP

Transitioning from legacy to a composable platform can be complex, so there are some essential things to consider before moving. First, ensure you have buy-in from leadership and stakeholders on business, marketing, and IT teams. A shift in mindset is just as necessary as choosing the right implementation partner. 

Secondly, analyze your existing tech stack, channels, and business goals to determine what areas to focus on first. Decisions should be made to prioritize rollouts based on which content improvements will significantly impact customer or user experience, existing maintenance costs of your old platform, and other factors.

Next, create a roadmap that outlines your implementation plan. A phased approach that tackles key challenges first for the most significant return on investment is ideal. For instance, if your main website is outdated and causing you to lose business, focus on that first. Start by integrating the must-have solutions initially, then roll out additional features and tackle other sites or channels over time. 

Fortunately, one of the most significant benefits of switching to a composable DXP with headless CMS is implementing phased rollouts via APIs without impacting functionality and features set up in the back end. In short, the front and back end are decoupled so they can be developed independently of each other while still being able to communicate via APIs.

Last but not least, be sure to find the right implementation partner and platform. Consider previous experience and expertise. Be sure to read testimonials and case studies from their existing customers. Also, ensure the platform supports the customization and integrations required to meet your biggest challenges.

Learn more

Learn more about how a headless CMS can help your business in our guide, “What is a headless CMS?”

Schedule a free demo to see how Contentstack’s headless CMS can help your travel brand deliver exceptional customer experiences.

About Contentstack & AWS

Contentstack deployed on Amazon Web Services (AWS) allows customers to harness the full power of cloud through industry leading AWS security and scalability paired with pre-built AWS integrations and extensions - making it easier than ever to implement and manage composable digital experiences at scale. Our recent addition of Amazon Bedrock enables Contentstack users to supercharge their digital experiences by leveraging advanced AI models from Amazon, Anthropic, and AI21 Labs, along with unlocking a host of new generative AI capabilities within Contentstack.