Discover the fascinating conversation with Cisyelya Bunyamin, our SVP of Accommodations at Tiket.com. From its humble beginnings as the first OTA in Indonesia to its global expansion, we explore how technological innovation and customer service have been crucial to Tiket.com's success and its strategic collaboration with TravelgateX.
- Tell us a little about your business. How did the business start, and how has it evolved over the years?
- PT Global Tiket Network (tiket.com) was established in August 2011, becoming the pioneer OTA in the market. With the mission to simplify and revolutionize travel by using technology, we recognized the importance of having the right partners to work with us in accomplishing the mission. The opportunity came in 2017 when tiket.com became a part of Djarum Group, the largest group of companies in Indonesia. Going public with Blibli in 2022 marked another major milestone, solidifying our position as a leading OTA in Indonesia.
Today, tiket.com is part of the Blibli Ticket ecosystem, the trusted omnichannel platform that has become an integral part of Indonesians’ daily lives, catering to 90% of their daily spending. As the most loved travel and lifestyle platform, at tiket.com we offer our customers a seamless travel experience, from transportation, and accommodations to activities and events.
- Can you describe the importance of two key factors to tiket.com development: technology... and customer service?
- As the most customer-centric OTA, all our innovations and product developments are created based on a customer-centric approach. In line with our mission, we constantly improve our technology to better serve our customer's travel needs. This customer-centric approach using technology helped us achieve “the fastest growing OTA in the world” title by Sabre.
- How long has tiket.com been a Partner of TravelgateX? What did you know of us beforehand?
- We have known TravelgateX for its wide reach and connections with global hotels & travel companies. With the extensive network within the travel industry, we trust that TravelgateX is the right partner for us to grow and expand our business globally. It’s been almost 1 year since we partnered with TravelgateX, and I am very excited to explore the endless possibilities to grow together.
- What led you to move to TravelgateX? What are the main factors that influenced your decision?
- Two main factors influenced our decision to move to TravelgateX. Firstly, their unmatched global network connects us with a vast array of key players in the travel industry, significantly expanding our reach beyond what we could achieve individually in a short time. Secondly, their API's seamless integration with major channel managers saved us so much development time compared to individual integrations.
- How easy was it to integrate the TravelgateX API - and how long did it take?
- Integrating the TravelgateX API was surprisingly smooth! It only took a short time for our development team to complete the initial setup, and thanks to TravelgateX team’s support, we were able to connect with our first supplier automatically upon launch.
- What are the benefits of using the TravelgateX API?
- As a buyer, TravelgateX saves us search time for new partners and offers competitive deals from their extensive network. The streamlined booking process frees up our resources for marketing, leading to a sizable increase in bookings. As a seller, TravelgateX exposes us to a wider audience on a single platform, which in effect increases our sales.
- How does working with TravelgateX and using the TravelgateX API help you to achieve your business goals?
- TravelgateX's extensive global network has helped us expand our Partner base, reaching new customers and markets faster and cost-effectively than individual integrations. Access to diverse suppliers through TravelgateX also enables us to offer competitive deals and a wider range of travel options, attracting more customers and increasing satisfaction.
- You partner with many other tech companies – what makes TravelgateX different?
- TravelgateX's dedication to the travel industry ensures a deep understanding of our specific needs and challenges, offering solutions tailored to our sector.
- You are now part of the Buyers/Sellers, what benefits has this brought to you?
- Participating as both buyers and sellers on TravelgateX has helped us to accelerate expansion and market penetration through the single API integration. This also shortens the decision-making process that we need to do when expanding our supplier network. We can also easily test and evaluate suppliers’ content at a much faster rate, which ultimately helps us identify the best resource to expand our business.
- What’s the most interesting or useful thing to come out of a TravelgateX meeting? In what ways have these sessions made a difference to your relationship with TravelgateX?
- I found the insights shared by the TravelgateX team during our last call particularly interesting. We discussed the impressive results of the first integrated supplier via TravelgateX and tiket.com’s plans. As a result, we're now developing tailored plans based on these insights, collaborating with TravelgateX to onboard new suppliers. This shared focus on customer-centric solutions has strengthened our partnership and opened up exciting new growth opportunities.
- Lastly – how would you describe TravelgateX in three single words?
- Empowering, Innovative and Effective.
What are the benefits of using the TravelgateX API?
About Tiket.com
In its pursuit to become the most adored Online Travel Agent (OTA) and lifestyle app, Tiket.com is committed to relentless innovation aimed at simplifying and revolutionizing tourism through its proprietary technology, catering to over 17 million users worldwide. Serving as the premier online marketplace for travel-related products and services, Tiket.com offers a comprehensive range of options including flights, hotels, car rentals, events, attractions, trains, and airport transfers. Recognized as the world's fastest-growing OTA by SABRE in 2019, Tiket.com currently collaborates with 85 airlines globally, providing access to over 2.7 million hotel accommodations, including 400+ exclusive offerings in hotels, villas, and apartments. Additionally, the platform boasts an extensive selection of over 10,000 activities and events across various destinations for travelers to explore and enjoy.