TravClan: Reshaping the travel Industry through innovation and seamless customer experiences

Chirag Agrawal discusses TravClan's evolution from a community-building initiative for travel agents to a one-stop, tech-driven travel services platform. Amidst COVID challenges, TravClan introduced free personalized websites for agents and an on-trip app for customers, emphasizing technology and customer service. The partnership with TravelgateX boosts TravClan's inventory, connectivity, and market insights, aiding global expansion and innovation.

- Tell us a little about it. How did the business start, and how has it evolved over the years?

- TravClan is a global B2B Travel Tech Platform that is reshaping the way travel agents sell and deliver exceptional travel experiences (holidays) worldwide. With a strong focus on cutting-edge technology and seamless customer experiences, TravClan empowers travel agents to sell travel online while providing comprehensive end to end on ground travel services.  We started  in October 2018, with the objective enabling travel agents to grow their business. Initially, we focussed on building a community of travel agents on whatsapp groups connecting travel agents with suppliers. Today, we are one-stop shop, allowing agents to instantly book entire holidays, including flights, hotels, activities, sightseeing, and transfers—all within the platform.

In 2020, within two years of establishing TravClan, we were hit by Covid, a very difficult time for anyone and everyone in the travel industry. This was when we developed our Free Website feature, that allowed agents to build personalized websites within seconds, launching their journey to effortlessly sell flights, hotels, and holidays. We also launched  innovative marketing tools, through which travel agents gain access to social media-driven demand generation, as well as integrated back-office solutions for invoicing, payment collection, and customer relationship management.

We have recently taken a step further, innovating a unique solution to help agents offer exceptional travel experiences. In response to the growing demand for on-trip assistance, we have developed a groundbreaking solution to address the needs of both travel agents and their customers. The newly launched On-Trip App, a white-labeled application designed to streamline communication and support during travelers' journeys.

- Can you describe the importance of two key factors to TRAVCLAN development: technology... and customer service.

- As a young tech company, innovation is ingrained in our DNA. Over the past few years, we've pioneered several industry firsts with a focus on improving the experience for both travel agents and their customers during trips with TravClan. We have focussed on providing convenience and the power of technology to travel agents anytime and anywhere. We are perhaps the first B2B travel company globally to have a fully functional modern Android and iOS app for travel agents. Furthermore, we take pride in providing simplified post-booking services, with travel agents able to make any changes/cancellations directly on the app and speak to our team for support on live chat. We have 24x7 support with a strong focus on customer happiness. When it comes to holidays, our focus continues to be on providing the best-on-ground travel experience. To meet this end, after the agent books with TravClan, the end travellers can seamlessly access all their travel details easily coordinate with our on-ground team and stay updated about their itinerary, pickup, and transfers all from the comfort of their mobile phones, and stay connected with us 24x7.  We want to continue to constantly learn and meet the industry's needs while creating industry-first products. 

- How long has TRAVCLAN been a Partner of TravelgateX? What did you know of us beforehand?

- We have been associated with TravelgateX for a couple of quarters now. TravelgateX is a leading B2B global marketplace for the travel industry, specializing in connectivity and distribution solutions. Several industry partners had recommended, TravelgateX’s services including API integration to help us connect to a global network of hotel suppliers for accessing better inventory and better prices!

- What led you to move to TravelgateX? What are the main factors that influenced your decision?

- We want to build the best global inventory for our travel partners at affordable prices. To continue to achieve this we need to tap into a global network of suppliers where we work not just with global bedbanks but also smaller regional DMCs and bedbanks. We look at TravelgateX as a long-term technology partner to get access to global suppliers all around the world which has an easy and smooth API integration.

- How easy was it to integrate the Travelgate API - and how long did it take?

- The overall onboarding and integration process with TravelgateX was smooth and completed in a matter of a few weeks. The team was super supportive and helped us at each stage.

- What are the benefits of using the TravelgateX API?

- As we have just started using TravelgateX the biggest benefit has been that with a single integration we have been able to access a global network of suppliers, saving integration costs and ensuring faster go-to-market for us. Also, we have been able to get valuable insights into market trends and performance metrics that have helped us make informed decisions and optimize their operations.

- How does working with TravelgateX and using the TravelgateX API help you to achieve your business goals?

- By working with TravelgateX and utilizing their API it helped our business goals by expanding our inventory, streamlining connectivity, gaining valuable insights, enhancing the customer experience, and driving innovation.

- You partner with many other tech companies – what makes TravelgateX different?

- The global network of suppliers and the quality / reliability of technology solutions that TravelgateX are the two key differentiators for TravelgateX. Also, today it has built a reputation for reliability given the strong track record we have seen for ourselves with smooth performance of the APIs 

- You are now part of the Buyers/Sellers, what benefits has this brought to you? 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?

- We are now connected with more sellers across the world, which has helped us to expand our inventory and improve the pricing on the platform. We are also in the process to go live with several new suppliers whom we are connecting through TravelgateX itself. Meetings with TravelgateX team, and specifically Fabian, have been insightful and have helped us a lot to move in the right direction. The partnership has opened doors for us to meet new suppliers across the world.