As states rapidly reopen and consumers begin moving around the world again, travel and entertainment brands should be preparing for a great revival.

An uptick in on-premise experiences is near, and customer reactivation is top of mind for digital leaders at top travel and entertainment companies. Airbnb’s CEO, Brian Chesky said, "there will be a significant travel rebound," which is why gearing up for the return to travel is the company’s top priority. Radar is helping a range of providers to welcome travelers back: from aggregators like Traveloka to guides like Around Airports.

2020 was about taking a step back and focusing on how to preserve customer relationships through digital, and 2021 will be about rebuilding trust and engagement on-premise by blending the digital and physical. Consumer expectations for convenient, personalized on-premise experiences have only grown over the course of the pandemic, and brands like Ticketmaster are amplifying the importance of features like mobile ticketing for the return to live events because they reduce physical contact and increase trust.

As the leader in geofencing, Radar offers digital teams the tools to power contactless mobile app experiences while driving engagement. Here are just a few ways companies can benefit from these experiences:

• Hospitality brands can detect approaching and arrival events to power delightful contactless check-in and eliminate lines in the lobby. An on-premise mode can prioritize contactless concierge (parking attendant, order room service, suggest a nearby restaurant) and add-on services such as booking a massage. Allowing the app to replace anything that the front desk or a phone call could do, and more efficiently, creates happier customers, labor savings, and revenue from an uptake of add-on services.
• Entertainment brands can send predictive pushes with venue information, safety protocols, ticket upgrades, seat maps, or merchandise offers in an on-venue app mode. A geofenced web companion experience can also help provide value to users with similar features on-venue without before downloading the app. Moreover, contactless mobile check-in can reduce wait times and contact. Location analytics offer incredible insight into where customers are opening the app (at home, at the venue, on the way), which can be used to help prioritize certain app improvements on the product roadmap.
• Amusement parks can offer an on-park app experience that highlights a park map and recommended rides. With location insights, this can be taken a step further for season ticket holders, customizing the app experience to showcase their favorite rides. By geofencing different areas of the park, messages can be sent based on whether users are waiting to ride a rollercoaster, in the parking lot, or at the food area. Relevant, timely messages get users engaging in the app and provide an opportunity to seek feedback about cleanliness and comfort.
• Airlines looking to improve the day of travel experience can use their app to replace many person-to-person interactions like contactless security and boarding. Location is an opportunity to delight customers when handling irregular operations (IROPs) such as scheduling delays and advances or a gate change. Is a customer too far from the gate? Send an alert to pull them back. Are they about to miss their flight? Pull them into the app and offer to schedule them onto the next one. Airlines can also capture more secondary revenue from partner services and build customer comfort by sending coupons to travelers at their gate with 45 minutes to spare. A lot is up in the air on travel day, and sending the right messages at the right time builds confidence that promotes repeat business.

It’s never been more important for travel and entertainment brands to connect with their customers in real time and surface features that make them feel more comfortable on-premise, and location-context is what makes these experiences and messages possible. With Radar, you don’t need to put hundreds of developers on the job to make it happen. In just three steps, you can power location-based experiences.

• Integrate the Radar SDK to add location to your apps
• Import and set up geofences around regions, hotels, airports, stadiums, or points of interest to begin generating events at moments when users approach or enter a geofence
• Activate those events through our dashboards, APIs, and turnkey integrations with push providers, CDPs, analytics, and attribution tools

It took Traveloka just one month to implement Radar and begin sending location-triggered messaging that drove a 300% increase in open rates.

Radar is ready to help navigate this unique time and grow with our customers as they expand location use cases. If you’re interested in building trust through safe reactivation, we’d love to hear from you.