Webjet has lifted the lid off its biggest transformation ever in its 27-year-history, embarking on a mission for increased relevance in a competitive travel landscape, as it works towards doubling total transaction value by 2030.
The major piece of work comes a little over a year after Webjet’s demerger from Webjet Limited, encapsulating a raft of new opportunities, from the launch of a new visual identity and brand platform called ‘Go Somewhere’, to improved UX and fresh offerings capturing more of the travel wallet.
At the launch party of Webjet’s transformation this week in Sydney, Travel Daily spoke with Group CEO and MD Katrina Barry about what the modern traveller wants, her plans for the future of the brand and the corporate travel opportunity.
What today’s travellers want
The first day that Barry started her new gig at Webjet last year, a major priority was to undergo in-depth research into Australian travellers’ habits, and so the team spoke with 3,500 consumers and analysed 10,000 trips.
“We know that 73% of Australians know us and love us, but only 15% think about us. We’re not very familiar, we’re just not relevant, we’re not top-of-mind,” said Barry.
It was an opportunity to bring the brand to the forefront of consumers’ minds and undergo a major refresh of its identity and proposition, Barry said, shifting it from being known as a flight-focused OTA to a fully-formed travel offering.
It was also revealed that these travellers want to book their holidays all online and in one place. And despite Webjet’s expansive offerings across international flights, hotels and cars, it seemed that customers only knew them for domestic flights.
Enter Webjet’s new static packages and touring offer, partnering with suppliers like The Travel Corporation.
In addition, the website’s UX has been redesigned, making it easy for customers to navigate and organise their entire holiday end-to-end.
“People don’t want to book flights, they want to book holidays,” Barry said.
The gap in the business travel market
Another key part of Webjet’s transformation is the acquisition of Locomote, which has rebranded to Webjet Business Travel.
Webjet’s research found that in the past, its business had become what Barry describes as “a default TMC”, especially among office managers at small to medium businesses, who were budget-conscious and appreciated the ability to mix and match offerings on the site. However, as those clients grew in size, that’s where Webjet often lost them, specifically to Locomote.
Now, Barry describes the merging of the two businesses as “a real meeting of minds around culture and belief about where this industry is going”, in addition to their commonalities around transparent pricing and speed of delivery.
“Our shared belief is that corporate travel, much like leisure travel, is all going online eventually,” she said.
“As the tech gets better, as the AI gets better, we are increasingly going to see this industry go online, and Australia and New Zealand are dramatically under-penetrated for online share compared to other markets.”
Building effciencies through tech
Through its new partnership with Microsoft, Webjet is now working on a proof of concept for what Barry calls the ‘Webjetty’ project, an online tool that generates itineraries, ideation and inspiration.
Barry picks up an imaginary phone and speaks to it to demonstrate:
“Please find three options for a girls weekend away that’s within an hour away, and that must be four star and a swim up bar,” she said.
Meanwhile, Amazon Web Services is Webjet’s main partner for customer service, using AI to help customers talk to a human if something goes awry while on holiday.
One of the key pieces of work is on using AI to generate clear, concise notes for each customer, making it easy for Webjet operators to service them throughout their journey.
Capturing the youth market
Like many industry businesses, Webjet is focused on growing its youth market, a segment that Barry is well-versed in, given her previous role as MD of Contiki Australasia, which she managed through COVID.
It’s also a demographic that the industry has struggled to capture, given the closure of brands like STA and Student Flights, Barry explained.
“I think it’s a very troubled generation. They were obviously kept inside for two years and then revenge travel made a big difference. But they’re also very, very different,” she said, pointing to the current cost-of-living environment.
While some demographics may have searched for more purpose in their work, given the financial challenges Gen Z currently faces, they have more in common with Baby Boomers and their desire for stability than with Gen X and Y, believes Barry.
“Some youth brands I know are doing a really good job. For a brand, you need to be known for something. Every brand has a story. And for youth, you can’t tell them to do anything. They will not listen. But what [you] can do is offer up the opportunity, and then they will choose. The brands I think are doing really well are those that are being the experts, they’re not selling something.”
Acquisition on the horizon?
Earlier this year, Helloworld upped its stakes in Webjet and according to Barry, it’s not the only business that has expressed interest in the business.
“There are quite a few people who, with very good reason, are very interested in Webjet,” she said.
“This is a brand that’s 27 years old with incredibly high awareness and trust and quite frankly, needed to be invested in. We’ve just spent a good 14 months putting in place all the building blocks [for this transformation] – Webjet’s back – and I can understand the interest.”
Will Webjet pass the ‘barbecue test’?
In a year’s time, Barry is hoping that there will be “a dramatic increase in familiarity, awareness and consideration”, especially among the younger generations.
“Obviously sales will be going through the roof. That would be fantastic,” she added.
By that stage, the business will also be in year two of its transformation journey.
“This is a strong, three-year investment period before we really start reaping the benefits. I also know from past experience, it doesn’t happen all in year one,” she explained.
For now, the Webjet team has focused on laying down the foundations, with more to come and after that, “we’ll be really reaping the rewards”.
But in a year’s time, Barry jokes that when she attends a barbecue and reveals that she works at Webjet, instead of equating the business with just flights, they’ll say, “Yeah, Webjet – I can buy my travel there, can’t I?”
“The barbecue test will have dramatically shifted,” laughs Barry.
