e-Travel and Quality in Tourism Vocabulary

A collection of essential terms and definitions related to e-travel distribution channels, quality assurance techniques in tourism, and professional communication as described in the lecture notes.

Inventory

The number of rooms, seats, or entry tickets for theme parks that a sales outlet offers the consumer.

Online Travel Agency (OTA)

An internet-based travel agent where customers never see or speak to agents, and all transactions are done online.

Dynamic Packaging

A process that allows consumers to put together their own trips at a single website by combining different elements such as air tickets, accommodation, and car hire.

Fully Inclusive Tour (FIT)

A travel package traditionally put together by a tour operator.

Single-site agent

An independent travel agent with only one or at best two shops.

Meta sites

A website, also known as a data aggregator, that searches other websites and brings together data that best fits the search criteria keyed in by the customer.

Multi-channel distribution

Distributing products through more than one channel, such as the Internet and high street travel agents.

Supplier website

The sites of the principals, such as low-cost carriers, traditional airlines, or hotels, where customers can buy direct.

Time audit

A process of making a note of exactly what you spend your time on in a $24$-hour period to decide if it is a good use of your time.

Customer journey

The series of stages a customer goes through when interacting with a service, from initial search and enquiry to departure and staying in touch.

Reactive thinking

A mindset focused on dealing with problems or situations only after they have occurred.

Proactive thinking

A mindset that involves thinking of solutions and setting quality standards before problems arise.

Appraisal

Individual meetings held between a manager and an employee to discuss the quality of the employee's work and plan future tasks.

Focus group

A quality assurance technique where customers are invited to a meeting to discuss their opinions of various matters related to their holiday.

Benchmarking

The practice of comparing and measuring an organization's service against other organizations that have a reputation for high quality.

Mystery shopper

A person employed by an organization to visit or contact parts of the business anonymously and report back to management on their experience.

Service charter

A publicly-displayed document describing the key quality criteria that an organization expects all employees to maintain.

Performance standards

A detailed list of all processes and tasks involved in a job, specifying the type of behaviour and level of service expected.

Reward / incentive scheme

A system designed to show material and public appreciation for employees who deliver outstanding levels of performance.

Ad hoc

An adjective describing something arranged or happening when necessary and not planned in advance.

Legibility

A quality of being clear and simple to read, which takes priority when choosing fonts for presentation slides.