Innovation Under Constraint: Sector-Specific Strategies for Travel & Hospitality Post-COVID
The COVID-19 pandemic brought the global travel and hospitality industry to an abrupt standstill, challenging even the most established brands to rethink every aspect of their business. Yet, as history has shown, periods of great constraint often spark the most profound innovation. For travel and hospitality leaders, the post-pandemic era is not about returning to business as usual—it’s about reimagining guest experiences, streamlining operations, and building resilience for an unpredictable future. At Publicis Sapient, we have partnered with leading airlines, hotel groups, and travel brands to accelerate digital transformation, address new health and safety imperatives, and prepare for the next era of travel.
Health, Safety, and the Rise of Contactless Experiences
COVID-19 permanently elevated health and safety from a preference to a non-negotiable expectation. Travelers now demand visible, reliable assurances of cleanliness and well-being at every touchpoint. Leading travel and hospitality brands have responded by:
- Implementing contactless technologies: Mobile check-in, keyless room entry, digital payments, and touchless kiosks have become standard. These solutions not only reduce physical contact but also streamline the guest journey, making travel safer and more convenient.
- Personalizing digital interactions: Modern platforms enable brands to deliver tailored content, offers, and services in real time, adapting to the unique needs and preferences of each guest. For example, a global hotel chain partnered with Publicis Sapient to consolidate legacy systems into a single, agile platform, reducing content publishing time from days to real-time and increasing conversion rates by 18%.
- Transparent communication: Clear, proactive messaging about health protocols, flexible booking policies, and local guidelines builds trust and reassures guests throughout their journey.
Streamlining Operations: Agility and Efficiency at Scale
The pandemic exposed the limitations of legacy systems and siloed processes. To thrive in a volatile environment, travel and hospitality companies are embracing:
- Integrated, cloud-based platforms: By unifying data, content, and operations, brands can respond to market shifts with speed and precision. This enables rapid deployment of new features, supports localization, and ensures consistent experiences across global properties.
- Automated and data-driven contact centers: With call volumes spiking during travel disruptions, leading companies are digitizing customer service. Natural language processing, AI-powered chatbots, and seamless handoffs between digital and human agents reduce wait times and improve resolution rates. For one airline, blending digital and call center teams helped address over two-hour average wait times and ensured more customer calls were answered, even during peak crisis periods.
- Rapid response teams and agile working models: Inspired by startup culture, small, multidisciplinary teams can move from idea to prototype in days, not months. This approach enabled an airline to identify and automate cost-saving opportunities in just 160 hours, demonstrating the power of nimble, cross-functional collaboration.
Preparing for Shifts in Demand and New Competitive Landscapes
The recovery from COVID-19 is uneven and unpredictable. Domestic travel is rebounding faster than international, and new entrants and business models are emerging as some traditional players exit the market. To stay ahead, travel and hospitality brands are:
- Investing in direct-to-consumer (DTC) channels: As travelers seek greater flexibility and assurance, brands are strengthening their own digital channels, reducing reliance on third-party intermediaries, and building richer customer profiles. This shift enables more personalized marketing, dynamic segmentation, and targeted offers that drive loyalty and repeat business.
- Leveraging data and analytics: Real-time insights into customer behavior, demand patterns, and market signals allow companies to anticipate recovery trends, optimize pricing, and tailor experiences. Dynamic segmentation and predictive analytics help brands identify when and where travel is picking up, so they can act quickly to capture new demand.
- Innovating with new products and services: The crisis has accelerated the adoption of new offerings, from flexible cancellation policies to wellness-focused amenities and digital concierge services. Brands that experiment, iterate, and scale successful innovations will be best positioned to capture emerging opportunities.
Case in Point: Transforming a Global Hotel Chain
One of the world’s largest hotel groups, managing thousands of properties and dozens of brands, faced the challenge of fragmented legacy systems and slow content delivery. By partnering with Publicis Sapient, the chain implemented a modern, connected platform powered by leading-edge technologies. The results were transformative:
- Publishing time for new content dropped from over 48 hours to real-time
- The new platform now supports over 7 million monthly visits
- Bounce rates decreased by 26%, while conversion rates increased by 18%
- The brand can now deliver personalized, localized experiences at scale, supporting rapid recovery and long-term growth
The Road Ahead: Building Resilience and Future-Proofing the Business
The travel and hospitality industry has a long history of resilience, having rebounded from crises such as 9/11 and the Great Recession. The post-COVID era, however, demands a new level of agility, digital maturity, and customer-centricity. Brands that:
- Embrace digital transformation as a continuous journey
- Invest in scalable, flexible technology platforms
- Foster a culture of rapid innovation and cross-functional collaboration
- Prioritize health, safety, and personalized experiences
will not only recover faster but also set new standards for guest satisfaction and operational excellence.
At Publicis Sapient, we help travel and hospitality leaders reimagine what’s possible—turning today’s challenges into tomorrow’s competitive advantages. Whether you’re looking to accelerate digital transformation, streamline operations, or reinvent the guest experience, our industry expertise and proven accelerators can help you build a resilient, future-ready business.
Ready to reimagine your travel and hospitality business for the post-COVID world? Let’s start a conversation.