The German National Tourist Board (GNTB) is launching the deployment of digital voice assistant Alexa in the US and UK. The DZT application, which is now available in the market-specific Amazon store under the name “Germany Travel Tips,” provides initially 48 tips—three for each state—focusing on nature, cultural experiences, action or recreation.
The Alexa skill asks the user for specific travel preferences, and then intuitively leads from one level to specific recommendations and travel tips. Every travel inspiration begins with a typical audio file, followed by an informative post that Alexa plays aloud.
Petra Hedorfer, chair of the GNTB’s board of directors, explains, “Experts from the US market research company Comscore assume that as early as 2020, 50% of searches will be conducted via language assistance. With the Alexa project, we are introducing an innovative information and booking channel in the field of digital marketing tools for destination management.”
Today, according to a study by Globalwebindex, 17% of the global online community already owns a digital voice assistant, and 34% want to purchase such a device. This indicates that in the foreseeable future, more than half of all consumers can be reached with voice-controlled applications. The affinity is more pronounced in the younger target groups of 16 to 35 year-olds, who account for two-thirds of speech-driven applications. From a market point of view, voice technology is being used intensively by users in the Asia-Pacific region as well as in the USA and Great Britain.
The target audience of the GNTB application is Millennials as well as “Digital Natives” between 25 and 35 years old. They are a travel-oriented target group, familiar with dialogue systems and a variety of applications. An initial marketing campaign on corresponding online media channels will communicate the launch of the Alexa Skill to this group.
Courtesy German National
Tourist Office