Asian Trails recently appointed eCommerce Manager Simone Persano has set out his stall to increase the sale and diversity of our online products.

In particular, Simone earmarked a focus on increased sales of multi-day and multi-country tours.

He said: “We are in a very advantageous position because not many DMCs around the world have the capabilities of Asian Trails in the sense that we are the owners of our own multi-day and multi-country products and we have invested in state-of-the-art technology which enables clients to book exceptional experiences with ease.

“I look back to my earlier years as a resort representative in Mexico when people came on all-inclusive packages and rarely left the hotel, maybe taking just one tour during a two-week break and not exploring the locality or connecting with the local people and their amazing culture and traditions.

“With the tools we have to hand, we can seamlessly supply visitors with the best experiences in destinations across Asia and also do this with a more sustainable approach.”

Simone has extensive knowledge of the tourism sector, with over 20 years employment in the industry, starting as a resort representative and progressing from customer care to roles in product design, operations and now e-commerce.

He said: “I have had the opportunity to work in the main areas of a DMC and this has given me a perfect perspective on how a product is created, developed, distributed and sold. This has equipped me with the mindset to increase our visibility in the online world.”

Another area Simone is keen to expand on is accessibility programmes.

“We have the technology to help us effectively distribute this type of product, making accessibility programmes more available and recognisable by the operators.”

Despite the global mass marketing of leisure products, Simone said there are still some products that have not penetrated every single market, such as seat in coach tours.

He said: “We are currently working on the creation of seat in coach tours for markets that have never used non-private coach tours. I have been working on these for many years because they are very popular and well established in the Italian market.

“The main issue is to use technology to help us communicate more effectively as I know there might be some agents who would like to book, but they do not have sufficient knowledge on essential excursion information, such as inclusions, non-inclusions, how this type of tour differs from a private tour and so on.”

All of the areas identified by Simone are seamlessly facilitated by our booking platform eConnect. This offers global connectivity to hotels, activities, transfers and multi-day tour reservations at the click of a button.

The portal enables us to present our online products more effectively compared to a conventional brochure, as we can update content, benchmark rates and share information instantly with online travel agencies.

eConnect also helps during negotiations with suppliers as we can show clearly how their products and services are presented to our customers.

This technology has enriched Asian Trails’ reputation as a DMC market leader, with positive feedback from stakeholders two years after the platform’s launch at the World Travel Market in London in 2022.

Simone concluded: ”Our clients have expressed great interest in the benefits of using this user-friendly and reliable technology.

“It has provided a solid foundation for us to spread awareness about our Asia-wide portfolio and it has demonstrated how easy it is to book our products. Consequently, clients can concentrate their full focus on the diverse experiences we offer – the most important face of a DMC!”

For more information about eConnect and our online products and service, feel free to reach out directly to Simone Persano.