Digitized skiing in the middle of the Alps? Go for it!
Armelle Solelhac, author of Management et marketing des stations de montagne and CEO of the communication agency SWiTCH said “I wouldn’t talk about strong brands for French ski resorts. Apart from about 20 resorts out of 350, very few have invested in their brand platform, unlike the majority of American, Swiss, or Austrian resorts.”
Branding is essential in the ski industry; ski resorts lose some attractiveness and see their activity slowing down because of climate change. They must look for a better-personalized customer journey with digitization at the heart of it.
French ski resorts have, finally, started to develop their own app to help customers navigate around the resort and become well-connected.
Stay connected at 3000 meters high while skiing
Tourists want to experiment with a new way of travelling, even when it comes to skiing. The consulting firm Sia Partners listed the different criteria for this innovative approach:
- Searching for information online
- Permanent use of cell phones
- Use of social networks
- Appetence for modern technologies
- Search for a fluid, unified and personalized booking, and travel experience.
Based on these criteria, companies and especially start-ups have created some new products and services to smooth the customer experience. Three of these new offerings have won prizes at the Digital Mountain awards but how exactly have they improved the skiing experience?
Having your ski pass on your phone through Mobile Flow
When you want to go skiing, you need to buy your ski pass and, to the vast majority of skiers, this is the most annoying part of the day. It usually takes a lot of time because everyone needs to get theirs at the same time, you never have the right card to prove you are allowed to get a discount and you often need to buy a new pass because either, you forgot yours or, you did not know this other pass from another resort wouldn’t work on a nearby set of slopes. It is a nightmare, especially if you are a family of four.
These are the reasons why Mobile Flow exists. This solution by Skidata enables you to have your ski pass on your phone, no hands are needed when arriving at the lifts. Skiers pay for their pass via their phone and only need Bluetooth to access any lifts, no Wi-Fi or Data. Guy Tessereau, CEO of SKIDATA France explains “Our goal is to make our customers’ experience the easiest one possible.” For now, at least, it saves time, and energy and makes sure you can ski.
Avoid rush hours on ski tracks thanks to Lumiplan
When you go skiing during the holiday and if you usually go on the blue tracks, it might be quite full; lots of people learn how to ski and it is hard to enjoy your time on the slopes.
Again, a startup has found the solution! The company Lumiplan Apps helps ski resorts in the US and France create the app they need for their customers. They offer a large variety of functions including weather, tracking of all slopes, live webcams, tracking of the customer’s performance, augmented reality…
But what is our favourite functionality? Lumiplan gives you the exact number of skiers on the different slopes so you can choose which way you want to go for a better skiing experience. Find your path and ski your way!
PayInTeck cashless ski pass as a means of payment in the entire ski resort
Finally, families that go skiing during their winter holiday usually rent a place within the ski resort. The next stop to make their life easier is to find out how to easily do the shopping, buy their ski passes (if not using Mobile Flow), pay for various activities, or even go to the restaurant. To ease the customer journey PayInTech created a “cashless ski pass” that enables customers to do everything within the resort through their pass.
If they want to buy anything they only need to have their ski pass, no need for a credit card or cash. This is a real advantage for customers as they only have to think of one thing when they leave their chalet. It is also profitable for businesses as the average amount of money spent is higher than when paying with regular means of payment.
Businesses can also acquire a full range of data that can help them better understand their customers. It is also positive for the resort as it develops its image as a connected place, boosting its attractivity. The resort itself and businesses can build loyalty with their best customers and provide them with discounts to create a long-lasting relationship using the aggregated data.
In every case, the idea is to simplify the customer’s journey: aligning their desire for technology wherever they are with the holidays they want to personalize. Data is crucial for this industry as they continue to develop their engagement strategy to drive new and repeat business.
Aren’t you convinced yet that going digital is critical for ski resorts? Check this other article out.
If you are in to data and love skiing, I suggest you spend a little bit of your time on this one.
About this article
This article has been written by a student on the Grenoble Ecole de Management’s Advanced Masters in Digital Strategy Management. As part of a content creation assignment, students are given the task of writing articles based on their digital interests and disseminating the articles online. Articles are marked but we make minimal changes to the content. Thanks for reading! James Barisic, Programme Director, MS DSM.
