The travel and tourism industry has been through a transformative period of change; the shift to digital driving changes in how travelers are looking for and booking travel experiences. To meet this demand, Qatar Airways has been leading with an innovation-first mindset to carve a new space for what the future of the travel experience could look like.
That experience comes to life in QVerse – an immersive and interactive virtual experience which gives users and customers the chance to experience the entire end-to-end journey, starting from the moment they step foot into Hamad International Airport through to the lounges and onto the aircraft from the comfort of their own home – all before physically stepping onto the plane.
“We’ve essentially created a digital twin of the physical journey available on the ground and onboard,” explains Babar Rahman, vice-president marketing at Qatar Airways. “The purpose of QVerse is to allow anyone to virtually step into the cabin to get a sense of what it’s like when flying with Qatar Airways to be able to make informed decisions about the airline they will be traveling with and the quality of services they will experience.”
Core to the marketing strategy for QVerse has been the focus on the user – to innovate on the possibilities through new and emerging tech, but to do so in a way that is helpful. By recreating the exact physical journey passengers will have when they travel with Qatar Airways, it seeks to eliminate any barriers to entry when it comes to flying.
“Passengers want to know what the experience is going to be like – and with travel, they don’t know that until they have physically set foot on an aircraft. What we’re trying to do is democratize the whole travel experience by showing customers what their journey is going to look like,” says Rahman.
“This is more than just technology for the sake of technology – we’re shifting towards something that is more useful for users; something that will actually benefit them, to find out what their journey will be like and the kind of amenities they can enjoy when they travel with us.”
Another benefit of the QVerse is that it is available in 13 languages to cater to users from different parts of the world, ensuring that it’s inclusive and accessible to anyone looking to plan their travel comfortably, available across the web and on smartphones.
And while the future customer is digital, the craving for a human touch remains. The first point of contact for visitors arriving in the QVerse is Sama – a digitally-created high-fidelity 3D human model – whose name is of Arabic origin and translates to ‘sky’. Created by the cloud-based app MetaHuman Creator, Sama is dubbed the ‘world’s first metahuman cabin crew member’.
It’s through Sama that the entire digital customer journey is led, there to guide customers through the cabin interior of the aircraft, including Qatar Airways’ award-winning Business Class Qsuite and Economy Class.
Further innovation is on the cards – with plans underway for Sama to be powered by artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the personalized experience more.
On top of this, Qatar Airways has gamified the experience to allow users who try QVerse to benefit from ‘Hidden Rewards’ – with a promo code that offers up to 10% savings on their next flight, valid across the network on Business and Economy fares.
While browsing through the QVerse, passengers are also presented with the airline’s most competitive fares for the upcoming six months – to allow them to plan their dream destination, and create a more seamless experience between inspiration and purchase.
What’s clear from the success of the QVerse to date is that users – both new and returning – are embracing this new approach to the travel experience. Spending on average two minutes and 24 seconds on site, the QVerse sees an engagement rate of almost 80% and more than half of customers acquired through the QVerse campaign are first time bookers with Qatar Airways.
“A key focus for Qatar Airways is to innovate and provide more choices to our customers, and provide them with a new chance to choose the best airline for their journey,” says Rahman. “That’s why we’re relying on technology to help do that. It’s not all necessarily ‘new’ technology but it is a shift away from video and images into something which is more interactive and immersive for users.”
And its marketing efforts are seeing a soaring success. Since the QVerse marketing campaign launched, it has achieved return-on-ad-spend (ROAS) of over 1000% with a product return-on-investment (ROI) of over 200%. As for where the QVerse is flying to next? Only time will tell – but it’s a space to watch.
