TAMPA, Fla. -- Discount air specialist 800 Travel Systems enhanced
its Web site to give users the option of dealing with the computer,
dealing with a person or a little of both.
Previously, users of the company's Internet site, www.lowairfare.com,
were automatically greeted with an instant messaging window to chat
on line with a reservations agent.
The on-line chat was, in effect, the site's default mode of
taking reservations. The latest enhancements to the system, which
is powered by Sabre, give users the option of making a fully
automated booking. They also can open a chat line at any point in
the transaction if questions arise.
Company president Peter Sontag said the enhanced system is also
wireless-compatible and incorporates Sabre's Virtually There
technology, which delivers customized itineraries and destination
information via the Web.
The company, which still gets most of its business through
toll-free lines to its Tampa and San Diego call centers, also is
adopting Lowairfare.com as a trade name.