Case study 05
CRM Software for Travel Agencies: From Paper Forms to Automated Updates
For a travel agency, trust is built in small moments: a form that is easy to fill in, a payment that is confirmed, a message that says what happens next. This case study shows how we built CRM software for a travel agency, Duronto Recruiting Travel Agency & Overseas Ltd., and what changed once applications, payments and updates moved online.
Tanvir Rifat, ERP Engineer
Published · Updated · 6 min read
- Client
- Duronto Recruiting Travel Agency & Overseas Ltd., tours and travels
- Size
- 150+ successful projects
- Timeline
- 1 month
- Team and users
- 20+ users
- Stack
- Python, Wordpress/WooCommerce, Twilio, Flightradar24 API
The challenge
Onboarding and updates ran on paper and phone calls
Duronto Recruiting Travel Agency & Overseas Ltd. works in the tours and travels industry. Every customer starts with an application, and every application passes through several steps before a flight is confirmed.
Customers were onboarded using paper-based forms. The agency had no reliable way to track applicants. When an application moved forward, someone had to phone the customer to say so. As the number of customers grew, so did the stack of forms and the list of calls to make.
The moment it broke.
A customer's details sat on a paper form, their payment status sat somewhere else, and their application had moved on without anyone telling them. So the same customer called the office, and the office searched through files to find an answer.
Customers were onboarded with paper-based forms
Each customer filled in a paper form, and staff then had to read it and type or file it. That is slow, and handwriting makes mistakes easy. A form that is lost or misread can hold up an application for days.
There was no way to track applicants
With no applicant tracking, the agency could not see at a glance where each application stood, or who was waiting on what. Staff relied on memory and paper files to answer a simple question like “what is the status of this customer?”
Every update needed a manual phone call
Whenever an application changed stage, a team member called the customer. Calls take time, customers are not always available, and nothing recorded whether the message had actually been delivered.
The solution
One CRM, three connected areas
We built a CRM around the agency's real process, from the first online form to the confirmed flight. Customers now apply and pay online, and every update reaches them automatically. To see how we approach this work, read about our Web app development and ERP solutions services.
Online portal and payments
Customers fill in their own information online.
- Online portal for customer details
- Digital payment for advance payment
- Customer data synced to the CRM on submission
Application and flight tracking
Every applicant visible at every stage.
- Multi-stage application tracking
- Multi-stage payment tracking
- Flight tracking in the same CRM
Automated SMS notifications
Customers hear from the agency without a phone call.
- SMS for every application update
- SMS confirmation of the flight
- No manual calls for routine updates
| What changed | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Onboarding | Paper-based forms | Online portal where customers fill out their own information |
| Customer data | Details typed or filed by staff | Data synced to the CRM automatically when the form is submitted |
| Tracking | No way to track applicants | Multi-stage application and payment tracking, plus flight tracking, with digital advance payment through the portal |
| Updates | Manual phone calls to customers | Automated SMS for every update and for flight confirmation |
The results
Measured after launch
Outcomes reported after go-live at Duronto Recruiting Travel Agency & Overseas Ltd.
- Customer onboarding moved from paper forms to a web portal
- Online
- Customer data syncs to the CRM as soon as the form is submitted
- Automatic
- Modules working together in one ERP, including a mobile app
- SMS
Our process
From discovery to launch
Discovery · 1 wk
Discovery
Mapped each stage an application passes through, from form to flight.
Design · 1 wk
Design
Designed the online form, the payment steps and the SMS messages.
Build · 1 wk
Build
Built the portal, the CRM and the tracking and SMS features.
Launch · 1 wk
Launch
Retired the paper forms and trained the team.
Before, every customer meant a paper form and a lot of phone calls. Now customers fill in their details online and pay their advance through the portal, and the information lands in our CRM by itself. They get an SMS when something changes, so we no longer spend our days calling people.
When stock, purchases and sales live in one system, inventory stops going missing, credit stays under control, and paper is no longer needed.
