The Struggle to Make Free Spirit Digital Nomads Your Travel Brand Ambassadors

A host of travel brands are ramping up efforts to tap into remote workers and digital nomads.

Many are trying their hand at developing new apps or features to build loyal communities, evolving their proposition to include digital spaces as well as physical spaces. It’s a classic case of turning your customers into brand ambassadors. Marketing and customer acquisition costs go down, repeat business goes up.

It's a risky commercialization of a demographic who in essence represents being a free spirit, but then the travel industry can't ignore the potential for more profits.

Remote workers are arguably set to be one of the fast-growing markets; just this week the Dutch parliament approved legislation to establish work-from-home as a legal right, while more governments are offering nomad visas (including Indonesia which is looking at a five-year, tax-free option.)

Here are three ways travel companies are reacting.

Travel companies seem keen to promote themselves as social connectors, and even the solution to loneliness.

As borders reopened earlier this year, online travel agency Hostelworld was quick off the mark to launch a networking platform called The Solo System for both its app and website. Before the pandemic about 60 percent of its guests were single travelers. It’s now building a platform to help guests work together and organize events.

Selina updated its app last month too with a new “guest connection” feature. After confirmation of booking, guests can opt in to find out who else is staying at the Selina property during their trip. Those who participate can see the first name, photo, and nationality of fellow guests before arrival, which it said makes a helpful ice breaker.

“Our entire platform is designed to inspire meaningful connections, and by adding the capability for ou