Removing digital friction to help the business grow. The Travel and Utilities Case Study
Over the last fifteen years, the business world has experienced a paradigm shift. We no longer talk about technology as mere support, but as the central axis around which a brand’s profitability and authority revolve.
At Luce IT, we have been accompanying large organizations on this journey since 2008. We have learned that digitizing is not just “uploading things to the web,” but understanding the deep dynamics of each industry. Today we want to focus on two particularly complex and exciting sectors: Travel and Utilities.
Although they operate in different ways, both share a common challenge: eliminating digital friction so the business can grow sustainably.
The Travel Vertical: Where every millisecond counts
If you work in the tourism sector, you know that competition is fierce. You are not only competing on price, but for the user’s attention. Today, 80% of travelers expect to complete their entire purchasing cycle—from inspiration to payment—100% online.
The dictatorship of immediacy
In the Travel sector, technical performance is, literally, the product. Did you know that an improvement of just 0.1 seconds in load time can increase conversions by 10.1%? It is impressive, but true.
When a user searches for a flight or a hotel, their mind is processing a lot of information: prices, dates, photos, and reviews. If the website takes a long time to respond, it generates a frustration that experts call “attention residue.” The user gets tired, doubts, and finally goes to the competition.
The cost of slowness is massive. A website that loads in 5 seconds has a very low conversion rate (0.6%) compared to the 3.05% achieved by sites that load in one second. In a mobile world, where the average load time is 8.6 seconds, technical optimization is not an option, it is a necessity for survival.
Success stories: From the web to virtual reality
Leading companies like Logitravel or RIU Hotels & Resorts (with whom we have the pleasure of collaborating) have understood this perfectly.
- Logitravel: Has broken the barrier between digital and physical, using virtual reality headsets in their stores so the customer can “feel” the experience before booking.
- RIU Hotels: Has centralized its innovation with a very powerful internal team, improving demand prediction and securing payment data under strict regulations like PCI DSS.
The Utilities Vertical: Transforming service into savings
If the Travel sector lives on speed, Utilities (electricity, gas, water) live on operational efficiency. Here, the great challenge is to reduce “failure demand”: all those calls to the contact center that happen because something went wrong in the digital channel.
The value of efficient self-service
Have you wondered how much a customer service call costs? On average, between 6 and 15 euros. In contrast, a procedure resolved by the customer themselves on the web portal costs barely 0.24 cents.
If a customer’s portal is confusing, if the bill is not understood or the login fails, the customer will call. This not only angers the user but generates a direct financial loss for the company. That is why at Luce IT we help companies create transparent and intelligent portals that resolve doubts proactively.
The era of the Smart Grid and massive data
Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) technology today allows a bidirectional connection between the meter and the company. This allows:
- Remote connections and disconnections: Without sending technicians to the customer’s home.
- Predictive maintenance: Detecting an outage before the customer even notices it.
- Dynamic pricing: Incentivizing consumption during off-peak hours to avoid overloads.
This generates a mountain of data (a million meters can generate 400 TB a year). Managing this requires a solid and scalable Big Data architecture.
Authority and Strategy
The complexity of these sectors is not resolved with generic solutions. It requires the convergence of what we call IT (Information Technology) and OT (Operational Technology). While digital platforms change frequently, physical assets (like a power plant) last for decades.
At Luce IT, our methodology is based on technological assets and accelerators that have already been proven in the real world, ensuring a Real ROI. Every investment must have a measurable return, whether in cost savings (Utilities) or in an increased booking rate (Travel).
The future: Generative AI and Sustainability
Looking toward 2026, AI won’t just be for chatting. In Travel, we will have autonomous assistants capable of renegotiating a fare if your flight is canceled. In Utilities, digitalization will be the key to managing intermittent renewable energies and decarbonizing the planet.
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At the end of the day, well-executed digitalization is the kind the user doesn’t notice. It is that travel booking confirmed in seconds without errors, or that electricity bill you understand right away and can manage with a click.
Authority in these sectors is built with patience, investing in robust infrastructures, and above all, putting data at the service of the person. At Luce IT, we are ready for the next 15 years to be even more innovative.
Do you feel your users encounter frictions on your portal that you can’t identify? At Luce IT, we help you take the next step: we invite you to request a Session Analysis audit to discover exactly where your customers’ experience breaks and how to optimize your conversion today.
Frequently Asked Questions about digital friction.
How does load speed really influence sales on a travel website?
Speed is critical. It is estimated that an improvement of just 0.1 seconds in loading can increase conversion by up to 10.1%. If your website takes more than 3 seconds, the probability of the user abandoning it (bounce) increases by 32%.
What is “failure demand” in the Utilities sector and how is it reduced?
It is the volume of calls to the contact center caused by company errors (unclear bills, website glitches, etc.). It is reduced by optimizing the digital self-service portal, which lowers the cost per interaction from around €15 (human call) to just €0.24 (online management).
What advantages does the Smart Grid offer consumers?
It allows bidirectional energy management. Users can access dynamic pricing to save money by consuming during off-peak hours, and companies can detect breakdowns in real-time before the customer reports them.
Why is technological verticalization important in complex sectors?
Because generic solutions do not understand specific “pain points.” A verticalized solution in Travel prioritizes booking latency, while in Utilities it prioritizes the integrity of consumption data and transparency in billing.
What role does Artificial Intelligence play in the energy sector?
It enables predictive maintenance (detecting turbine failures before they occur) and automates customer service in the contact center, allowing AI to manage up to 44% of routine transactional queries.
