Indian OTA Cleartrip is adding a "Local" tab to its redesigned app, creating a clear distinction between local activities and its core travel products.
Local, with the emphasis on experiential, is then split into four categories - activities, eating out, events and fitness.
Cleartrip says that Local is "a bold re-imagining" of its Activities channel which it launched last October. It has found that most users of the activities product were locals trying something in their own city.
The inventory, which currently runs to more than 15,000 activities in 50 cities, is sourced in two ways. Cleartrip contracts directly, but it also has a content management system which suppliers can access and upload their inventory onto the app.
This also means that all payments are taken through the Cleartrip app, which opens up online distribution capabilities to businesses which might not be online themselves.
The tab will default to the user's location automatically if the user has given permission for Cleartrip to access GPS data. Otherwise there is a dropdown menu to bring up the cities.
Subramanya Sharma, chief marketing officer for Cleartrip, told the Indian business press about explained the cross-sell and customer acquisition thinking behind the move. Since activities was launched it has attracted 300,000 customers, of which 75% were new to the business. One in five of these new customers went on to buy a travel product.
Related reading from Tnooz:
Out of the way tourists, Indians are exploring their own cities (May 2016)
Airbnb continues to build presence in India (April 2016)
Ctrip invests $180 million in MakeMyTrip (Jan 2016)