HSBC elevates customer travel experiences through data analytics solutions

Jiahao Teo of HSBC highlights the impact of Travel Guru in leveraging data to craft personalised travel solutions.

HSBC has long positioned itself as a leader in customer-centric banking, prioritising the utilisation of data to gain deep insights into customer behaviour and preferences. This commitment to understanding clients has inspired the development of the Travel Guru Membership Programme on the HSBC HK Reward+ app.

Tailored travel recommendations through data

Launched in September 2023, Travel Guru is designed to enhance the travel experiences of its members. With over 260,000 members, the first-in-market bank-led loyalty programme exemplifies HSBC's dedication to integrating analytics into financial services and fostering a vibrant community of travel enthusiasts.

In a recent interview with Hong Kong Business Magazine, Jiahao Teo, Managing Director, Global Head of Data, Analytics and CRM, Global Private Banking & Wealth and Wealth and Personal Banking, Hong Kong, highlights the strategic importance of data analytics in the creation of Travel Guru.

“By using the power of predictive analytics, we do keep an active scan of changing behavioural patterns, increasing demand in our customer market and segment," Teo said.

This proactive approach allowed HSBC to anticipate the emerging travel demand of the market, inspiring the team to develop a solution that not only meets customer expectations but also exceeds them.

Travel Guru offers a tiered membership programme that provides up to 6% RewardCash rebates on foreign currency spending. The tiers include GO Traveller, GING Traveller, and GURU Traveller. With this, the more you spend, the higher your membership level, and the greater your rewards.  Moreover, the integration of advanced data visualisation techniques allows members to track their progress within the programme. The real-time updates on tier status offer members a hyper-transparent view of their HSBC credit card usage.

By capturing and timestamping customer behaviours—such as credit card spending, airline ticket purchases, and hotel bookings—HSBC maps out travel stages: pre-trip, during travel, and post-trip.

Engaging travellers with rewards and personalisation

Travel Guru features three main components designed to enhance customer engagement. First, it offers a market-first, gamified travel experience that allows customers to interact with the platform, upgrade their tiers, and involve family and friends, increasing interest and participation.

Furthermore, Teo highlighted the importance of communication and guiding customers through their entire travel lifecycle with hyper-personalisation. By employing predictive analytics, the programme offers timely reminders and suggestions via the mobile app's push notification Alert Services, ensuring that customers are well-prepared for their trips.  

“Even within the trip, that’s probably the best part. We give them pre-planned surprises as well,” he added, noting that HSBC provides reward vouchers and coupons tailored to customers' specific travel destinations.

Customers can also enjoy exclusive year-round discounts and offers for travel-related merchants and products. They can also join the "Red Hot Rewards of Your Choice" programme for five times extra RewardCash on Overseas & Mainland China Spending, earning up to 8.4% on foreign currency purchases. The HSBC EveryMile credit card offers up to 8.5% RewardCash rebate, whilst the HSBC Red credit card provides up to 7%.

Furthermore, HSBC has established a partnership ecosystem that presents customers with a diverse range of experiences and rewards across different locations, making their trips more enjoyable.

The Travel Guru programme has not only driven increased HSBC credit card spending but has also solidified the bank’s position in the market.

HSBC was recently honoured with the Analytics - Financial Services accolade at the Hong Kong Business Technology Excellence Awards 2024, reinforcing the success of its data-driven initiatives.

"This is a real recognition of this strategic intent that we have taken to maximise the power of data to transform and elevate our customers' experience of banking and the retail experiences that we can bring to bear with a combination of powerful predictive models, AI, and machine learning, along with a vast suite of customer offers and rewards that the team has painstakingly worked hard to bring together for our customers to benefit," said Teo.

HSBC's Travel Guru programme is a prime example of how data analytics can reshape customer engagement within the financial services industry. With an eye towards the future, HSBC continues to explore new ways to enhance the banking experience for its customers in Hong Kong.

The Hong Kong Business Technology Excellence Awards is presented by Hong Kong Business Magazine. To view the full list of winners, click here. If you want to join the 2025 awards programme and be acclaimed for your company's outstanding contributions in pursuit of technological innovation, please contact Julie Anne Nuñez at [email protected]