22 New Age Terms for 21st Century

How to outsmart others by knowing 22 NEW AGE TERMS

Although the Hospitality, Tourism, Airline & Event Industry is reeling under the pressure and aftermath of Covid 19. Digital Technologies came with a hope of revival and are now a part of mainstream glossary.

Here’s A-Z look 22 New Age terms for 21^st Century that will be a part of global Tourism & Hospitality businesses & of course our daily lives too. 

AEROSOLS
Minute particles or droplets potentially carrying a pathogen or its traces that stay suspended in air or on surfaces for longtime. To prevent yourself from Aerosol Assault when on tour it is advisable to;

• Stay Masked
• Spray surface disinfectants / sanitizer sprays
• Maintain Social Distancing protocols
• Use sanitization wipes
• Wash your Hands frequently

If you are a Tour Leader ensure to stock all of these in huge quantities.

AIR BUBBLE
When pandemic halted global air traffic, many countries undertook bilateral temporary arrangements and agreements involving reciprocal benefits with an aim of partially restoring commercial passenger air services. Under these agreements minimum restrictions apply for the resident fliers of both the countries.

BAILOUT
Refers to the time when government infuses funds in a specific sector with an aim of empowering it thus, enabling it to survive in the face of uncertainty. This is done to safeguard sector and its allied sectors that face a threat of bankruptcy and economic uncertainty. The funds pumped in as a part of bailout package does not require any form of reimbursement but sees greater government control and regulations. 

CONTAINMENT ZONE
Temporary earmarking of any specific area as a “No-go Zone” due to detection of Covid19 cases in that area. Residents of that area see maximum restrictions imposed on them in terms of movements. And, these areas are then Geo-tagged & color coded when under threat and released when safe with easing of curbs.
When on a Holiday Tour Operator or Tourists them-selves have to be alert about possible containment zones at destination as released by authorities and see over it that they do not step into those areas.

COVIDIOT
An affront term to malign a person who ignores health advice and frequently indulges in Covid inappropriate behavior compromising on Public Health and safety. If you are a tourist / tourist service provider at the destination just ensure that you follow Covid appropriate behavior wherever you visit and ensure safety of not only yourself but also of locals at destination.

COVIDEO PARTY
Virtual Party at a specific time over a Virtual Platform like Zoom where participants celebrate Online by;

• Donning up a party attire
• Cooking a pre-decided dish and then consume it together on camera virtually with other participants
• Stream a pre-decided movie, short-listed after a poll. Covideo parties caught a lot of attention of corporates and families coerced to stay at home. 

DIGITAL MENU CARDS
It is restaurant menu in Digital Format that can be accessed by customers by scanning a QR Code displayed at the reception and on respective tables.
They offer many cost advantages for the restaurant owners like;

• Menus can be changed multiple times without any cost of re-printing.
• Digital Menus can be infused with images and videos increasing the tangibility factor and easing the selection procedure.
• Human intervention is reduced when it comes to menu interpretation enabling the service staff to focus more on personalized customer service.

DINING TENTS
New trend in eating out. “Dining tents are temporary make shift structures in the form of an overhead canopies with crevices for facilitating natural light to fall in and ventilation. These structures can accommodate 3 to 4 diners and are usually erected outside main restaurant by giving due consideration to the social distancing” Also known as bubble dining tents. After every use they are thoroughly cleaned and sanitized by spraying sanitization fog.

E-BOARDING GATES
Also known as contactless boarding gates that come embedded with technologies like code scanners. These gates auto capture the passenger particulars allowing them to proceed ahead with no need for physical inspection at all. Passengers just have to flash their phones with e-boarding pass to proceed ahead.

HYBRID EVENTS
Meeting, symposium, convention, and exposition organized in a way that is a mix of live and virtual events. Organizer creates an infrastructure for Live as well as virtual audience so that even the Virtual audience can participate and engage. In this new normal MICE sector & event management companies are on the verge of creating Digital Infrastructure for ensuring increased levels of audience engagement which is a key ingredient to overcome digital distraction.

METAVERSE
Till now Internet facilitated viewing and buying, however here comes Metaverse that will facilitate in-person interactions and will fundamentally transform the way in which this world interacts. Metaverse is a platform that effectively combines social media, augmented reality, virtual reality, 3D-Gaming leading to unique amalgamation of Virtual – Actual.

Just imagine taking a Digital Walk in your Hotel Room at Hawaii / attending a live concert in Paris by being there virtually when actually you are here in Mumbai… Possibility COMING SOON!

RAT
Stands for Rapid Antigen Test which is a test that is conducted by nasal swab samples collected by insertion of a tube to detect the absence or presence of any foreign substances.

RT-PCR
Stands for Reverse Transcription–Polymerase Chain Reaction is a test conducted with the help of a nose swab to detect pathogens and measure viral load. Many countries insist on this test 24 or 48 Hours prior to arrival.

SANITIZATION TUNNEL
They are tunnel like Walkways having protruding nozzles installed with motion sensors. These nozzles spray disinfectants and sanitizers in the form of mist on the person walking thus destroying pathogens or other harmful microbes.
(Sanitization Tunnels have been rejected by Ministry of Health & Family Welfare in India as they can potentially harm the sensory organs in humans) 

SCAN & PAY
With Contactless becoming a new age mantra QR Codes have become ubiquitous. And, all the business and vending places are filled with stickers displaying QR codes encouraging buyers to use their Payment Apps to SCAN & PAY

TEMPERATURE CHECK
Handheld screening tool to check the temperature by flashing the device on person’s forehead / fist to permit / reject any person in a public space based on the temperature cut-off.

VACCINATION CERTIFICATES
Physical / digital documentation provided to the vaccinated person by the Government as a formal acknowledgement. It is a validation that comes with QR Code enabling person to avail several public services.  Vaccination Certificates will be a mandatory Travel Document from now onward.
 

VIRTUAL WALKING TOURS
Not to be confused with VR based walking tours. Virtual Walking tours are simple guided or hosted tours in which the Tour conductor armed with a HD Camera walks along the prominent destination based attractions while speaking and interpreting information about the place. Here, the Video is not recorded and audience watches the tour live from their homes. These days many walking tours across the world even without commentary are bagging plenty of views on YouTube. 
 

WEBINARS
Couple of years back this word had few takers. Come 2020 and this word has suddenly become mainstream now. Webinar is seminar conducted over internet. The conductor of webinar makes the use of interface to disseminate information via audio, presentation or video. The interface platforms are designed in a manner to forge two way communication. High speed internet connection and increased web penetration has led to increase in popularity of webinars across the globe.

WFH
Stands for “Work from Home” this term became part of mainstream with synonyms like Telecommuting / Remote Work / Virtual Work and many more emerging rapidly. Here, employee works from the comfort of his /her own home using the company sponsored tools, fixed assets, rules and regulations and company policy.

WORKATION
It literally translates into Work on a Vacation. New Age term used to refer to those remote workers who do not physically report to work at office, neither work from home but travel to faraway places armed with laptop and other connectivity devices and work from exotic destinations. Majority of their vacation time is dedicated towards work. This work combines elements of work as well as leisure. People who undertake prolonged work vacations are also termed as Digital Nomads. Additionally…

Do you know?
Many Countries have now started issuing Workation Visas to eligible travelers.

ZOOMIQUETTE
Refers to the set of easy to follow etiquettes / protocols to be followed when attending the Zoom / Virtual meetings. They include simple stuff like;

• Staying Muted
• Logging in 10 minutes back considering the potential network based issues
• Finding a quiet place with possibly blank background
• Coming prepared
• Raising hand when wanting to express
• Turning On the video
• Polite Chats and not disturbing speaker with unnecessary chat box messages in between the conversation

CONGRATULATIONS! You’ve outsmarted others who haven’t read this Post!
;-) ;-)

All the terms above are dynamic realities that now exist and are in the process of upgrade and modification. However, to harness them to the fullest a collaborative effort is needed on the part of stakeholders involving tech companies, content creators, innovators, governments, industry and end users (clients)