Over the past few years, technology has been the main catalyst driving transformative change across multiple industries globally. For the tourism and travel industry, adoption of modern technology has meant a complete overhaul B2B and B2C relationships – if the success of Airbnb is anything to go by.
Mobile applications have played a key role in ushering in this tech-driven era of prosperity for the travel industry. With smartphones, tablets, and other mobile devices becoming ever so popular, mobile apps have largely replaced printed maps and guidebooks for tech-savvy travelers. In fact, over 51% of all traffic to travel sites comes from either a tablet or a mobile phone, making mobile a significant platform for customers in this industry.
Still, the industry has a long way to go when it comes to creating customer-centric mobile apps. One mobile app study found that only about 66% of consumers are satisfied with mobile travel apps. This is one of the many statistics that highlight the amount of work cut out for developers and businesses in this industry.
Before any improvements can be made, businesses need to understand how such apps can benefit the customer. This will help businesses design customer-centric apps and provide a guide for customers when navigating through the crowded app stores.
Check out some of the ways customers can benefit from well-crafted mobile travel apps.
1. Personalization
One of the most significant by-products of the tech boom has been data. Everyday processes such as online payment transactions and subscriptions often end up collecting tons of user data. With the right data analytics tools, such massive amounts of data can be used to track consumer habits and create personalized experiences for customers.
Many mobile travel apps use one or more aspects of big data to personalize the customer’s experience. For instance, a typical travel app may customize a traveler’s itinerary, time and day of a flight, hotel bookings and dining options based solely on the user’s past habits. Such personalized experiences can help the customer save time and money and is an excellent way for travel companies to boost customer relations.
2. Automation
Customers can also benefit immensely from the wealth of data and information that is readily available to them when making their travel arrangements. Mobile travel apps make it easy to find the best destinations, make bookings, and obtain information about invoicing, billing and other information without having to call an executive or visit a travel agency.
Many service providers in the travel and tours industry now have proprietary apps to help customers navigate through their services. Many hotels, including big-name brands such as the Hilton and the InterContinental, have their own brand-dedicated mobile apps to help customers search and book from thousands of hotels worldwide. Many of these apps often include an automated process for every facet of the customers stay, including invoicing, check-ins, check-outs, room services, and even helping customers manage their customer accounts. Plus, if there are any shopping coupons, savings and discounts available around the world, these apps will let you find them.
3. One-Stop Shop
A typical vacation itinerary for most travelers often includes more than one stop, multiple flights and hotel rooms, and a learning process for each travel destination on the itinerary. What this means is that the traveler has to make travel arrangements for each destination, including where to rent a car, the nearest airports, good hotels and eateries, safety considerations, and a ton of other things. This can be quite tasking, especially if the only thing you want to do is relax.
With the right tool, travelers and holiday goers can do everything from booking their flights and cabs in advance to creating an itinerary for their travels. This is largely why apps like Triphobo and Skyscanner have become extremely popular with travelers. These apps enable travelers to find cheapest dates to fly, buy tickets, get travel insurance, book rental cars, hotels, and some even have a price forecast feature that lets you find the cheapest dates of the year to book specific hotels – all on one app.
4. Better Communication and Organization
For consumers who are always are always going on business trips or seeking outdoor adventures, a mobile travel app can be a very effective platform for organizing trips, linking up with service providers and fellow travelers, and managing your referrals and rewards. Social mobile apps such as Backpackr and Tripr enable travelers to meet and interact on a global scale while doing what they love most.
The benefits that come with mobile travel apps are virtually limitless. From a simple weather forecast app to a detailed hotel booking system – there’s almost nothing you can’t do with a good mobile travel app on the road.
In many ways, these apps work as your personal assistant, helping you to plan around your trip schedules and become a more efficient traveler. If your service provider runs a rewards system, you can use their app to manage your loyalty reward points and help you make big savings in future.
