Remember the days back when mobile phones were nothing more than keypads for calling? These days, even the most basic mobile devices come with WiFi, and 44% of Facebook’s most active users only use their phones to check on their feeds.
What does this mean for your hotel? At every stage in the traveller’s journey, your potential guests are on mobile, and if you know what they’re using their devices for, you have the opportunity to connect with them. That’s why we’ve put together our latest ebook — The hotelier’s complete guide to today’s mobile traveller.
To give you just a taste of why mobile is so important, we thought we'd give you a list of stats from the ebook to show when and how your potential guests are using their mobile devices, and help you to interact with them anywhere in the world.
Ideas and Inspiration
The phrase, “what a small world!” has never been more true. With pictures of strange and wonderful destinations filling newsfeeds, and flight specials changing daily, it’s become a lot easier for people to make spontaneous travel plans to visit parts of the world that they may never have considered before. As these stats show, mobile devices play a big part in inspiring travel and helping many to plan for their trips across the world.
- 70% of travellers who own smartphones use them to research travel
- 78% of business travellers use their smartphones to help them plan travel
- 69% of leisure travellers who use smartphones use their phones to search for travel ideas in spare moments like while they are on the subway, or in a shopping queue
- 60% of searches for information about a particular destination come from mobile devices
- 54% of leisure travellers consider images to be important when deciding where to visit
- 83% of travellers find social media a top source of inspiration when browsing online
- 52% of Facebook users said their friends’ photos inspired travel plans
- 15% of millennials are highly influenced by Facebook posts, and 13% by Instagram posts when it comes to making vacation related decisions
- 59% of British holidaymakers say that their booking decisions are strongly influenced by review sites
From Browsing to Booking
Your potential guests have decided where they want to go, and now you want to hook them on your hotel. One of the first chances that you’ll have to draw them in will be your website, and you need to make sure that it’s ready for mobile, from start to finish. Keeping your guests on your website will see them shifting seamlessly from browsing to booking, without giving them a chance to change their mind while they switch devices. Don’t believe us? The stats speak for themselves!
- Between 2011 and 2015, mobile bookings in travel have grown by 1700%, moving from 1% to 18% of online revenues
- 42% of people globally (and 53% of people under 30) have completed a booking for a hotel on mobile
- 43.8% of all online bookings in 2015 were done on mobile devices
- 53% of business travellers, and 31% of leisure travellers, booked travel on a smartphone in 2015
- 45% of travellers search online to compare deals
- 42% of people search to book a hotel on their mobile
- 42% of people have made a same day hotel booking thanks to mobile, with 14% even booking their hotel in the airport departure lounge
- 94% of leisure travellers switch between mobile and desktop devices as they plan and book their holidays
- 77% of leisure travellers were unconvinced that they could find the same hotel and flight pricing and information on their phones and their desktops
- Over 50% of leisure travellers switch to desktop to make sure that they’re finding the best hotel price
- 54% of leisure travellers and 69% of business travellers said that usability issues and limited functionality on mobile are the main reasons for switching to book on another device
- 53% of mobile users will abandon a website if it doesn’t load in only three seconds – and remember that mobile connections are usually slower than desktops
- 45% of mobile users will leave a website if it takes them too many steps to do what they wanted to do, like book a room
- 54% of mobile users say that payment method is an important consideration when booking a hotel on mobile
- 48% of mobile users take genuine guest reviews into serious consideration when making a hotel booking on mobile
During the Stay
They were inspired to travel, they booked your hotel, and now they are there, standing in your lobby, checking in both at reception and on Facebook. You may think that the chance to connect with your guests on mobile is over, but you would be wrong if you did. Whether they’re fawning over their Facebook feeds, marking out must-sees on Google Maps or simply snapping selfies, your guests are using their mobiles throughout their stays with you. Now is your chance to help them stay connected – both with you and to the internet in general.
- 60% of travellers say they never truly ''unplug'' on leisure trips
- 35% of people use their phones more when they travel than they do at home
- 60% of travellers won’t go on holiday without their smartphones
- 76% of travellers say their mobile devices are their number one travel accessories
- 14% of travellers carry a rechargeable pack or spare battery with them on their trips
- 63% of vacationers sleep with their mobile device next to their beds
- 65% of guests are online within 7 minutes of checking into a hotel
- 75% of Americans say that a week without Wi-Fi would leave them grumpier than a week without coffee
- 38% of travellers will book elsewhere if a hotel doesn’t provide Wi-Fi
- 84% of travellers want to be able to access information from anywhere in the world while they travel
- 50% of people say their smartphone makes them more spontaneous when travelling
- 47% of people use their mobile devices first for finding interesting spots, events and restaurants when away from home
- 46% of travellers search out how to get from A to B by using online maps on thier mobiles
- 85% of international travellers have some kind of mobile device with them while exploring the world
- 60% of holidaymakers who use apps while away say social media is the type they use most
Coming Full Circle
The holiday might be over for your guests, but their memories remain, and those memories are often shared. Whether it’s by word of mouth, in online reviews, or by posting photographs from their trip on social media, your guests tell their friends, family and social circles about their wonderful trip. This will not only keep your hotel at the front of that guest’s mind, but will inspire others to include you in their travel plans, which, as we mentioned right at the start, is likely to include their mobiles, making it that much more important to keep yourself mobile-friendly.
- 76% of social media users post their vacation photos to social networks
- 52% of survey respondents said their friends' photos inspired travel plans.
- 31% of British travellers have posted a travel-related review on a review site
- And, to bring things full circle, remember that 59% of British holidaymakers say that their booking decisions are strongly influenced by review sites
At every stage of the journey, from planning, to staying, to sharing, your guests are using their mobile devices. Understanding how and when they are being used can help you to connect with guests from the start, and delight them throughout. Succeed in that, and you’ll not only see your guests returning often, but their friends and family will soon follow.