15/12/11
By Karen Moss
British online consumers are turning to mobile devices as part of the holiday booking process, according to research by Tealeaf. Almost a fifth of e-bookers with a mobile device (17 per cent) have researched a holiday on a mobile app or website in the last 12 months.
While only three per cent have used a mobile device to complete a travel purchase, mobile is now a key component of a multi-device approach. Sixty-three per cent of e-bookers who researched a holiday on a mobile device in the past 12 months then booked online using a desktop or laptop computer.
The Tealeaf report found that the internet continues to play a fundamental role in booking travel, with 38 per cent of ebookers still conducting their holiday research wholly online and almost a third (29 per cent) only using the internet to book a holiday.
A positive customer experience is still a priority for 42 per cent of e-bookers when booking a holiday, second only to price (66 per cent).
However, 40 per cent of British adults stated they expect their experience booking or researching a holiday on a mobile device to be the same or better than on a desktop computer in the next 12 months. In addition, 46 per cent of adults who own a mobile device state that a bad mobile experience would negatively impact their feelings towards the travel brand. And 38 per cent agreed they would be likely to book their next holiday with a different provider following a poor mobile experience.
“There is clear appetite amongst ebookers to use mobile devices as part of the holiday booking process,” says Geoff Galat, CMO, Tealeaf. “This presents a massive opportunity for travel companies, but ensuring ebookers receive the best possible customer experience, regardless of the channel they use, is a challenge many still need to overcome. Full visibility into the online customer journey, across every device used, can help deliver a flawless online customer experience that will drive loyalty, improve conversion rates and ultimately increase revenues.”
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