As advances in technology become more and more ingrained in our lives, many industries are looking to embrace digital marketing.
The travel industry is one that has gone all in on digital marketing…and seeing great results.
Why?
Well, one of the biggest reasons is because the travel industry, especially hotels and airlines rely heavily on consumer engagement. With more and more of their consumers ditching the desktop and operating on their phones and mobile devices, the travel industry has followed, setting the trends for digital marketing.
Here’s were’ going to cover a few of these trends, and see how digital marketing is pushing the travel industry forward.
Ready to take a look?
Going Mobile
Mobile has been huge in the travel industry, and not in the way you think. Yes, more and more travel sites are embracing the importance of being where their customers want and need them to be.
This means going all in on mobile.
Apps
The travel industry is not only making websites that are responsive, easily viewed on both desktop and mobile, but they are also really focusing in on apps.
Consumers today are using their phones more often for booking.
In fact, according to e3’s whitepaper on Digital Trends for the Travel Industry in 2015 and Beyond, they found that 65% of same day hotel reservations were made on smart phones. Plus, 35% of millennials have used their mobile phone to book travel.
Apps have helped travel brands present a unified front across all of their platforms, which helps to enhance the consumer experience and make their searching and purchases easier.
Email Marketing
The travel industry is also realizing how important mobile is when it comes to email marketing. On average, over 53% of emails are opened today on mobile devices and the travel industry is not that far behind.
A study by Experian found that in the airline industry, 48% of emails were first opened on mobile devices and provided 32% of clicks within emails.
Many of the brands in the industry are also using their email marketing to feature their apps, including offering special deals or promotions for consumers who book using their apps.
Special Features
Understanding that consumers of all stripes are ultimately looking to have the travel process become easier and less time consuming, many brands are partnering up to provide their customers with special tie ins that can enhance their travel experience and be easily accessed through their mobile devices.
This helps to provide consumers a customized experience that fits their needs. For example, Hyatt Hotels started offering their guests to easily access the ride share app Uber directly from the “reservations” section of the Hyatt app.
DIY Travelers
Another trend that is taking the travel industry by storm are the rise of DIY (do it yourself) travelers. These are the people who want to have full control of their travels, from check-in to check-out and everything in between.
In response to that, a number of brands like Starwood Hotels and Resorts are catering to these DIY travelers, introducing programs such as self check-in and out, and a key-less entry system that all are utilized through the consumers mobile device.
Travel brands are typically very tuned into their consumers, and have realized that some consumers simply want as little interaction as possible. Allowing for a system that can replace personal interaction with mobile can be a huge bonus for those consumers who are interested in the program.
Each of these trends are driving the travel industry more and more towards mobile, where they will continue to see increased customer interaction, engagement and revenue as they meet their consumers needs.
