For years now, marketers have been touting the benefits and importance of being mobile to attract guests who increasingly rely on their mobile devices.
Therefore, it is not a surprise that mobile searches have now overtaken desktop and that, according to a report from comScore, all digital growth is being driven by mobile. comScore’s research shows that time spent on desktops has decreased from 47% in December of 2013 to 35% in December 2015. Conversely, time spent on mobile has increased from 53% to 65% in the same time period.
Since mobile marketing is obviously an incredibly important part of hotels’ digital marketing strategies, it is concerning that OTAs’ mobile technology is performing much higher than hotels’ mobile technology. While many hotels offer mobile apps to ease the booking process and enhance guests’ stays, Phocuswright has determined that some apps are still difficult to use and “many chains cite insignificant transactions coming from smartphones and tablets.”
However, OTAs have been more successful in creating easy-to-use mobile apps. Phocuswright expects this to have a large effect on the hospitality industry. They predict that in 2017, OTAs will account for 51% of online hotel bookings in the U.S.
As all hoteliers know, direct bookings are more profitable for the hotel and often the user experience more satisfactory for the guest, so an even larger percentage of bookings being made via OTAs threatens hotels.
Luckily, hoteliers have the ability to increase the performance of their apps, combating the negative effects from OTA apps. Hoteliers can create customized, specific and easy-to-use apps for one or multiple properties that allow guests to easily book rooms, check-in remotely, or make requests. Creating an app and encouraging adoption will allow hoteliers to compete more effectively with their advanced OTA rivals.
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