The Future of Mobile  & 

 the Hospitality Industry  

 By Leila Makki 

What is the impact of mobile on your business?

First, let's see how large mobile is globally: 

• Today 6 billion mobile devices  

• 2020 12 billion mobile devices 

• Today 9 billion connected devices (incl tablets, e-readers, etc)

 • 2020 24 billion connected devices  

  

*Stats from the GSMA, the global mobile industry trade group.

The Booming Mobile Market

Roughly 40% of mobile users in both North America & the UK plan on buying the newest iPhone when it launches*           Apple sold over FOUR MILLION of its new iPhone 4S in just three days after its launch on Friday *According to research firm InMobi.

Mobile MadnessRoughly 40 percent of Western Europe and the US mobile markets are dominated by smartphones* Google: 190 million Android devices have been activated around the world 72% of global users use mobile internet on a daily basis**  82% have used their mobile phone to research or purchase a digital or physical product** In the UK, mobile browsing will overtake desktop browsing by 2013

 *According to research conducted by Nielsen.    ** MEF's recent Global Consumer Survey.

 

Making Money from MobileAccording to research by Barclays Corporate, British consumers spent: • £1.3 billion on m-

commerce in 2011 • 52% of UK consumers

using mobile devices at one or more stages of the shopping process

 •  By 2021, total m-

commerce spend will be £19.3 billion

 

 

 

Good News!

According to a recent poll conducted by TravelClick, 50% of hotels plan to put more marketing dollars towards mobile websites and marketing

Hotel Mobile Apps 

What features do these apps include?

  

• Daily offers• Mobile check-in • Customer support• Loyalty programme • Hotel map & surrounding areas

Hotel Mobile Apps 

What features do these apps include?

  

• Make/change/cancel a reservation• Photos/videos of rooms & facilities • Real-time room rates & availability  • Geo-location services• Travel blogs

Mobile apps ain't cheap!

A custom mobile app can cost anywhere between £20,000 to £200,000

So why invest in a native

app?    

What Operating System to Choose?

Depends on how much money your business can afford and on

your clientele

 

    Android is the most popular smartphone operating system in the world but the iPhone is the most popular smartphone in the world.  If you have the money, I'd recommend investing in both. If money was an issue, Apple is the safer bet.

What about Blackberry & Microsoft? 

It seems only business people and young teenagers use a Blackberry nowadays. According to recent figures, their sales have taken a nose dive

 

Also with Microsoft - there are not that many handsets out there to warrant a dedicated app just yet

 Premier Inn generates £1m from mobile 

Launched mobile app in January 2011  App was downloaded 250,000 times in 3 months Over 5% of hotel bookings in the UK made on mobile  £1 million in additional revenue from mobile bookings

 Source: Bighospitality.co.uk 

Hilton Worldwide Mobile AppsHilton’s Senior VP of Corporate Strategy Kevin Jacobs said: “Since over 80 per cent of Hilton’s guests travel with a mobile device and 40 per cent use it to search travel, mobile apps make sense." 

   

   

 

 - Hilton’s mobile apps have seen more than 340,000 downloads - Guests used them to book over 100,000 room-nights in 2010 - Revenue up 200 per cent

Source: Bighospitality.co.uk   

Choice Hotels iPhone Apps

1 million downloads from users in over 80 different countries  App generates thousands of same-day and next-day reservations every month  Used by more than 1,500 consumers on a daily basis Recently launched Android app and redesigned mobile website

A Cheaper Alternative?

Get a white-label app and brand it with your company's logo

Benefits: Cost-efficient  Cross-platform integration (iOS, Android, Blackberry, etc) Fully-branded app with the hotel's look and feel

 

But there are flaws with a native app

 Discoverability   

With 500,000 apps in the App Store, you may have a hard time getting noticed

Does your business really need an app?

Sometimes all you need is a....

Mobile optimised website (a site that works on any internet-enabled device) 

 

 Why?  

Mobile users access their phone's browser to search for restaurants, pubs and hotels  If your site isn't optimised for a 3.5 inch screen then you're missing out on potential revenue.

Three fundamental featuresof a mobile optimised website

Contact Information/Customer Care Secure online reservation  Map to the hotel

Explore new ways to interact with mobile technology

Have iPod docking stations in hotel rooms (also doubles as a charger) Have a mobile charging station or provide chargers to the most popular mobile phones Finnish company, PowerKiss has wireless chargers built into the furniture in hotels, airport lobbies and cafes

Mobile perks & location-based apps 

How to incentivise mobile users and get to them to keep coming back? 

Foursquare and other location-based social networking apps attract, reward and engage mobile users They offer 'Mayor' or nearby specials ie. a cup of joe, 10 per cent off the menu, or a free night stay when users check in to the venue

Final ThoughtsThe WiFi should be FREE!!! Add the cost of WiFi to the room bill just don’t charge guests separately If you do charge for WiFi - please please don't make guests pay per device (tablets, laptops, mobiles = ££££) 

Thank You 

 Any questions, thoughts, comments....  

leila@leilamakki.com                                                                                         @leilamakki