Mobile – the ultimate travel companion

With 1 billion smartphones being sold in the last twelve months alone, combined with an on-demand economy that has changed the rules of engagement – mobile is set to become the ultimate travel companion. A game-changing addition to the global travel ecosystem, this offers industry players the opportunity to capitalize on travelers’ demands in a personalized way – and at the same time – grow brand loyalty.

Deutsche Bahn’s Head of Online & Mobile Sales – Matthias Haesal and I discussed this together during our panel at EyeforTravel’s recent event ‘The Connected Traveller 2015’ in London. In a world where travelers are becoming increasingly demanding, coupled with rapid mobile adoption rates, this presents travel players willing to adopt a consumer-centric mobile strategy a significant opportunity. We are focusing a lot of our efforts on providing end-to-end solutions for travelers during their journey.

To summarize a few that we are working on:

1. Manage disruptions – By offering travelers this type of service they can easily manage any disruptions that may occur, from notifications of flight delays and gate changes, to cancellation and rebooking services
2. In-policy booking – When corporate booking is concerned, being sensitive to corporate policies is a must, building an app that supports this functionality but at the same time caters to on-demand apps like Uber, Airbnb, Cabforce, which travellers are gravitating towards is a challenge we are working on
3. Make purchase simple – Simplify the purchasing process and make sure it is optimized on mobile. Doing so will ensure you are set-up for the shift to mobile e-commerce

Gone are the days where travel agents responsibilities end once an itinerary has been purchased. Thanks to the rise of the mobile-app empowered traveler, we now have the ability to support them door-to-door and those that put mobile first will reap the rewards.