Cellphones and review sites are changing the face of travel

Image: www.freedigitalphotos.net

This is according to Rian Bornman, founding Director of FlightSite.co.za and FlightSiteAgent.co.za.

"Travel has changed dramatically. First it was the migration from bricks and mortar to online. Then it was the shift from online to peer-to-peer reviews. Now it's from desktop to mobile," he said.

Driven by smart tech and an increased appetite for DIY, travellers are taking things into their own hands, quite literally, using their cellphones. In fact, so significant is this shift that a recent report released by World Travel Market and Euromonitor International said that 35% of all online travel will, by 2018, be booked via mobile.

"This is true for South Africans too," said Bornman. In 2014, travel booked through FlightSite.co.za using a tablet decreased by 40.5% yet increased by a whopping 169% via mobiles. "Given this, it's more critical than ever to have a fully responsive user experience that caters for the bigger smartphone screens gaining popularity."

Adobe's recent Mobile Benchmark Report concurs. It says that larger screens drive more web traffic than ever before. For instance, browsing on a four-inch screen increased traffic by 132% year on year, while smaller screens saw a decrease of 11%.

6000 unique users a second

But it's not just mobile that is changing the travel game said Bornman. Review sites like TripAdvisor have too. So large is TripAdvisor's influence that it helps 260 million users plan their trips every month. That's 6000 unique users a second.

"Review sites are here to stay. Users trust their peers and want to know what other travellers think before paying for a hotel, trip or adventure," he said. So influential is it that 53% of travellers will not book a hotel that doesn't have a review on it and a whopping 87% said that it made them feel more confident in doing so (PhoCusWright report).

So what does this spell for travel providers like FlightSite? It creates opportunity, said Bornman. "There is still a huge market for "traditional" and experienced operators who compile package itineraries, or negotiate with the airlines or hotels to get best prices. 80% of the R37 billion South African travel market is booked through an agent, so they are definitely here to stay. However, as an industry we've had to rethink our proposition and add more value to the selling process than what an algorithm alone can offer."