Hotel apps crucial to business travellers

1Business travelers commonly use hotel apps according to a new study released today by the GBTA Foundation, the education and research arm of the Global Business Travel Association.

Three of five (61 percent) business travellers have downloaded at least one of the seven major hotel chains’ apps on their smartphone in the past year, with more than half of those travellers (54 percent) having at least two and one-quarter (25 percent) downloading at least three.

Business travellers most often use hotel apps to check the status of a reservation (43 percent), manage their rewards points or account (43 percent) and book a hotel stay (39 percent).

When breaking it down by age group, Baby Boomers (55+) are most likely to check the status of a reservation ,while Millennials (18-34) are most likely to use apps to find more info about available amenities, order room service and contact hotel employees, even though not all hotel apps offer these features.

In general, business travellers routinely use hotel apps and are largely satisfied with their use of hotel apps for various purposes in the past year.

One-quarter of business travellers indicate using mobile-check-in on their last business stay at a hotel with Millennials and Gen X-ers (35-54) doing so at a much higher rate than Baby Boomers. If keyless entry expands, travellers will likely use mobile check-in more frequently.

“Hotels have room to expand the capabilities of their mobile app as well as promote increased awareness of those capabilities as the interest is there,” said Monica Sanchez, GBTA Foundation director of research. “In the future, hotels could invest in innovative new technologies, but should also continue to focus on improving existing amenities, especially Wi-Fi as that remains most important for business travelers.”