As suppliers increasingly offer the ability to book
flights and purchase ancillary services via mobile applications, it's clear
that the smartphone is growing in stature as a sales engine. Yet, a gap remains between the functionality tech-savvy
frequent flyers want most from mobile apps and those that airlines deliver, according
to a recent FlightView survey of more
than 900 business travelers who fly at least once a month.
The travel data firm and
mobile app provider in March pushed the survey to users of its Android and
iPhone flight-tracking application. Respondents did not indicate if their
employers tightly or loosely managed their travel buying.
The respondent base was
highly engaged with airlines on mobile phones, as 94 percent indicated they had
used their mobile devices to search for flights, and nearly 53 percent said
they have used them to book a flight. Addressing that look-to-book gap, nearly
55 percent of those who had not used smartphones to book indicated it's
"too hard to enter all of the required information on a smaller
device." Others expressed concerns regarding security and transaction
dependability.
Speaking to the desire among
some to use a larger screen for transactions, the number of respondents who
have booked a flight on a tablet was nearly 10 percentage points higher than
those who have used a smartphone. Furthermore, more than half of respondents
indicated they'd "rather use a laptop or desktop" computer than a
mobile device for purchasing airfares.
Meanwhile, FlightView
suggested that "airlines are missing a major opportunity to drive more
ancillary revenue from business travelers."
Nearly 46 percent of
respondents reported using an airline's native app or mobile website in the
past 12 months to buy such ancillary services as inflight Wi-Fi or a seat
upgrade. Yet, 65 percent of respondents indicated they'd consider buying Wi-Fi
if airlines pushed offers to their device prior to boarding, with 55 percent
indicating the same for extra-legroom seat offers and 50 percent claiming
they'd consider a business-seat upgrade. Early boarding was slightly less
popular, with only 43 percent agreeing they'd consider such an offer if pushed
to their mobile device prior to boarding.
Airlines appear aware of the mobile
opportunity, according to a June study of IT
investments among about 80 airlines conducted
by SITA and Airline Business.
"Airlines are starting to ramp up their mobile
capabilities" when it comes to ancillary sales, according to the study.
"For example, only 12 percent of airlines today can collect baggage fees
through this channel, but by 2016 this will have increased to 84 percent, while
90 percent of airlines will be able to offer priority boarding, lounge access
and seat booking."
Still, SITA predicts "mobile
apps for ancillary sales to become mainstream," with airline respondents
expecting mobile sales "to contribute 9.9 percent of ancillary revenue by
2016, more than seven times the figure of today."
"The ability of airlines to boost
non-ticketing revenues through mobile apps depends on multiple developments in
many airlines," according to SITA. "Today, 58 percent of airlines can
sell tickets through a mobile app, but only 30 percent of airlines can
currently sell any kind of ancillary service via this channel."
SITA noted that investment in mobile services
remains "one of the main IT priorities" for carriers, with "nine
out of 10 airlines planning to sell tickets via mobile phones by 2016,"
according to the SITA report. "Airlines expect to be rewarded with a leap
in mobile sales, estimated to reach over $70 billion by 2016, or 10.3 percent
of total sales, up from just below 3 percent today."
Among FlightView respondents,
42 percent indicated they "always" use their preferred carrier's app
while traveling, while 41 percent only use such apps "sometimes."
Nearly 17 percent "never" used their preferred carrier's mobile app.
Fifty-two percent of FlightView
respondents viewed their preferred carrier's mobile functionality to be
"just right," enabling them "to do everything that I need."
The remainder agreed such apps are "underwhelming," despite
FlightView's contention that "airlines have made great strides to improve
the overall usability and functionality."
Among their reasons for
dissatisfaction, the underwhelmed pointed to inaccurate or slow data (28
percent), such usability issues as hard-to-find information (43 percent) or
functionality gaps, including features that respondents would like but airlines
do not offer (29 percent).
"Mobile adoption has
taken a strong hold amongst the travel-savvy, and now airlines must focus on
converting mobile usage to mobile purchases," according to FlightView CEO
Mike Benjamin. "The key is simplifying the purchasing process and making
it more relevant and timely for business travelers, and that can only be
accomplished by putting forth a reliable, highly functional offering."