A trend for last minute bookings: People want to be able to search and book trips on their mobile
devices, especially at the last minute. In fact, 47% of bookings made through the
Marriott’s m-commerce channel are for same-day check-ins. Andrew Haynes announced that “customers want to be able to find and book a hotel while on the
go”.
Apple Inc., Android and
BlackBerry smartphones, comprise 99% of the smartphone traffic to Marriott’s
websites. This performance is all the more remarkable that the Marriott
applications for these devices have emerged in the United States in August
2011. Its m-commerce site now tries to create the richer multimedia experiences
as possible through mobile sites and apps. The evolution has been faster with
the launch of French, German, Spanish and Chinese applications in November
2011.
How does it work? The m-commerce site is designed to best suit the client’s expectations:
an easy access from any phone with a web browser. The website is simple in
design with buttons to tap to find and reserve a hotel or view reservations.
Other buttons enable consumers to participate in a survey about the m-commerce
site, access city guides and call to make a reservation. Thus, a user can make
reservations - or cancellations - from over 3600 hotels and resorts group in 70
countries, closest to his position, thanks to the geolocation. In fact, we can
understand that this application and the mobile site help the user in his
choice, thanks to the display of photos, maps and amenities of all hotels.
Its success? Marriott has been able to adopt the right strategy, by choosing the
appropriate media. The quality of the customer experience it delivers also
makes the difference. According to Andrew Haynes, "studies have shown that
the two main expectations of Smartphone users were able to check availability
and reserve rooms directly at the last minute". It demonstrates that if
Marriott has such a great success with m-commerce is because of the services it
provides, which are closely linked with the needs of its customers, and also
thanks to its constantly improved ergonomics. The hotel group Marriott has well
understood that responsiveness and reliability are the main requirements of
travelers. Thus, the group has been able to take advantage of that through a
digital strategy that fully meets customer’s expectations.
Marriott has been able to anticipate new market trends and technological
developments. This awareness of the digital inevitability has enabled the group
to invest early in the Web. Indeed, the first version of its mobile site dates
back to 2008. It is thanks to anticipation that they have such good results on
this mobile channel. We can assess also that Marriott is customer-oriented. The
company has always had the same imperative: to meet the basic need of the customer,
anywhere, under any circumstances.
The future? Even if the group is showing
very good results through this channel, it is important that Marriott continues
to regularly update its website and mobile applications, optimizing and
enriching them with new features to satisfy increasingly demanding customers.
Key words: m-commerce, multimedia experiences, applications, smartphones, participation, geolocation, customer experience, digital strategy, satisfaction
For more information: http://www.ecommercemag.fr/Breves/Marriott-le-culte-du-service-client-46283.htm
Mélissa Leverd & Chloé Mattei
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