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While mobile travel tools and applications have become plentiful in the leisure travel market, few solutions have targeted corporate travel. Many business travelers are using their own mobile devices and adapting leisure-focused tools to meet their own needs.
This year, however, has seen a flurry of activity on the part of corporate travel vendors as they race to release mobile applications and specialized mobile websites dedicated to the business traveler. Recent and upcoming releases of mobile solutions this year include enhancements to expense reporting tools, itinerary management, traveler alerts, security and status features, and the promise of what’s been the holy grail of corporate travel management – online booking that embeds corporate policy.
In a recent online survey, AirPlus International asked travel stakeholders about their current mobile travel management strategies in the face of a rapidly changing marketplace. According to survey respondents, the early jumps in adoption of mobile technology have slowed down, at least temporarily, when it comes to the numbers of business travelers carrying smart phones or other wireless-enabled devices. For example, according to survey respondents, 38.1 percent estimated that more than 90 percent of their company’s travelers currently carry a smart phone or other wireless-enabled mobile device, up only 3 percent from the 35 percent estimated in 2010.
It’s likely, however, that corporations will continue to see increases in adoption of mobile technology as such devices jump in popularity through the population at large. Nielsen reports that 31 percent of all mobile subscribers owned smart phones at the beginning of this year and predicts that 50 percent of mobile phone.
Find the full survey here.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
