Egencia continues its global investment in smart mobile services for business travellers with the release of the Android version of its application.
LONDON – Egencia®, the business travel company of the Expedia group announced the release of Egencia® TripNavigator for Android. With the number of Android smartphones surpassing iPhones worldwide, accessibility for both of these operating systems means that Egencia TripNavigator, the consumer-inspired business travel app, is now compatible with the majority of the world’s smartphones.*
Following the global release for iOS last fall, this new Android version offers the same features to help travellers save time and improve their in-trip experience: ‘turn-by-turn‘ itinerary guidance, access to full-content hotel shopping and quick access to Egencia customer service. This update marks the company’s latest step in providing effective, modern mobile services that deliver business-centric benefits such as access to last-minute hotel savings when travel plans change.
“The client response to Egencia TripNavigator has been very positive so far,” says Rob Greyber, Egencia’s president. “Over the last 12 months, our worldwide mobile bookings have doubled and we’ve only just started in our ambitions. The intent is to keep raising the bar in order to bring the very best consumer experience to corporate travellers.”
Egencia will soon offer an iPad version of its mobile application and continue focusing on creating personalised mobile shopping and booking that is seamlessly integrated into Egencia’s travel management and consultant services.
Bob Barnes, cost control manager at PureAir says “Egencia TripNavigator on Android is perfect for our company. Most of our travel spend comes from last-minute hotel bookings and our entire mobile fleet is Android. Now our travellers can use Egencia TripNavigator to quickly find a near-by hotel and know that it is in policy. They can see the best available option in one tap.”
Egencia TripNavigator helps travellers manage their trip while on the road with contextual, actionable alerts. For example, if a traveller doesn’t have a hotel for the night, the app will prompt them to book a room. Today, over 20 percent of Egencia’s same-day hotel reservations are made using TripNavigator and the company expects this to increase as it expands to Android. Egencia TripNavigator users have access to Egencia’s full hotel inventory of nearly 200,000 properties with the added benefit of special “mobile only” deals, which offer discounts of 10 to 50 percent.
For more complex itinerary changes, the Egencia® AssistMe feature offers travellers one-tap connection to travel consultants when they need help from the road. This feature is integrated into Egencia’s Intelligent Service Platform™ (ISP), for fast, personalised service.
Callers are immediately identified by their Egencia profile and itinerary information. As part of its global commitment to integrate state of the art technology and services, Egencia recently expanded its ISP offering to France, Germany and the UK.
Travellers with Android smartphones can download Egencia TripNavigator from Googleplay. The iOS version can be downloaded from iTunes. Any user, including non-Egencia clients, can download the application and take it for a test drive via the “Explore” option available on the “Sign In” screen. For all other mobile devices, Egencia continues to offer its mobile Web product.
*Source: PhoCusWright’s Spotlight – “The Mobile Travel Landscape: A Multi-Region Spotlight” – April 2014
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
