Commentary

'Mobile Traveler' Spells 'Real-Time Marketing Possibility'

A new study from priceline.com says that 42% of New Year's Eve hotel rooms were booked after 5:00 p.m. when the travler was using a mobile device. The study also says that 65% of the travelers waited until after 2:00 p.m. to book their rooms for the night, and 13% waited until after 9:00 p.m.

This data opens up a slew of possibilities for the savvy mobile marketer. As John Caine points out in the statement, travel apps can be most beneficial for companies around the holiday season. "It gives them that one more shot at selling last-minute rooms to mobile-equipped travelers who already may be in, or close to town, having dinner, clubbing, or watching fireworks," he stated.

While it's not New Year's Eve every night, knowing that people are willing to buy rooms just hours before the night ends allows marketers to be a little more pushy with their message. Companies could get more creative with real-time room offers through mobile devices based on what time it is and where the person is located. As you'll see in the list below, any real-time marketing efforts are going to be made in a city's downtown area.

Below is Priceline.com's top-10 last-minute New Year's Eve destinations for "mobile-equipped" travelers:

1) Las Vegas Strip

2) Downtown Chicago

3) Houston Galleria

4) Downtown San Francisco

5) Downtown Boston

6) Chicago's Grant Park

7) Atlanta's Midtown/Downtown Area

8) Downtown Minneapolis

9) Downtown Denver

10) Downtown Seattle

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