• by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, September 3, 2010

Marketers know travelers rely heavily on the Internet and search engines to research destinations and fun stuff to do, but some might not know the trend to tap into mobile and video content continues to rise. In fact, in the past year, the use of mobile devices to access information for personal and business travel rose 8% and 25%, respectively, according to a recent study.

Mobile devices have become popular to research upcoming trips, read reviews from other travelers, check into flights and hotels, request more information on an upcoming trip, and watch travel-related videos. Travel apps also are being downloaded at a higher rate. About 32% of travelers download apps for leisure travel and 48% download apps for business travel.

"We now see 18% of people access travel information through a mobile device," says Susan Billingsley, travel marketing manager at Google, pulling stats from a recent joint study by Google and OTX. "In 2008, 13% of business travelers used their mobile devices for travel information and now that has grown to 40% today."

Hotel queries on mobile devices have grown by 3,000% in the past three years, Billingsley says. Google also sees growth in airline and travel packages such as cruises. Although not related to this study, she tells me Carnival Cruise Lines boosted booking on mobile devices 175% in three months with click-to-call ads.

The Google and OTX joint study, The Traveler's Road to Decision, examines the behavior of consumers booking travel plans. It analyzes the role online plays, whether the research process changes by transportation mode, and the role online video and mobile devices now take.

Aside from accessing information on the go, mobile applications give travelers a means to access and share through venues, photos and videos. Rather than a one-way dialog, consumers continue to engage with others and share their experiences. Take Robert Scoble, for example. Those interested can follow his travels through a series of pictures taken with the camera on his Apple iPhone.

Online video is used throughout the travel planning process. It starts with looking for ideas and runs through deciding on accommodations. Travelers looking to book accommodations and trips watch both professionally created and user-generated content.

User-generated videos like as the ones Scoble creates and posts to his Web site while on vacations can influence consumers as well as business travelers.

Business travelers, 72%, tend to watch more videos from hotels, airlines, cruises and tours than those taking personal vacations, 65%. Videos from travel-related channels attract business travelers, 65%, compared with personal vacationers, 57%.

It's also interesting to note 64% of business travelers say they watch trip reviews from experts, compared with 55% of vacationers. And 61% of business travelers say they watch trip reviews from people like themselves, compared with 55% of vacationers; followed by 55%of business travelers say they watch videos made by people like themselves and 48% of vacationers. Watching ads gained the least acceptance with 49% of business travelers and 39% of vacationers watching travel-related videos.

It's also not difficult to see how paid search ads and search engine optimization can play a role in making consumers aware of brands for both business and leisurely travel.