Orbitz Knew That Since Most Business Travelers Were Alread

Even so, with mobile transaction customers doubling in one year’s time, Orbitz

decided that an overhaul of its native iPhone app was also in order. When relaunched

in June 2012, the iOS app included an improved filtering tool that enabled users to

search and compare offerings by cost, distance from destination, and star ratings. Like

Hotels by Orbitz, an improved GPS-enabled mapping function displayed nearby hotels

and Mobile Steals, providing instant price comparisons. Securing flight, lodging, and car

rental reservations was simplified, eliminating browser screens and data entry repetition,

and allowing users to perform all three operations in a continuous in-app stream

unassociated with a mobile Web site. This was the heart of the redesign: to eliminate

the mobile Web site and consolidate the entire search and reservation process within

the native app so that users would no longer experience disruptive and time-consuming

redirects either to Orbitz’s mobile site or to an airline, hotel, or car rental agency site to

complete the booking. The goal was to trump its competitors on speed and ease of use.

Brown believed that although mobile transactions in 2012 still represented less

than 10% of Orbitz’s total bookings, the investment would be rewarded by the broad

opportunity presented by the rapidly escalating m-commerce market. New customer

acquisition was expected as users discovered the increased transaction speed provided by

the app. Increased speed is particularly attractive to consumers looking to book same-day

reservations, which also comprise about 50% of Orbitz’s mobile car rental purchases.

In order to verify that its goals for the app had been achieved, Orbitz commissioned

a speed comparison study with Atmosphere Research Group and C+R Research. The

travel apps, m-commerce sites, and e-commerce sites of its major competitors, including

Kayak, Expedia, Priceline, and Travelocity, were pitted against the Orbitz iPhone app.

The study found that Orbitz iPhone app users were able to book a round-trip flight to

Hilton Head, South Carolina, a hotel reservation, and a car rental in slightly more than

seven minutes, twice as fast as people using its iPhone app competitors. Only 60% of

study participants using a competitor’s product (aggregated) were able to complete the

task as quickly. The Orbitz iPhone app transaction speed also surpassed comparable iPad

and Android apps as well as desktop e-commerce site experiences. Study participants

overwhelmingly awarded positive marks to the completely in-house–built Orbitz iPhone

app in comparison to its competitors, 92% and 30%, respectively.

To speed the identification and fulfillment of future needs, customers’ search

history, personal information, frequent flyer program data, and travel preferences are

saved within the app, enabling one-tap access to recent searches and automatic search

suggestions. Itineraries can be accessed even while offline, and flight status and gate

change data can be accessed with a single tap. Trips can also be easily added to the

Apple Calendar app, formerly called iCal, used by many iPhone and iPod touch users.

In 2013, Orbitz continued to expand its array of apps across different operating

systems and platforms. It launched a full version of its Flights, Hotels, Cars app optimized

for iPad, the first of its kind among travel service providers. Orbitz also fully

overhauled the same app for Android, marking the third generation of its Android

Sources: “Orbitz.com Rolls Out

Major Update to Orbitz Flights,

Hotels, Cars App for Android,”

marketwatch.com, Orbitz.com,

August 21, 2013; “Anticipated

Earnings Increase for Orbitz

Worldwide (OWW),” Forbes.com,

August 6, 2013; “Orbitz Releases

the First Native App for iPad that

Allows Consumers to Book Flights,

Hotels, and Rental Cars,”

Orbitz.com, February 25, 2013;

“Orbitz, Inc. History,” FundingUniverse.

com, accessed September

2, 2012; “How to Embark upon an

M-commerce Redesign,” by Kevin

Woodward, Internet Retailer,

August 10, 2012; “Top 10 Mobile

Commerce Apps of Q2,” by Rimma

Kats, Mobile Commerce Daily, July

6, 2012; “Orbitz Revamps iPhone

App with Focus on Streamlined

Booking, Deals,” by Lauren

Johnson, Mobile Commerce Daily,

June 22, 2012; “Orbitz Rolls Out

Major Update to App for iPhone

and iPod Touch,” Orbitz, June 21,

2012; “Orbitz Releases New Travel

App,” by

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