Travel sector 'needs to become alert to mobile marketing benefits'

The tourism industry has been advised to wake up to the benefits of mobile marketing techniques.

A significant majority of businesses in the sector have shifted some or all of their operations over to the web, but the latest Tour Operator Technology Review paper from Genesys suggested that too many are still failing to take advantage of the benefits of mobile marketing.

The report noted that many tour operators have yet to make their website ready for use on mobile devices, in spite of the soaring popularity of web-connected smartphones.

Commenting, Paul Richer, a senior partner at Genesys stated that "there are no longer any excuses" for companies in the sector to be out-of-the-loop when it comes to technology.

He added that mobile marketing enables smaller businesses to reach customers just as easily as their larger competitors.

"There has never been a better time for smaller operators to compete on a level playing field with their larger competitors who can more easily afford heavy investment in technology," he concluded.

Earlier this month Webtrends launched its new Mobile Analytics platform, created to help businesses keep on top of their mobile marketing efforts.