Hotels are responsible for the prevalence, or lack of mobile bookings for their properties, according to David Millili, chief executive officer of Pegasus Solutions.

According to a recent survey from PhoCusWright, more than three-quarters of travelers are “somewhat” comfortable researching travel via mobile device, but only 40 percent said they are as comfortable purchasing a travel product. This resistance, according to Millili, is because hotels may not always have the right technology in place.

“A smartphone or tablet may lead a traveler to a hotel website,” said Millili. “But, the site has to cater to that device – or any device – to allow them to easily book once they get there. Hotels that have optimized their mobile site through responsive design and seamless booking will tell you, bar none, that travelers are comfortable with purchasing a travel product via mobile. Hotels that haven’t addressed the mobile experience are dumbfounded by the channel.”

After becoming the first hotel reservation solutions provider to offer responsive web design for hotels in 2011, Pegasus Solutions’ Open Hospitality® division has seen clients realize gains as high as 15% in mobile bookings. Responsive design allows hotels to deliver hotel content correctly formatted to any mobile device: iPad, iPhone, Android, Blackberry, Kindle, etc. Offered by Pegasus as OpenFlex, responsive design leverages fluid widths, scalable images and adjustable layouts to allow bookers to quickly access important details via their preferred point of mobile contact.

“Much has been made of mobile apps, but we see mobile sites driving the majority of mobile reservations,” added Millili. “Mobile is all about making the experience doable, and removing the risk of attrition in the booking process. I can guarantee the number of PhoCusWright respondents who will book via mobile would have been significantly higher if more hotels had the proper websites and mobile booking solutions in place. The technologists have given them the tools, it is up to us, as hoteliers, to give them the way.”

About Pegasus Solutions
Pegasus Solutions is the single largest processor of electronic hotel transactions, delivering advanced and affordable connectivity and distribution solutions to nearly 100,000 hotels worldwide. Pegasus connects hotels to crucial sources of business, facilitating almost $16 billion for its clients annually. Pegasus has 18 offices in 10 countries, including regional hubs in Dallas, Frankfurt, London, Madrid, New York, Sao Paulo, Singapore and Scottsdale. For more information, visit www.pegs.com