Ubiquitous consumer access to the internet and mobile technology has revolutionized the travel & tourism industry worldwide, changing the way consumers plan and book trips, and residents of GCC countries are a huge part of this revolution with Wego at the forefront of this change: GCC travelers conduct up to 70 percent of travel research on their smartphones.
A recent Price Waterhouse Cooper report, “Global megatrends and their impact on the Middle East’s travel and tourism industry,” highlights that travelers in the GCC now do the majority of their holiday research and booking on smartphones and tablets. Smartphone usage for the GCC markets is among the highest in the world, at 78% in the UAE and 77% in Saudi Arabia. Due to the ubiquity of high-speed mobile internet, travelers can easily access mobile applications to book flights and hotels online and compare online reviews.
Wego, the leading travel search website and top-ranked mobile application for travelers living in the Middle East, was the first to enter the MENA region by launching fully localized services to meet the needs of a new generation of travelers wanting to shop for and book flights and hotels on their smartphones. “The response from GCC countries to Wego’s fully Arabized websites and mobile apps has been overwhelming,” Mamoun Hmedan, Wego Managing Director of MENA and India says. “Wego has grown rapidly to become the most popular and trusted travel search service in the region with over 10 million monthly visits.”
Online travel in MENA is a massive industry and is growing at a rapid pace accelerated by a shift in consumer behavior from offline to online travel shopping. Hmedan asserts that Wego anticipated this trend: “Around 2010 we analyzed the MENA travel market and came to the conclusion that the conditions were right for this market to transition from offline to online rapidly and we invested accordingly. The region’s travelers were quick to embrace online travel shopping, possibly quicker than in any other emerging market, but the transition from desktop to a mobile-first market happened even faster, and today Wego sees over 70 percent of searches in the Middle East taking place on a mobile device." Earlier in 2017, Wego introduced new mobile websites utilizing Progressive Web App (PWA) technology combined with Accelerated Mobile Page (AMP), to become the fastest loading mobile travel site in the world.
Wego has capitalized on such favorable market dynamics and is already a leading travel brand that is highly recognized by travelers in the region, especially in GCC countries. Wego remains one of the top five most popular travel apps on iTunes and Google Play stores throughout the region. Features such as local language, currency, and familiar local travel brands have proven to be a hit with GCC consumers. “Travellers in the Middle East are tech savvy and brand loyal, and once they experience Wego, they tend to keep on using it and to tell their friends about it. Positive word of mouth has been a major growth driver for Wego.”
This week Wego is participating in the E-Travel Middle East Conference, which is back with a second edition created for players in the Middle East’s online travel industry. In 2017, the conference will provide cutting-edge, real-world case studies from leading Metasearch companies, airlines, hotels on their innovative digital marketing, e-commerce and creative online strategies for improved customer insights, retention, and acquisition across mobile, tablets and desktop.
The event will provide insight into how the global online and e-commerce giants are leveraging big data analytics, machine learning, and virtual reality to enhance customer insights and enhance the user’s experience. Mamoun Hmedan, Wego Managing Director of MENA and India, and Salah Mustafa, Wego Digital Marketing Director will address the audience and represent Wego at the conference.
