LateRooms.com has launched a mobile version of its last-minute hotel booking service and, as more and more people work away from the office and go on work-related trips, has high hopes of capitalising on the growing business traveller market.
The features and functionality are the same as the main site, but the application has been modified to enhance the mobile user experience and avoid the clunky look and feel sometimes associated with web offerings that are scaled down from the desktop to the mobile browser.
LateRooms.com's mobile offering has the day the user accesses the site set as default in terms of showing the best deals on offer - sometimes up to 70 per cent off the cost of standard room rates - meaning that visitors could book a room in as little as two clicks, according to the service's creator.
After selecting a hotel, users are given a unique booking reference number which they need to quote to a call centre set up specifically to handle mobile customers. Payment and final confirmation is then taken over the phone by agents rather than online using the mobile browser.
"The need to book a hotel at the very last moment occurs mostly when you're out on the road so a mobile service is essential for travellers on the move," said Tony Walsh, development director at LateRooms.com. "Whether you're away from home either for leisure or on business, all a booker needs is the basics to hand when looking for a hotel - price and availability. Our mobile service is designed specifically around these two factors to ensure bookers get what they need with the least amount of effort."
He added: "We've aimed to keep the service as close to the LateRooms website as possible, but have ensured the service is streamlined to make booking over a mobile phone as practical and as easy as possible. By ensuring that a booking is confirmed over the phone the user can feel confident that their hotel reservation has been made and that their credit card details have been entered into a secure site."
