by Dmytro Brovkin

由Dmytro Brovkin

如何开发成功的旅游应用，例如Priceline，Expedia和Airbnb (How To Develop a Successful Travel App Like Priceline, Expedia and Airbnb)

The tourism sphere is a huge business sector that includes lots of components: travel agencies, insurance companies, hotels, restaurants and so on.

旅游业是一个巨大的商业领域，包括许多组成部分：旅行社，保险公司，酒店，饭店等。

It’s rather hard to overestimate the importance of mobile devices in this field — people need access to high quality service while they are away from their PCs and unable to be physically present at the office. This is where mobile apps truly shine.

高估移动设备在该领域的重要性相当困难-人们在远离PC且无法亲自在办公室时需要访问高质量的服务。 这是移动应用真正发亮的地方。

为什么要推出Travel App：数字景观的新地标 (Why launch a Travel App: a new landmark on the digital landscape)

Let’s take a look at the numbers before we dive deeper into the topic:

在深入探讨该主题之前，让我们看一下数字 ：

• In 2009 the amount of downloads worldwide was about 2.5 billion.
  2009年，全球下载量约为25亿次。
• In 2011 it reached 3.1 billion.
  2011年达到31亿。
• We can expect the number to exceed 7 billion at the end of 2017 which is more than twice as much as six years ago.
  我们可以预计，到2017年底，这个数字将超过70亿，是六年前的两倍多。

The smartphones are about to replace laptops and PCs when it comes to online shopping. If your business is connected with this field and for some reason you still don’t have your own mobile app, it’s time to think about it.

在进行在线购物时，智能手机将取代笔记本电脑和PC。 如果您的公司与此领域有关，并且由于某种原因您仍然没有自己的移动应用程序，那么该考虑一下了。

For travel companies as well as online retailers the advantages of a mobile application for business are quite obvious. It serves to boost the sales, improve the quality of service, and make clients more loyal to the brand and its products.

对于旅游公司和在线零售商而言，移动商务应用程序的优势非常明显。 它可以促进销售，提高服务质量，并使客户对品牌及其产品更加忠诚。

Mobile travel apps include:

移动旅行应用程序包括：

• Google and Apple Maps
  谷歌和苹果地图
• Travel planners
  旅行计划者
• The apps that show you WiFi hotspots nearby
  向您显示附近WiFi热点的应用
• The apps that allow you to book hotels and tickets everywhere you go
  该应用程序可让您随时随地预订酒店和门票
• The apps that can find services for those with special needs
  可以为有特殊需求的人找到服务的应用

Launching a really helpful app for your users is a great way to get ahead of your competitors. Let’s take a look at these facts.

为您的用户启动一个真正有用的应用程序是超越竞争对手的好方法。 让我们看看这些事实。

Today almost everyone has a smartphone. 65% of the travelers prefer to plan their trips with the help of mobile apps.

今天，几乎每个人都拥有智能手机。 65％的旅行者更喜欢借助移动应用来计划行程。

Most businessmen (actually about 70% of them) book their tickets and hotels via mobile apps.

大多数商人(实际上约占其中的70％)都是通过移动应用预订机票和酒店的。

Around 80% of travel companies, hotels and aviation companies profit from brand exposure, income increase and other factors after an app launch.

应用启动后，大约80％的旅游公司，酒店和航空公司从品牌知名度，收入增加和其他因素中获利。

Every tourist would definitely want to have an app that allows him to navigate easily everywhere they go. The travel mobile app can include dictionaries, maps, and guides to different places of interest (cafés, restaurants, museums and other). About 75% of the travelers use at least one mobile app during their trip.

每个游客都绝对希望拥有一个应用程序，该应用程序可以让他轻松地前往各个地方。 该旅行移动应用程序可以包括字典，地图和前往不同景点(咖啡馆，餐厅，博物馆等)的指南。 大约75％的旅行者在旅途中使用至少一个移动应用程序。

At the moment 35% of the travelers download apps for their trip or the upcoming holidays. Another way to use the app is to share the impressions immediately or after the trip. In the era of social networks more than half of the tourists post their vacation photos online.

目前，有35％的旅行者为旅行或即将到来的假期下载应用程序。 使用该应用的另一种方法是立即或在旅行后共享印象。 在社交网络时代，超过一半的游客在网上发布度假照片。

The travel mobile apps occupy the 7th place on the list of the most downloaded apps.

旅游移动应用程序在下载量最大的应用程序列表中排名第七。

The stats show that the app launch can provide new ways to increase your income, make the brand more popular, build a loyal client base and much more.

统计数据表明，该应用程序的推出可以提供增加收入，使品牌更受欢迎，建立忠实的客户群等新途径。

Of course an app has to have a great and valuable idea, and be well-designed and developed. In this way, a mobile app can be a huge advantage for your business.

当然，应用程序必须有一个伟大而宝贵的想法，并且必须经过精心设计和开发。 通过这种方式，移动应用程序可以为您的业务带来巨大优势。

平庸的应用程序和好的应用程序之间有什么区别？ (What makes the difference between a mediocre app and a good one?)

What’s the ideal travel app that the users want to use? It’s an app that’s easy to understand and get into. It surely has to make their trip more comfortable and allow people to communicate with other tourists and companies.

用户想要使用的理想旅行应用程序是什么？ 这是一个易于理解和使用的应用程序。 当然，它必须使他们的旅行更加舒适，并允许人们与其他游客和公司进行沟通。

These criteria make an app really helpful, reduce the pressure on traveler and make the audience more loyal.

这些条件使应用真正有用，可以减轻旅行者的压力，并使观众更加忠诚。

Here’s a couple of tips to make a modern and attractive tourist app that will actually let you turn a profit:

以下是制作一个现代且有吸引力的旅游应用程序的一些技巧，这些应用程序实际上会让您获利：

1. Make sure that you know what your target audience is. Create an image of your user and work on making the app better for him.

   确保您知道目标受众是什么。 为您的用户创建图像，并致力于使应用程序更适合他。

   If your company works primarily with entrepreneurs and executives, it would make sense to launch an app for the business trips, maybe easy and simple tickets and hotels booking, faster airport check-in or a trip planner.

   如果您的公司主要与企业家和高管合作，则可以启动一个商务旅行应用程序，可能是简单，简单的机票和酒店预订，更快的机场登机手续或旅行计划者。

2. Make your app easy to use and user friendly.

   使您的应用易于使用和用户友好。

   If your main feature is to search the best hotel offers and book them immediately, the way to complete the registration shouldn’t be longer than a couple of clicks.

   如果您的主要功能是搜索最佳的酒店报价并立即预订，那么完成注册的时间不应短于几次单击。

3. Enable the users to share their feedback with you.

   使用户可以与您分享他们的反馈。

   Embed a button into the app that brings them to a sector where they can leave their comments, discuss what’s good or wrong with an app and so on. Such a function can allow you to get to know your audience and its needs, and understand what you could be doing better.

   在应用程序中嵌入一个按钮，将他们带到一个可以发表评论，讨论应用程序的优缺点的区域，等等。 这样的功能可以让您了解您的受众及其需求，并了解您可以做得更好。

4. Keep in touch with the users and make sure you communicate with them consistently.
   与用户保持联系，并确保您与他们保持一致的沟通。

5. Make your app offline-friendly.

   使您的应用离线友好。

   If your app will still be able to notify the people of their check-in or something else even if they’ve turned the mobile networks off, it’ll be a big advantage for you.

   如果您的应用程序即使仍然关闭了移动网络，仍然能够通知人们他们的签到或其他通知，对您来说将是一个很大的优势。

6. Integrate the social networks like Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with your app.
   将Facebook，Instagram或Twitter等社交网络与您的应用程序集成。

The popularity of travel apps is rising at the moment, so your main goal is to launch an app that would be able to bring in and hold on to a big audience that can be monetized.

目前，旅行应用程序的受欢迎程度正在上升，因此您的主要目标是发布一款能够吸引并利用可获利的庞大受众群体的应用程序。

The business expertise is absolutely necessary at the first stage. You should analyze the market and your rivals. Find out what your target audience looks like, and understand what they’d like to see.

在第一阶段，绝对需要业务专业知识。 您应该分析市场和您的竞争对手。 找出您的目标受众是什么样，并了解他们想要看到的内容。

Positioning and naming are also important, that’s what attracts the most attention. After that you need to do all the dirty work with app development and create a good design.

定位和命名也很重要，这是吸引最多注意力的地方。 之后，您需要对应用程序开发进行所有肮脏的工作，并创建良好的设计。

The last stage is the app testing. Use as many smartphone models as possible to prevent the bugs from sneaking in.

最后一个阶段是应用测试。 使用尽可能多的智能手机型号，以防止错误潜入。

实施API (Implementing APIs)

If you run a travel agency and you are looking to enter the mobile app market, you can find a partnership program at popular services and use them to your advantage. For example, if you integrate a Booking.com API into the app, your clients will be able to book the hotels all around the world straight from a single menu. It’s a great way to provide more opportunities to your users.

如果您经营一家旅行社，并希望进入移动应用市场，则可以在热门服务中找到合作计划，并利用它们来发挥自己的优势。 例如，如果您将Booking.com API集成到该应用程序中，您的客户将可以直接从一个菜单预订世界各地的酒店。 这是为用户提供更多机会的好方法。

API usage is a great way to start and there’s a lot of them. Every program offers its own conditions, profits and ways to work. Let’s take a look at some of them:

使用API​​是一种很好的开始方式，其中有很多。 每个程序都有其自身的条件，利润和工作方式。 让我们看一下其中的一些：

1. Booking.com partnership program offers over 23 million hotel rooms in more than a million places.

   Booking.com合作计划在超过一百万个地方提供了超过2300万间酒店客房。

2. Expedia API provides access to 321,000 hotels and over 400 flight companies, but is only in the United States.

   Expedia API可访问321,000家酒店和400多家航班公司，但仅在美国。

3. Skyscanner partnership allows your clients to search and book the flights right from your website. Skyscanner can also book tickets, hotels and rent the cars.

   Skyscanner合作伙伴关系使您的客户可以直接从您的网站搜索和预订航班。 天巡还可以预订机票，酒店和租车。

You can also make use of services that offer recommendations such as:

您还可以利用提供建议的服务，例如：

1. Google Places with more than 95 million places of interest and companies.

   拥有超过9500万个名胜古迹和公司的Google地方信息。

2. Facebook Places uses its graphic API and data by Factual to facilitate search for places of interest.

   Facebook Places使用Factual的图形API和数据来促进对感兴趣的地点的搜索。

3. Yelp API offers you the reviews, photos and data lists. Yelp is a great choice for the US-market.

   Yelp API为您提供评论，照片和数据列表。 Yelp是美国市场的绝佳选择。

4. CityGrid API-interfaces include over 18 million local lists for the USA. You can even make money if your users interact with CityGrid, thanks to their program ‘Places that pay’.

   CityGrid API接口包括美国超过1800万个本地列表。 如果您的用户与CityGrid互动，您甚至可以赚钱，这要归功于他们的“付费地点”计划。

5. TripAdvisor API gives access to a huge database that’s made by users and subsequently to the photos, reviews and ratings of the places.

   TripAdvisor API可以访问用户建立的庞大数据库，然后可以访问地点的照片，评论和评分。

向最好的人学习-不断创新！ (Learn from the best — and innovate!)

You can also find out a lot about how to make a better app by researching the other projects that are running successfully.

您还可以通过研究成功运行的其他项目，找到有关如何制作更好的应用程序的很多信息。

Here are some examples that you may find interesting:

以下是一些您可能会发现有趣的示例：

爱彼迎 (Airbnb)

A rental service that is one of the most popular real estate platforms in the world. It allows you to communicate straight with the apartment owners without having to pay agents for their service.

租赁服务是世界上最受欢迎的房地产平台之一。 它使您可以直接与公寓业主进行沟通，而不必向代理商支付服务费用。

At the moment there are more than 700,000 options available in 34,000 cities around the world. The search engine will help you find the apartment in the certain part of the city or with certain services.

目前，全球34,000个城市中有700,000多个选项。 搜索引擎将帮助您在城市的某些地区或提供某些服务的情况下找到公寓。

Before you book a room or apartment you can contact the owner, discuss every detail, observe the photos and research feedback from the previous clients. The service also allows you to make your own apartment available for rent to earn money. Everything can be controlled right from your smartphone or tablet.

在预订房间或公寓之前，您可以联系房主，讨论每一个细节，观察照片并研究以前客户的反馈。 该服务还允许您出租自己的公寓以赚钱。 一切都可以通过智能手机或平板电脑直接控制。

价格线 (Priceline)

An app that shows you which hotels are available nearby. It’s very helpful for the people who travel unexpectedly and don’t search for hotels in advance. It shows the prices, feedback and sales. Priceline also allows you to find car rental stations, buses and trains schedule and so on.

该应用会向您显示附近有哪些酒店。 对于出行意外且不提前搜索酒店的人来说，这非常有用。 它显示价格，反馈和销售。 Priceline还允许您查找汽车租赁站，公交车和火车时刻表等。

Expedia (Expedia)

It’s an app that plans your trip and books flights and hotels. There’s the full information on when you arrive, leave and so on. It also offers you all the feedback and ratings available.

这是一款可计划您的行程并预订航班和酒店的应用程序 。 有关您何时到达，离开等的完整信息。 它还为您提供所有可用的反馈和评级。

So, the travel mobile app opens up a variety of ways to make your business grow and get bigger. The companies that launch a successful mobile app and keep in touch with their audience in order to make the quality of their services better, have much more chances to succeed in the industry.

因此，旅行移动应用程序开辟了多种方式来使您的业务不断发展壮大。 推出成功的移动应用程序并与受众保持联系以提高服务质量的公司，在行业中获得成功的机会更多。

We sincerely hope that our article will be helpful for you if you’re looking to launch your own app or just learn something new about mobile travel apps. If you want to build your very own application, Octodev team will be happy to assist and guide you through the whole process.

我们衷心希望，如果您希望启动自己的应用程序或者只是学习有关移动旅行应用程序的新知识，我们的文章将对您有所帮助。 如果您要构建自己的应用程序， Octodev团队将很乐意在整个过程中为您提供帮助和指导。

This article was originally published on the Octodev Blog.

本文最初发表在Octodev Blog上 。

翻译自: https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/how-to-develop-a-successful-travel-app-like-priceline-expedia-and-airbnb-9ac8c7d41cfc/