Location-based technologies are changing the way consumers engage with travel brands. And marketers are trying to make the most of the data that is being generated through location-based service apps. The travel industry is also increasingly looking at sustaining customer relationships through avenues such as Foursquare, Facebook Places and Gowalla.

The underlying trend driving location-based services (LBS) is smartphone adoption, says Rob Reed, founder and chief executive officer, MomentFeed, a location-based analytics and campaign management service specialist. Reed says, “They are quickly becoming our primary source for communications, information and entertainment in general but more specifically when we are traveling. This can be small trips locally as well as international destinations.”

Reeds added, “Of course, the smartphone is the hardware component. The application layer is where consumers are focusing all of their attention, and that’s the key. Our attention is increasingly being consumed by smartphone applications, which means it is not being directed elsewhere.”

“For travellers, this can mean Yelp, Foursquare, Google Maps, Facebook, Twitter, Gowalla, and others with location and/or social features. If the travel industry wants to meet consumers where they are, it has to participate and maintain a strong presence in these platforms because it’s growing fast. We’re at roughly 38 percent smartphone adoption in the US today, on our way to more than 50 percent by year end and global ubiquity by 2015,” explained Reed.

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