Skift Q&A: How to Build the World's Hottest Hotel Booking App

Earlier this week we released our latest report, "The Rise of Mobile Booking in Travel", looking at how mobile booking, while still in early stages, is one of the biggest growth areas in online/mobile travel. It is the most definitive state-of-the-market report on this big growth sector in travel. We're extracting our interview with Sam Shank, the CEO of HotelTonight, below. HotelTonight is a prime example of a mobile travel app that gets it right. The app is only available for mobile phones, and offers tonight only and last-minute deals on hotels. Even on a fresh download, the app assumes a lot about your intention through the phone’s stored data. It knows where you are and what your name is. It assumes that you want a hotel room nearby, and you want to check in fairly soon. It gives you options, but just a few. You can get a place to sleep within seconds, even if you are using it for the first time. Skift spoke with Sam Shank, the CEO of HotelTonight to glean some advice on what makes a successful mobile app. Skift: I find it interesting that I can’t book a room with HotelTonight without a smartphone or tablet. Why go mobile exclusive? Sam Shank: When we started thinking about the idea in 2010, the driving force was a strong sense, after years in the online travel industry, that a true win/win last second booking tool for both hotels and guests was possible but had still not been invented. The advent of smart phones allowed us to interact with customers in