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3 ways to gain market share from OTAs

The online travel agents are becoming more powerful day-by-day and they are eating others lunch, especially of hoteliers. The more powerful OTA means higher commission for hotels that lead to lower profit for the hotels and this has become the pain points or bottlenecks for the hoteliers. This is the high time for the hotels to take action to gain market share from the OTA’s to retain their profit percentage. In this case hoteliers are left with two choices either to increase their room rate to maintain their profit or to find out other way where they can increase direct booking maintaining a fair balance with OTAs to get maximum outcome from their revenue strategy. Since hotel business is very price sensitive the first option is little difficult to implement in this competitive market – if a hotel increases its room rate then they may not get business at all. Now the hoteliers are left with the second option and they can better think of increasing direct booking coming from their Brand.com.

In last couple of years I’ve been constantly reviewing how the hospitality industry is changing and how hoteliers are looking into more direct business. Here in this article I’d like to suggest three ways in which the hotelier can gain market share from the OTA’s.

User driven design:
Responsive Design: You should have a responsive website which should be used in mobile because now a day’s most of the people only use mobile for doing their hotel booking. 
Content Marketing: The content is powerful. The photo gallery, room details are something what a user look for and content drives new traffic from the search engine. A website with good and organised content always drives more traffic to your website that can convert your potential guest to loyal customers.
Website- Your Best Salesman
Your hotel website is your sales conversion engine. You should design your website in a manner where it will help you to increase your look-to-book ratio. The increase in look-to-book ratio means more sales and your attempt should try to convert each of the visitors as your potential customers. For doing this you need to keep few things in mind: 

    Meta Search Allows for Direct Bookings
    Meta search is considered to be one of the biggest digital marketing trends for hoteliers in current time. It is anticipated to be the fastest growing method of brand awareness and growth, and hotels should be encouraged to utilize these channels, including them as part of their distribution portfolio.
    While OTAs continue to lead the third party sales industry, they have one very big disadvantage for hoteliers – bookings are made exclusively through the merchant site, for which the brand will pay a nominal fee.
    Meta search allows for visitors to book either through OTAs or through the brand website, helping to increase direct sales. Meta search sites such as TripAdvisor have been criticized for favouring OTAs with which they have a partnership, but direct information is available, which is more than can be said for OTAs themselves.
    Turning OTA booking into direct booking
    The hotelier should always try to convert the OTA booking into the direct booking. The first step to this can be to have the guest email address and to add him to your loyal customer’s data base. One of the best ways to attract these guests can be emailing them about the special rates and plans of your hotel.  In addition to this the hotelier can reply to the comments and reviews of guests on different OTA’s. Replying to the reviews help a lot in increasing the loyalty of your brand and converting them from OTA to direct booking.
    As technology advances with enormous pace we’ll see more hoteliers will implement a clear balance of direct and OTA strategy to drive more revenue.
    Posted by Omprakash Singh, Business Analyst, eRevMax
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    How Social Media Can Increase Hotel’s Direct Bookings

    Thanks to efforts of global influencers like Elon Musk, Facebook & Google internet access has accelerated faster than ever before with *over 3 billion people gaining online access as of 2015. This access has accelerated an already fertile e-Commerce market and helped increase B2C potential dramatically. Recent projections have valued the *B2C e–Commerce business to over 3.2 Trillion dollars by 2020!
    So with all that money flowing through the internet it’s no surprise hotel marketing teams should look to a cast a wider net via social media channels to pull in higher direct booking. But how much business for hotels can and is being generated directly through social media outlets today? And more importantly how can you effectively tap into social media in order to increase your direct bookings?

    Amount Of Business Social Media Generates

    Estimates show the *number of worldwide users on social networks by 2018 to be a whooping 2.5 Billion which is nearly 90% of all people online. In 2015, over 70 percent of the US population had social network profiles. According to a study made last year by the social times 28% of time spent online is spent on social media. And *nearly half of all online shoppers rely on social media when making a purchase online!
    In hospitality alone there are over 148.3 million bookings made on the internet each year. The amount of business on the internet which is generated via social media is so overwhelming hotels have no choice but to focus on these channels. And the hotels who turn a blind eye to social media as a real avenue of generating direct business will be severely impacted and lose countless bookings to other properties who do cultivate their social networking channels.

    First And Foremost, Know Your Market

    *74% of online adults use social networking sites. It is important to remember who the current adult population is today. As scary as it may sound, it is Millennials who make up the largest consumer market. And according to Eventbrite research, Millennials spend $1.3 Trillion in annual consumer spending in the US alone! And 78% of Millennials would rather spend money on an experience over buying something desirable! So to pull in more direct business it’s a matter of marketing your hotels experience. And there is simply no better place online to market the experience you offer at your hotel than on social media! But it’s not enough to know who your market is (millennials) and where they are (online, on social media). You need to know HOW TO REACH & ENGAGE  THEM!  A staggering *1 in 5 Millennials access the internet exclusivelythrough their mobile devices. And the majority of their time on mobile is spent on social media!
    So the stats would seem to point toward channelling your digital content to a mobile friendly environment. Unfortunately the below infographic from Hotel News Now gives great insight into how even Millennial hotel employees see a great need for improving mobile and tech use as a hotel.

    Knowing the largest consumer markets technology trends and how their mobile and online use directly ties into their social media should encourage hotels to make the appropriate adjustments to reach potential clients more effectively.

    You Must Give To Get

    And no I am not just talking about content. According to recent online studies even the *accounts with the largest amount of followers are unable to reach their target markets and make conversions unless they pay for visibility. Today’s online traffic is so heavy that in order to really target potential customers you must pay for targeting campaigns. Spending more money on ads is the necessary evil to succeed via social media & digital marketing. And without doing so your chances of converting traffic into actual business is as likely as shooting an apple off a person’s head while blindfolded and being spun around. The outcome is obviously lethal and with regards to your business it could be the same. So at the end of the day when using social media as a channel to increase direct bookings, you really must give to get.
    Investing those extra dollars to your marketing budgets is the only way to see any real results. And considering *social network ad spending hit over 23.6 Billion in 2015 alone, you can be sure if you don’t spend, your competitor will and they will reap the rewards instead of you.

      Paul Heil is the Global Sales Director at eRevMax. He can be reached at paulh@erevmax.com.
    SOURCES:
    * Over 3 billion people gaining access to the internet as of 2015 – http://www.internetlivestats.com/internet-users/
    *number of worldwide users to be using social networks by 2018 to be a whooping 2.5 Billion – http://www.statista.com/topics/1164/social-networks/
    * Nearly half of all online shoppers rely on social media when making a purchase online – http://www.voucherbin.co.uk/social-media-the-largest-international-expo-infographic/
    *74% of online adults use social networking sites. – http://www.pewinternet.org/fact-sheets/social-networking-fact-sheet/
    *1 in 5 Millennials access the internet  exclusively through their mobile devices. –http://www.ibtimes.com/1-5-millennials-access-internet-exclusively-through-mobile-devices-1880194
    * accounts with larger amounts of followers are unable to reach their target markets and make conversions unless they pay for visibility – http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/2016-social-media-marketing-predictions-from-the-experts/

    http://www.statisticbrain.com/social-networking-statistics/
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    Improve direct booking through incentives

    Mega online travel agencies are costly distribution channels for hoteliers. Hoteliers suffer from huge amount of revenue loss due to the high commissions charged by the Online Travel Agencies i.e. from 10-25 percent. So how can hotels bring customers to their own website for direct bookings instead of visiting an OTA?  A recent survey conducted among 2500 customers by Software Advice finds the answer:-
    If a hotel wants to implement your suggestions on offering a free room upgrade or any other perk, how and when should they do this?
    Our survey showed that consumers don’t agree on what free room upgrade they prefer, so it’s best for hotels to have a variety of room types available. This upgrade should be promoted to travelers at every possible chance: social media channels, the hotel’s booking page, within hotel marketing emails and other materials.
    Is it really cost effective to offer a traveler a free room upgrade just to get them to book direct, saving the hotel the 10-20% OTA fee?
    An upgrade to a room with a better view shouldn’t cost the hotel much, but the cost effectiveness of offering a room with a kitchenette, balcony or living room will depend on the particular hotel’s availability, rates and season. Even if the incentive costs as much as the OTA commission, the hotel has an opportunity to delight the guest and drive brand loyalty.
    Even though a perk like free room service wasn’t the most popular incentive, do you feel it could still convince travelers to book direct?
    I think free room service is a strong incentive for consumers to book directly, as the results showed that travelers are highly motivated by offers of food and drinks. Food is also a relatively low-cost offer for hotels.
    Should hotels take the traveler’s age into consideration before offering perks like these, or even certain kinds of perks for certain age ranges?
    In general, perks for free food and drinks should be effective for all ages, but different types of gift cards can be more effective for different ages. For example, our survey shows an older couple might respond better to a gift card for a local restaurant, while younger travelers could be more convinced by a gift card for a local theme park.
    Were you surprised by any of the survey results?
    I think it’s reasonable to expect people to be motivated by food and drinks since dining is such an important and often expensive aspect of traveling. However, I was surprised that the results for the most convincing room upgrade were split so evenly.
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    eRevMax adds metasearch channels in its distribution offerings

    While the concept of Meta search has existed for a number of years, but recently this method of research has become prominent within the travel industry. Following a 13 percent annual growth and a greater number of travellers citing a preference for Metasearch, eRevMax has partnered with World Independent Hotel Promotion (WIHP), to allow users of Connect and RateTiger to expand their visibility across Google Hotel Finder, TripAdvisor, Trivago, Kayak, and WeGo. It is anticipated that this will boost direct bookings, therefore reducing OTA fees. As a result of this partnership, tens of thousands of hotels across the world have been given new and exciting opportunities, according to WIHP VP Martin Soler.

    This new partnership will help hotels to increase bookings and revenue for their property, by driving qualified leads from metasearch sites to their own website. This will help them in reducing OTA commissions and improve overall profitability. The advanced tracking available with the service will help hotels to know the exact return on investment for each metasearch channel they are advertising on.
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    Why It’s Time to Include Meta Search in Your Distribution Portfolio

    Hotels around the globe are being told to prepare for the metasearchera, and that includes changing their marketing strategies, outlook, and software systems to make the transition from solely direct and OTA bookings to direct bookings via travel oriented meta search engines such as TripAdvisor. Meta search is fast becoming the ‘goto’ method of travel booking, up by 13 percent in the past year alone. Why? Not only are the younger generation of travellers more web savvy, but travellers today are also striving to find the best deals to meet strict budgets. Utilising meta search channels isn’t just about staying in the game, it’s about diversifying audiences, increasing visibility, and boosting brand reputation across multiple platforms.

    Meta search allows for visitors to book either through OTAs or through the brand website, helping to increase direct sales. Meta search sites such as TripAdvisor have been criticized for favouring OTAs with which they have a partnership, but direct information is available, which is more than can be said for OTAs themselves.

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    Three Strategies to Boost Direct Bookings and Still Appease OTAs

    Travelocity, Hotwire, Priceline and other travel deal sites require hotels to pay significant commission fees in exchange for bookings. While this is an important revenue source for the industry, some hotels have experienced an increasing percentage of their business moving to these channels (effectively reducing the amount of undocked reservations they receive).

    One primary reason for this trend is the assumption that these online travel agencies (OTAs) will always have the better deal. While rate parity clauses prevent hotels from publicly advertising rates for less than what’s on the OTA, there are strategies property owners can use to entice more customers to book direct.

    Recently, my company interviewed several hotel management software and hotel marketing experts to help brainstorm several ways hotels can drive direct bookings. Here’s what they suggested:

    Blog About Great Deals and Share The Posts
    Your blog is a great avenue for both reminding potential customers why that moment is a great time to travel, and for pitching them on deals relevant to whatever event or season might be happening. You can send these articles to your email list, as well as optimize them with keywords that have high search traffic. This latter strategy can drive more organic traffic to your website. For example, “SXSW hotels” receives 170 searches per month, so Austin-area hotels could write blogs optimized for that keyword so they rank when people search for that term in Google. Here’s an example of a blog post advertising Spring time events in the area around The Sanctuary Beach Resort in Monterey Bay:

    Hook Viewers with Strategic Design
    Often, travelers shopping on OTAs visit the hotel’s website to learn more about the accommodations offered. This is your chance to capture those site visitors and stop them from going back to the OTA. This takes smart web design.

    First off, make it as clear and hassle-free as possible to book. Provide “book now” buttons on every page that link to your hotel booking automation system. These buttons should be located at the top of the page so they are the first thing customers see. Also, include call-to-actions on every page that encourages visitors to “sign up for our email list for exclusive discounts,” or “Like on us on Facebook for special deals.”

    Also, many customers assume they will get the “least desirable rooms” if they book on an OTA. So you need to show them what your best rooms look like immediately. This could convince them it’s worth splurging on your room rather than an OTA room. Make sure your most attractive rooms, views and balconies (if you have them) are front and center (like on your homepage). These images need to be professionally taken, high quality and show the best parts of your most desired rooms – soaking tubs, incredible views, large windows and so on.

    By implementing these tips, savvy hotel managers can drive customers to their own website without upsetting their OTA and still reap the clear benefits of using OTAs. Rather than a battle, it can be a win for everyone involved.

    Interact with Customers on Review Sites
    Many times when customers use OTAs, they get a list of five or so properties in a similar price range. In addition to visiting the hotel websites, they might also go to something like Yelp or TripAdvisor. This presents another opportunity to draw customers to your own site, rather than having them go back to the OTA to book.

    When customers post reviews about your hotel, you need to try your best to answer as many as possible, where they’re positive or negative. Review, a web-based tool by eRevMax, makes monitoring these reviews as easy as checking emails. The application scours all hotel review sites and collects every mention of your hotel in one location. It also lets you respond directly to guests without ever leaving its interface, cutting down time spent hopping from one review site to another for an effective hotel guest review management process.

    Besides just viewing and responding to comments, the tool gives you a deeper understanding of your customers. You can see exactly what’s working and what’s not, trends among customers, and also how your hotel stacks up compared to your competitors.

    How do you increase direct bookings? Let us know!


    Alan S. Horowitz contributed to this report.

    Ashley Verrill is an analyst with Software Advice. She has spent the last six years reporting and writing business news and strategy features. Her work has been featured or cited in Inc., Forbes, Business Insider, GigaOM, CIO.com, Yahoo News, the Upstart Business Journal, the Austin Business Journal and the North Bay Business Journal, among others. She also produces original research-based reports and video content with industry experts and thought leaders.

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    Channel Management & OTAs

    Are hoteliers keeping pace with the changing online booking space?

    With a handful of powerful OTAs dominating the market, hoteliers are identifying ways to sidestep the high-commission they command. OTAs can be useful to engage a new guest, but many hoteliers are now aiming to drive repeat bookings to their own direct booking engines.

    Ryan Haynes discusses Channel Management and OTAs on Hotel-Industry.co.uk –     http://www.hotel-industry.co.uk/2012/12/erevmax-ratetiger-on-channel-management-and-otas/