gautam lulla
Understanding the True Cost of Distribution: Are You Leaving Money on the Table by Ignoring Your Direct Channel?
Gautam Lulla | May 16, 2018
By Gautam Lulla Hotels can make the biggest impact to their bottom line with an optimized direct channel. But a recent white paper by HEDNA found most independent properties are underinvesting and undervaluing this crucial part of their business. In "Hotel Distribution Data Management And Analysis," HEDNA discovered that just 48% of independents look closely at cost of distribution. Independents were also the least likely to use analytics to make decisions about distribution (67% relied on them), compared to chains (81%) and management companies (72%). Overall, the paper revealed something crucial: a lot of hotels just aren't focused on...
6 Hotel Booking Trends We’re Watching in 2018
Gautam Lulla | February 5, 2018
By Gautam Lulla Significant changes look set to transform the travel industry in 2018. Blockchain technology, China's booming tourist sector, and the continuing travel ambitions of Airbnb, Facebook and Google all look set to define the coming 12 months. Here are six major trends we will be keeping an eye on in 2018. 1. Review platforms attempting to dethrone TripAdvisor The dominance of the world's biggest travel review site will be heavily challenged in 2018. Along with the less-than-stellar performance of its hotel booking product, TripAdvisor's reputation suffered following revelations that it censored reviews concerning rape allegat...
5 Ways Hotels Can Use Behavioral Economics to Improve Conversion Rates
Gautam Lulla | December 20, 2017
By Gautam Lulla Understanding the rationale behind consumer decision-making has long been an obsession for marketers. Popularized today as behavioral economics, brands such as Amazon and Netflix invest millions into understanding the psychology of their consumers shopping habits in order to drive purchases. In the travel industry, OTAs also build their platforms around principles of buying psychology to boost conversion rates. Yet far from being a secret or expensive investment, many of these same principles can be applied by hotels. In the following post, we'll look at 5 ways hotels can use behavioral economics with actionable examples...
