ota's
Cloudbeds Publishes ‘Big Book of OTAs,’ Unveils Top Performing Distribution Channels and Strategic Guide to Driving Growth
Cloudbeds | August 11, 2022
Award-winning hospitality tech company releases comprehensive directory of 75+ top revenue-generating online travel agencies (OTAs), plus a recipe for building the ideal channel mix (SAN DIEGO) — Cloudbeds, the hospitality management platform powering more reservations and happier guests for lodging businesses around the globe, revealed data on top performing distribution channels in a free guide released today titled, “The Big Book of OTAs: A Hotelier’s Guide to Top Distribution Channels.” Among the key findings, Cloudbeds found that lodging businesses connected to at least six distribution channels saw an average revenue increas...
Study Reveals Increasing Importance of OTA Travelers in Economic Recovery
Expedia Group | October 14, 2020
SEATTLE - A new Expedia Group study, in partnership with global research firm BVA BDRC, examines the contributions of online travel agencies (OTAs) to the US travel and tourism sector, the spending patterns of OTA travelers, and the role of OTAs in the hotel booking journey. The research points to the increasing importance of OTA travelers to propel economic recovery for the US travel industry. Key findings Traveler Preferences Traveler Behaviors Travelers are 57% more likely to book their travel through an OTA now than before COVID-19 Domestic OTA travelers spend 16% more per trip and 5% more on-property tha...
The Rise and Fall of OTAs
Rob Sudakow | July 24, 2019
Is Expedia Destined for Disruption? By Rob Sudakow Travel and Tourism accounted for approximately $8 Trillion of the world economy in 2018 and 10% of the world’s work force - a 6% increase from 2017 and no foreseeable signs of slowing. The travel industry is directly tied to global consumption growth and as wealth and populations continue to grow, demand for travel products will continue to expand. With statistics like this it should come as no surprise that there is a rush to jump into the market. The industry has a long history of failing to drive change and transform internally. “The travel and hospitality industry as a whole has ...
What the Hotel World Looks Like in 2020
Robert A. Rauch | April 3, 2019
Bob Rauch and Sarah Andersen Hotel Distribution is arguably the big topic of the near term. Expedia Group and Booking Holdings (previously Priceline) are the two big online travel agencies (OTAs), dominating well over 70% of OTA market share. Now this duopoly faces major disruption by Airbnb, Facebook, and Google. Airbnb just bought HotelTonight, an app-based company that sells last-minute, unused boutique and independent hotel inventory. Meanwhile, SiteMinder's "BookingButton" already integrate into Facebook business pages as a widget, eliminating the need to click away from the site to make a booking. Add in the possibility that Googl...
Hospitality Financial Leadership: Why OTA’s Are Uber Successful
David Lund | November 5, 2018
By David Lund Have you ever wondered why we all hear so much complaining and downright all-around annoyance being expressed from hotels about the on-line travel agents? You would naturally think that because there is so much protest being made that hotels would simply not use the service and opt for something else? Right? Well – not so fast as hotels are reportedly using OTA's more than ever. There are three key reasons why OTA's are so successful and, in turn, why hotels and customers all flock to use them. One. Hotels, brands and franchisers all benefit from using OTA's and they do so without making a single dollar of investment...
How 5 Hotels Compete With OTAs by Showcasing Unique Local Experiences
Nancy Huang | October 25, 2018
By Nancy Huang Today's travelers are no longer content with merely visiting a destination and have the same experience as everyone else. They increasingly yearn for something unique and want to explore the places they visit through a local perspective. This emerging need represents a huge opportunity for hotels. By creating in-depth destination guides, or by hosting their own locally-led tours, hotels can make their properties more desirable to drive more direct bookings. The following post highlights five hotels that are promoting their destinations with engaging neighborhood guides and authentic local experiences. But before diving...
Beat the OTAs: Use Your Hotel Website to Tell a Unique Brand Story
Steffan Berelowitz | October 1, 2018
By Steffan Berelowitz Competing with OTAs for direct bookings continues to represent an uphill challenge for hotels. The likes of Expedia and Booking.com have become masters at conversion, investing millions to whisk shoppers from browsing to booking in the minimum amount of steps. However, the transactional nature of this experience is far from inspiring. It also makes it hard for hotels to stand out and showcase their unique personality. Deals and limited offers therefore become the means of differentiation, which clearly isn't good for business. To stand out from the crowd and drive more direct bookings, it's important to think of yo...
Another Move by the OTAs That Is Harmful to Hotel Profitability – What You Need to Know
HEBS Digital | August 22, 2018
By Max Starkov Background: Two recent events in hotel distribution created a mild media buzz, but unfortunately were ignored by some hoteliers and quickly forgotten by the industry: Expedia's Add-On Advantage and Booking.basic. Below we will discuss the issues with these two new initiatives by Expedia and Booking.com, reminiscent of the old Wild West times of hotel distribution and the early years of unruly OTAs, before rate parity and best rate guarantees. Both OTA initiatives use package or wholesale rates in clear violation of package and wholesale rates contract terms. We feel compelled to remind hoteliers how detrimental these new ...
