In terms of hospitality services — hotels, airlines, cruises — Google is a significant power, simply because so many people start their planning at the search engine. As a result, you need to have Google Ads.
In other words, you need to pay to get your brand in front of searching customers.
For example, search “Times Square hotel” in Google and see what comes up. First off, search engine optimization (SEO) plays a part in which brands appear in the first few pages of results. But there are hotel companies that have paid to have their name at the very top. You have to pay for Google Ads to get your name out there.
Say you’re a Moxy Hotel, a Marriott brand targeted at Millennials. You want to make sure that when a consumer in this demographic searches for ‘Moxy Hotel New York City,’ you’re at the top of the first Google page.
The advantage of sites like TripAdvisor, Expedia, and Booking.com is that they can compare rates for several hotels.
If you go directly to the website for a Moxy location, you’re not comparing rates with other properties. There’s more information comparison — and maybe transparency — happening on Expedia, Kayak, etc., than at the hotel’s specific site. But it’s more costly. For example, if the customer books on Expedia, they could pay 10-20% more.
Simply put, hotel brands want consumers to visit their sites directly. How do they do this? For starters, they offer price matching. If you find a lower price than on their site, they’ll match it.
Hotel brands also say that you won’t collect loyalty points if you book through external channels like Expedia or Booking.com. Booking directly gives you loyalty points, and you’ll also get preferred treatment at the hotel.
Finally, in some cases, inventory — not the desired rooms — shows up in search results of external booking sites. Instead of offering a garden or ocean view, these could be on a lower level, windowless, or facing a busy highway.
Ultimately, hotel brands show a preference for consumers who book directly on their site. Having your hospitality brand at the top of Google search results means you’re more likely to have direct bookings.
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