I said I value Expedia far more - I didn't say they get the same number of bookings lol
I just tend to reward those I find easier to work with by offering slightly lower rates - in 2017, bookings via Expedia increased as a result (not massively but enough to give them an extra £1k in commission this year), which has obviously meant a loss of commission to those OTAs who always make things as hard as they can.
For us, it is now all about driving direct bookings. The OTAs aren't going to change but we can.
Everything we do says "book direct" - whether it be links on emails, business cards next to free bottles of water, correct website design (and monitoring) and even signature lines on all forums we use (no matter what they cover).
And, for less than £200, we have 7 large canvas prints around the hotel which show local landscapes, attractions etc with our website address on them and the book direct message.
Our direct bookings are building really well as a result.
Rate Parity is now illegal in the UK - not sure which Country you are in.
Our direct booking rate are one price, we add up to 15% on to booking.com rates and we add just 12% on to Expedia rates (as we value that partnership more).
If one OTA gets too "controlling" we just up their rates.
Hi
I said I value Expedia far more - I didn't say they get the same number of bookings lol
I just tend to reward those I find easier to work with by offering slightly lower rates - in 2017, bookings via Expedia increased as a result (not massively but enough to give them an extra £1k in commission this year), which has obviously meant a loss of commission to those OTAs who always make things as hard as they can.
For us, it is now all about driving direct bookings. The OTAs aren't going to change but we can.
Everything we do says "book direct" - whether it be links on emails, business cards next to free bottles of water, correct website design (and monitoring) and even signature lines on all forums we use (no matter what they cover).
And, for less than £200, we have 7 large canvas prints around the hotel which show local landscapes, attractions etc with our website address on them and the book direct message.
Our direct bookings are building really well as a result.
Rate Parity is now illegal in the UK - not sure which Country you are in.
Our direct booking rate are one price, we add up to 15% on to booking.com rates and we add just 12% on to Expedia rates (as we value that partnership more).
If one OTA gets too "controlling" we just up their rates.
download the Pulse App as its actually quite useful