How to encourage direct hotel bookings

It’s never a great feeling to hand over control of your bookings and a share of your profits to a third-party online travel agent (OTA). 

But if you take note of what encourages your guests to book direct, you could reduce your reliance on them.  

Our research shows you can encourage direct bookings three ways: Price, Perks and Peace of mind.

We commissioned market researchers Yonder to question 1,001 adults in Ireland in an online survey in February and March 2024. They were asked to pick the top three reasons they would book directly with a hotel, rather than through an online portal such as hotels.com or booking.com. 

And the good news for you is that there wasn’t much distinction between what motivates business travellers and those travelling for pleasure. 

So, get it right and it’ll work across the board for you.

Offer prices lower than the online travel agents.

A huge 85% of those who book hotels, said a lower price would encourage them to go direct to the hotel in question rather than through an online booking agent. 

That strength of feeling is consistent across the country for all ages and genders. 

“With online travel agents taking as much as a third of the price of a booking, you don’t have to be offering much of a discount to be increasing your bottom line and saving on those OTA margins,” says Dave Wheatcroft, Head of European Hospitality for Elavon in Europe. 

“The crucial thing is making sure potential guests know you’re offering lower prices and that the deal is only for those who book direct.”

Additional perks 

More than half (52%) of those who book hotels, said additional perks, such as free breakfast or parking, was a top reason to book direct.

And as specific perks go, two out of five (42%) especially like the offer of a free room upgrade. 

“Don’t underestimate the power of the perk,” says Dave. “The cost to you of a free breakfast or a discount at the bar is a small to win that extra booking, especially as you’ve already got the staff on shift and the stock in.

“A room upgrade may seem steeper, but if it means that room is being used rather than lying empty, it’s a bonus. It can also increase brand loyalty because you’ve made the guest feel even more special.  

“And use it as a chance to show off your best rooms. Having experienced an upgraded room this time, they may even pay a little more for the same standard next time,” he adds.

“A digital booking system with integrated payments makes easy work of adding and tracking perks or discounts, either at the point of booking or during the stay. It gets even better if it offers them the chance to pay in their home currency. That can reduce the numbers bailing out before confirming the booking, while also increasing your profits.”

Peace of mind

Two in five adults (41%) said peace of mind was a reason they would book direct - and it makes sense.  

If you’re away from home in an unknown town and trying to get the most from your holiday or some rest after work, the last thing you want is to find your room is unavailable or that your booking didn’t ‘go through’.

“Peace of mind is so important to travellers, both leisure and business,” says Dave. 

“If something goes wrong, it’s much more likely your team will be more responsive than a faceless online booking portal. You know that, and this result shows your guests know it too. 

“So, make sure your confirmation notes are friendly and reflect the warm welcome that’s waiting for them. Give all the details of how to reach your team around the clock and make it easy for them if there is a problem. How smoothly and warmly you dealt with a problem can often turn a critic into a champion.” 

And as we all like a perk, we have two extra insights for you too... 

Although price, perks and peace of mind were the biggest drivers for direct booking, it was clear that a simple or quicker booking system was also attractive – with almost one in three adults (31%) saying so.  

This could be your call to action to create that app for your hotel that makes booking and paying easy. It can also be a great way to foster brand loyalty, especially if you have multiple sites and the same standards across them.  

And that's important because more than a fifth of all travellers (22%), and almost a quarter (24%) of those travelling specifically for work, also said earning loyalty rewards encouraged them to book direct. 

“A good booking system and integrated payment solution makes it incredibly easy for you and your customer to keep track of any loyalty points earned,” says David.

“It’s then equally easy to redeem those points later, either when booking, checking in, checking out, in the bar, the restaurant, the spa or almost anywhere else you choose. The possibilities are limitless.” 

Talk to us if you want to explore how we can help you make things simple for your guest, easy for your team and brilliant for your business.

Source: Yonder conducted an online sample of 1,002 adults 18+ in Ireland between 27 February -  1 March 2024. Data is weighted to be representative of the known population of Ireland. Yonder is a founding member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules.

Question: When booking a hotel, what would encourage you to book directly with a hotel rather than through an agency or travel search engine such as Booking.com or Hotels.com? Please select your top three. Table rebased to exclude those who said they don’t travel.