Why to have your own online reservation system (Non OTA)

[JBloggs]

Rezervationkey.com thank you for your due diligence, we will stick with you. Thanks John for your fantastic support.
I wanted to start this thread so it is easy to find, we discuss these in and out of other threads, but this is simple and clear to the point. When the plethora of others come knocking at our door, we are still using RezKey. Don't mess with third party apps that make you liable with credit card security issues, this one has developed the program to meet our needs, and is always adding new features.
I am 100% behind RezKey and have 6 guest rooms. Most cost effective I have found.
OTA's are not online reservations. They will steal you blind. But if you get more bookings with them and are willing to pay the piper, then sobeit. We are all different and have to do what works best for us, but we do need to do our homework.

 

[nataliebee]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part...

 

[Morticia]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part...

Am I reading that you do not have a website? ...we just dropped our outdated website...
You are only bookable thru an OTA? ...hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us...
I'll wait until you answer those questions as I jumped the gun before.

 

[nataliebee]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part...

Am I reading that you do not have a website? ...we just dropped our outdated website...
You are only bookable thru an OTA? ...hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us...
I'll wait until you answer those questions as I jumped the gun before.
.

We do have a website. It was outdated, from the 2000s, not great, couldn't book a room on it, etc. It was bad.
Booking.com carries our web site now; they designed it. What sold us was the "Book Now" feature, which is what our original site didn't have. These sales carry a 10% per booking commission instead of the regular 15% through the actual Booking.com website. We are linked right to the calendars, reviews, availability, marketing resources, etc.
Guests can also contact us direct. We still get a ton of phone calls, people drop in on us to check things out, we have walk ins, e-mails, etc. When I'm a guest, I always call the property directly. This is what a lot of people prefer, but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.

 

[Jcam]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part...

Am I reading that you do not have a website? ...we just dropped our outdated website...
You are only bookable thru an OTA? ...hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us...
I'll wait until you answer those questions as I jumped the gun before.
.

We do have a website. It was outdated, from the 2000s, not great, couldn't book a room on it, etc. It was bad.
Booking.com carries our web site now; they designed it. What sold us was the "Book Now" feature, which is what our original site didn't have. These sales carry a 10% per booking commission instead of the regular 15% through the actual Booking.com website. We are linked right to the calendars, reviews, availability, marketing resources, etc.
Guests can also contact us direct. We still get a ton of phone calls, people drop in on us to check things out, we have walk ins, e-mails, etc. When I'm a guest, I always call the property directly. This is what a lot of people prefer, but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.
.

the trouble I find with a bokoing.com web site is they own it not you - if you want to leave later its tough. PLus how much control over changes do you have?

 

[gillumhouse]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part...

Am I reading that you do not have a website? ...we just dropped our outdated website...
You are only bookable thru an OTA? ...hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us...
I'll wait until you answer those questions as I jumped the gun before.
.

We do have a website. It was outdated, from the 2000s, not great, couldn't book a room on it, etc. It was bad.
Booking.com carries our web site now; they designed it. What sold us was the "Book Now" feature, which is what our original site didn't have. These sales carry a 10% per booking commission instead of the regular 15% through the actual Booking.com website. We are linked right to the calendars, reviews, availability, marketing resources, etc.
Guests can also contact us direct. We still get a ton of phone calls, people drop in on us to check things out, we have walk ins, e-mails, etc. When I'm a guest, I always call the property directly. This is what a lot of people prefer, but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.
.

Investing on your own web site is very important. YOU own the domain name, YOU own the content, and if YOU get aggro with the host, YOU can move to a different host - losing nothing.
My site was developed by a web designer. I have the Book Now button - that is just a simple matter of adding code. The entire site does not have to be abandoned for that reason. If outdated, update it.
Please re-think the bdotcon as your web site. Not chastising, just saying. Control as much as you possibly can of your own business.

 

[Morticia]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part...

Am I reading that you do not have a website? ...we just dropped our outdated website...
You are only bookable thru an OTA? ...hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us...
I'll wait until you answer those questions as I jumped the gun before.
.

We do have a website. It was outdated, from the 2000s, not great, couldn't book a room on it, etc. It was bad.
Booking.com carries our web site now; they designed it. What sold us was the "Book Now" feature, which is what our original site didn't have. These sales carry a 10% per booking commission instead of the regular 15% through the actual Booking.com website. We are linked right to the calendars, reviews, availability, marketing resources, etc.
Guests can also contact us direct. We still get a ton of phone calls, people drop in on us to check things out, we have walk ins, e-mails, etc. When I'm a guest, I always call the property directly. This is what a lot of people prefer, but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.
.

but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.

By this you mean with the book now button thru booking. So, you are giving 10% of all of your online income to an OTA when anyone books online. How do you sync your walk in/call in traffic with the booking.com calendar?
It's not good to have so many eggs in one basket. Branching out is a good idea. Of course, with an outdated website you'll have to spend some money to get a good one with an online booking system. A lot of us do our own but if you haven't any skills in this area it's better to hire someone who can pull together the site for you and give you instruction on how to update it yourself.
How to market your own website rather than relying on an OTA that is being paid by lots of people to do the same thing - you need good SEO built into your site so it shows up when your area is searched. You need to offer the guest something to look at: good photos, local area info, things like that.
If you are not the only property in your area look at the other websites for help determining how THEY are coming up in searches.

 

[nataliebee]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part...

Am I reading that you do not have a website? ...we just dropped our outdated website...
You are only bookable thru an OTA? ...hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us...
I'll wait until you answer those questions as I jumped the gun before.
.

We do have a website. It was outdated, from the 2000s, not great, couldn't book a room on it, etc. It was bad.
Booking.com carries our web site now; they designed it. What sold us was the "Book Now" feature, which is what our original site didn't have. These sales carry a 10% per booking commission instead of the regular 15% through the actual Booking.com website. We are linked right to the calendars, reviews, availability, marketing resources, etc.
Guests can also contact us direct. We still get a ton of phone calls, people drop in on us to check things out, we have walk ins, e-mails, etc. When I'm a guest, I always call the property directly. This is what a lot of people prefer, but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.
.

the trouble I find with a bokoing.com web site is they own it not you - if you want to leave later its tough. PLus how much control over changes do you have?
.

We have complete control over content, availability (including blocking dates out if we only want direct sales on weekends, special events, etc.) and it automates all reporting, has excellent customer service, etc.
I think when we moved over to B.C. the big draw was the Book Now button; this was, we felt, a quick fix to having a crappy web site and I think the upfront costs to overhaul scared us a little. Now that I see this is the norm, especially with B&Bs, this will help entice the Owner.

 

[nataliebee]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part...

Am I reading that you do not have a website? ...we just dropped our outdated website...
You are only bookable thru an OTA? ...hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us...
I'll wait until you answer those questions as I jumped the gun before.
.

We do have a website. It was outdated, from the 2000s, not great, couldn't book a room on it, etc. It was bad.
Booking.com carries our web site now; they designed it. What sold us was the "Book Now" feature, which is what our original site didn't have. These sales carry a 10% per booking commission instead of the regular 15% through the actual Booking.com website. We are linked right to the calendars, reviews, availability, marketing resources, etc.
Guests can also contact us direct. We still get a ton of phone calls, people drop in on us to check things out, we have walk ins, e-mails, etc. When I'm a guest, I always call the property directly. This is what a lot of people prefer, but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.
.

Investing on your own web site is very important. YOU own the domain name, YOU own the content, and if YOU get aggro with the host, YOU can move to a different host - losing nothing.
My site was developed by a web designer. I have the Book Now button - that is just a simple matter of adding code. The entire site does not have to be abandoned for that reason. If outdated, update it.
Please re-think the bdotcon as your web site. Not chastising, just saying. Control as much as you possibly can of your own business.
.

Oh, I'm always sold on overhauling inefficient ways, trust me!

I think at this point, just finding the system that would serve us that best is the main goal.

 

[nataliebee]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part...

Am I reading that you do not have a website? ...we just dropped our outdated website...
You are only bookable thru an OTA? ...hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us...
I'll wait until you answer those questions as I jumped the gun before.
.

We do have a website. It was outdated, from the 2000s, not great, couldn't book a room on it, etc. It was bad.
Booking.com carries our web site now; they designed it. What sold us was the "Book Now" feature, which is what our original site didn't have. These sales carry a 10% per booking commission instead of the regular 15% through the actual Booking.com website. We are linked right to the calendars, reviews, availability, marketing resources, etc.
Guests can also contact us direct. We still get a ton of phone calls, people drop in on us to check things out, we have walk ins, e-mails, etc. When I'm a guest, I always call the property directly. This is what a lot of people prefer, but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.
.

but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.

By this you mean with the book now button thru booking. So, you are giving 10% of all of your online income to an OTA when anyone books online. How do you sync your walk in/call in traffic with the booking.com calendar?
It's not good to have so many eggs in one basket. Branching out is a good idea. Of course, with an outdated website you'll have to spend some money to get a good one with an online booking system. A lot of us do our own but if you haven't any skills in this area it's better to hire someone who can pull together the site for you and give you instruction on how to update it yourself.
How to market your own website rather than relying on an OTA that is being paid by lots of people to do the same thing - you need good SEO built into your site so it shows up when your area is searched. You need to offer the guest something to look at: good photos, local area info, things like that.
If you are not the only property in your area look at the other websites for help determining how THEY are coming up in searches.
.

I don't know how to successfully pull a quote...
We sync direct calls and OTAs manually, frustratingly, and I'm starting to realize, it's just unnecessary. Overbookings happen maybe twice a season. I come up with a system of cross checking OTAs vs. our books.

 

[Morticia]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part...

Am I reading that you do not have a website? ...we just dropped our outdated website...
You are only bookable thru an OTA? ...hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us...
I'll wait until you answer those questions as I jumped the gun before.
.

We do have a website. It was outdated, from the 2000s, not great, couldn't book a room on it, etc. It was bad.
Booking.com carries our web site now; they designed it. What sold us was the "Book Now" feature, which is what our original site didn't have. These sales carry a 10% per booking commission instead of the regular 15% through the actual Booking.com website. We are linked right to the calendars, reviews, availability, marketing resources, etc.
Guests can also contact us direct. We still get a ton of phone calls, people drop in on us to check things out, we have walk ins, e-mails, etc. When I'm a guest, I always call the property directly. This is what a lot of people prefer, but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.
.

but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.

By this you mean with the book now button thru booking. So, you are giving 10% of all of your online income to an OTA when anyone books online. How do you sync your walk in/call in traffic with the booking.com calendar?
It's not good to have so many eggs in one basket. Branching out is a good idea. Of course, with an outdated website you'll have to spend some money to get a good one with an online booking system. A lot of us do our own but if you haven't any skills in this area it's better to hire someone who can pull together the site for you and give you instruction on how to update it yourself.
How to market your own website rather than relying on an OTA that is being paid by lots of people to do the same thing - you need good SEO built into your site so it shows up when your area is searched. You need to offer the guest something to look at: good photos, local area info, things like that.
If you are not the only property in your area look at the other websites for help determining how THEY are coming up in searches.
.

I don't know how to successfully pull a quote...
We sync direct calls and OTAs manually, frustratingly, and I'm starting to realize, it's just unnecessary. Overbookings happen maybe twice a season. I come up with a system of cross checking OTAs vs. our books.
.

I don't know how to successfully pull a quote...
We sync direct calls and OTAs manually, frustratingly, and I'm starting to realize, it's just unnecessary. Overbookings happen maybe twice a season. I come up with a system of cross checking OTAs vs. our books.

Hit the quote button under the post you want to quote. If you want to edit the quote (in case it's really long and you just want to answer part of it) erase the bits in between the formatting commands. . Don't erase the formatting commands [quote ] as that throws everything in the thread off.

 

[dumitru]

I would like to jump in with some info. The website that nataliebee refers to is the new-ish service that booking started offering after they acquired buuteeq last year. It is called BookingSuite and they create "custom" websites for the properties in exchange for a 10% cut out of all sales via the website.
So if a sale comes through their main .com site = you pay a larger commission.
If a sale comes through your domain (which runs a website provided by them) = they get a 10% commission.
Either way - you pay them something

 

[nataliebee]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part...

Am I reading that you do not have a website? ...we just dropped our outdated website...
You are only bookable thru an OTA? ...hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us...
I'll wait until you answer those questions as I jumped the gun before.
.

We do have a website. It was outdated, from the 2000s, not great, couldn't book a room on it, etc. It was bad.
Booking.com carries our web site now; they designed it. What sold us was the "Book Now" feature, which is what our original site didn't have. These sales carry a 10% per booking commission instead of the regular 15% through the actual Booking.com website. We are linked right to the calendars, reviews, availability, marketing resources, etc.
Guests can also contact us direct. We still get a ton of phone calls, people drop in on us to check things out, we have walk ins, e-mails, etc. When I'm a guest, I always call the property directly. This is what a lot of people prefer, but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.
.

but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.

By this you mean with the book now button thru booking. So, you are giving 10% of all of your online income to an OTA when anyone books online. How do you sync your walk in/call in traffic with the booking.com calendar?
It's not good to have so many eggs in one basket. Branching out is a good idea. Of course, with an outdated website you'll have to spend some money to get a good one with an online booking system. A lot of us do our own but if you haven't any skills in this area it's better to hire someone who can pull together the site for you and give you instruction on how to update it yourself.
How to market your own website rather than relying on an OTA that is being paid by lots of people to do the same thing - you need good SEO built into your site so it shows up when your area is searched. You need to offer the guest something to look at: good photos, local area info, things like that.
If you are not the only property in your area look at the other websites for help determining how THEY are coming up in searches.
.

I don't know how to successfully pull a quote...
We sync direct calls and OTAs manually, frustratingly, and I'm starting to realize, it's just unnecessary. Overbookings happen maybe twice a season. I come up with a system of cross checking OTAs vs. our books.
.

I don't know how to successfully pull a quote...
We sync direct calls and OTAs manually, frustratingly, and I'm starting to realize, it's just unnecessary. Overbookings happen maybe twice a season. I come up with a system of cross checking OTAs vs. our books.

Hit the quote button under the post you want to quote. If you want to edit the quote (in case it's really long and you just want to answer part of it) erase the bits in between the formatting commands. . Don't erase the formatting commands [quote ] as that throws everything in the thread off.
.

Hit the quote button under the post you want to quote.

Ah, perfect, thanks! I swear I'm not computer illiterate!

 

[EmptyNest]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

Why in heaven's name would you let BOoking dot com take over control of YOUR web presence. Not a good thing. Others have already said it so I won't say more. Have you ever taken an innkeeping workshop or attended a B & B conference? You should because you would be getting information to help you run your business the way it should be run.
There is no way I would be giving $$$ to OTA'S!!!

 

[gillumhouse]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part...

Am I reading that you do not have a website? ...we just dropped our outdated website...
You are only bookable thru an OTA? ...hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us...
I'll wait until you answer those questions as I jumped the gun before.
.

We do have a website. It was outdated, from the 2000s, not great, couldn't book a room on it, etc. It was bad.
Booking.com carries our web site now; they designed it. What sold us was the "Book Now" feature, which is what our original site didn't have. These sales carry a 10% per booking commission instead of the regular 15% through the actual Booking.com website. We are linked right to the calendars, reviews, availability, marketing resources, etc.
Guests can also contact us direct. We still get a ton of phone calls, people drop in on us to check things out, we have walk ins, e-mails, etc. When I'm a guest, I always call the property directly. This is what a lot of people prefer, but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.
.

the trouble I find with a bokoing.com web site is they own it not you - if you want to leave later its tough. PLus how much control over changes do you have?
.

We have complete control over content, availability (including blocking dates out if we only want direct sales on weekends, special events, etc.) and it automates all reporting, has excellent customer service, etc.
I think when we moved over to B.C. the big draw was the Book Now button; this was, we felt, a quick fix to having a crappy web site and I think the upfront costs to overhaul scared us a little. Now that I see this is the norm, especially with B&Bs, this will help entice the Owner.
.

Treat the owner that way I tell folks to get politicians to do what you need. Show them the money! Show your owner how for an investment of $xxxx.00 they will save a total of $xxxxx.xx in commissions to offset the initial web site investment. The rest will be gravy.
Then with RezKey or some other online booking system you can direct book and save more commission. You can still use bdotcon but you will not need them as much.

 

[Alaska's Capital Inn]

Are you using the MyAllocator as well with Rezkey? Works well?

 

[nataliebee]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

Why in heaven's name would you let BOoking dot com take over control of YOUR web presence. Not a good thing. Others have already said it so I won't say more. Have you ever taken an innkeeping workshop or attended a B & B conference? You should because you would be getting information to help you run your business the way it should be run.
There is no way I would be giving $$$ to OTA'S!!!
.

OK, I think if you reread the other posts this is not doing me our the Inn I help run any good... it's been established that we should have rethought our strategy after paying so much through B.C... remember this is only my first year... with comments like this I just end up feeling quite dim and not doing a good job.

 

[nataliebee]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part...

Am I reading that you do not have a website? ...we just dropped our outdated website...
You are only bookable thru an OTA? ...hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us...
I'll wait until you answer those questions as I jumped the gun before.
.

We do have a website. It was outdated, from the 2000s, not great, couldn't book a room on it, etc. It was bad.
Booking.com carries our web site now; they designed it. What sold us was the "Book Now" feature, which is what our original site didn't have. These sales carry a 10% per booking commission instead of the regular 15% through the actual Booking.com website. We are linked right to the calendars, reviews, availability, marketing resources, etc.
Guests can also contact us direct. We still get a ton of phone calls, people drop in on us to check things out, we have walk ins, e-mails, etc. When I'm a guest, I always call the property directly. This is what a lot of people prefer, but most of our sales come from online bookings, yes.
.

the trouble I find with a bokoing.com web site is they own it not you - if you want to leave later its tough. PLus how much control over changes do you have?
.

We have complete control over content, availability (including blocking dates out if we only want direct sales on weekends, special events, etc.) and it automates all reporting, has excellent customer service, etc.
I think when we moved over to B.C. the big draw was the Book Now button; this was, we felt, a quick fix to having a crappy web site and I think the upfront costs to overhaul scared us a little. Now that I see this is the norm, especially with B&Bs, this will help entice the Owner.
.

Treat the owner that way I tell folks to get politicians to do what you need. Show them the money! Show your owner how for an investment of $xxxx.00 they will save a total of $xxxxx.xx in commissions to offset the initial web site investment. The rest will be gravy.
Then with RezKey or some other online booking system you can direct book and save more commission. You can still use bdotcon but you will not need them as much.
.

That is a wonderful way of putting it! I actually had a conversation with the Owner, by phone, about an hour ago and she's all for it. We all talk about rehashing the season; I think this is one we're doing.

 

[Morticia]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

Why in heaven's name would you let BOoking dot com take over control of YOUR web presence. Not a good thing. Others have already said it so I won't say more. Have you ever taken an innkeeping workshop or attended a B & B conference? You should because you would be getting information to help you run your business the way it should be run.
There is no way I would be giving $$$ to OTA'S!!!
.

OK, I think if you reread the other posts this is not doing me our the Inn I help run any good... it's been established that we should have rethought our strategy after paying so much through B.C... remember this is only my first year... with comments like this I just end up feeling quite dim and not doing a good job.
.

OK, I think if you reread the other posts this is not doing me our the Inn I help run any good... it's been established that we should have rethought our strategy after paying so much through B.C... remember this is only my first year... with comments like this I just end up feeling quite dim and not doing a good job.

It's your first year, yes, but the owner has had the place at least since 2000 if that's when the dud website was from. What has THAT person been doing all these years? That's the annoying part. You've stepped into it and are trying to make things better but it sounds like it's uphill all the way.

 

[nataliebee]

How do you drive direct sales with just your website? Do you also take advantage of Facebook, etc. marketing? The main reason we just dropped our outdated website and hopped on Booking.com is that we figured the OTA would handle the marketing for us. It seems that putting the money into the site and reservation system makes sense but then how do you get the sales you otherwise would partnered with a successful OTA?
Sorry if this has been asked and answered... just trying to wrap my head around that part....

Why in heaven's name would you let BOoking dot com take over control of YOUR web presence. Not a good thing. Others have already said it so I won't say more. Have you ever taken an innkeeping workshop or attended a B & B conference? You should because you would be getting information to help you run your business the way it should be run.
There is no way I would be giving $$$ to OTA'S!!!
.

OK, I think if you reread the other posts this is not doing me our the Inn I help run any good... it's been established that we should have rethought our strategy after paying so much through B.C... remember this is only my first year... with comments like this I just end up feeling quite dim and not doing a good job.
.

OK, I think if you reread the other posts this is not doing me our the Inn I help run any good... it's been established that we should have rethought our strategy after paying so much through B.C... remember this is only my first year... with comments like this I just end up feeling quite dim and not doing a good job.

It's your first year, yes, but the owner has had the place at least since 2000 if that's when the dud website was from. What has THAT person been doing all these years? That's the annoying part. You've stepped into it and are trying to make things better but it sounds like it's uphill all the way.
.

Nope. The current Owner has had it for four years. She doesn't live here, she needs us to make things better. But I don't want that to be the main focus; let it be known we are doing great! We just need to tweak to make everything run smoothly.