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Metasearch marketing has become increasingly popular in the realms of digital marketing. It is one of the most useful ways to create brand awareness and increase exposure to different online booking channels.
What is a Metasearch Engine?
Metasearch engines are hotel aggregators that combine travel data like hotel prices, location and current room rates together. It displays all rates from both the hotel’s website and OTAs together. This way, potential clients are able to compare the prices of the hotel rooms to each other. It is especially helpful for hotels as hotels can display room rates from their website and increase direct bookings.
Why Metasearch Marketing?
There are many reasons why metasearch marketing is important for hotels. Here are lists of why you should work on metasearch marketing if you want to maximize your profit.
1 – Increase Brand Awareness
Metasearch engines allow you to display your hotel rates online. By doing this, it automatically exposes your brand to the internet. Customers are able to see your hotel from the metasearch and know about you. This increases your brand awareness.
2 – Increase Direct Bookings
Since metasearch engines not only display rates from different OTAs but also display rates from your website, it can increase the chances of direct bookings. Customers are more likely to book from the hotel’s website, even once they’ve compared prices to different OTAs. This is because the hotel’s original website is more reliable to customers than other online distribution channels.
3 – Lower Dependency on OTAs
Metasearch engine allows you to combine different kinds of distribution channels, including your own website. Potential customers are able to choose different platforms to book your room with. This decreases the dependency on different distribution channels along with also increasing the chances of your direct bookings.
4 – Increase Bookings on all Platforms
Hotel rates on metasearch engines are much easier to find. It’s short, simple and straight to the point. Customers don’t need to go through different OTA websites and hotel websites to search for rates and availability. Metasearch engines display this directly for clients. That’s why it’s much more likely that customers will book the hotel with you, because it’s easily accessible and simple.
The Difference Between Metasearch Engine and OTAs
Metasearch and OTAs work differently from each other but can be used together to increase more exposure to different customers and increase online bookings. OTAs typically have their own websites that display the hotel rate and sell the rooms for you. They expose your hotel to a broader audience, increasing the chances of more online bookings. Your hotel image, room information, rate and availability is displayed for you on the OTAs website. Metasearch engine isn’t a website but it displays all the rates and availability from all over, including OTAs. It displays the rate as a list also with your website. Customers are able to compare these prices whereas they wouldn’t be able to on the OTAs website.
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