As hoteliers continue to battle economic challenges and build out strategies to successfully recover from the impacts of the pandemic, Google Hotel Ads is providing a way for small properties to maximise bookings and revenue.

This comes after leading all-in-one hotel software provider Little Hotelier revealed significant growth in reservations from Google Hotel Ads via its metasearch offering.

Reservations secured via Google Hotel Ads grew by a total of 112% year-on-year to October 2022. On a regional basis the Asia-Pacific saw a 389% increase, Europe saw 46%, and the Americas saw 100%.

Google Hotel Ads gives all properties a chance to compete for direct bookings, even with a small budget. Instead of competing organically with travel agent giants such as Booking.com or Expedia, metasearch services like Google Hotel Ads allow operators to be front and centre when travellers are performing targeted research by bidding on search terms and paying for the clicks they generate (cost-per-click being the most popular model).

Guests enjoy using metasearch to find and book hotels because they can easily compare prices and features. If the guest chooses to make a reservation it is done instantly through the hotel’s booking engine, rather than a third party, meaning a direct relationship with the guest is secured. It also means the hotel has greater potential to profit from each reservation, by paying a lower fee and also generating revenue from upsells and extras.

To get started, hoteliers will first need a completed Google Business profile and a Google Hotel Ads connectivity partner. Having a connectivity partner allows the hotel to integrate rates and availability in real-time, as well as take direct reservations.

To learn more about it, read Little Hotelier’s full guide to Google Hotel Ads or see how Little Hotelier helps make it simple with its Metasearch feature.