How Online Travel Agencies Are Competing Against Your Sales Efforts—And How to Fight Back
For hotel Directors of Sales (DOS) and sales teams, the battle for direct business is getting tougher. Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) were once seen as helpful partners in filling rooms, but the reality is much different today.
OTAs are not just a distribution channel—they are an aggressive competitor that actively works against your hotel’s direct sales efforts. They dominate search results, steal your potential customers through targeted ads, and undercut your rates while demanding hefty commissions.
This article dives into how OTAs are working against your hotel sales team and what you can do to win back control.
1. OTAs Target Your Customers Before They Even Reach Your Website
Many hotel sales professionals assume that potential guests first check the hotel's website and then visit OTAs for comparison. But in reality, OTAs intercept guests before they ever land on your site.
How OTAs Do It:
Google Ads Bidding: OTAs bid on your hotel’s name in Google Ads, ensuring their listing appears above your website when someone searches for your hotel.
SEO Domination: OTAs invest heavily in search engine optimization (SEO), often outranking hotels for their own name in search results.
Retargeting Ads: If a potential guest visits your website and leaves, OTAs track their behavior and display aggressive ads offering discounts, bringing them back to the OTA instead of your hotel.
💡 How to Fight Back: ✔ Invest in Google Hotel Ads to bid on your own brand name. ✔ Optimize your hotel website’s SEO and mobile experience. ✔ Use retargeting ads to bring guests back to your site instead of the OTAs.
2. OTAs Undercut Your Rates (Even When They Shouldn’t)
One of the most frustrating tactics OTAs use is rate undercutting, making it appear as though they offer a better deal than booking directly with your hotel.
How OTAs Manipulate Pricing:
Discounting Without Permission: OTAs sometimes use their own commission to lower room rates, making their price look better than the hotel’s.
Private Member Discounts: Many OTAs offer exclusive rates to logged-in users, bypassing rate parity agreements.
Taxes & Fees Trick: OTAs sometimes show lower upfront prices but add hidden fees later in the booking process, tricking guests into thinking the OTA is cheaper.
The Impact on Your Hotel Sales Team
Direct bookings suffer because guests perceive OTAs as cheaper, even when they’re not.
Sales teams lose the ability to negotiate with corporate clients if OTAs consistently undercut rates.
Guests feel betrayed when they see a lower OTA price, making direct booking promotions less effective.
💡 How to Fight Back: ✔ Offer value-added perks for direct bookings (e.g., free breakfast, parking, or upgrades). ✔ Promote exclusive discounts only available on your website. ✔ Educate guests about the hidden fees and limitations of OTA bookings.
3. OTAs Block Your Hotel from Building Guest Relationships
When a guest books through an OTA, the relationship belongs to the OTA, not your hotel.
What OTAs Do to Control the Guest Relationship:
They collect guest emails but don’t share them with hotels.
They send all pre-stay and post-stay communications, preventing hotels from engaging guests directly.
They push guests toward rebooking through the OTA instead of returning to the hotel’s website.
How This Hurts Hotel Sales & Marketing:
No ability to upsell room upgrades, F&B packages, or early check-ins.
No guest email for post-stay marketing, making repeat business harder.
Lower loyalty program participation, reducing long-term revenue potential.
💡 How to Fight Back: ✔ Collect guest emails at check-in and encourage sign-ups for exclusive offers. ✔ Train front desk and sales staff to convert OTA guests into direct bookers for future stays. ✔ Use post-stay surveys and incentives to encourage direct bookings.
4. OTAs Are Poaching Your Corporate & Group Business
Corporate and group bookings should be under the control of your hotel’s sales team, but OTAs are increasingly targeting business travelers and group organizers.
How OTAs Steal Corporate & Group Business:
They offer corporate travelers discounted rates, diverting them from your negotiated corporate contracts.
They promote "group deals", making it harder for your sales team to control bulk bookings.
They push dynamic pricing, which makes corporate clients question the value of your fixed negotiated rates.
Impact on Hotel Sales Teams:
Losing control over rate negotiations for corporate and group bookings.
Increased rate-shopping behavior, reducing contract renewals.
Higher commission costs on bookings that should have been direct sales.
💡 How to Fight Back: ✔ Strengthen corporate and group relationships with exclusive direct booking incentives. ✔ Educate corporate clients on the risks of OTA bookings (lack of flexibility, no direct service). ✔ Offer personalized service and contract benefits that OTAs can’t match.
5. OTAs Penalize Hotels That Try to Reduce Dependency
If a hotel tries to shift business away from OTAs, many OTAs respond with punitive tactics.
How OTAs Punish Hotels:
Lower Search Rankings: Hotels that reduce OTA commission agreements often see their visibility decrease.
Negative Placement: Some OTAs place "This hotel is almost sold out" or "Limited availability" messages to create artificial demand and pressure bookings.
Customer Service Misdirection: Some OTAs mislead guests, directing them away from booking direct with false claims about cancellation policies or availability.
💡 How to Fight Back: ✔ Monitor OTA listings for misleading information and address issues directly. ✔ Focus on driving repeat guests to book direct, reducing reliance on new OTA bookings. ✔ Work with Google Hotel Ads and metasearch engines to improve direct traffic visibility.
Final Thoughts: The War on Direct Business Must Be Fought Strategically
OTAs are not just a booking channel—they are a direct competitor that is actively working against your hotel sales team.
Key Takeaways:
✔ OTAs intercept guests before they reach your website, stealing direct bookings. ✔ OTAs manipulate pricing, making it seem like they offer better deals than your hotel. ✔ OTAs own guest relationships, limiting your ability to drive repeat business. ✔ OTAs target corporate & group business, reducing your sales team’s control. ✔ OTAs penalize hotels that try to reduce dependency, creating a cycle of reliance.
How Hotels Can Win the War on Direct Business:
✅ Invest in Google Ads & SEO to outrank OTAs. ✅ Offer exclusive perks for direct bookings that OTAs can’t match. ✅ Build stronger corporate & group sales strategies. ✅ Focus on guest data collection to drive loyalty and repeat business.
💡 The less you depend on OTAs, the stronger your sales team becomes. Start taking action today.