Skift Take

Despite years of hotels pushing direct booking campaigns, third parties remain a crucial part of hotel distribution strategy. Learn how many bookings each distribution channel delivers, at what cost, and the outlook for direct bookings in this report.

Ever wonder how much of hotel sales are driven by online travel agencies, exactly? And how is that different at branded versus independent properties? Skift Research’s latest report takes a deep dive into hotel distribution channels and the outlook for hoteliers to drive direct bookings in 2021 and beyond.

Built around a proprietary survey of hospitality operators, we are able to get a look into how many bookings each of nine different distribution channels deliver across the industry as well as the cost for each method.

Skift Research looks at both pre-pandemic baseline distribution channels, how the pandemic has shifted booking behavior and the prospects for driving direct bookings in 2021 at both branded and independent properties.

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What You’ll Learn From This Report

  • The pre-Covid state of hospitality distribution.
  • How third parties remain a crucial part of hotel distribution strategy.
  • Direct booking’s evolution from 2017 – 2019.
  • How brands and independents differ in their distribution mixes.
  • Distribution channels for alternative accommodations.
  • Analysis of costs and commissions for all distribution channels.
  • Where loyalty programs fit in the distribution mix.
  • The Impact of Covid-19 on hospitality distribution.
  • What future distribution might look like.
  • Challenges and recommendations for driving direct bookings.

Subscribe to Skift Research Reports
This is the latest in a series of reports and data products that Skift Research puts out to help you analyze the impact of the coronavirus on the travel industry. Tap into the opinions and insights of our seasoned network of staffers and contributors. Over 200 hours of desk research, data collection, and/or analysis goes into each report.

After you subscribe, you will gain access to our entire vault of reports conducted on topics ranging from technology to marketing strategy to deep dives on key travel brands. You will also be able to access our proprietary Skift Recovery Index and Skift Health Score data and reports.

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Tags: direct bookings, distribution, hotel distribution, hotels, skift research

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