Back in the day, you have to call the hotel directly or book through their own website to make a room reservation. It was such a hassle to go through each website to find more information about a hotel. Nowadays, there are comparison websites such as Expedia, Booking.com, and Hotels.com. You can now easily compare hotel prices and book your accommodation online. Choosing the right hotel for your holiday has never been this convenient.
The other day, a client was inquiring about hotel accommodation for 10 people (5 couples). This is a big group for me so I really want to close the sale. It would be a huge entrepreneurial milestone for me. The client asked me about a particular hotel on the beach and if they could get a better deal from me. So, I went to the hotel, talked to the manager personally and checked all the facilities - infinity pool, beach bar, sea view rooms, spa and all. It's a luxury hotel and I will get a good commission if I can book this for my client. I finally got the 'contracted rates' from the sales team and gave the client the room price for 3 nights. It turned out that they were also checking Booking.com rates and got way cheaper room prices. It was quite understandable as Booking.com is offering cheaper rates this season. Booking.com squeezes the hotel's margins for their benefit (commission).
Even if I match with Booking.com rates, including taxes, service charge, and city-state tax, I will end up not getting anything, unless I asked the hotel to give me better rates than this OTA. I really doubt they will. I got more expensive rates from the hotel because I think the idea is to sell the rooms at higher prices than these comparison websites. My client explained to me that they will book through Booking.com. Honestly, that upset me a little bit. My goal is to offer an all-inclusive package but I have to understand their objective too. The existence of OTAs makes it harder for small businesses like mine. So, the client said that they will just book their tours with me. I think I will just ask them for a service charge for all the trouble.
Sure, the world is better connected now, you can even book hotels through your mobile phones. This is just the tyranny of convenience - people are too lazy to call or email the hotel directly. That seems very hard to do now. In this day and age, the most important thing for people is convenience. It does not really matter anymore who or what they affect in the grand scheme of things.
When I became an entrepreneur, my mindset has totally changed. I used to not give a shit about a lot of things. If I really hate the job or the company I work for, I might even do a half-assed job. But things have changed. I am willing to work 24/7 and not get paid. I am willing to go the extra mile to please my clients.
When I was the one booking accommodation through Booking.com, all I wanted was to get cheaper room rates. Can you imagine how Booking.com corporation massively profits from small fees and fragile emotions of people? You can check out the marketing manipulation tactics on their website, those nagging notifications in red saying "Someone just booked this", "this is the cheapest you've seen in London for your dates!", "Last chance!" Aside from the fact that you will be fucked if there would be any problems, Booking.com will treat you just like another online booker. My previous clients wanted to cancel their horrible accommodation as it only looks good in the picture. I was helping them at the middle of the night to change their hotel - Booking.com will never do that for anyone! We failed to do so because Booking.com is notorious for cancellation fees. They force the hotels to have a minimal cancellation policy in order to protect their own commission. In a travel agent perspective, this means no tiny profit for me, unless the client wants to book through a human being with empathy, and who will advocate on their behalf should there be any unforeseen problems.
I guess Booking.com and other comparison websites are your worst best friend. We live in a world where everyone has their own objective. The client wants to get cheaper rates, I want to make a living, Booking.com wants to get richer and the hotels want to get their rooms fully booked whether it is a high or low season.
For clients, I think it is better to compare prices using OTAs. After narrowing down the choices, they can check the deals directly with the hotel and a travel agent. Sometimes, Booking.com rates can be more expensive. Most of the time they don't really include other extra fees like city-state taxes and service charge.
I am still kind of upset that my clients will not book their hotels through me. I actually don't know what to do because I can't possibly compete with Booking.com corporation. They are like the Mcdonalds of the travel industry and I am just a burger stand at the corner. All I know is that if my future clients book their hotels through me, I will do everything to give them better rooms. And even better deals with extra perks. I can change their rooms if they don't like it. I will advocate on their behalf if there are problems with their booking or their rooms. Most of all, they are dealing with a human being. They will get an ultra-personalized service and a smile from me - in exchange for helping my livelihood!