For small and mid-sized hotel chains and independent hotels, the internet has acted as the great equaliser. Its connections provide those properties with the opportunity to compete against and reach the same audiences of their larger hotel chain counterparts. And with their new partnership with DerbySoft, travel service giant Amadeus will be able to foster and grow these connections, particularly to metasearch engines and online travel agents (OTAs).
Small and medium chain hoteliers traditionally struggle with connecting to metasearch engines for myriad reasons, such as technical constraints and high costs related to implementation and maintenance of connections. However, those same hoteliers cannot afford to exclude themselves from this environment, because metasearch companies will continue aggregating rates and availability from supplies, OTAs, and other sources.
Clearly, a solution was needed.
Amadeus and DerbySoft’s partnership will enable hotels, no matter the size, to distribute their content to most metasearch engines and popular OTAs. This will occur through an existing connection to the Amadeus GDS. Independent hoteliers working in the GDS through Amadeus’ representation company, LinkHotel, will also benefit from this connection, which brings with it a larger audience.
Driving home that point is Keith Cotton, the SVP Global Business at DerbySoft. “Amadeus’ hotel customers will have access to a much wider audience through the DerbySoft connection and interface, and with no additional implementation costs,” he said. “We are very pleased to be working with Amadeus and to be helping hotels boost bookings and achieve new levels of growth.”
An additional benefit to this partnership is that hoteliers will be able to optimise their marketing budgets through precision-based efforts. After selecting the right channel, they can provide the right offer to the travel seller at the right time. Hoteliers can do this manually and automatically with advanced algorithms, which select the most effective distribution channel. This benefits the consumer, too, because the traveller receives a more personalised offer catered to his or her preferences.
According to Amadeus Director of Hotel Distribution Peter Waters, the partnership with DerbySoft further showcases their commitment to being at the forefront of technology. He continued, “This partnership does not only allow Amadeus hotel customers to instantly amplify their distribution reach, but also provides the largest online players with critical new room offerings.”