Hotelgazetesi_ocak_sayi11_2018_

Sayı: 11 Yıl: 1 / Ocak 2018
www.hotelgazetesi.com
booking
12
new booking platform
you need to know
Revolutionary Platform
Created in 2014 in the Netherlands,
Bidroom.com is an online booking
platform that’s shaking up the industry.
After numerous conversations with
hoteliers, the founders of the company
noticed a gap in the market. There
was no booking platform that did not
charge enormous commissions for each
booking. Subsequent interviews and
analyzes further proved how adversely
this gap affects the market, that has
been monopolized by major OTA’s. It
seemed as if the situation will never
change, not until another platform is
created, that could work on different
rules and - as the company’s slogan says
- bring the fairness back to the industry.
All major booking platforms charge the
hotels, on average, 17% commision,
although the rate goes up to even
30%. Bidroom.com doesn’t require
commision, allowing the hoteliers to
save significant amounts of money. In
exchange, they are simply requested
to give a discount of 5% to 25% off the
room prices on other websites to the
guests. This way both sides are able to
benefit from using the platform. The only
payment the hotels make is the one-time
activation fee of €299, and then they can
enjoy a lifetime of free, direct bookings.
The guests buy the €59 annual
subscription, the amount they get back
after only three bookings. The more they
travel, the more they save, it’s as simple
as that. This is a completely new business
model among OTAs, which follows
market trends - people got used to paying
a small amount for good quality services
like movie or music streaming. Now the
revolution enters the hospitality industry.
This solution is perfect for many reasons.
Firstly, it creates a community, by
generating trust. Bidroom claims that it is
not involved in the rate parity battle, and
it does not seek to take direct bookings
from the hotels. Instead of taking the
commission to itself, the company
exchanges it to discounts for the guests.