Free booking links: Google makes organic links available for hotels

On March 9th 2021, Google announced the official launch of free booking links (organic links Google Hotel Ads).

This allows all hotels sending their prices and availability to Google to appear in the Google Hotel Ads module for free. 

Google’s mission is to offer relevant information to Internet users, whether they are paid (via ads) or free (via organic links). It wasn’t achieving this with the previous pay-only model.  

What does this mean for hoteliers?

Until now, a hotel wishing to appear in the Google Travel module had to have a connection with Google Hotel Ads. That meant you not only had to send your prices and availability, but also participate in advertising auctions to display your official website rates.

So only hotels running paid campaigns via Google Hotel Ads could be displayed on the module.

Today, all you need is a connection to Google Hotel Ads to have your official website rate appear in the “All options” section. 

What are the benefits for your hotel? 

You’ll be able to compete with paid Ads and get direct bookings on your hotel’s website. You’ll display more links to your hotel’s website, so increase your chances of getting a direct booking.

Where can you find free/organic hotel links on Google?

You can find these organic links by clicking on “Show more rates” in the Google Hotel Ads section of your Google Business Profile page (formerly Google My Business). 

When you are in the Travel section, the rates will be displayed under two headings. “Options from our partners” and “All options”.   Google Hotel Ads organic links appear under “All options”.

How to display Google Hotel Ads organic links for your hotel?

If you are already using Google Hotel Ads via our Meta I/O platform, by default, these organic links are already displayed. As a Google Premier Strategic Partner, your property was one of the beta testers for this solution.

If you are not yet taking advantage of this service from Google, you can also register your hotel by visiting the link here: Google page.

If you would like to know more about the entire Google Hotel Ads ecosystem, please do not hesitate to contact our teams of digital distribution specialists. 

Conclusion

With this announcement, Google is putting a considerable spotlight on its Google Hotel Ads solution for hoteliers worldwide.

This organic link option, which has been tested by Google for a year, will allow all hoteliers who weren’t already using Google Hotel Ads, to increase their visibility and direct income by displaying their official website rates in an area that, until now, had to be paid for. 

Hoteliers who already use Google Hotel Ads for their distribution will benefit from additional free links, which will directly increase the profitability of all campaigns.

It is still too early to analyse traffic statistics for the different options (organic vs paid) but the navigation path is longer and is not visible by default for organic links.