A short YouTube talk (Mark Simpson) arguing that listing on Airbnb and other OTAs can serve as a marketing/search funnel to increase visibility and generate direct bookings. The speaker recommends using OTAs to get in front of more potential guests and to signal brand presence so guests can find the business outside the OTA.
Quick story of somebody I was talking to earlier on today who has never put their listing on Airbnb or on an ota. And they are getting bookings, which first of all, is amazing to see. But my advice to them, quite controversially for Boostly, was put yourself on Airbnb. And they said, well, why? You know, we're talking direct bookings. I said, yeah, but exactly that reason. You said that it's a search funnel is getting your business in front of as many people as possible and that ultimately you can then use these OTAs to work for you instead of you working for them. And that's exactly what you're doing there with the data is getting your listing to be seen in front of as many people as possible. And then, of course, from a marketing point of view, from Boostly, if there are hints about what your brand is called, if there's stuff which is suggesting for them that they can come and find you or that you're a brand that exists outside of that particular ota, well, that's cool, because they might be able to come and find you altogether.
I Tested AI Search SEO for Rental Hosts... Here Is What Happened [Live Training]
