Looking for additional ways to get online bookings? Connecting to the Global Distribution System (GDS) may be for you.
There are many ways to be “found” on the Web
If you’ve heard that getting listed on National and Regional Web-based travel portals or directories can increase your online bookings as much as 30%, you’ve heard right!
So how do YOU, the independent hotel or inn get listed?
Mannix Marketing, Inc. can help you “get connected”. First you have to know the “lingo” and how it works.
GDS – Global Distribution System
What is the GDS? A Global Distribution System:
- is a computer reservation system that books and sells rooms from multiple lodging establishments.
- compiles room availabilities from hotels, motels, etc. and offers them online (through a variety of sites) to travel agencies and consumers.
- handles all the booking and reserving for you.
- is also involved in selling airline tickets, train tickets, and other travel bookings (car rentals, cruise ship vacations, etc.).
Who are the GDS companies? The major companies are:
- Amadeus – https://amadeus.com/en,
- TravelPort – https://www.travelport.com/company
- Sabre – https://www.sabretravelnetwork.com/home/
There are others, but combined these reach the bulk of travel agencies and end users.
What are the benefits of being listed with a GDS?
When you are listed with one or more GDS companies:
- your vacancies are accessible to over 600,000 travel agents.
- your vacancies can be seen by those searching for rooms all day and all night.
How do I get listed with a GDS?
To get listed with one or more GDS companies, there are several options.
- You can go directly to the GDS companies and pay to be listed. Typically the GDS companies will also charge a commission for each sale.
- You can work with an Internet Distribution System (IDS) or Online Distribution Database (ODS) that allows you to list with multiple GDS companies while only managing one account. Here there is typically a commission on each booking.
IDS – Internet Distribution System
With more than 1200 travel portals in the IDS (which distribute to the GDSs), you need to find an easy way to get your hotel listed. Mannix Marketing, Inc. will get you there! With nearly twenty years of experience in getting hotels found on the Net, you know you have found the right consultant and the right solution! A great benefit of going this route is that many of these products offer a free trial version to test out the program. Some companies that link your rooms to more than one GDS company are:
- Pelican Systems – http://www.pelicansolution.com/
- RezStream – https://www.rezstream.com
- BookingCenter – https://www.bookingcenter.com/
- CentREZ – http://www.centrez.com/GDSconnect.htm
Online Distribution Database (ODD)
One of the biggest selling points of the ODD is reducing the amount of time involved in maintaining rates and information on GDSs. We will help you find the best match for your property. Finding the correct fit relies on many factors, of which a few are highlighted below.
- Setup fees for inclusion in their system.
- Reservation fees if accrued.
- How many IDSs does the ODD maintain connect for and will it require additional fees to add additional connections in the future?
- How many travel portals do these IDS’s maintain listings on? The major players also keep lodging partnerships on portals like MSN, AOL, and Yahoo.
- How hard will it be to setup and maintain the listings? Backend functionality here is key along with reporting. A motel or hotel with 5 – 10 rooms might not need to worry about all of this, but those with 30 – 400 rooms will need to track inventory over extended time periods along with rooms included in packages. Which system should you use? What is the most effective strategy to get your inventory listed on the net and control that inventory? What property management system do I need?
Ready to find out more? Contact Mannix Marketing and let us help you book more rooms!
