Hotels are being offered the ability to sell rooms direct via their own Facebook pages
Booking Button app lets hotels sell through Facebook
Online hotel distributor SiteMinder is offering hotels the ability to sell rooms direct via their Facebook pages.
The company has launched a new Facebook application which links to its direct booking facility TheBookingButton, giving hotels the opportunity to generate “tangible revenue” from their Facebook pages.
SiteMinder partnerships manager Duncan Waterman said the integration of TheBookingButton with Facebook would enable consumers to directly book rooms on hotels’ Facebook pages, opening up a lucrative new, commission-free selling mechanism for hoteliers.
He said: “Facebook is a very powerful communication and selling tool and this milestone move means that people can now view live inventory and rates and book accommodation on a hotel’s Facebook page just as they would on the hotel’s website.
“Hotels can also use TheBookingButton’s online reporting system to gauge how many reservations have come through their new ‘Facebook channel’.
“We envisage this new selling avenue will generate considerably more business for our hotel clients around the world.”
TheBookingButton is used by hotels on their websites as a direct, commission-free booking engine.
Launched in 2008, it is used in more than 60 countries, reducing acquisition costs for some hotels by up to 40% from online bookings, SiteMinder claims.
The customisable BookingButton allows hotels to package rooms to include extras such as breakfast, late checkout and tours to provide a value-add to every room sale.
