The hospitality industry and the macro environment have been more volatile in the last few years than at any time in the past 10-15 years. I anticipate this will continue due to inflation, higher capital costs, fluctuating demand, disruptions from AI, tariff woes, etc.

This is why I think hotels should adopt a digital approach of multichannel distribution for both S&M and branding control, as well as scaling and capital levers. Here’s the breakdown:

1. Direct

It’s 2025. Every hotel should have its own direct channel, period. It means having your own differentiated content and voice, guest data (first-party), and a higher margin on the bottom line. It also means more control and flexibility over your sales and marketing strategies.

For example, hotels may get less budgeted traffic from OTAs than expected, as OTAs have their own priorities (the “black box” algorithms). With the direct channel, hotels can strategically promote special offers.

More importantly, a hotel can leverage the direct channel to build a brand and stand out from the competition in the long term. A brand well built sells itself and fosters deeper, longer-lasting relationships with customers.

The biggest advantage of merchants on Amazon is the brand (and trust) built off Amazon. Similarly, hotels branded thoughtfully may potentially be invited to well-established branded hotel networks to further grow on steroids. Just like how Trailborn partnered with Marriott or Small Luxury Hotels (SLH) partnered with Hilton in 2024. They were win-win situations.

Source: Travel Media Group

2. OTA

OTAs emerged from the ashes of the dot-com bubble as their business model proved valid and sustainable. Their growth accelerated further after 9/11 and 2008 as hotels turned to OTAs during uncertain times for risk and cash flow management, reaping the benefits of “free” marketing without upfront spending.

Hotels, as high-asset investments, naturally lean toward opening up more inventory to OTAs to save on overhead in order to survive first in a macro environment with uncertainty or even headwinds. In 2025 and the foreseeable future, with tighter liquidity and more expensive capital, OTAs provide a solid cushion to scale with a controlled cash flow.

OTAs can also help hotels reach a specific psychological segment of travelers that hotels can’t reach from their direct channels. This segment of travelers tends to be loyal to the OTA brands and prioritize an intuitive, convenient, and smooth end-to-end “pipe” experience over price and other factors, just like Amazon shoppers. Therefore, for this “OTA-minded” segment, OTAs can be a great referral or acquisition channel with reasonable CAC (customer acquisition costs). Hotels should strategically convert those guests into long-term repeat customers who book direct by building a deeper relationship with top-notch in-stay and post-stay “room delivery” services.

The old dichotomy of “direct vs. OTA” is giving way to a more strategic and nuanced approach where both channels play a role in a comprehensive distribution strategy.

Source: Travel Media Group

3. Metasearch (mainly Google Hotels)

On the direct side, hotels had been losing some share to OTAs because an individual property’s website simply couldn’t meet travelers’ lodging “discovery” needs the way OTAs could. Metasearch, especially Google Hotels, has been playing a critical role as a lodging aggregator but still allows travelers to book direct, levelling the playing field between direct and OTAs.

As an SEM/SEO consultant in the hospitality industry, I vividly remember how groundbreaking it was when Google introduced the “local 3-Pack” directly in search results nearly a decade ago. Since then, when travelers search for hotel-related queries on Google, they see a map-style feature displaying the top hotel listings instead of 10 blue links. Clicking on these listings directs them to Google Hotels, which aggregates price, inventory, location, brands, everything. It was a game changer because it perfectly dovetailed Google’s search and metasearch platforms and better aligned with travelers’ lodging search behaviors.

The cherry on top is that hotels can now list their brand.com sites on Google Hotels for free, leveraging the Free Booking Link (FBL) feature rolled out in 2021 to capture direct bookings.

Source: Travel Media Group

4. Marriott and Hilton are evolving into end-to-end distribution channels

In fact, I think that’s a huge trend that’s transforming the industry. By the end of 2024, Marriott and Hilton had worldwide property counts of more than 9,000 and 8,000, respectively, reflecting CAGRs of 4.9% and 6.3% over the past five years. They also both reached 200+ million global loyalty members—a remarkable increase of 43% and 94% from 2019.

Acquisitions and strategic partnerships, alongside natural room growth, will continue to supercharge Marriott’s and Hilton’s portfolio growth in an efficient, scalable, and adaptable way. I believe that by continuing to expand their branded hotel networks, they will reach a point where network effects will emerge further to enhance the intuitiveness and convenience of this “end-to-end” booking experience, starting and completing a booking journey directly within the Marriott and Hilton apps.

Branded and even boutique hotels should make their scaling and growth decisions with these two “emerging” distribution channels in mind.

About Travel Media Group (TMG)

Travel Media Group (TMG) is a hospitality marketing partner for brands, hotel management groups, and individual properties. Services include custom social media marketing, professional review response, online reputation management, and more. TMG is responsible for elevating our hotel partners’ online presence while helping hotels manage real-time guest feedback. Travel Media Group is a business that is a part of the Dominion Enterprises Family.