protel and Google Hotel Ads Integration
Did you know that 9 out of 10 travelers begin their hotel search on Google?
Update: Now includes Free Listings!
See below for more details on this new offer from Google.
What is Google Hotel Ads?
Google Hotel Ads lists a preview of hotels on the search results and allows travelers to read hotel information, see the pictures, explore the neighborhood and read reviews. But best of all, for each property, the user can compare prices and see immediately who has the best offer: is it the hotel directly or an OTA?
How can I get my hotel listed on Google Hotel Ads?
We are proud to announce that protel is now a Google Hotel Ads integration partner.
This offers all protel customers, the option to promote your own internet bookable rates on Google Hotel Ads. Moreover, the bookings generated appear automatically and can be managed directly in your PMS.
Firstly, talk to protel and, after we have configured the special booking engine, you can start receiving bookings from Google.
Set it up once but welcome new guests to your hotel over and over! You will continue to work directly with your protel PMS, as usual.
Dependent on your PMS setup (SPE|MPE), additional Services may be needed. Please contact our Sales team at ten.letorp@selas to arrange the necessary upgrades.
Key benefits of utilizing Google Hotel Ads
Get international visibility & reach a massive audience
Millions of hotel searches are performed on Google every day
Google Hotel Ads Connects your hotel with travellers around the world
Favorable rates
Save thousands of Euros compared to OTAs commissions
You will still have the option to use their services too
Pay commission on realized reservations only
Pay only after the guest has paid you
Upsell to higher room type and package
Manage the reservations directly in your PMS
What makes up a Google hotel booking link?
After a traveler clicks on a hotel in the hotel search unit (part of Google Search), they can click through to what Google calls the “placesheet” for that hotel, where travelers can find hotel booking links.
There are basically two types of links – paid ads and free links.
Booking link ads
These take travelers to a landing page for a hotel, OTA, or metasearch engine where they can book a room in the selected hotel. You can configure this link to include a small logo and call out attractive hotel features or amenities. Clicks on these links are paid, and this section is labeled with an “Ads” badge.
Free booking links
These are listed under “All options” on the “Overview” and “Pricing” tabs. Clicks on these links are free of any Google charge but do include the minimal protel Service Fee.
Please see Google’s Hotel Center Help for more information on hotel booking links, placesheets, and more.
Why protel?
With over 14,000 customers worldwide and over 25 years of experience in the hospitality industry, protel is one of the leading PMS providers. The protel hotel management system is the one-stop-shop for everything you need to run your single or multi-property business successfully.
Choosing protel as your Google Hotel Ads integration partner gives you the advantages of having a fully integrated solution.
To take advantage of Google’s offer, you must partner with a certified agent. Choosing protel as your Google Hotel Ads integration partner gives you the advantage of having a fully integrated solution from your trusted hotel technology provider!
PMS, rates, booking engine, support and payments – all operations in one place.
Once we have checked your requirements, installation is easy:
- Install Google Services from protel’s Marketplace
- Set up the booking engine and your internet bookable rates
- Relax and enjoy the new bookings coming in
The protel service fee
While you welcome your new guests over and over, protel continuously works for you in the background:
protel sends all data needed to Google.
protel manages the advertisement on Google Hotel Ads.
protel runs the special booking engine for you.
protel PMS receives the bookings with the full guest data, including guest’s email address.
Your guests can fully manage the reservation via protel’s guest facing Voyager app and take advantage of your special offers.
protel offers support for the integrated products.
protel collects any commission payment from you where applicable and sends them to Google.
protel brings you risk-free bookings:
No risk: For booking link ads Google-commission is only charged when a guest actually stays at your hotel, not when they make the reservation. For Google’s free booking links, only the protel fee is charged.
No up-front payments: only pay after the guest has checked out.
The protel Integration
In order to use these services with your protel PMS – Booking Link Ads and Free Booking Links, – the same protel Google Services integration is needed.
For further information you may like to look at Google’s specialized and well-ordered resources for hoteliers interested in using the Google platform to benefit their business further:
- Getting your Business Online
- Promoting your hotel with Google Ads
- Getting direct bookings from Google
- Hotel Ads Advanced Features
Free Booking Links
Google's Free Listing- 0% Google commission
- plus protel service fee
- per realized reservation
- (No stay = no pay)
- Free-use Booking Engine
Booking Link Ads
Google's Paid Listing- 10% Google commission
- plus protel service fee
- per realized reservation
- (No stay = no pay)
- Free-use Booking Engine
Visibility
Your listing will be seen on
- Google Maps
- Google Search
- Google Assistant
Conditions
In order to switch your hotel listing live, your hotel property must:
- Have Google MyBusiness place set up
- Install and activate protel Google Services
Activation
By default, we activate Google Free Booking Links for each installed property.
Per request, we can also activate the Google Hotel Ads service.
(Google Free Booking Links, Google Booking Link Ads, or both, can be active for a property at the same time)
Why Should You
Move Your PMS to the Cloud?
In the past, hotel management systems were operated from servers in the hotel. They often needed a dedicated IT staff to run them, and if the server went down, then the entire hotel’s operations could be affected. But in the last few years, cloud-based hotel PMS software has been on the rise. They are a great choice for hotels of any size because they’re easy to use, quick to deploy and accessible from all devices at any time, whilst generally being more secure than the previous systems.
With a cloud-based PMS solution, you can generate more direct bookings by booking directly on your website or your Facebook page in real-time, and you can integrate with a channel manager to push your rates and availability to all connected channels. When a booking is made on a channel, it’s automatically updated on the PMS. Some cloud-based PMS’s can also help with revenue management by predicting when your property will be in demand, evaluating how profitable your hotel is, and taking into consideration your hotel’s reputation when making a recommendation about how to price your rooms.
FAQ
What is “Google Hotel Ads”?
“Google Hotel Ads” refers to Google’s advertizing platform for hotels. Prospective guests can enter their travel period, and are shown prices and availabilities from various sources. By using Google Hotel Ads, a list of hotels is displayed right on the first page of search results. The prospective guests can read through hotel information, view photos, explore the area, and read reviews.
The direct price comparison is your most powerful advantage, because your prospective guests can see where they get the best offers: directly at your hotel, or at one of the Online Travel Agencies (OTAs)?
Jump right into the fight for guests and offer your rates right at the top of the list of OTAs!
I am a protel SPE/MPE user. Can I work with Google Hotel Ads?
protel minimum version 21.003PWS min version 2.18SQL version: 2012IDS min version 5.392
What advantages does protel offer me as a Google Hotel Ads integration partner?
With protel as your Google Hotel Ads partner, you benefit from all the advantages of a fully integrated solution. protel hotel management systems offer everything you need to optimally manage your hotel – whether single or multi-property. Thanks to protel Marketplace, installing new features is now easier than ever.
protel sends all required data to Google and manages your ads on Google Hotel Ads. Your protel PMS receives your bookings with all guest data, including the guest’s email address.
What is the partnership between protel and Google?
protel is an official Google Hotel Ads integration partner.
How can I display my hotel on Google Hotels Ads?
With protel as your Google Hotel Ads integration partner, all you need to do is install the Google Services from the protel Marketplace and set up your new protel WBE lite. Your ad will go live on Google and you can start receiving bookings.
Can I participate in the Google Hotel Ads program?
The requirements to be eligible for the Google Hotel Ads program have been set by Google. Currently, each property must meet the following requirements:
- Rooms in which the paying guest can stay.
- A fixed location that is accessible by the public.
- Solid walls and sanitary facilities.
- A staffed reception open during normal operating hours.
- Minimum stay not exceeding seven days.
- The property creates its own Google My Business page, or already has one.
What information does protel transfer to Google?
The following information is transferred to Google: Your hotel’s address (name, city, telephone number, and geographical location); rates that can be booked online including room and rate details for these rates; reservation-related information such as check-in and check-out dates, occupancy and number of rooms per reservation.
Important: Personal information about you or your guests are not transmitted to Google. This includes email addresses, names, personal addresses, and payment details.
How can I get started?
After you have signed the digital contract, you first have to set up the new, exclusive booking engine. Only when you have completed setting up your booking engine will your ad be launched on Google Hotel Ads.
Dependent on your PMS setup (SPE|MPE), additional Services may apply. Please contact our Sales team at ten.letorp@selas to arrange the necessary upgrades.
What does it cost to advertize on Google Hotel Ads?
When using Google Hotel Ads, you only pay a commission on the reservations that actually stayed at your hotel. In addition, you only pay when these reservations have checked out. You will then notice two different commission rates on your invoice: one for Google for using the platform, and a service fee for protel.
protel is your integration partner for Google Hotel Ads. For the commission that protel receives, we transfer the necessary data to Google, administer the platform, create and manage your campaigns on Google, take care of setup, usage, and support of the new WBE lite, and transfer your payments to Google so you don’t have to have any further contact with Google.
What happens to cancellations and no-shows?
If your guest does not show up or cancels their reservation, protel shares this information with Google via the monthly reservation report. Commission is then not charged for this reservation. This means that you will not incur any costs if the reservations have not been completed.
Where are the bookings made?
Every time a guest clicks on the link to your hotel in Google Hotel Ads, they are redirected to your new protel Web Booking Engine (protel WBE lite), which we have developed specifically to meet Google’s requirements. Redirecting to another destination address is not possible. As a Google Hotel Ads customer, you will receive the WBE lite free of charge.
How much does it cost to get started with Google Hotel Ads?
Nothing. There are no activation costs. Apart from the monthly commission costs for completed reservations, there are no other fees.
Please note: if you are working with protel SPE/MPE, you may incur costs for necessary updates!
What is protel Marketplace?
protel Marketplace is our in-house app store, which is seamlessly integrated into the protel technology landscape. You can access it directly from our hotel management systems. In the protel Marketplace you will find “Ready-to-Deploy” technologies that you can install with one click and use immediately.
How do I install Google Hotel Ads?
Google Hotel Ads can be installed via protel Marketplace. All of the required configurations are created and all of the settings are automatically set correctly.
When using Google Hotel Ads, many protel modules work together. For example, Google needs hotel information, rates, price, and room descriptions from the PMS. The new protel WBE lite receives the bookings and forwards them to the PMS. The PMS in turn creates a report on this basis, which then serves as the basis for calculating the Google commission.
