TOUR OPERATORS
SELL MORE TOURS
OTA Team is for everyone who sells tours and experiences through Viator, TripAdvisor, Expedia and GetYourGuide, but lacks tourism marketing expertise. We manage OTA supplier accounts for busy tourism professionals to maximize global bookings and afford them more time to focus on building website business.
Viator, TripAdvisor, Expedia and GetYourGuide are the main resellers that most tour operators and guides use. Loading products (tickets, tours and activities, packages) to an OTA extranet will significantly increase market exposure and more bookings will come, but at a cost.
OTA commissions bleed destinations dry, undermining responsible tourism. A cap of 10% would return control to local tour operators and aid sustainability. It is very important to make this clear, however unlikely the prospect. Fees and charges aside, suppliers must reduce the time it takes to manage multiple OTA accounts.
Most tour operators are never out of OTA extranets - loading tours, optimizing tours, adding media, updating schedules, struggling with API connections, trying to figure out which promotion, if any, will benefit. Repeating these tasks for every tour in every extranet is laborious and time consuming.
The unavoidable consequence is neglect of website upkeep and product development. This equates to valuable direct bookings going into freefall, direct bookings that earn you 100%. In addition to managing your OTA assets, we are here to help you change that.
OTA GYG
Based in Berlin, GYG has evolved on the back of revolving funding rounds. They like to describe themselves as being a kind of "global local tour operator" which is not the reality. Rather, they charge hard-working local tour operators 30% commission per booking, but they do send a lot of bookings.
The GYG extranet is bloated and in eternal beta. Unsurprisingly, supplier support is well drilled with a reputation for being inflexible (product edits are sent upstairs and routinely ignored). OTA Team can resolve GYG product editing issues.
GYG reject suppliers that cannot or choose not to provide a tour operator license in the country or countries where they offer tourism services. This quite blinkered policy makes a mockery of pioneering digital tour operators that sell tours in several countries without having to be physically based in any of them. Pot calling the kettle black.
GYG is a progressive OTA that likes to work on its own terms at the exclusion of everything and everyone else. We know current GYG managers (since before they worked for GYG) and they are on hand to help. Your GetYourGuide activities need professional input to subdue the competition in your destination.
+ OTA GYG
OTA VIATOR
Headquartered in Boston, MA and still part of TripAdvisor, but no one quite knows which part. Viator has the best extranet out there (and they charge for it).
Product management requires due diligence. "Accelerate" in particular must be understood clearly as extra fees can literally go through the roof. Commissions on top of commissions is not something we'd recommend. Needless to say, Viator continues to recommend this detrimental business model to small tour operators knowing full well they'll be summarily buried by higher bidders.
Supplier support has improved since Covid which we welcome, as you won't get a dedicated account manager unless your bookings run into the thousands per annum, naturally.
We have been working with Viator since late 2012 and their extranet is our second home. It is relevant that debates still rumble on about how tightly TripAdvisor reviews bind to the Viator extranet. We'll clear that up for you. We'll also show you how to get Google very interested in your Viator pages, i.e. indexed and ranked. Viator products convert faster and more reviews come with concurrent governance of both accounts.
+ OTA VIATOR
OTA EXPEDIA
Expedia relies upon "strategic partners" for its tours and activities (GYG and Viator). If you don't have an existing Expedia Local Expert account it's unlikely you'll get one.
However, if you are an Expedia Local Expert then you will already know that their extranet is not unlike that of Viators. They created the term "hero image" for lead photos and their industry buzzwords "Know before you book" and "Know before you go" have been copied by everyone.
Very few negatives include a messy finances and bookings view while a definite positive is that you can expect a few more private tour bookings from Expedia than other OTAs. Working in this extranet is slightly different as the front end still looks outdated, therefore it's crucial to get the right information in position.
Expedia Local Experts get a dedicated account manager, but who knows who that might be as staff turnover at Expedia is inordinately high.
+ OTA EXPEDIA
OTHER OTAs
There are many OTAs out there and most of them don't provide an extranet. They exacerbate obstacles by demanding that you manually send them product information on a spreadsheet (or even by e-mail!) that they might eventually load themselves. Spontaneity is relinquished, and we all know that the most creative edits and product updates are spur of the moment.
+ As a general rule, we don't get involved with such companies, but if you partner with another OTA that provides an extranet for your inventory, OTA Team management can be arranged.
+ OTHER OTAs
OTA TEAM PRO
Most tour operators need guidance, support and advice about how to sell more tours in the digital tourism realm. We created OTA Team Pro to help tour operators in real-time on Skype and WhatsApp. Our experts are available between 10am - 4pm CET to manage everything. We can become a very profitable extension of your team.
+ OTA TEAM PRO
RESTECH TOURS
The other side of OTA business is tour operator software aka reservation management systems (ResTech). If you work in Xola, Bokun or Fareharbor, we can manage your inventory and scheduling. If you use another ResTech and need our expertise, we can definitely help.
+ RESTECH TOURS
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