Start with the commercial outcome
Hotel PPC should be assessed against direct booking value, not just clicks. The agency needs to understand brand search, destination intent, room availability, offers and the relationship between direct acquisition and OTA demand.
Direct-booking campaigns can have different economics from generic destination campaigns. The agency should separate existing brand demand from genuinely incremental acquisition so performance is not overstated.
Compare proposals on the same questions
| Compare | Ask before signing |
|---|---|
| Brand search | How are searches for the hotel name handled? |
| Non-brand | Which destination, stay or occasion searches are targeted? |
| Booking engine | Can the campaign track completed direct bookings and value? |
| Offers | How are packages, events or seasonal promotions promoted? |
| OTAs | How does the plan account for users comparing aggregator sites? |
| Revenue | Can spend be reviewed against booking value rather than form fills? |
Make implementation responsibility explicit
Ask the provider to test the full route from advert to room or package page to booking engine. If the booking system sits on another domain, tracking responsibility needs to be agreed before launch.
Put any dependency on your website, booking engine, ATS, CRM, branch team or another supplier into the proposal before launch.
Agree the measurement model
Measure booking revenue, cost of acquisition, conversion rate and, where available, stay value or cancellation impact. Platform-reported revenue should be reconciled with booking-system data.
Separate platform diagnostics from the business outcomes that determine whether the campaign is useful.
Protect account ownership and data
Keep appropriate business access to advertising, analytics and CRM accounts. Confirm what happens to campaigns, audiences, data and creative if the supplier changes.
Ask for proof that matches the service
Ask for brand versus non-brand reporting and proof that completed direct bookings can be measured through the booking journey.
A provider can demonstrate process quality through redacted structures or implementation evidence without inventing client outcomes.
Watch for this red flag
How Kydos fits
Kydos' PPC packages are custom quoted and can include search, display and multi-platform campaigns. Analytics and landing-page work can be scoped separately where hotel tracking needs additional setup.
Comparing providers now?
Use Kydos' published services as another benchmark.
View paid advertising optionsFrequently asked questions
How should I compare hotel paid search providers?
Compare scope, targeting, implementation, tracking, ownership, reporting and the commercial outcome each proposal is expected to improve.
Should I choose the lowest management fee?
Not automatically. Compare media spend, landing-page work, tracking, creative and support that may sit outside the headline fee.
What should be agreed before launch?
Agree objectives, geography or audience, conversion actions, responsibilities, account access, budget boundaries and how lead or booking quality will be reviewed.
What is a warning sign?
The agency reports a strong return by counting mostly branded searches from guests who were already trying to find the hotel.
What proof should I request?
Ask for brand versus non-brand reporting and proof that completed direct bookings can be measured through the booking journey.
How does Kydos fit?
Kydos' PPC packages are custom quoted and can include search, display and multi-platform campaigns. Analytics and landing-page work can be scoped separately where hotel tracking needs additional setup.