The Direct Booking Summit: Helping hotels reduce OTA reliance

The Direct Booking Summit (DBS) isn’t just another industry event—it’s where you join like-minded hoteliers to learn, reduce your reliance on Online Travel Agencies (OTAs), and make your website the best place to book direct.

Unlike tradeshows or large conferences that often lack a personal touch, we make sure that DBS remains intimate and engaging. From expert-led workshops to tailored one-on-one coaching, attendees leave feeling energized and inspired. Oh, and we’re also known for throwing a stellar party at the end of day one—but don’t worry, you’ll be welcomed the next morning with free breakfast and coffee to get things going again.

After taking a pause in 2024 we’re excited to be coming back in May 2025 with our next summit, this time in Dallas, Texas. To give you a taste of what to expect, we’ve highlighted some of the top-rated sessions from our last US Direct Booking Summit—each packed with practical insights, fresh strategies, and actionable takeaways that attendees can apply at their hotel. 

There's a lot of great content to share, so instead of cramming 10 sessions into one blog, we'll split it into two parts.

Stuck: How common traps prevent progress

Dan Wacksman | Co-Founder, hotelBschool.com & CEO, Sassato

Hoteliers are working harder than ever, yet many feel stuck in a cycle of endless tasks without real progress. Why? They’re trapped by mindset patterns that hold them back.

Dan Wacksman’s session tackled the five biggest traps that keep hotels from growing. One of the biggest? ‘The Too Busy Trap’—where hoteliers spend all their time putting out fires and handling urgent but low-value tasks instead of focusing on strategy. He introduced the Eisenhower Matrix, a powerful tool for prioritizing work, helping hotels shift their focus toward long-term goals instead of daily distractions.

Another major issue? ‘FOFU’—Fear of F**** Up. Many hoteliers hesitate to make changes because they’re afraid of making the wrong decision. Dan’s message was clear: waiting for the perfect solution means staying stuck. Instead, make the best decision possible with the data you have and move forward.

He also tackled internal politics (‘The Too Political Trap’), showing how hotels can turn negative feedback into constructive action rather than letting it stall decision-making.

Attendees left with a fresh perspective on their daily habits and a toolkit to make faster, more effective decisions. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by urgent tasks or hesitant about taking risks, this session was a game-changer.

Case study: The power of reputation management

Adrienne Fors | Senior Manager, Marketing & Distribution, Kasa Living

Your hotel’s online reputation isn’t just a reflection of guest satisfaction—it’s a direct revenue driver.

Adrienne Fors opened the session with compelling data:

• A 1-point increase in guest review scores can boost ADR by 11.2%.
• A 1% improvement in average review scores leads to a 1.42% increase in RevPAR (Revenue per available room).

The numbers were clear—hotels that actively manage their reputation earn more.

Adrienne shared how Kasa Living transformed guest feedback into a competitive advantage. Instead of treating reviews as a reactive process, they use them proactively—leveraging them in marketing campaigns, website messaging, and social proof elements that increase conversion rates.

She also discussed how AI-powered reputation management tools can streamline responses, ensuring guests feel heard without draining team resources.

One of the session’s biggest takeaways? Your review section isn’t just a place for guests to vent—it’s a goldmine for uncovering operational improvements, marketing opportunities, and pricing strategies.

Attendees left with a clear strategy to boost ratings, leverage reviews for direct bookings, and maximize revenue from their online reputations.

SEO success in 30 minutes

Alex Velazquez | VP Digital Marketing, Westgate Resorts

SEO often feels too slow, too complex, or too technical for hotels to focus on. But what if you could create SEO-driven content in just 30 minutes and drive more direct bookings without relying on paid ads?

Alex Velazquez demystified why hotels struggle with SEO—they don’t create the right kind of content. While hotels focus on sales-heavy website pages, companies like Time Out dominate Google search results because they create destination-focused, experience-driven content that matches what travelers are actually searching for.

He broke down a simple, AI-powered method for identifying high-ranking competitor content, extracting key SEO elements, and generating optimized blog posts that rank. The result? More organic traffic, higher visibility for your direct booking site, and less reliance on OTAs.

One of his most powerful insights was about keyword intent—not all searches lead to bookings. The key is to rank for terms that attract guests who are ready to book, not just those browsing for general information.

Attendees left with a clear, actionable framework for building a long-term SEO strategy that requires minimal effort but delivers lasting results.

Discover the Chat GPT prompts Alex shared in his session.

Watch the full session 

7 UX tricks you can steal from OTAs today

Chimmy Kalu | Staff Product Designer, Triptease

OTAs spend millions perfecting the online booking experience—so why not borrow their best UX (user experience) strategies for your hotel’s website?

Chimmy Kalu broke down seven proven UX tricks that hotels can steal today to improve conversions and reduce drop-off rates.

One of the biggest mistakes hotel websites make? They don’t guide guests through the booking process the way OTAs do.

Chimmy showed how simple changes—like bold call-to-actions, clear website messaging, and frictionless payment options—can boost conversion rates.

Another critical insight? Website reassurance tactics. By adding free cancellation messaging, real-time social proof, and on-page price comparisons, hotels can reduce guest hesitation and increase direct bookings.

Have the best price everywhere, always

Jonathan Hickford & Andrew Williamson | Product Managers, Triptease

Price is the single biggest factor influencing where guests book. Yet many hotels unknowingly lose bookings every day because OTAs undercut their direct rates.

Jonathan Hickford and Andrew Williamson laid out the real impact of price disparities and how hotels can take back control of their pricing strategy.

They introduced Triptease’s Price Match tool, which ensures hotels always offer the best rate where it matters most—on metasearch and direct booking sites. Unlike broad discounting, this tool adjusts prices dynamically, only when necessary, preventing unnecessary revenue loss.

A major takeaway was understanding when and where to offer discounts. Instead of blanket rate drops, hotels should use precision discounting to win the booking without over-discounting.

Attendees left with a clear strategy for keeping their prices competitive and maximizing direct revenue, ensuring guests book on their website, not an OTA.

Watch the full session

Why you need to be at DBS Dallas

This is just a taste of the type of insights DBS delivers. Every session is designed to give hoteliers a competitive advantage, with real strategies, tested ideas, and takeaways you can apply immediately.

If you’re serious about winning the direct booking battle, outperforming OTAs, and driving long-term revenue growth, you need to be at DBS Dallas.

Stay tuned for part two!

📍 DBS Dallas | May 13-14, 2025

🎟 GET YOUR TICKET NOW →

For help succeeding in 2025, get in touch with our direct booking experts using the form below