Recently named as the Top Foreign Travel Startup of 2019 by the Uzakrota Travel Summit, Bidroom is winning accolades from Turkish hoteliers who are signing up to Bidroom’s no-commission movement that is rapidly changing the hospitality industry.
Recently named as the Top Foreign Travel Startup of 2019 by the Uzakrota Travel Summit, Bidroom is winning accolades from Turkish hoteliers who are signing up to Bidroom’s no-commission movement that is rapidly changing the hospitality industry.
CEO of Bidroom Michael Ros during an interview at the 2019 Uzakrota Summit
Bidroom CEO Michael Ros believes that Turkey’s support is an essential part of the global change his business aims for.
In 2014, a revelation came to Ros that the online booking market lacked diversity. Every established service operated on commissions that were eating up hotel revenue wherever you looked. Thousands of hours of his prospecting with hoteliers as a Sales and Marketing Director pushed him to promise himself that he’d launch a hotel booking platform founded on fairness. The platform would become a meeting place for both hoteliers and travelers who demanded something different. For him, it meant taking the risk of introducing a new business model to a duopolistic booking industry that lacked breathing space. But the world wouldn’t ever hear Bidroom’s call if he just copied what the Online Travel Agency (OTA) giants were doing.
From hoteliers by hoteliers
Five years later, 2019 ended for Bidroom with an award from Uzakrota Travel Summit that recognized the startup’s transformative role in the hospitality industry. It was the 15th award that Bidroom received in six years for its industry-defining activities. Today, Bidroom remains the only no-commission membership hotel platform in the world. It has already elevated the margins of over 125,000 hotels in 128 countries.
“Looking for a competitive advantage, I studied the subscription model adopted by brands such as Spotify and Netflix,” said Ros. “The evidence on whether it would work for hotel bookings was lacking. But I realized that under this model, Bidroom could abandon booking commissions that were draining the hotel industry. So I did so.”
Today, hotels partnering with Bidroom can reach a vast international audience of frequent travelers who book at least three times a year on average. As a “fair alternative” to known OTAs, Bidroom now offers unparalleled business flexibility: no commissions; direct bookings without a contract; no rate parity pricing restrictions. In return, hoteliers are invited to provide room discounts reaching up to 25% to Bidroom’s user base of over 250,000 members. By the end of 2020, Bidroom aims to double those frequent traveler members. Such a successful operating environment can only be achieved under a membership system for both sides that protects hotels from contractual liability if the property works with different platforms.
The subscription economy can work for Turkey
In April, the Turkish hospitality industry might have to face new accomodation taxes of 6-18 TL (depending on hotel type) per 1 night of booking. Ros sees that as an opportunity for hoteliers to rethink their distribution mix to minimize potential revenue losses.
“In the last decade, a great number of startups successfully redefined market rules by thinking differently. By following that philosophy, we can now offer Turkish hoteliers a risk-free chance of increasing their profits with Bidroom. With us, the first bookings to the value of €1500 are free. Then, we only ask for membership payment if we deliver further new bookings,” said Ros.
Bidroom’s membership system for hotels works in tiers based on the number of rooms. In every case, a hotel has to receive 12 times the membership price in revenue before any invoice is due. Ros’ optimism about Bidroom’s future is well grounded. In 2019, consulting firm McKinsey discovered that the subscription e-commerce market had seen growth of over 100% per year over the past five years with strong interest among consumers aged 25-44 years. Women were a majority in the group, although men tended to have three or more active subscriptions. Furthermore, Bidroom’s core audience was identified as aged 30-55.
For Bidroom to continue its Turkish expansion, the startup will fuel its base growth through business partnerships. On the hotel side, Bidroom’s compelling proposition has attracted prominent hotel chains to join, such as Intercontinental Hotels Group, Red Carnation, Macdonald Hotels & Resorts, Premier Inn, and others. There’s also the I Meet Hotel event that Ros launched in 2017 now acts as a fertile face-to-face networking and thought leadership forum for hoteliers. On the user’s side – with the backing of big players such as Visa Inc. and Avis – Bidroom’s traveler membership base will continue to expand. Bidroom adds value to its frequent traveler community through dynamic partnerships with leading B2C brands such as car rentals, airport lounges, work space hire, luggage storage, fashion and shopping deals, and much more.
As a hotelier, you can join the no-commission movement today to increase your property’s profitability. To learn how Bidroom can benefit your hotel, contact Mr. Adnan Mordeniz – Bidroom’s Country Manager for Turkey – at adnan@bidroom.com or via his LinkedIn profile.
For more information, visit bidroom.com
