Activate ROOM BOOKING MODULE (RBM) from Google Hotel Ads 

As we reported a few weeks ago, Roiback has been the first Spanish tech company and one of the first in the world to integrate directly with BoG (Book on Google), the Google Hotel Ads (GHA) solution that allows you to finalize your hotel reservation without leaving the Google environment instead of a click-out and redirect to the hotel website. One of the advantages of activating your hotels in Book on Google, is to be able to opt for the additional section of Room Booking Module (RBM).

What is Room Booking Module (RBM)?

RBM is an extra module of Book on Google, which allows you to show the prices and content of the different room types and gives the user the possibility to start the reservation directly from this module being redirected to the BoG process.

If I already have activated standard Google Hotel Ads campaigns, am I already using RMB?

No. In order to activate the RMB module it is necessary to activate completely or partially Book on Google with the RBM option, since Room Booking Module requires the use of BoG.

If you do NOT have active GHA campaigns, please contact your DCS immediately and they will advise you on how to start ASAP. GHA already accounts for 65% of the total sales of Metasearch engines, a channel that grouping the rest of Metasearchers accounts for around 15%-25% of total direct channel sales (data from Roiback hotels).

Can I activate standard Google Hotel Ads campaigns and also Book on Google?

Yes, but you can only combine standard Google Hotel Ads campaigns with the extra module of Room Booking Module. That is, if you activate BoG completely, the entire reservation process will be carried out in the Google environment, both in the standard section that you already know (with the price comparison of the official website and OTAs), as in the new section of RBM.

So, what is the best recommendation, activate Book on Google or leave standard Google Hotel Ads campaigns?

Our recommendation at the moment is to only activate the module of Room Booking Module + the standard campaigns of Google Hotel Ads.

Why don't we recommend now to activate Book on Google with the complete solution?

Book on Google is a relatively new reservation system created by Google in order to eliminate friction during the purchase process, especially on mobile devices and trying to improve the user experience. In any case, it is a change of user expetience navigation too drastic right now and users are not used to this new process. It is preferable to wait a reasonable time until this new reservation process settles down a little more within the buying cycle of the Google ecosystem.

What are the advantages of activating the standard Google Hotel Ads campaigns + the BoG Room Booking Module?

Activating RBM today is a great opportunity, since it is an extra addition to your GHA configuration. By adding RBM to your GHA activity you can get more visibility, more clicks and therefore more reservations almost guaranteed. Right now, there is practically no competition in RBM and the OTAs are not participating, so it is time to be the first and occupy that space at the lowest possible cost.

Book on Google is active in Spain, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Sweden, therefore, your Room Booking Module campaigns will also have visibility in these markets.

Ok, I want to activate it. What should I do? Does it have an extra cost? Any limitations?

Activating it's very simple, you just have to contact your DCS and request the activation of Room Booking Module. In a few days you will have it ready. Both Book on Google and RBM have no extra cost since they are part of the integration you already have of Google Hotel Ads and you will only pay Google the cost of the clicks or commission that you already have set up in your GHA campaigns.

You must take into account some limitations, such as by activating BoG (and therefore RBM), you cannot show rates of your Loyalty program because Google does not allow to register in your program browsing in their environment, but It should not be a blockage to activate RBM since in the Google Hotel Ads campaigns standard you can display these prices. Book on Google does not support rates with POS as an associated payment method, but at Roiback we have worked on a solution that will allow you to send these types of rates (check with your DCS).

Don't wait any longer and contact your DCS to activate the Room Booking Module of Book on Google.