Case study · Hospitality
Testing direct advertising against commission-based bookings: 10× ROAS.
A hotel chain relied heavily on commission-based platforms such as Booking.com to generate reservations. AD cube connected advertising activity to booking revenue to evaluate whether channels such as Google Ads and TripAdvisor could provide a more cost-effective source of direct bookings.
Project overview
Sector
Hospitality, hotel chain.
Channels
Google Ads, TripAdvisor.
AD cube capabilities
Revenue data integration, channel selection, demand-based timing.
Objective
Reduce dependence on commission-heavy booking platforms.
The decision challenge
Comparing the economics of direct advertising and commission-based bookings.
The hotel chain relied heavily on platforms such as Booking.com for reservations. Using an 18% commission as the comparison benchmark, reducing that reliance meant advertising on channels like Google Ads and TripAdvisor had to generate bookings at a favorable enough cost to compete with commission-based distribution — not simply add another acquisition channel alongside it.
The method
Connecting revenue data to channel and timing decisions.
The hotel chain connected reservation and revenue management data to AD cube, allowing advertising performance to be evaluated against the booking revenue generated by each campaign. These signals were then used to compare Google Ads and TripAdvisor and to identify the periods in which advertising investment showed the strongest expected booking potential.
Revenue data integration
Reservation and revenue management data connected to guide advertising decisions.
Channel comparison
Google Ads and TripAdvisor evaluated against booking revenue generated.
Timing
Spend concentrated on the periods with the strongest expected booking potential.
Results
10×
ROAS
Booking revenue generated for every unit of advertising spend across the campaigns.
5.23×
vs Booking.com
Comparative return reported alongside the ROAS result.
The business impact
Connecting advertising spend to booking revenue gave the hotel chain a consistent basis for comparing direct campaigns with commission-based distribution. Rather than evaluating Google Ads and TripAdvisor only through platform metrics, the company could assess whether each channel generated reservations at a more favorable acquisition cost than the commission benchmark. The 10× ROAS showed that direct advertising could play a more significant role in the hotel's booking mix.