BELLEVUE, Wash.—Expedia Inc. announced today the release of two new products capitalizing on the investment of its Real Time Data Platform: Real Time Feedback and Sell Tonight; powerful new tools for hoteliers and travelers alike. Available now in select test markets in the U.S., the products will roll-out globally in 2015 as the latest developments to the overhaul of the hotel-facing tool suite that is Expedia PartnerCentral.
Real Time Feedback, designed following feedback from hoteliers who wanted more support in securing positive hotel reviews, targets the mobile-savvy traveler. The interface of real time reviews is simple. Shortly after a guest checks into an Expedia.com-booked hotel, they receive an email or app notification asking them three short questions: “How was your check in?”; “How is your room?” and “Are you happy with the location?” Guests answer these questions through an interface and are offered the chance to enter specific feedback, i.e. “I didn’t have towels in my room.” The review is transmitted in real time to the hotelier via Expedia PartnerCentral, giving them the opportunity to act upon the feedback and avoid a potentially negative trip review.
“Our hotel partners have told us time and again that their feedback to a negative review is simply ‘I wish the guest had told us, as we would’ve corrected the issue,’” explains John Kim, chief product officer, Expedia Inc. “So our product team began ideating how we could troubleshoot that, and Real Time Feedback was born.”
The second launch, Sell Tonight, is another example of Expedia’s significant investment in technology. With this tool, Expedia has made it faster and simpler for hoteliers to push out same day rates and availability to Expedia.com and Hotels.com customers around the world, in addition to the more than 80 million app downloads. Sell Tonight, accessible via Expedia PartnerCentral, informs hotels in real time of same day rates in their market, providing them with the details they need to better compete and increase same day bookings.
