Most hotels don’t lack great service, beautiful locations, or positive guest reviews. What they lack is visibility. 

If a potential guest searches for a place to stay in a given destination, OTAs and large hotel chains dominate the search results, leaving independent hotels struggling to be seen. Even more frustratingly, OTAs frequently outrank hotels for their own brand names, pushing direct bookings further out of reach.

It’s not that hotels aren’t investing in SEO – they are. The problem is that most hotel SEO strategies follow outdated playbooks, miss critical ranking factors, and fail to work within Google’s evolving search landscape. The result? Missed opportunities, reliance on costly third-party platforms, and dwindling direct bookings. To take control of their digital presence, hotels must understand where these strategies go wrong and what they can do differently.

Overreliance on OTAs

OTAs have become the biggest gatekeepers of hotel bookings. Their dominance in search results means that even when a traveller searches for a specific hotel name, they are often met with OTA listings before they even see the hotel’s official website. This is by design – OTAs spend heavily on paid search and SEO to ensure they capture traffic before it reaches the hotel directly.

The issue isn’t just about search rankings. When guests book through an OTA, the hotel loses the direct relationship with that guest. This means no opportunity to build brand loyalty, no access to valuable first-party data, and, of course, a significant cut of revenue lost to commission fees that can reach as high as 25% per booking.

Hotels can’t afford to abandon OTAs entirely, but they can counteract this reliance by optimising their websites to rank for their own brand searches, offering exclusive incentives for direct bookings, and building content strategies that capture organic traffic at multiple stages of the guest booking journey.

Slow, Poorly Optimised Websites

A hotel’s website is its most important digital asset, yet many suffer from slow load times, poor user experience and a lack of mobile optimisation. Google prioritises fast, well-structured, and mobile-friendly websites, and when a hotel’s site falls short, it affects both rankings and conversions.

Speed is a particularly critical factor. Research shows that 40% of users abandon a site that takes more than three seconds to load. Many hotel websites still rely on outdated booking engines, large unoptimised images, and bloated code that slows performance. Mobile experience is equally important, as the majority of travel searches and bookings now happen on mobile devices. A website that doesn’t function smoothly on mobile means lost revenue.

To fix this, hotels must ensure their websites are optimised for speed, provide a seamless mobile experience, and have a clear, user-friendly booking process. Removing unnecessary elements, optimising images, and using lightweight frameworks can significantly improve performance.

Neglecting Local SEO and Google Business Profile

When a potential guest searches for “hotels near [destination],” Google’s local search results and Google Business Profiles often appear before traditional organic listings. Many hotels fail to take full advantage of these features, leaving significant traffic – and bookings – on the table.

An incomplete or inconsistent Google Business Profile can damage a hotel’s visibility. Missing or outdated information, a lack of high-quality images, and an absence of guest reviews can all push a property down in search rankings. Local search algorithms also prioritise businesses with strong review signals, meaning that a hotel with few or negative reviews will struggle to compete.

Hotels must fully optimise their Google Business Profile by ensuring that all information is accurate, regularly updating images, and actively encouraging guest reviews. Additionally, using local schema markup on their website can help search engines better understand their location and services, improving their chances of appearing in local search results.

Lack of Structured Data and Schema Markup

Schema markup is one of the most underutilised yet powerful tools in SEO. It provides search engines with structured information about a business, allowing them to display rich results such as star ratings, pricing, and availability directly in search listings. For hotels, this can significantly improve visibility and click-through rates.

Many hotels do not implement schema markup at all, or they use it incorrectly. Without structured data, Google struggles to interpret key details about a property, making it less likely to surface relevant information in search results. Implementing hotel-specific schema markup can enhance a hotel’s search presence, making it easier for guests to find the details they need at a glance.

How Hotels Can Take Back Control of Their SEO

Hotel SEO is not just about ranking higher – it’s about reclaiming direct bookings, reducing dependence on OTAs and building a digital presence that works in the hotel’s favour. Many of the most common mistakes stem from outdated strategies and a lack of holistic, long-term thinking.

Here at Formula, we specialise in transforming hotel SEO strategies with a comprehensive, results-driven approach. From technical optimisation and local SEO to content strategy and digital PR, we help hotels navigate the complexities of search and achieve sustainable growth. Our strategies are designed to increase direct bookings, improve online visibility, and ensure that hotels are not just found, but chosen.

If your hotel is struggling to compete online, it’s time to rethink your SEO approach. Get in touch with Formula to discover how we can help your property take control of its digital presence and drive more direct revenue.