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OLIVER HECKMANN CLARIFIES GOOGLE ’ S ROLE IN THE TRAVEL JOURNEY AND MAKES SOME PREDICTIONS ABOUT WHAT ’ S NEXT .
By JEFF WEINSTEIN , EDITOR IN CHIEF
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few months ago , HOTELS talked to Oliver Heckmann , for almost two and a half years Google ’ s vice president of engineering for travel products , including Google Ads and the new Google Trips . To clear up any misconceptions and to address some rumors , he made it very clear that what hasn ’ t changed is that Google remains “ the connector ” between consumers and suppliers , with no stated plans to further insert itself into the travel booking process .
“ We build better consumer experiences . Traveling is an important part of people ’ s lives , and the consumer experiences for travelers have not been the best ,” Heckmann says . “ We see a lot of potential to improve the consumer experience on our side . But in the end , that also leads to better experience for all of our partners , and that includes OTAs and all the suppliers , because as the connector we ’ re not at the end of where the user is going . The user will always be sent off to a partner and convert with the partner . So , the better consumer experience will lead to an influx of more consumers transacting with partners .”
With Google ’ s emerging Hotel Ads product , Heckmann says hotel advertisers remain the merchant of record , “ always — whether they drive travelers to book on their own website or through Book on Google , a Googlehosted mobile page that removes friction from the booking process thanks to pre-populated payment information .”
To further clarify Google ’ s role in the booking process , Heckmann described a mobile user experience , pointing out interesting facts and characteristics along the way . He gave the example of searching for a hotel in Santa Barbara , California , and stated that many people surprisingly still click on the telephone call button from their Google search to make a reservation , adding the most clicks lead to the hotel website .
GOOGLE HOTEL ADS Heckmann acknowledges that Google Hotel Ads can be a source of confusion , as many hoteliers often mistake the entire hotel search unit for a paid unit . In actuality , the vast majority of clicks within the hotel search unit , such as a click to see photos of amenities , a click to see directions , a click on the phone number , or a click on the hotel website itself — are free for hotels . The hotelier is charged only when a traveler clicks to book a room , and that link is clearly marked as an advertisement . “ What ’ s really important to differentiate is that only clicks on booking links are paid clicks ,” he says .
Screen shots from Google searches show search results and property details .
BOOK ON GOOGLE Heckmann also discussed another tool for hotel advertisers : Book on Google , a Hotel Ads feature that offers travelers a way to book via their mobile device . With Book on Google , hotel advertisers can opt for travelers to book through a Google-hosted site designed to minimize friction and drop off by using the credit card already on file in the user ’ s ’ Google account . Heckmann added that with Book on Google , the hotel advertiser completely owns the transaction - including obtaining the customer email and other important data . He also emphasized that Google is not becoming an OTA , as the merchant of record remains the supplier who gets all the user information and owns the full customer relationship .
16 hotelsmag . com May 2017