Promotions are a great way to get more visibility and increase your income. If you list on Booking.com, you can attract more guests by using the channel’s Mobile and Country Rates.
Mobile and Country rates allow you to offer a special price to guests booking on mobile, or in certain countries.
In this article, we’ll explain the benefits of setting up Mobile and Country Rates on Booking.com. We’ll also show you how to use other promotions to increase your visibility and conversions on Booking.com.
Mobile bookings and international travel: two growing segments
We can plan and book an entire trip using our mobile phones: from researching destinations to booking flights, accommodation, and transfers.
More and more travellers are choosing to do this: research from TripAdvisor found that 42% of travellers now use their smartphones to plan and book trips. This number will only grow as tech-savvy generations start dominating the market (by 2025, 75% of vacation rental consumers will be millennials or younger).
Evidently, targeting mobile bookers is a good strategy for attracting more guests.
Another important trend is the return of international travel.
Data from the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer showed that:
- International travel reached 80% of pre-pandemic levels in the first quarter of 2023.
- 235 million tourists travelled abroad in the first quarter of 2023 – which was double the numbers for the same period of 2022.
In light of this growth, property managers can broaden their customer base by targeting international travellers.
How promotions increase your conversions
According to Booking.com data, 62% of travellers say they’re more price-conscious when planning trips, and 55% say they are more likely to search for promotions.
Clearly price matters, and a promotion banner will capture your guests’ attention.
Also, when you have promotions activated, Booking.com will boost your post above others that don’t. By using Mobile Rates, for example, you can expect up to 28% more visibility. Learn more about securing your first reservation on Booking.com here.
What are Mobile Rates?
A Mobile Rate is a special price you offer exclusively to customers who book on mobile. The discounted price will only be visible to guests viewing your listing on a mobile device.
This promotion can increase your visibility on the Booking.com mobile app, and incentivise guests to choose your properties over your competitors.
When you activate Mobile Rates, you must offer guests a minimum discount of 10%. You can combine Mobile Rates with other discounts and promotions (apart from Country Rates or Limited Time Deal).
What are Country Rates?
Country Rates work in a similar way to Mobile Rates.
You can set a discounted rate which will only be visible to travellers in a particular country. The minimum discount is 5%, and you can combine it with other discounts (apart from Mobile Rates or Limited Time Deal).
This discount will make your property stand out to guests in a particular region and can help you increase international tourism or open your business to profitable new markets.
How to set up Mobile and Country Rates
Activate Mobile or Country Rates through Booking.com by going to the Promotions menu.
You can also create and manage Booking.com promotions directly through your Rentals United channel manager.
To do this, go to the Services tab and click My Services. Select Booking.com from the Sales Channels list, and click Promotions.
Now, to create a new promotion:
- Go to the Promotions panel and click Create new promotion
- Provide a name (for your reference only)
- Select the Promotion type (here you can choose Mobile Rates, Country Rates or another option)
- Complete the promotion information form by following the guidelines.
- Assign the promotion – you can either assign to all properties at once or just to selected rate plans.
- Click Create Promotion.
You can come back here to update your promotion, add more properties, or deactivate your promotion for some or all properties anytime.
Other promotions to try
In addition to Mobile and Country Rates, Booking.com has a range of other promotions you can apply to your properties.
For example:
- Basic Deal is a flexible, fully customisable discount you can apply for any reason. You can choose the discount amount, dates when the deal applies and minimum length of stay.
- Early Booker is a discount for guests booking in advance of the check-in date. You can decide how far in advance to offer the discount – the minimum is 15 days in advance of check-in. Booking.com recommends making the Early Booker discount your cheapest available offer.
- Last Minute deals can help you boost occupancy by attracting guests who travel at short notice. This promotion can help you fill gaps in your calendar or resell cancelled nights. Booking.com recommends setting up this promotion for a maximum of seven days before check-in.
Tips for using Mobile and Country Rates
Allow instant booking via Airbnb Request to Book.
If you’re wondering how to use discounts like Mobile and Country Rates most effectively, here are some tactics to try.
- Apply Country Rates to countries that are in high season. Seasonality and public holidays vary from region to region, so you can increase your occupancy throughout the year by appealing to different countries at different times.
- Use Country Rates to attract guests from new markets. You can increase your customer base by offering discounts for guests in countries where you don’t currently get much business.
- Target young travellers with Mobile Rates. Get more young, single travellers or friend groups to book your property by using a mobile discount.
- Apply Early Booker discounts during uncertain times or low season. When demand is low you can incentivise early bird bookings.
- Resell cancelled nights using Last Minute. You can recoup losses from cancellations or fill calendar gaps using last-minute discounts.
Note that you can stack promotions together and apply two or more promotions to a single reservation.
When you use two promotions together, the initial price will be first decreased by the discount offered in the first promotion and then the discount from the second promotion will be applied.
Set up Mobile and Country Rates Today
Don’t miss your chance to take advantage of two massive vacation rental trends: the rise of international travel and mobile bookings.
Booking.com’s mobile and country rates are a fantastic way to make the most of these booking trends and ensure you get maximum bookings and visibility on the platform all year round.
Ready to start your promotions? Contact us using the form below for help setting up Mobile and Country Rates.