Help For Agents From Expedia Partner Solutions
Expedia Partner Solutions (EPS) has announced the release of business-to-business (B2B) rates on their Expedia TAAP booking tool.
EPS enables travel agents to earn up to double their compensation for bookings at international hotel chains including Marriott, Highgate and Club Quarters. The move offers a much-needed recovery boost to travel agents dealing with the impact of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic.
Travel agents can now access B2B rates on over 81,000 room types globally through Expedia TAAP as part of Expedia Group’s optimized distribution program. Current B2B rates move properties up the Expedia TAAP compensation tiers, enabling travel agents to earn up to double the compensation on each booking, fueling their recovery and supporting business growth.
Alfonso Paredes, senior vice president, commercial partnerships at EPS, said: “Travel agents have been hit extremely hard by the pandemic, like the rest of the travel industry, and we’ve been looking for ways to help them recover.”
And Paredes continued: “Being part of Expedia Group gives us a unique position to unlock B2B rates at scale. This, coupled with the recent launch of our Expedia TAAP incentive program, shows our commitment to helping travel agents kick-start their return to growth.”
B2B rates on Expedia TAAP is an extension of the industry-changing optimized distribution program, which launched last year when Expedia Group became the exclusive global distributor of Marriott B2B rates, content and availability. Since then, it’s been expanded to include other leading global hotel chains, with more due to be added in the coming months.
All hotel partners who join will be able to tap into new areas of B2B demand and benefit from increased control of their B2B rates across a large network of global travel providers.
This B2B rates initiative comes on top of Expedia TAAP incentive program which recently launched in nine countries.
By offering fast track upgrades to ‘silver tier’, travel agents can unlock up to 42% more revenue on all lodging bookings and gain access to package rates that attract a higher value traveler.
In addition to this, nearly 70% of lodging rates on Expedia TAAP are now refundable and more than 150,000 properties have already added their sanitization standards and processes to the platform, giving travellers added peace of mind when booking.
