Direct Booking Website Builder + PMS + Channel Manager
Stop giving 15-25% to OTAs on every booking. Build your own commission-free direct booking website with real-time availability, secure payments, and build your own commission-free direct booking website with real-time availability, secure payments, and channel sync — all managed from one platform.
- Eliminate Commission on Direct Bookings
Save £10K-£50K/year by shifting bookings from OTAs to your website.
- Own Your Guest Relationships
Build your guest database instead of relying entirely on OTA relationships.
- Centralise All Channels
Manage direct website + 200 OTAs from one dashboard.
- Automate Operations
Guest messaging, housekeeping, and accounting—no manual work.
Why Standalone Booking Engines Cost You More Than 3-5% Commission
Most hotels and property managers try third-party booking engine plugins (e.g., Booking.com, Cloudbeds Widget, Wix Bookings). Here is the hidden cost:
Problem 1:
Commission Fees Add Up
- Airbnb/Vrbo: 15-20% commission per booking
- Third-party booking widgets: 3-5% commission (even on your own website!)
- Annual cost for £200K revenue: £30K-50K in commissions
Problem 2:
No PMS Integration
Standalone booking engines don’t connect to your property management system. You manually enter reservations, update calendars across platforms, and risk double bookings.
Problem 3:
Lost Guest Data
When guests book through OTAs, they own the relationship. You can’t email past guests with promotions or build loyalty programs—forcing you to pay commission again for repeat bookings.
Problem 4:
Hidden Technical Costs
Booking engine plugin (£50-200/mo) + website hosting (£30/mo) + PMS (£200/mo) + channel manager (£150/mo) = £430-580/month in subscription fees before counting commissions.
The Solution: All-in-One Commission-Free Platform
Zeevou combines direct booking website builder, booking engine, PMS, and channel manager in one platform. 0% commission on all direct bookings. No integrations, no per-booking fees.
How Much Are OTA Commissions Costing You?
| Your Inputs | Example Hotel | Example Property Manager |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Revenue | £200,000 | £180,000 |
| Current Direct Booking % | 10% | 5% |
| Average OTA Commission | 20% | 18% |
| Commission Paid/Year | £36,000 | £30,780 |
With Zeevou (12-month projection):
| Your Inputs | Example Hotel | Example Property Manager |
|---|---|---|
| Target Direct Booking % | 35% | 40% |
| New Annual Commission Cost | £26,000 | £19,440 |
| Annual Savings | £10,000 | £11,340 |
| ROI Timeline | 1 month | 1 month |
Conservative estimate: Most Zeevou customers save £10K-£50K/year in OTA commissions while maintaining or improving total booking volume through multi-channel distribution.
Case Study: How Hotels Save £18K/Year Eliminating OTA Commissions
The Challenge
A 15-room boutique hotel was paying £18,000/year (20% commission) to Booking.com and Expedia. They had no direct booking website, forcing all reservations through OTA platforms that controlled pricing, guest data, and relationships.
The Solution
Launched Zeevou direct booking website with commission-free booking engine. Sent email campaigns to past guests captured from OTA bookings, offering “book direct and save 10%” promotions. Maintained OTA distribution while shifting focus to direct channels.
The Results (12 Months):
| Metric | Before Zeevou | After Zeevou | Improvement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct Booking % | 5% | 35% | +30 points |
| Annual Revenue | £180,000 | £195,000 | +8.3% |
| OTA Commission Paid | £18,000 | £6,500 | -£11,500 |
| Guest Email Database | -0- | 1,200+ | Infinite |
| Repeat Direct Bookings | 0% | 22% | +22 points |
| Platform Costs/Year | £3,600 | £1,140 | -£2,460 |
Total Savings: £11,500 commission + £2,460 platform costs = £13,960/year
ROI: Zeevou paid for itself in the first month.
“We were skeptical about competing with Booking.com for direct bookings. But within 6 months, we shifted 35% of revenue to our commission-free website. The email remarketing to past guests is pure gold—22% of our direct bookings are now repeat guests who used to book through OTAs. Best decision we’ve made.”
Hotel Owner, Bristol Boutique Hotel
Built for Hotels & Vacation Rentals — Commission-Free Bookings + Full Operations
Zeevou is a complete operations platform that replaces fragmented tools.
Own Your Guest Relationships
- What You Get: CRM system (captures data from all bookings), email marketing platform with automated campaigns, guest profile management (preferences, history, requests), and loyalty programs.
- Operational Impact: Build a database of 1,000+ guest emails in the first year; 20-30% of guests return when nurtured. Stop renting relationships from OTAs.
Centralise Multi-Channel Distribution
- What You Get: Direct booking website (0% commission), 200+ OTA channel integrations (Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com, Expedia), Google Hotel/Vacation Rental Ads, and Metasearch engines.
- Operational Impact: Manage your entire business from one dashboard. Real-time availability sync prevents double bookings while increasing total volume.
Automate Guest Communication & Operations
- What You Get: Automated guest messaging (confirmations, check-in, checkout, reviews), housekeeping coordination with real-time room/property status, and task management.
- Operational Impact: Save 10-20 hours/week on manual admin. Coordinate housekeeping across 50+ rooms without phone calls.
Financial Control & Reporting
- What You Get: Automated accounting sync (Xero, QuickBooks, Sage), revenue dashboards (ADR, occupancy, RevPAR), commission tracking, and automated owner statements.
- Operational Impact: Track ROI of direct booking campaigns accurately. Generate owner reports in 1 hour instead of 12 hours/month.
Zeevou Platform Specifications
Direct Booking Website
- 50+ professional templates (hotels, vacation rentals, villas)
- Mobile-responsive design (loads in <3 seconds)
- SEO-optimised (structured data, meta tags)
- Multi-language support (30+ languages)
- Custom domain support
Booking Engine
- Real-time availability and instant confirmation
- Secure checkout: Stripe, PayPal, 20+ payment gateways
- 130+ currencies and flexible pricing rules
- 0% commission on all direct bookings
- Abandoned cart recovery
Property Management System (PMS)
- Hotels: Front desk, housekeeping, night audit, guest profiles
- Vacation Rentals: Multi-property dashboard, owner portal, task automation
- Team collaboration with role-based permissions
Channel Manager
- 200+ OTA integrations (Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com, Expedia, Hotels.com)
- Real-time 2-way synchronisation
- Centralised inbox for all OTA messages
- Google Travel distribution
Traditional Multi-Tool Setup vs. Zeevou All-in-One
TRADITIONAL APPROACH:
| Item | Upfront Cost | Monthly Cost | Annual Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Website design | £5,000-12,000 | — | — |
| Website hosting | — | £30-80 | £360-960 |
| Booking engine plugin | — | £50-200 | £600-2,400 |
| Booking commission (3-5%) | — | Variable | £6,000-10,000* |
| PMS software | £2,000 setup | £200-500 | £2,400-6,000 |
| Channel manager | £1,000 setup | £100-300 | £1,200-3,600 |
| TOTAL | £8,000-15,000 | £380-1,080/mo | £10,560-22,960 |
*Based on £200K annual revenue at 3-5% commissionSavings (10 properties): £8K–£13K upfront + £385–£935/month = £12,620–£24,220/year saved.
ZEEVOU ALL-IN-ONE:
| Item | Upfront Cost | Monthly Cost | Annual Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Website + booking + PMS + channel manager | £0 | £29-95 | £348-1,140 |
| Booking commission | — | 0% | £0 |
| TOTAL | £0 | £29-95/mo | £348-1,140 |
Savings: £8K-15K upfront + £10,212-21,820/year = £18,212-£36,820 first-year savings
Frequently Asked Questions About Vacation Rental Website Design
From Signup to Commission-Free Bookings in 48 Hours
Day 1: Website & Booking Engine Setup:
Choose template, customise branding, add photos/descriptions, configure booking rules, connect payment gateway, publish site.
Day 2: Channel Manager & PMS Setup:
Connect OTA accounts, import existing bookings/calendars, test sync, set up guest messaging, configure housekeeping tasks.
Week 1: Marketing Launch:
Email past guests with “book direct” offers, set up Google Hotel Ads, optimise SEO, add “book direct” banners.
Month 1-3: Optimise & Scale:
A/B test checkout flow, track ROI, build loyalty programs, expand marketing campaigns.
