OTAs set new record for marketing spend in 2023

Trip.com stands out as the company that had the biggest jump in its marketing budget in 2023

Financial data from Expedia Group, Booking Holdings, Airbnb, and Trip.com Group, the leading online travel agencies globally, reveal a notable surge in expenditure aimed at brand promotion and customer acquisition in 2023. This trend is propelled by lingering demand from the pandemic.

Key takeaways

• These four industry giants collectively allocated a remarkable $16.8 billion towards sales and marketing endeavors last year, representing a substantial 20% increase from the slightly over $14 billion expended in 2022 (as reported by Booking Holdings, categorizing it solely as marketing expenses);
• This expenditure surge underscores the fierce competition prevailing in the industry, where these entities are engaged in a relentless battle to secure bookings. They face competition not only amongst themselves but also from suppliers like hotels and airlines, all vying for direct business;
• Airbnb has traditionally highlighted its impressive direct traffic metrics, with the latest figure standing at 90%. Despite this, the company's advertising expenditure as a percentage of revenue was over 18% in 2023, amounting to $1.8 billion against a revenue backdrop of $9.9 billion.

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