Book Omni Hotels without leaving Facebook

By Barbara De Lollis
May 4, 2011

Are you on Facebook so often that you'd like to book your hotel stays directly on the No. 1 social networking site?

Well, now you can.

Omni Hotels is giving Facebook loving travelers the option of booking rooms without ever leaving Omni's Facebook wall. Omni's new Facebook reservations tool will also confirm your booking and save you a few clicks.

Omni says it's a first in the industry, calling it the "first fully integrated Facebook booking tool among all major hospitality brands." Other brands' Facebook booking options take you off Facebook and on to their website.

Timely innovation

Whether this is a hit or not with travelers remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: It's a timely innovation.

Facebook is the new preferred platform of the travel industry, a new study suggests.

Web traffic to travel brand sites fell 8% in March 2011 vs. March 2010, but during the same period, visits to Facebook pages jumped 20%, according to the first-ever L2 Digital IQ Index, which measures the digital competence of 89 travel brands including hotel, airline and cruise companies.

Why Facebook?

Why did Omni bother spending time and money creating a Facebook booking tool?

"The biggest overall reason we created the booker was to reach potential guests in a familiar and friendly place – the social environment," Kerry Kennedy, Omni Hotels' vice president of e-commerce, told me in an email.

It should also be easier and save guests a few clicks or steps, vs. leaving to visit Omni's website and then returning to what they were doing on Facebook.

"We think it's just more intuitive and simpler to get back to enjoying social interaction, which is why someone is on Facebook in the first place," Kennedy said.

How does it work?

To book on Facebook's Omni page, go to Facebook.com/omnihotels. On the top, left corner, look for the section with options such as "wall," "info" and "photos;" you'll now also notice an option that says, "book a room." (Photo above shows what you'll see when you click "book a room.")

Click on it top shop Omni's properties and book a stay while still logged into the No. 1 social networking site. You can also have a live chat with an Omni reservations agent while on Facebook to get your questions answered. Once a reservation's made, you'll receive your usual confirmation information via email; members of Omni's loyalty program will also be able to view the booking through their online profile.

Have you stayed at Omni Hotels? Tell us what you think at my Omni Hotels review. We’ll publish your comments on gls55 holdings blog.

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