Case Study

Hotel Emma excels visibility goals with 96% search impression share & a $44:1 ROAS

Danielle Allen

GCommerce · 九月 12, 2025

Hotel Emma holds rich history since 1894 and has been a San Antonio landmark ever since. The blend of historical elements with modern references and finely balanced tension between past and future make it the perfect place for a luxury and intelligent stay.

Why it matters: In an increasing luxury hotel market, standing out while maintaining direct relationships with guests can be a significant challenge. Like many independent properties, Hotel Emma faced the fact that OTAs dominate market share. Their approach was to maintain visibility for their brand, which required a strategic approach to ensure the hotel remained top of search results for new and returning guests.

In response to these challenges, Hotel Emma set ambitious goals to increase brand visibility and secure more direct bookings. By leveraging metasearch, the hotel aimed to achieve at least a 90% search impression share and ensure it consistently ranked at the top of relevant searches.

Top 3 Core Objectives: Hotel Emma initially faced challenges with its metasearch campaigns, including technical complexities and strategic budget allocation. Starting with a 96% search impression share across Google and Tripadvisor, the team restructured their approach by segmenting campaigns into two channels—one targeting Google and the other Tripadvisor. They then implemented consistent bid adjustments based on length of stay, check-in dates, and days until arrival. This allowed for tailored optimizations and a granular use for efficient budget allocation.

Maintain visibility: In an increasing luxury hotel market, standing out while maintaining direct relationships with guests can be a significant challenge
Reduce OTA share: Hotel Emma faced the fact that OTAs dominate market share. Their approach was to maintain visibility for their brand, which required a strategic approach to ensure the hotel remained top of search results for new and returning guests.

"In today’s luxury hotel market, visibility is everything. By restructuring Hotel Emma’s metasearch campaigns across Google and Tripadvisor, we ensured the property consistently stayed top of mind and top of search for new and returning guests."

Alex Horrocks

Senior Paid Search Strategist

👍 Senior Paid Search Strategist Alex Horrocks said that Standing out in the luxury hotel market takes more than just a beautiful property, it takes strategic visibility.:

"In today’s luxury hotel market, visibility is everything. By restructuring Hotel Emma’s metasearch campaigns across Google and Tripadvisor, we ensured the property consistently stayed top of mind and top of search for new and returning guests."

⚖️ The selection process: During their research process, Alex Horrocks evaluated GCommerce's product differentiators, customer support, and holistic value as a strategic partner and ultimately decided that GCommerce was the best fit solution:

Senior Paid Search Strategist Alex Horrocks said, about their decision: "Driving a 340% increase in direct bookings and achieving a 44:1 ROAS showed the power of a granular, tailored approach. For Hotel Emma, it wasn’t just about competing with OTAs, it was about proving the value of smart, strategic optimizations."

📈 The results: The results were remarkable. The Google campaign achieved a 95% search impression share, while Tripadvisor reached an outstanding 99%. These efforts drove 376 direct bookings (a 340% increase) and exceeded return expectations with a 44:1 ROAS—far surpassing the original goal of 10:1. This success underscored the value of a focused, granular campaign strategy in elevating visibility and driving direct bookings.

Impression share: 96%
ROAS: $44:1
Bookings: 340% increase