THR's opinion

Marketplaces In the Tourism Industry – What Are They and How Are They Useful?

Before deciding where to go on vacation, the average traveler conducts 33 searches and consults 12 travel websites. On average, the entire process takes 19 days.

This data, according to a Bain & Company and Google study (2019), paired with the constant growth of tourism offerings, underscores how important it is for destinations to differentiate from their competition and strive to reach their target customer through whichever channel possible.

This is where digital tourism Marketplaces can make a positive impact for both providers and travelers.

But first, what exactly is a (digital) Marketplace?

Digital marketplaces are online platforms for both sellers and buyers. They’re websites that match customers seeking a service or product with providers of those products or services. A digital Marketplace is an online space where you can find a range of offers, attractive to multiple segments, all in the same location.

How does it work?

The Marketplace model is based on online platforms; an example would be eBay. Marketplaces are accessed by customers from anywhere in the world who use it for browsing offers from a variety of providers. Once the product is chosen and purchased, the owner of the Marketplace gets a commission as a portion of the final purchase price.

The model is a win-win for providers and customers, as well. Providers reach customers around the globe and the latter can easily browse through a large number of available options off of one single platform.

Why do Marketplaces work so well for the tourism industry?

The Marketplace business model is highly effective for the global tourism industry, an example being AirBnB.

The post-Covid tourist dreams of discovering new places, crossing borders, and experiencing adventures by reaching varied and distant locations. An online platform offering access to such places and their attractions, activities, accommodation, and other products will undoubtedly attract a solid base of customers interested in using the platform.

Correspondingly, hotel owners and other destination-specific businesses are interested in luring global profiles of guests. Via a tourism Marketplace, for example, hotel owners can apply a location-based filter to better target where guests come from.

Benefits of a Digital Marketplace

• More traffic, visits, and visibility: once a provider lists products or services online, and with the right SEO plan, search traffic leads directly to the seller in the Marketplace.


• Personalized audience: listing products in Marketplaces allows a provider to segment products by industry and category, ensuring easier attraction of target clients.


• Customer satisfaction: offering the exact product set that a client is looking for in one unified location increases satisfaction and loyalty, and subsequent return purchases.


• Customer information: the platform can capture user information and apply it to future marketing efforts, or sell that data to third parties.


• Practicality: a marketplace includes multiple offerings in one unified space facilitating the customer journey experience.


• Single payment process: the end customer can choose from a wide range of products and make payment in one single process.

In sum

The Marketplace model has a promising future for the tourism sector. Centralizing an entire tourist offer – be it by geography, category of offer, or some other broad characteristic - in one place facilitates decision-making for the traveler and encourages greater consumption and loyalty.

The Marketplace also supports organizations in the sector with a more robust online presence, leading to increased sales and giving a boost to tourism entrepreneurs.