Could Your Hotel Be About to Disappear from Search?

There's no escaping the conversation around AI at the moment.

Every week there's another announcement, another prediction, or another headline telling us how it's going to change the way we work. If you're a hotelier, it's easy to feel like you should be doing something, but not always know what that something is.

That's exactly why I wanted Adam Hamadache, Founder of Formula Digital, on the Revenue Rocks podcast.

Adam spends his time helping hotels improve their digital visibility, and I wanted to understand what all these changes actually mean for hotels. More importantly, I wanted to know what hoteliers should be focusing on now, rather than worrying about what might happen in a few years' time.

By the end of our conversation, one thing had become very clear.

Search is changing quickly - probably a lot faster than most of us realise.

Your guests are taking very different journeys

One of the first things we talked about was how different generations discover hotels.

A younger traveller might first come across your hotel on TikTok, check your reviews, compare prices on Booking.com and book everything on their phone.

A Baby Boomer is far more likely to begin with Google, spend more time researching and may even pick up the phone before making a booking.

They're completely different booking journeys, which means hotels have to think carefully about where they invest their marketing time and budget.

This isn't really about generations

But although different generations typically have different booking journeys, Baby Boomers still account for a significant proportion of hotel bookings, and many continue to start their search on Google and book in much the same way they always have.

The difference is that Google itself is changing.

Even if your guests never use ChatGPT, they'll still be using AI when they search because AI is becoming part of the Google experience.

That means this isn't just a conversation about younger travellers. It's something that will affect almost everyone searching for a hotel online.

The biggest change to Google in 25 years

Adam cited Google's latest announcement as the biggest change to Search in 25 years.

Instead of simply returning a list of websites, Google is becoming much better at answering questions and recommending businesses directly.

That changes the challenge for hotels. It's no longer just about getting your website onto page one of Google.

Increasingly, it's about making sure your hotel is one of the businesses AI chooses to recommend.

Good marketing still matters

One thing I really liked about Adam's approach was that he wasn't suggesting hotels throw out everything they're already doing. In fact, quite the opposite -the fundamentals still matter.

You still need a good website.

You still need strong reviews.

You still need a clear message about who your hotel is for.

You still need good content.

The difference is that all of those things now help AI understand your business as well as your guests.

So what should hotels be doing?

I asked Adam what he thought independent hotels should focus on over the next few months…

• Understand how your guests search. Different generations discover hotels in different ways, so make sure your marketing reflects your audience.

• Don't ignore Google. AI may be changing search, but Google is still where many guests begin their booking journey.

• Make sure your website is technically sound. A fast, well-structured website helps both search engines and AI understand your hotel.

• Keep your hotel information consistent online. Your name, address, contact details and descriptions should match across your website, OTAs, Google and other directories.

• Focus on collecting detailed guest reviews. Reviews help build trust and give AI a better understanding of what makes your hotel unique.

• Create useful, original content. Share local knowledge, answer common guest questions and showcase your expertise rather than producing content purely for SEO.

• Continue investing in PPC. Paid search will remain an important way of driving visibility as organic search evolves.

• Review your OTA listings regularly. Make sure descriptions, imagery and messaging are accurate and aligned with your direct booking strategy.

• Talk to your marketing agency. Ask how they're preparing for AI-powered search and what they're doing to keep your hotel visible as Google evolves.

• Keep learning. Search is changing quickly, so make time to stay informed and review your digital strategy regularly.

And the key takeaway…

Hotels don't need to panic about AI, but they do need to pay attention. The fundamentals of good digital marketing haven't changed-but the way guests discover hotels has. The hotels that stay visible, wherever guests are searching, will be best placed to win more direct bookings

The Real Challenge for Hotels is Visibility.

Going into the conversation, I thought we'd spend most of our time talking about AI.

Instead, we spent much more time talking about visibility, which feels like the real challenge.

Hotels don't need to become AI experts overnight… but they do need to understand how guests are finding them today, and how quickly that is changing.

For me, that was the biggest lesson from the conversation.

The hotels that continue to attract bookings won't necessarily be the ones using the newest technology.

They'll be the ones that make it easy for guests, and increasingly AI, to discover them in the first place.

If you'd like to hear the full discussion, listen to the latest episode of the Revenue RocksPodcast, where Adam shares practical advice on how hotels can improve their visibility, adapt to changing search behaviour and prepare for the next generation of online discovery.