Built by hoteliers, for hoteliers
You already know what OTA commissions cost you. The bigger question is: how many guests checked out last month that you'll never hear from again? A loyalty program gives them a reason to come back — and book direct every time.
When a guest books through Booking.com, they're Booking.com's customer. You don't get their email. You can't send them a thank-you note. You can't offer them a deal next summer. You can't build a relationship.
They come. They stay. They leave. And next year, they search for your area on Expedia and you pay 20% all over again — for a guest who already knows and loves your property.
The big chains figured this out decades ago. That's why Marriott Bonvoy has 200 million members. Those guests book direct because they have a reason to. Your guests don't have that reason yet.
Every week you wait is another week of guests checking out and disappearing back into the OTA ecosystem. Not because they don't like your hotel — but because you gave them no reason to come back direct.
Guest finds you on Expedia
They search your area. The OTA owns the relationship from day one.
They stay and love it
Great experience. But you have no way to reach them after checkout.
Next year: back to Expedia
You pay commission again. They never became YOUR customer.
OTAs aren't just listing your hotel. They're running a multi-billion-dollar operation designed to make sure guests never book with you directly.
$17.8B
spent on marketing by the top 4 OTAs in 2024 alone
$7.3B
Booking Holdings' marketing spend — 31% of their entire revenue
24%
of the time, YOUR hotel doesn't appear first — even when guests search your name
Here's what that money buys them. When a past guest searches your hotel name on Google — your actual name — an OTA ad appears above your website. The guest clicks it, books through Booking.com, and you pay 15–25% commission on a guest who was already trying to book with you directly.
It gets worse. Third-party call centers now answer phones using your hotel's name. The guest thinks they're talking to your front desk. They're not. They're talking to someone who will route that booking through an OTA — and you'll pay commission on it.
This isn't a level playing field. Booking and Expedia spent $14.1 billion combined in 2024 making sure your guests never reach your website. You can't outspend them. But you can do something they can't: give your guest a personal reason to come back to you.
South EST gives your hotel its own branded loyalty program — your name, your brand, your guest relationships.
Guests earn points when they stay. They see their rewards on their phone. They have a real reason to book direct next time instead of searching on Expedia.
You build a database of YOUR guests — their emails, their preferences, their stay history. That database becomes the most valuable asset your hotel owns.
Commission savings are the byproduct. As more guests book direct, your OTA costs go down naturally. But the real value is a guest list that grows every month and pays dividends for years.
Three steps. No IT project. No system changes.
Your name, your look, your properties. We handle the setup — your loyalty program is ready in days, not months.
"Would you like to join our rewards program?" That's it. Guests sign up on their phone in 30 seconds.
Export a checkout report from your existing system once a week. We match guests, credit stays, and award points automatically.
You're probably thinking: “This sounds like a big IT project.” It's not.
Nothing to install on your computers
Everything runs in a web browser. No downloads, no new apps for your team to learn.
Nothing to connect to your reservation system
It works alongside whatever PMS you already use — RoomMaster, Opera, Mews, Cloudbeds, even a spreadsheet.
Your team manages everything from one dashboard
Credit stays, see member activity, track rewards. If your front desk can use email, they can use this.
Most hotels are up and running within a week
We build your branded program and hand you a link. Your front desk starts enrolling guests immediately.
We already built your program. You just turn it on.
Whether you run one beachfront property or a portfolio of ten, South EST gives your guests a reason to come back — and book direct every time.
Independent hotels and resorts — not chains, not franchises
Coastal and resort destinations with repeat vacation guests
One property or ten — one loyalty program across all your locations
Owners tired of paying commissions on guests who already know and love their property
Hotels with 10–200 rooms that want to compete without a big-chain budget
Properties where the personal touch is what makes guests come back
No franchise fees. No corporate mandates. Your hotel. Your brand. Your guest relationships.
“We built South EST because we've been in the hotel business our whole lives. We've watched OTAs take a bigger cut every year and we knew there had to be a better way for independent hotels. You deserve the same loyalty tools the big chains have — without the big-chain price tag.”
Created by a 4th-generation hotelier
who understands your business from the inside
Days
From kickoff to live program
$0
IT investment required
Any PMS
Works with your existing system
Currently onboarding partners along the East Coast · Hospitality-first approach · No long-term contracts
Plug in your numbers and see what happens when guests start coming back direct.
Annual average is fine
Expedia, Booking.com, Hotels.com, etc.
Usually 15–25% depending on your agreement
These guests came and went. You don't have their email. You can't bring them back.
If your loyalty program moves...
| OTA guests to direct | Guests retained | Commission saved | New direct rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10% | ~190/yr | $14,947/yr | 64% |
| 20% | ~380/yr | $29,894/yr | 68% |
| 30% | ~569/yr | $44,840/yr | 72% |
That's 190 to 569 guests per year who become YOUR repeat customers — and $14,947 to $44,840 in commissions you stop paying.
And it compounds. Year two, those guests come back direct again — plus the new ones you enroll this year.
Tell us about your property and we'll show you what your branded loyalty program would look like. No commitment, no pressure.