"The campaign is going well: 9% CTR and cost per click is down." Great. But how many bookings did it bring? How much revenue? If the answer is "we don't know exactly", the campaign is running… blind.
Without booking tracking, Google Ads optimises for clicks, not sales. And you can't tell whether you're making or losing money. Let's look at how to set up reliable measurement, even if your booking engine is on a different domain.
What needs measuring
- Completed booking (the primary conversion), with its value in euros.
- Clicks on "Book" and booking starts (secondary conversions, useful for understanding the journey).
- Contacts: phone clicks, WhatsApp clicks, enquiry form submissions (secondary conversions).
Set only the booking as your primary conversion: if Google optimises for phone clicks, it'll bring lots of phone clicks — not necessarily bookings.
The typical problem: a booking engine on another domain
Many booking engines run on a different domain (e.g. book.provider.com). If tracking isn't set up properly, when a user moves from your website to the booking engine the source information is "lost", and the booking is attributed to the wrong channel or to none.
Fixes:
- check that your provider supports Google Analytics 4 and/or the Google Ads conversion tag;
- set up cross-domain tracking in GA4 covering your website and booking engine;
- make sure the confirmation page sends the purchase event with the booking value;
- link Google Ads and GA4 and import the conversion, or use the direct conversion tag.
Cookie consent
Under GDPR, advertising tracking requires user consent. With a correctly configured banner and Google's consent mode, you can measure those who accept and get estimates for those who decline. Without proper consent management you risk two mistakes: measuring nothing, or measuring non-compliantly.
How to check it works
- Click one of your ads (or use Google's preview and test tools) and make a test booking.
- Check in GA4 (real-time view or DebugView) that the booking event arrives with the right value and source.
- Check in Google Ads, a few hours later, that the conversion appears.
- Cancel the test booking.
Repeat the check after every website or booking engine update.
What to look at every month
| Indicator | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Bookings | The real result |
| Revenue | What those bookings are worth |
| Cost per booking | To compare with OTA cost |
| ROAS | Revenue / spend |
| Cancellations | A cancelled booking isn't revenue |
| Assisted bookings | Campaigns that help even if they don't close |
Deep dive: how to tell if your hotel ads cost more than OTA commissions.
Bookings that slip through
Even with perfect tracking, some bookings aren't attributed: the guest clicks the ad, then phones; or clicks on mobile and books days later on a computer. For a complete picture:
- ask phone bookers where they found you;
- compare direct booking trends in periods with and without campaigns;
- look at cross-device conversions and paths in GA4.
Frequently asked questions
My booking engine doesn't support Google Ads: what do I do?
Ask whether it supports GA4: if so, you can import conversions into Google Ads. If it supports no integration at all, that's a serious limitation — consider an alternative. See booking engines for small hotels: how to choose the right one.
Should I measure cancelled bookings too?
Yes, at least in reporting: a high ROAS with many cancellations can be misleading. Some setups also allow you to adjust conversion values.
How long does tracking setup take?
With a booking engine that supports integrations, often a few hours of technical work plus testing. The longest part is usually coordinating with the provider.
Do you know how many bookings your ads bring?
With our free marketing audit we check the tracking on your hotel's website, booking engine and campaigns and tell you whether the numbers you see are reliable.
