Before opening the Vaquero Hotel in early 2022, Carlos Gonzalez worked as the Vice President of Sales at the world’s largest third-party management company, overseeing 225 hotels. After working with some of the biggest hospitality brands, he decided to open a motel of his own. He discovered the perfect historic motel in Bandera, Texas, the “Cowboy Capital of the World,” and opened The Vaquero Motel.
This rustic motel is truly one of a kind but needed a lot of work before Carlos could welcome the public. After months of renovations, Carlos opened The Vaquero Motel and invited guests to his property to experience the feeling of going back in Texas history, but with all the luxuries and comforts of a modern boutique motel.
Opening a new property with limited staff and no brand recognition
To modernize the property, The Vaquero Motel required a robust technology solution to support the business. Carlos was familiar with Opera and the big software companies based on his prior experience and wanted a software partner with a trusted brand focused on independent hotels. He was attracted to Cloudbeds because it is a “one-stop shop” – with a PMS, payments solution, website, and digital marketing solution.
“As the owner, I wear a lot of hats and am always looking for trusted partners,” says Carlos.
Cloudbeds provides a unified platform with a complete digital marketing solution to drive more revenue
With a small team, Carlos looked for a trusted partner to help streamline Vaquero’s operations and grow its online presence. With Cloudbeds, they can manage all their reservations through Cloudbeds’ PMS and leverage the channel manager to reach new guests on Booking.com and Expedia. They’ve attracted a lot of international guests through these channels with their “cowboy experience,” and have delivered on this desire. Carlos is proud to hold a 9.3 rating on Booking.com, where guests consistently tout the property’s incredible service and cleanliness.
In addition to bookings from OTAs, Carlos wanted to diversify their distribution strategy and drive more bookings through direct channels. He turned to Cloudbeds’ digital marketing solution, Cloudbeds Digital Marketing, to help maximize direct revenue.
With Cloudbeds’ Digital Marketing, Carlos says, “We have improved our performance and have seen a positive change in direct reservations.” The Vaquero Motel has implemented an SEO-enhanced, fully integrated website with a mobile-friendly booking engine to drive more direct bookings and has increased brand visibility online across metasearch platforms with the help of Cloudbeds’ Digital Marketing.
54% of revenue from direct bookings
Carlos worked with the Cloudbeds’ design team to create a beautiful website to match the updated look of the property. With a modern, mobile-friendly website design, website visitors can book directly via a safe, secure booking engine. Since he launched the business, he’s steadily increased direct bookings, which now account for 54% of revenue.
Since opening, the Vaquero Motel has exceeded expectations from both a revenue and feedback standpoint. With the help of Cloudbeds’ Digital Marketing, they have strengthened their brand awareness and have built a solid foundation to drive more direct bookings.
Looking to the future, Carlos is excited to continue diversifying The Vaquero Motel’s distribution strategy across online platforms and trusts that with the help of Cloudbeds’ Digital Marketing, the motel will be top-of-mind for travelers visiting the San Antonio area.
