In this Q&A, Zak Longo and Mayur Patil, co-founders of Travly, share the story behind their innovative travel platform that’s changing how travelers discover and book experiences. Travly was born out of Longo’s own experiences as a travel content creator and entrepreneur. After co-founding Gamelancer and selling the company, Longo embarked on a European trip that revealed a growing reliance on social media for travel recommendations, particularly among Gen Z travelers. Recognizing the need for greater transparency and ease in the booking process, Longo teamed up with Mayur Patil, a digital media and tech leader, to launch Travly in 2022.
Longo’s background as a filmmaker and travel influencer, coupled with Patil’s expertise in scaling social platforms, has allowed Travly to merge user-generated content with an intuitive booking system. Together, they aim to close the gap between travel inspiration and booking by allowing travelers to upload and share their own experiences, earning commissions when bookings are made through their content. Below, Travly’s founders discuss their vision for the platform, how it supports hotels, and what sets it apart in the ever-evolving hotel tech landscape.
What challenges within the hospitality and travel sectors does Travly address for both hotels and consumers?
Travly is a leader in video-first content production and crafts compelling narratives that resonate with the social-first generation across multiple platforms. In today’s digital world, travelers often book trips, hotel stays and excursions based on what they see online, and some may not meet their expectations in reality, due to poor or dishonest marketing. Travly addresses what can be called “travel catfishing” by allowing real travelers to share their first-hand accounts of locations with prospective travelers, achieving heightened transparency in the process.
There’s also a general disconnect between trip discovery through social media and the still-old-fashioned process of booking travel accommodations. By creating a platform that connects the two worlds, Travly is making it easier for inspired travelers to book the incredible adventures they discover on social media instantly.
What distinguishes Travly from other innovations in the hotel technology landscape?
Travly technology enables users to upload their own travel videos, including their hotel accommodations, connect with a global community of fellow travelers, and even earn commissions from their uploaded content. When someone books a hotel based on a user-uploaded video, that traveler receives a direct commission from Travly. By combining the power of social media, user-generated content, and an innovative booking system, Travly is reshaping the way people discover and book their travel experiences. By democratizing travel content creation, Travly encourages a new generation of travelers.
How does Travly create value for both hotels and its own business model?
Travly generates profit for hotels by promoting a curated selection of hotel properties to its extensive social media audience, increasing visibility and driving bookings through its platform. Hotels benefit from Travly’s ability to reach targeted travel audiences, particularly through its network of 1000 influencers, which helps boost their bookings and overall revenue.
Travly generates revenue for itself through a strategic affiliate partnership with Booking.com, earning commissions on bookings made through its platform. This model seamlessly integrates monetization while enhancing the user experience, allowing travelers to easily book accommodations directly from Travly’s curated video content.
What are the key functionalities of Travly, and how does it streamline the travel booking process?
Travly reaches over 25 million travelers and garners more than 1 billion monthly views, and by connecting brands with a discerning audience through targeted and authentic engagement. Travly recently launched a first-of-its-kind Online Travel Agent platform available as a mobile app and website, allowing travelers to instantly book curated accommodations through authentic videos and “Dupes”– alternative, cost-conscious options. This innovative model sets it apart from traditional OTAs by allowing users to browse hotels through videos, offering a more immersive and realistic experience compared to static images.
Within weeks of launching its OTA app platform, Travly has already confirmed over 13,000 registrations and over 500 video submissions. Travly understands the social-first environment in which today’s traveler lives, and by continuing to offer innovative and exciting content and opportunities, Travly will continue to grow at a rapid pace.
What inquiries and concerns do you most often receive from hoteliers regarding Travly’s capabilities and integration?
Hotels are curious about what Travly has to offer in regards to its OTA and socials. Travly works with hotels to feature video content about the hotel on the platform to drive bookings and provide each traveler with an honest, transparent feeling of what the property is like, unlike traditional OTAs. Travly’s hotel partners also get extra visibility through Travly’s 25M+ following social network.
Can you share specific results that demonstrate Travly’s impact on hotel brand performance?
Travly’s social media campaign collaboration with Omni Hotels & Resorts and Southwest Airlines, which centered the spectacular “Great North American Eclipse” set a new standard for travel marketing. Select Travly ambassadors captured the eclipse from both Omni Hotels in Pittsburgh and Dallas and from 30,000 feet in the air on a Southwest Airlines flight, producing immersive, real-time experiences for viewers.
With 6 video posts promoted through Travly’s social channels, the campaign generated nearly 7 million views and half a million likes, showcasing the power of authentic, social-first content to captivate mobile-native travelers. The campaign significantly boosted engagement and showcased the tremendous value of the creator economy. The success of the campaign was driven by the reach and authenticity of Travly’s creator network and expansive social reach, which made waves across TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook.
What strategic advice would you offer hoteliers looking to enhance their digital engagement and booking processes?
Today’s travelers, particularly Gen Z, highly value transparency and ease in their hotel booking experience. They also value spontaneity and flexibility in travel plans. This desired flexibility often leads to making last-minute decisions about where to stay and even what activities to do while vacationing. Considering the fact that Gen Z and young millennials are budget conscious as well, travelers might be inclined to chase deals on flights and accommodations and let this solely dictate when they book. These trends make way for hoteliers to benefit from offering customers a heightened peak at what they can expect from their stay, which can be done through influencer marketing and through sharing first-hand accounts of hotel stays via booking platforms like Travly.
