Booking management in SMB OTAs
Why it’s so hard to scale and what we’re doing about it.
Working with small and mid-sized OTAs (Online Travel Agencies) over the past months, we’ve noticed a common pattern, most of them are specialized, passionate, and deeply knowledgeable about their travel niche, whether it’s local experiences, niche destinations, or tailored packages.
But when it comes to the technical side, especially booking creation and management, the story often changes.
The usual scenario
Let’s say you run a small OTA. You’ve got a strong network of providers, a loyal base of customers, and a clear market focus. Everything should be running smoothly…until it’s time to:
Create a new product
Manage and update availability
Handle modifications or cancellations
Search, propose and book transportation and accomodation (flights, transfers,hotels…)
In summary: Manage B2B vs. B2C bookings
At this point, the lack of streamlined tools turns daily tasks into manual, error-prone operations.
You find yourself with:
Agents spending too much time on repetitive tasks
Human errors that affect customers (wrong dates, missing availability…)
Lack of clear information about booking status, payments and poor visibility of real-time performance and sales
The real problem: Lack of scalability
What we’ve seen is that many of these companies hit a ceiling. They can’t grow further because the tech underneath doesn’t support them. They’re stuck with outdated back offices, disconnected systems, and custom hacks that worked when the business was small—but not anymore.
Meanwhile, competitors using more modern solutions are moving much faster:
They adapt their offerings in real time, based on demand and availability.
They automate workflows to create and manage customized proposals with minimal effort.
They reduce time spent on repetitive tasks and focus more on delivering better customer service.
They’re more efficient, more responsive, and simply moving ahead of the competition.
What we’re seeing at CIMit
At CIMit, we’re working closely with medium and small OTAs, each focused on their own specific travel niche. And we’re seeing these challenges up close:
Teams blocked by old tools or without appropriated tools.
Missed sales or errors due to operational bottlenecks.
Opportunities left on the table because the tech doesn’t allow fast reaction.
Unsatisfied customers or lack to time to dedicate necessary time to them.
We’re helping them build smarter systems that support their workflows instead of holding them back.
Tech that fits the real need
Sometimes the solution is using AI:
To match providers with availability
To automate classification of travel products
To assist customer service with language or content generation
But we’ve learned that not every problem needs AI. In many cases, a well-built integration, a cleaner back-office, or a proper inventory and pricing system already makes a huge difference.
The key is knowing when to use each approach and that comes from experience.
Our focus
We’re helping our clients:
Reduce time spent on manual operations
Improve accuracy and visibility
Make booking flows scalable and adaptable
And ultimately, increase sales and market presence
We believe that small and mid-sized OTAs should have the tools to compete and grow, without being limited by the complexity of their own systems.
If you’re facing some of these challenges, you’re not alone. We’ve been there—and we’re building solutions to move past them.