As a hotel operator, part of your job is ensuring your online presence is easy to find, attractive and comparable — or better than — that of your competition. Optimizing your online presence is the best way to convert wandering travelers into guests who booked their rooms directly through your hotel's website.

The Billboard Effect, in the hospitality industry, refers to the phenomena where potential guests see your hotel on an online travel agency (OTA), but then decide to visit — and ultimately book through — your website directly. There are several reasons consumers choose to do this, perhaps the most prominent being that they feel the OTA's fees are too high.

So, how can you optimize the impact of this effect at your hotel? Here are six tips.

1. Encourage Bookings on Your Homepage

It's one thing to get billboard visitors to come to your site, but it's another thing for them to book a stay through it. On your website's landing page, consider implementing a user-friendly booking widget or engine. This eliminates the user's hunt for a "book now" tab or button, making it simpler and more likely that they'll book their trip through your site.

2. List Your Hotel on the Right OTAs

When deciding which sites to list your property on, consider which ones will result in your hotel receiving the most exposure. If your establishment falls into a niche market, figure out which OTA site that audience will most likely visit. Other factors you should take into account include your price range, location and type of property.

One of the perks of appearing on OTA websites is that you can make your hotel as visible as other large, national chains, as long as you choose wisely. In fact, properties with listings on OTA sites boost their direct bookings by as much as 26 percent.

3. Reward Guests Who Book Through Your Site

While there are many benefits to booking a stay directly through the location's website — such as being able to request special accommodations or ask specific questions — perhaps the most notable is that you often receive the best rate. Ensure guests who book their stay through your website receive the best price, no matter what. You should also make sure they know they're getting the best deal this way, too.

Aside from price, you can reward these guests with other amenities, such as a free breakfast, a deluxe room or other perks. You still won't be losing out financially by providing these freebies because you'll be saving the commission you would've paid the OTA by convincing guests to opt for direct booking.

4. Utilize Time-Sensitive Promotions

Along with offering the best deals and freebies to users to make reservations through your hotel's website, you can also enforce time-sensitive promotions to encourage them to not only book through your site, but to do it soon.

Everyone does a bit of research and investigation before they actually intend to book a trip. However, as a potential guest browses your site, they might be more persuaded to make their reservation if they see a hot deal that's expiring in just a few days.

Early-bird rates, last-minute offers and other short-term packages are the perfect incentive to seal the deal. Of course, you should only offer these types of promotions to those people who reserve their rooms through your hotel's website.

5. Balance Listings Between International and Domestic Markets

Even if your property sees more international travelers than domestic travelers in a given year — or vice versa — you should still plan to balance your listings between the two markets. You never know who is looking at your site and not booking.

Both regional and international travelers could be looking for rentals in your area, which is why a balance between marketing to both audiences is recommended to effectively promote your property.

6. Optimize Your Website

Unfortunately, great deals and proper marketing just won't save you if your website is unresponsive or difficult to navigate. This may seem like a no-brainer, but optimizing your website for user-friendliness and a better SEO ranking is crucial to securing more direct bookings. If someone can make their reservation 10 times faster on an OTA site instead of your website, which do you think they'll choose?

Don't Lose Your Billboard Visitors to OTA Sites

The Billboard Effect is a beautiful thing — but only if you properly optimize its effects. By following these six tips, you'll be able to use OTA sites and billboard visitors to boost your hotel's direct bookings.