HIS

What HIS does

HIS (Hotel Internet Strategies), founded in 1996 and headquartered at 228 Park Ave S, New York, is a privately held, full-service digital marketing agency built exclusively for the hospitality vertical. The firm sells a bundled suite of services to independent hotels, hotel owners, and operators, with the central pain point being high OTA commissions and weak direct-booking economics. Its product architecture is platform-plus-modules: a custom hotel website plus proprietary CMS sits as the foundation, with attached modules for paid search, display advertising, meta-search marketing (TripAdvisor, Kayak, Trivago, Google), SEO, local listings across roughly 50 directories, social media marketing and management, email campaigns, TripAdvisor Business Listings / TripConnect / Instant Booking / Review Express, reputation management, booking engine integration, and call tracking. Technology depth is concentrated in domain specialization rather than proprietary platforms — differentiators are integrations with TripAdvisor (including a volume-based Business Listing discount) and operational dashboards that unify reviews from TripAdvisor, Expedia, and Booking.com with sentiment analysis.

The business model is professional-services fees billed against custom, quote-based engagements tied to client budget; no public rate cards or standard tiers are disclosed. Go-to-market combines a sales-led consultative motion (website contact forms, direct outreach, industry presence) with self-serve digital purchases of individual services. Distribution is global in claim but US-anchored, with channel partnerships across hospitality industry organizations and franchising groups. The firm is bootstrapped — Chris Guimbellot acquired it from founder Leslie Dreier in 2012 and remains President & CEO; no venture, growth-equity, or strategic institutional capital is on file. The 1-10 employee team is led by executives with deep hospitality pedigree (Marriott, Extended Stay America, Hospitality International, boutique travel PR), positioning domain expertise as the primary competitive asset.

In April 2026 HIS took its first disclosed external financial position, participating as a minor investor in New Space Intelligence's ¥430 million Series A alongside Partners Fund, YMFG Capital, NTT DOCOMO Ventures, and JR East Startup — a signal of cross-border Japan hospitality interest rather than core operating expansion. Overall, HIS reads as a long-tenured, boutique, founder-controlled services firm with stable client economics, deep TripAdvisor ecosystem entrenchment, and limited scale or funding signals.

Name

HIS

Legal name

HIS (Hotel Internet Strategies)

Website

https://hisinteractive.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

HIS (Hotel Internet Strategies) is a New York-based, privately held digital marketing agency founded in 1996 that sells bundled website design, SEO, paid media, social, and TripAdvisor-integrated reputation services to independent hotels seeking to reduce OTA commission dependence.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hotel Digital Marketing Services

NAICS

Advertising Agencies (541810)

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311), Services-Advertising (7310)

akta.pro primary industry

Vacation Rental Marketing & Distribution Management (OTAs/Direct Booking) (BPAJAIAK)

Keywords

• Hotel digital marketing
• Online hotel marketing
• SEO services
• Reputation management
• Direct booking optimization

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Digital Marketing Services: Provides comprehensive online hotel marketing solutions including website design and hosting, search engine optimization, search engine marketing, social media marketing, email marketing, and reputation management. Revenue generated through professional services fees.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

HIS is a full-service online hotel marketing company that helps independent hotels reduce dependence on online travel agencies (OTAs) and increase direct bookings through their own websites. The company provides a comprehensive suite of digital marketing services including website design, search engine optimization, paid search advertising, social media management, TripAdvisor management, and online reputation management tailored to the hospitality industry.

Product overview

HIS (Hotel Internet Strategies) is a full-service online hotel marketing company founded in 1996, providing a comprehensive suite of digital marketing solutions for hotels. The portfolio centers on a website design and content management system as the foundation, supported by search marketing services (paid search, display, meta-search, SEO, local search, link building), social media solutions (marketing, management, optimization), and reputation management tools (TripAdvisor Business Listing, TripConnect, Instant Booking, Review Express, general reputation tracking). The offering architecture is platform-plus-modules, with website design and CMS as the core product layer, supplemented by integrated marketing channel modules including paid advertising, search optimization, social media, email, and review management. Additional services include booking engine integration, call tracking, and guest engagement tools.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Hotel Website Design Design and development of hotel websites optimized to drive direct bookings and reduce OTA dependency, targeted at independent hotel owners.
• Search Engine Optimization (SEO) SEO services aimed at improving organic search visibility of hotel websites to attract more direct bookings, designed for independent hotel properties.
• Paid Search Marketing (PPC) Pay-per-click advertising campaigns across search engines to drive qualified traffic and direct bookings to hotel websites, for independent hotel operators.
• Social Media Management Management of hotel social media presence to build brand awareness, engage travelers, and drive direct bookings for independent hotels.
• TripAdvisor Management Optimization and management of hotel TripAdvisor listings to improve rankings, reviews, and visibility for independent hotels.
• Online Reputation Management Monitoring and management of online reviews and guest sentiment across digital channels to protect and enhance hotel brand reputation.

Quantifiable outcome

• TripAdvisor Business Listings typically yield over 100% ROI
• +3 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration11 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• TripAdvisorcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerTripAdvisor is a key platform partner for HIS marketing services. HIS manages hotel Business Listings on TripAdvisor (315 million monthly visitors), TripConnect PPC campaigns, and Instant Booking programs. The partnership enables hotels to capture traffic traditionally dominated by OTAs.
• Google Display NetworkcoreTechnology or IntegrationGoogle Display Network partnership enables positioning of hotel advertising across relevant websites, blogs, and specialty sites to build brand awareness and drive website traffic.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• HeBS Digital: Hospitality-focused digital marketing agency offering website design, SEO, paid media, and direct booking solutions for hotels. Direct competitor in the same niche serving independent and chain hotels with similar full-service digital marketing offerings.
• Milestone Internet Marketing: Hospitality digital marketing agency providing website design, SEO, paid media, and analytics for hotels and resorts. Direct peer competing for the same independent-hotel customer base with overlapping TripAdvisor/Google-centric service portfolios.
• Travel Tripper: Hotel digital marketing and booking engine provider offering website design, meta-search marketing, and OTA-direct booking optimization. Closely mirrors HIS's positioning around reducing OTA dependence for hotels.
• Net Affinity: Boutique hotel digital marketing agency offering website design, SEO, paid media, and reporting to independent hotels and groups. Direct peer with similar service stack and customer profile.
• Screen Pilot: Hotel marketing agency providing website, SEO, paid media, and creative services primarily to independent hotels and small chains. Direct competitor with comparable boutique-agency model.
• Tambourine: Digital marketing agency specializing in the hospitality vertical, offering website design, paid media, SEO, and CRO for hotels. Directly comparable in service breadth and target customer.
• Fuel Travel: Hotel digital marketing agency serving independent hotels and resorts with website, SEO, paid media, and reputation management. Direct peer with overlapping offerings in meta-search and direct-booking optimization.

Emerging players

• Leonardo (Hotel Marketing Technology): Hotel marketing technology platform focused on visual content distribution, AI-powered media, and channel connectivity. Overlaps with HIS on hotel digital marketing and meta-search distribution but more tech-product oriented.
• Lighthouse (formerly OTA Insight): Hotel commercial platform providing rate intelligence, demand analytics, and digital marketing insights. Adjacent competitor offering data-driven alternatives to HIS's manual marketing services for independent hotels.

Broad incumbents

• Sojern: Travel-focused digital marketing platform offering display, video, and meta-search advertising for hotels and destinations. Overlaps with HIS as both a partner (Sojern is in HIS's display stack) and a broader-scale competitor in hotel paid media.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/hisinteractive
• Facebookfacebook.com/HISInteractive
• Pinterestpinterest.com/hisinteractive

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about HIS