Known as “Michigan’s Little Bavaria”, Frankenmuth has long been one of the Midwest’s most beloved heritage destinations. With its cobblestone streets, Bavarian festivals, and iconic attractions like Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland, Frankenmuth captures the hearts of families and multi-generational travelers looking for a nostalgic getaway. But when it came to lodging bookings, much of that traveler spend was slipping away to corporate OTAs—until Frankenmuth partnered with Ripe.
By embracing Ripe’s In-Market Travel Agency model, Frankenmuth Tourism & Marketing Services transformed its website into more than just an inspiration hub. It became the go-to booking destination, ensuring that tourism dollars stayed where they belong: in-market.
Frankenmuth’s Challenge
- Visitors often began their planning on Frankenmuth.org but booked lodging elsewhere.
- Commission leakage meant valuable dollars left the local economy, bypassing hoteliers and the DMO.
- Limited insight into traveler booking behaviors and patterns restricted Frankenmuth’s ability to optimize campaigns and prove ROI.
The Ripe Solution
Ripe integrated a locally relevant lodging marketplace directly into Frankenmuth.org, enabling a seamless flow from inspiration → trip planning → booking. Prominent calls to action such as “Stay in Frankenmuth” and “Plan Your Trip” were optimized to drive higher conversions while aligning with the destination’s brand promise: authentic, family-friendly Bavarian experiences.
Results (10 months post-launch)
- 💰 $40,000 in commissions and margin savings: Hotels saved nearly $40K in commissions and margins that otherwise would have gone to OTAs. This money stayed in the community, supporting Frankenmuth’s economy.
- 🏨 1,000+ room nights booked: Directly attributed to Frankenmuth’s marketing efforts, proving measurable ROI and attribution.
- 📈 1.34% site conversion: A strong start, exceeding the industry gold standard of 1%.
- 🌎 Wide geographic reach: Bookings came from travelers in 420 cities, across 27 states, and 2 countries
- ✉️ 162 traveler opt-ins: Growing a valuable first-party data set for future marketing and retargeting.
- 📊 Insight into traveler behavior: Frankenmuth now understands booking windows, ADR, and length of stay across both direct bookings and nearly 3,000 referral leads sent to hotels.
Why It Worked
- Local Relevance: Frankenmuth leaned into its “Little Bavaria” identity, ensuring the booking journey mirrored the destination’s charm.
- Family-Centric Strategy: Marketing appealed to nostalgia and unique experiences, attracting multi-generational travelers who book longer stays.
- Full-Funnel Approach: By moving visitors seamlessly from inspiration → planning → booking, Frankenmuth captured demand instead of losing it to OTAs.
- Data-Driven Decisions: First-party insights allowed the DMO to validate ROI, refine marketing campaigns, and optimize hotel partnerships.
Looking Ahead
With a proven booking flow and strong traveler engagement, Frankenmuth is positioned to scale its success by:
- Expanding seasonal and festival-based lodging campaigns.
- Leveraging first-party traveler data to personalize itineraries and offers.
Building stronger partnerships with lodging suppliers to further reduce leakage.
Impact Statement
Frankenmuth’s partnership with Ripe exemplifies how a DMO can both celebrate its cultural authenticity and generate measurable economic impact. By keeping nearly $40K in-market and proving attribution on over 1,000 room nights, Frankenmuth has shown that what happens in-market, stays in-market.
