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Couple thoughts here. Think it's really important to distinguish by chain-scale when considering the benefits of being branded. IMO the benefits accrue mostly to the select-serve side, and hotels that have are corporate than transient. The reason being that at the lower end
the product is really commoditized and bookings are done mostly through the brand. Same thing at the corporate level - if your employer has an account with Marriott that is what drives your decisions. Those benefits are weighted against the franchise fee, PIP requirements....
But the benefits outweigh the costs. If you're a luxury hotel or a boutique hotel, I'm less convinced that there are benefits for branding for several reasons. 1) Credit card rewards for travel have gotten so good that you're not losing out by booking a hotel outside your
preferred brand. 2) Instagram and social media have become a new customer acquisition channel. Look at hotels like The Dean in Providence, or literally anything in Tulum, people find those hotels and make decisions because of Instagram.
If you're not getting direct bookings off of a brand site, then you're only getting the costs that a brand brings and non of the benefit. There's a reason that hotels like the 1 have popped up - you don't need a brand to drive traffic anymore
