Customers who book hotel rooms via Hotwire and Priceline are price-sensitive and make their purchase decisions based primarily on price. Hotels that sell rooms on Hotwire and Priceline accept a lower price in return for guaranteed revenue and the possibility guests might turn into loyal customers.

Hotels sell rooms to third-party sites like Priceline primarily as a yield management strategy to ensure maximum occupancy. An empty hotel room is a "perishable" product; if it isn't sold for the night, that potential revenue is lost forever. By offloading unsold inventory to Priceline—often via "opaque" deals where the hotel name isn't revealed until after the booking—hotels can fill beds without publicly diluting their brand value or lowering their "official" rates on their own website. This allows them to reach price-sensitive travelers who wouldn't otherwise book at the standard rate. Additionally, sites like Priceline provide massive marketing reach and "billboard effects," exposing the hotel to millions of global users. While the hotel pays a commission (often 10% to 25%), the incremental revenue from the room sale, plus potential on-site spending at the hotel bar or restaurant, makes it a profitable trade-off compared to leaving the room vacant.