January 13, 2020
A family-owned Spanish multinational company with more than 60 years of history, Iberostar Group offers exceptional experiences for guests while also aspiring to be an international benchmark for sustainable tourism. The group operates more than 120 four and five star hotels across 19 countries worldwide, with a workforce of 34,000 employees, and is committed to the ongoing innovation and renovation of its product by promoting a culture focused on well being and local gastronomy.
Looking to further expand their visibility and connect even more effectively with travel audiences, Iberostar collaborated with us to help develop a strategic media plan across North America and Latin America to drive greater awareness and bookings for their properties.
While the hotel group experienced a correlating upswing in bookings following the launch of their advertisements, they also asked an important question: Would they have received an increase in room nights had they not run ads at all?
Determining the True Impact of Advertisements with Incrementality Reporting
An uptick in bookings is always good news for a hotel marketer. It confirms that something they’re doing is working. But being able to pinpoint why the bookings increased to begin with is all the more rewarding. Knowing which strategies truly work isn’t just validating; it’s crucial to continued success.
Incrementality reporting is a tool that allows travel marketers to answer the ever-pressing question, “Are my ads really working?” We offer incrementality reporting to our marketing partners because it helps prove the direct impact advertising has by measuring conversion lift and demonstrating the power of their campaigns.
In our two previous posts on incrementality reporting, we provided an overview of the solution and explored how it assists in proving results to stakeholders. This third installment of our incrementality reporting series looks at a real life example of how incrementality reporting can answer the question, “How much of my return on investment is truly attributable to my marketing efforts rather than being business I would have received without this campaign?”
Proving the Impact of Iberostar’s Display Ads
Iberostar’s campaign included multiple digital advertising solutions, including email, TravelAds, and a Creative Partnerships campaign.
One key strategy used by Iberostar to connect with potential travelers was a variety of display ads. The hotel group captured the beauty of their resorts and highlighted limited-time flash sales in display ads run across points of sale such as Travelocity and Orbitz.
To further strengthen the effectiveness of their campaign, Iberostar ran full takeovers across expedia.com.ar, expedia.com.br, and expedia.mx. The landing pages were designed to capture the attention of visitors by incorporating both a variety of imagery from various Iberostar destinations and resorts, as well as special deals to help further engage audiences.
While there is a direct correlation between Iberostar’s ads and an increase in bookings, it was important to establish that the ads themselves truly had a direct and measurable impact on bookings.
By opting for incrementality reporting across their various display campaigns, Iberostar was able to answer that very question. While all Iberostar campaigns are still in progress, the ads that have run so far have garnered significant incremental lift.
Currently, Iberostar has experienced an 8:1 incremental return on ad spend and a 71 percent incremental increase in room nights. This means that 71 percent more travel shoppers booked with Iberostar specifically because of their ads.
As they move forward with their campaign, Iberostar will continue to use incrementality reporting to measure the true impact of their advertising. We are proud to collaborate with Iberostar Group, as they not only provide an exceptional experience for travelers, but maintain a commitment to preserving the environment and protecting the oceans through Wave of Change, an initiative to move beyond plastics and promote responsible consumption of seafood for the improvement of coastal health.
Want to learn how incrementality reporting can provide insight into the effectiveness of your own advertising? Take a look at our incrementality whitepaper, Measuring True Impact in Digital Travel Advertising.
