May 20, 2021
At Expedia Group Media Solutions, our mission is to help our advertising partners around the globe to reach, engage, and convert audiences across our network of Expedia Group brands. As the industry continues to take steps towards recovery, this mission has never been so important. Against that backdrop we are thrilled to welcome the Expedia Travel Agent Affiliate Program, or Expedia TAAP, to the Media Solutions portfolio.
How advertising partners can reach a valuable audience of travel agents
Expedia TAAP is Expedia’s ready-built, web-based booking platform, used by thousands of travel agencies around the globe to help offline travel shoppers find and book the perfect trip. This means that for the first time, our advertising partners can target campaigns to a highly engaged B2B audience. While Expedia TAAP is an established part of the Expedia Group family, this is a brand new audience for Media Solutions, and we are excited about the opportunities for our partners.
Travel agents hold a unique position within the travel ecosystem; they search and book travel for an audience that isn’t currently shopping for travel online, and have the power to influence their decision making. The ability to engage with travel agents directly through advertising enables our partners to launch full-funnel campaigns that target all travelers, however they choose to book.
Advertisers can gain brand exposure to high-spending travel shoppers
As B2B customers, Expedia TAAP agents are focused on booking. They make multiple purchases and spend more than other Expedia travel shoppers; Expedia TAAP agents make 16 times more purchases than an average travel shopper on a yearly basis. The average hotel booking value for an Expedia TAAP agent 40% higher than typical Expedia customers and 53% of hotel bookings are 4 stars plus.
And because they are online with the express purpose of booking travel, they also have much higher conversion rates than consumer travel shoppers. The conversion rates for car and flight bookings are double the average of our consumer facing site, jumping to x7 for hotel bookings and x8 for activities.
Hotel advertising that can reach any traveler, anywhere
Travelers looking to book a hotel use multiple channels to find their ideal place to stay, from social media to travel websites, and more. This is why it’s imperative that you know when — and where — to reach the right traveler. Whether you’re trying to reach early-bird or last-minute bookers, our targeting capabilities can help you connect with the right traveler at the right time.
Advertisers can target campaigns to a B2B travel audience
Launching initially on Expedia TAAP points on sale in the U.S., U.K., Italy and Australia, our offering will include a wide range of advertising placements to help partners capture attention. These include customized Expedia TAAP landing pages for maximum exposure, along with a bundle of optimized, highly visible placements on hotel results pages.
Partners have the ability to tailor advertising creatives to a B2B audience, with support, insights and best practices from our in-house account management team, ensuring that messaging is optimized for Expedia TAAP agents.
Drive recovery by connecting to agents who are connected even to offline travelers
While the pandemic has accelerated the move online for many sectors, including travel, traditional offline agents will still have a significant role to play in the sector’s recovery. In this uncertain climate, many travelers will turn to agents for guidance, peace of mind and booking security post-pandemic.
Research from the ABTA, the Association of British Travel Agents, claims that over a quarter of travel shoppers were more likely to use a travel professional, such as a travel agent, now than they were pre-COVID-19. The introduction of Expedia TAAP to our brand portfolio represents a fantastic opportunity for our adverting partners to ensure they are front of mind with agents, as well as their offline customers, as confidence continues to return to the travel sector.
From DMOs to hotels, airlines to activity providers, Expedia TAAP offers the opportunity for advertisers to connect with some of the world’s most prolific travel shoppers, right at the point of intent. We are thrilled to add Expedia TAAP to the Media Solutions brand portfolio and looking forward to forging new connections between our advertising partners and this unique audience of travel professionals.
Learn more how we work with Expedia TAAP and other Expedia Group brands on our website, or speak to your Media Solutions contact.
