The Evolving Landscape of Performance Marketing: Embracing Change for Success

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October 2, 2023 by

In today's rapidly evolving digital landscape, the field of marketing has undergone significant transformations. Among these changes, performance marketing has emerged as a dominant force. This data-driven marketing approach has revolutionized how businesses reach and engage with their target audience, delivering tangible and measurable results. 

However, performance marketing itself is not immune to change. It is constantly transforming and adapting to the ever-evolving marketing landscape.

Shift from Traditional to Digital Marketing Platforms

Performance marketing previously relied on channels such as print, television, and radio. However, with our new digital marketing platforms, the focus has shifted toward online channels like search engines, social media, and email marketing. These digital platforms offer greater targeting capabilities, allowing marketers to reach specific demographics and track the performance of their campaigns more effectively.

Rise of Marketing Data and Analytics

Data and analytics have become the backbone of performance marketing. With technological advancements, marketers now have access to unprecedented data, enabling them to make informed decisions and optimize their marketing strategies in real time. By leveraging data analytics, marketers can analyze consumer behavior, identify patterns, and personalize their marketing efforts for maximum impact. 

To optimize your business's data most effectively, ensure you have transitioned to GA4. 

Integration of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) have revolutionized performance marketing by enabling marketers to automate and optimize various processes. AI-powered algorithms can analyze vast amounts of data, identify trends, and deliver personalized consumer experiences. Moreover, machine learning algorithms can continually learn and adapt, enhancing campaign performance over time. Integrating AI and ML in performance marketing has significantly improved targeting precision and efficiency.

Shift towards Personalization in Marketing

Today's consumers expect personalized experiences from brands. Performance marketing has responded to this demand by delivering highly targeted and personalized messages. By leveraging consumer data, marketers can create tailored campaigns that resonate with individuals on a deeper level. Personalization not only enhances customer engagement but also improves conversion rates and customer loyalty. 

Check out the power of community marketing in our latest webinar on specific ways to showcase this personalization for your property.

Emphasis on Influencer Marketing

Influencer marketing has emerged as a powerful tool within performance marketing. Consumers increasingly value recommendations from trusted individuals over traditional advertising. Influencers, with their loyal and engaged audiences, can drive brand awareness, generate leads, and boost conversions. Performance marketers are now partnering with influencers to leverage their reach and credibility, effectively reaching new and niche markets.

The Growing Significance of User Experience

User experience (UX) has become a critical factor in performance marketing. Businesses are realizing that providing a seamless and intuitive experience across all touchpoints is essential for success. Every aspect of the user journey affects performance, from website design to landing pages and mobile optimization. Performance marketers are investing in UX optimization to ensure a positive user experience that translates into higher engagement and conversion rates. 

Performance marketing is undergoing a profound transformation driven by technological evolution and consumer expectations. Digital platforms, data analytics, AI, personalization, influencer marketing, and user experience are just some of the factors shaping the future of this dynamic field. 

By embracing these changes and staying agile, businesses can leverage the power of performance marketing to drive growth, connect with their audience on a deeper level, and achieve measurable results in an ever-changing marketing landscape.

How Your Hotel Can Be Found on TikTok Search: TikTok’s New Search Ads Toggle

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September 20, 2023 by

As TikTok continues solidifying its position as one of the most popular social media platforms globally, it's no surprise that the company is constantly innovating to provide advertisers with more effective ways to engage their audience. The addition of Search Ads promises to be a game-changer, offering businesses a unique opportunity to tap into the immense potential of TikTok's user base like never before.

We dove into the exciting world of TikTok's new Search Ads feature, exploring its potential impact on the advertising landscape, how it works, and why brands should be eager to incorporate it into their marketing strategies.

What Is TikTok?

TikTok is a social media platform that skyrocketed in popularity by offering a unique space where users share short-form video formats and engage with bite-sized, entertaining content. What sets TikTok apart is its unparalleled ability to capture users' attention through engaging, user-generated videos and creative challenges.

Why Should Hotels Use TikTok?

This platform's viral nature enables brands to tap into a massive and highly engaged global community, making it an exceptional avenue for advertising. By harnessing the power of TikTok's immersive content and innovative ad formats, businesses can reach a broad audience and foster authentic connections, driving brand awareness and pushing engagement to new heights.

For more information on getting started on TikTok, check out our [E-Book] A Crash Course To TikTok Ads.

What Is the TikTok Search Ads Toggle and How Does It Work?

TikTok has announced a new feature to their advertising offers. The new Search Ads Toggle allows a brand's ads to be shown on the search results page in the app. It utilizes the creative content from advertisers' existing In-Feed Ads, enabling them to display their ads in conjunction with organic search results that align with user queries. 

Once the Search Ad Toggle is activated, it triggers the automatic generation of ads using the advertiser's pre-existing ad content. These ads are then displayed alongside organic search results that match users' queries. Identified as "Sponsored" content, they occupy different positions on the results page, determined by factors such as relevance, user intent, and insights drawn from broader user interactions.

Why You Should Consider Using the Search Ads Toggle

The introduction of the Search Ads Toggle presents a distinctive avenue to deliver valuable, contextually appropriate information and engagements to TikTok’s user base. TikTok users frequently employ the search feature for various purposes, including discovering fresh content, rediscovering past posts, and exploring the latest trending topics and concepts. The Search Ads Toggle represents an innovative means for advertisers to contribute to and elevate this user experience.

Furthermore, its impact is quantifiable. TikTok's internal research indicates that enabling the Search Ads Toggle leads to enhanced performance for approximately 70% of ad groups, resulting in more efficient conversions originating from search ads.

How to Get Started Using the TikTok Search Ads Toggle

When setting up an In-Feed Ads campaign on the platform, navigate to the Edit section of the ad group under "select placements" (specifically the TikTok section). The Search Ads Toggle is automatically set to "on". When the toggle is set to "on," search result ads are generated automatically, utilizing the advertiser's existing In-Feed Ad content and targeting criteria. These ads are then displayed alongside organic video results, aligning with relevant user queries. Advertisers have the flexibility to activate the Search Ads Toggle either during campaign setup or while a campaign is already running. 

If needed, advertisers can opt-out by switching it "off" during campaign creation. It's important to note that activating the Search Ads Toggle midway through a campaign will not restart the learning phase for that campaign. The Search Ads Toggle also cannot be added to an existing ad group, so advertisers would need to create a new ad group or duplicate an existing ad group in order to begin using this feature.

Final Takeaways on TikTok's Search Ads Toggle 

Thanks to the Search Ads Toggle, brands have the opportunity to appear alongside content that aligns with their business, product, or service, all while delivering users a tailor-made advertising encounter.

Let the experts at GCommerce help get you started on TikTok! Connect with us today for more information!

Paid Search Test: Google Ads For Hotel Restaurants

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July 31, 2023 by

Most upscale hotels offer on-site dining options, but only some have a dedicated marketing strategy. Dining brings in extra revenue from guests, locals, and even tourists, so why aren’t marketing campaigns more common for hotel bars and restaurants?

In this paid search test, we set out to determine whether it’s worth the time and money to use Google Ads for hotel restaurants. Are dining campaigns an underutilized gem? Or do hotels skip them for a reason?

The Paid Search Test

This test collected data from Quarter 1 (Jan 1 - Mar 31, 2023), covering five restaurants across the United States. Each restaurant was managed by and located on-site at a different upscale boutique hotel, with previous brand awareness varying between locations. With the exception of Property 4, each restaurant also contained a bar area, and these campaigns targeted bar-related searches along with restaurant-focused keywords.

During this paid search test, each property ran two separate dining campaigns: Brand Terms and Market Terms (Non-Brand Terms). These campaigns were single keyword ad groups, with Brand Terms focusing on the name of the restaurant and Market Terms focusing on its location or features (e.g. “Restaurant In Park City, UT” and “Rooftop Bar Near Me”). 

The primary goal of each Brand Terms campaign was to promote business by increasing table reservations, while Market Terms was more focused on creating awareness and driving clicks.

Each campaign in this test started on Jan 1, 2023, and this freshness means that the data below does not reflect well-established and optimized campaigns. While some minor adjustments were made each month, the success of these campaigns does not rely on hours, weeks, or months of fine-tuning and management.

The Results

Brand Terms saw a Clickthrough Rate of around 40-50%, and Market Terms saw just under 10%.

While total monthly budgets varied, the average Cost Per Click was under $2 for all Market Terms campaigns, with the exception of Property 3, well under $1 for Brand Terms.

Table Reservation Rates varied by property, which could be caused by factors such as table availability, restaurant hours, and local competition. However, most properties saw Table Reservation Rates around the 5% range for both Brand and Market Terms. 

See the below for full results. 

Takeaways

Paid search dining campaigns are an effective and relatively cheap way to increase table reservations and generate awareness for your hotel’s restaurant.

While we are unable to measure how many times these campaigns influenced someone to visit the restaurant without reserving a table online, the data we do have is still incredibly promising. Metrics like Cost Per Reservation and Reservation Rate varied, but each campaign in our test saw an overall Revenue gain based on the average bill amount at each location.

Start with something small if you’re not ready to commit a large portion of your paid search budget to dining campaigns. With Cost Per Click hovering around $1, your potential for success is high even with a very limited budget. Property 5 spent less than $1,000/month on their dining campaigns and still managed to bring in over 3,500 clicks and 250 table reservations in their first quarter. 

Overall, we highly recommend giving paid search dining campaigns a try. If you’re ready to start or just looking for more information, contact GCommerce Solutions.

9 Best Practices For LinkedIn Advertising For Hotels

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June 20, 2023 by

LinkedIn Ads is a great marketing tool to utilize for B2B or B2C companies to build leads, online recognition, share content, and more. LinkedIn Ads differs from other ad platforms because it focuses on specific audience targeting relating to job titles, education, company, or company size. It can be tricky to advertise on LinkedIn, but we have nine tips you can use today to improve and get the most out of your ads. 

  1. Keep In Mind Your LinkedIn Ads Audience Size

LinkedIn recommends keeping your audience size a minimum of 50,000-500,000 max. Anything larger than that will be too broad, making it difficult to find the right target audience for your hotel’s LinkedIn ads. 

  1. Location is Key for LinkedIn Ads

Location is a mandatory targeting field within LinkedIn Ads. You can get specific with a city or metropolitan area, or go broad with state or country. Utilizing the right locations will ensure your hotel’s LinkedIn ads are going to the right audience in the specific locations you are targeting.

  1. Avoid Hyper Targeting with LinkedIn Ads

It’s recommended that you don’t use more than three targeting segments with your hotel’s LinkedIn Ads campaign targeting. The campaign manager will show estimated reach and audience size while you build out your audience. An example of this would be using too many of the targeting segments in one LinkedIn ads campaign including job titles, companies, customer match lists, or educational segments. 

  1. Utilize LinkedIn Ads Campaign Demographics

When you click into your LinkedIn campaign you can gain insights into your audience. Click the three dots to change it from performance to demographics. You can see who is clicking on your ads, impressions, opening lead forms, and see open rates. This will help you narrow down your audience and target people likely to interact with your ads. 

  1. Limit Your LinkedIn Ads Form Fields

When you notice people are opening your form on LinkedIn, but aren’t submitting it, it likely means you have too many fields for people to fill out. It’s recommended you have only 3-5 fields within your LinkedIn forms. The least amount of fields to fill out the better. 

Pro Tip: Make sure to include location in your LinkedIn ads form so people know where you are located. 

  1. Utilize LinkedIn Ads Website Demographics

On the left hand side of your LinkedIn ad manager you will see the Analyze navigation option. Click the dropdown then click website demographics. This will show you the types of people that are coming to your hotel’s website. This could be another great option in determining who your hotel’s target audience is on LinkedIn Ads. 

  1. Create LinkedIn Ads Matched Audiences

Matched audiences are a great way to use your business data and LinkedIn’s professional data within your LinkedIn ads campaigns. You can create retargeting audiences, contact targeting, account targeting and lookalike audiences. For example, you can create a retargeting audience of people who have opened a lead form, but didn’t submit. There are options to go back 30, 60, 90, 180, or 365 days. 

  1. Create At Least Five Ads Per LinkedIn Campaign

LinkedIn suggests having at least five ads in your campaign because studies have shown that advertisers generally see a 20% or greater improvement in click-through rate (CTR). LinkedIn can also recommend images you have uploaded to your media library based on relevance and performance of each image for your specific campaign.

  1. Craft LinkedIn Ad Copy Around a Clear Call To Action

Your LinkedIn ads should end with a clear CTA of what you want them to do next. Make sure your CTA matches the objective you originally selected. Effective CTA’s include “Register Now” or “Sign Up”. 

LinkedIn Ads is a great platform to utilize to reach potential customers who are interested in your product or service. These are just a few tips to get you started to be successful, but ultimately there will be a lot of testing and figuring out what will work best for your ads.

For more information about LinkedIn Advertising for hotels or getting started, reach out to us at GCommerce today!

Hotel Deals On Paid Search: Sitelink vs. Promo Extensions

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May 31, 2023 by

Limited-time offers are essential to any hotel marketing strategy, but promoting them can be complicated. There are so many options that it can be challenging to find the best approach, especially when it comes to paid search. 

This is especially true when it comes to Google Ads extensions. GCommerce has seen great success with both sitelinks and promotions for hotel deals, but we have yet to crown one extension type as superior. So let’s figure it out once and for all - Are sitelink or promotion extensions better for promoting limited-time hotel deals?

Our Google Ads Optimization Test

This test compared the efficacy of sitelink and promotion extensions when marketing limited-time hotel deals. If you’re unfamiliar with these extension types, see our full guide on Google Ads extensions for background on their format, strengths, and limitations.

We gathered data from 13 deals across Google Ads accounts for 9 boutique hotels in the United States. The content of each deal varied, covering percent discounts, convenience packages, unique experiences, and more. 

Each of the 13 deals ranged from a few days to a few months in length, taking place at various times throughout the year. For each individual offer, though, sitelink and promotion extensions ran simultaneously for the duration of the deal. 

All extensions were added to both Brand and Market (non-Brand) Terms campaigns using single keyword ad groups. In addition, each hotel’s Google Ads account also ran non-deal extensions during the test period, though competition with other extensions was fairly even between sitelinks and promotions.

The Results

This chart combines data from all 13 hotel deals. 

When combined, promotion extensions outperform sitelinks in all but cost per conversion and conversion rate. 

This is also supported when looking at results by individual deal. In this chart, the listed extension type performed better for a given Key Performance Indicator (KPI), with “Tie” indicating that the difference between extensions types was less than 5%.

In both cases, promotion extensions are the clear winner for most KPIs. They offer higher awareness, better CTR, and more total interactions than sitelink extensions. 

However, sitelinks do edge out promotions in conversion rate and cost per conversion, which is something to consider. If your hotel is running on a limited budget and values conversions over clicks, sitelinks may be the better option. 

Takeaways

Promotion extensions are great at driving awareness for hotel deals and should be incorporated into your hotel’s marketing strategy. They’re a valuable Google Ads optimization tool, and adding them to your hotel’s campaigns is a great way to reach future guests.

However, this test also proves the value of sitelink extensions. They’re never too far behind promotion extensions in terms of performance and do have the edge when it comes to conversion efficiency. There’s also something to be said for their unique extension properties, such as the ability to add a description with more details on a hotel deal. 

When possible, we highly suggest using both sitelink and promotion extensions to market hotel deals. They both add value to an account, especially for hotels with multiple priority KPIs. A good mix of extensions will create a good mix of results, making a diverse optimization strategy the most effective.

For more hotel marketing tips, check out the rest of our digital marketing blog.

Google Ads Extensions: Hotel Basics

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April 18, 2023 by

What are Google Ads Extensions?

Google Ads extensions (now known as Associations) are optional add-ons for your hotel’s paid search advertisements. Extensions give you more space to add information about your hotel, often opening up unique messaging opportunities that aren’t available with standard ad copy. 

Google Ads extensions occasionally show alongside the ads in your campaign, their placement dependent on extension type, search query, user history, and other algorithmic factors. There is no guarantee that a given extension will show, nor is there any way to force them to appear. However, they can still be a powerful addition to your hotel’s paid search account. 

There are a number of extension types, and all are a great way to call out highlights of your hotel and entice users to convert. Below, I’ve gone into detail on some of the most common Google Ads extension types for hotels. Google offers more extension options than what I’ve listed, but these are the most relevant and efficient extension types when trying to attract hotel room bookings.

Google Ads Extension Types For Hotels

Each Google Ads extension type serves a different purpose, with unique strengths and limitations. When used right though, every extension type listed here has the potential to boost ad performance and increase key performance indicators. Below, we’ve provided a brief overview on each type with the most potential for hotel paid search, to help you get started with Google Ads extensions.

Sitelink

Sitelink extensions allow you to add multiple page links to your ad, occasionally with a short description of what each page contains.

Strengths

Sitelinks can be a great way to drive traffic to specific pages on your website, since they are prominently displayed with your ads. Sitelinks may also increase clickthrough rate, by offering multiple topic options to provide more relevant information and help users navigate your site quickly.

Restrictions

Character Restrictions

  • Link Text: Max 25
  • Description line 1: Max 35 
  • Description line 2: Max 35

Other Restrictions

  • Link Text must be unique from other sitelinks
  • URL must be unique from other sitelinks
  • URL must match domain of the ad

Appearance

On desktop, sitelinks may display with a 2-line description to add more context. Sitelinks will never appear with just 1 description line.

Callout

Callout extensions are short additions that highlight key features or perks about your hotel.

Strengths

Callouts are a great way to emphasize key benefits of a stay at your hotel, without taking space away from your ad.

Restrictions

Character Restrictions

  • Callout Text: Max 25

Appearance

Callouts will display the same way on mobile and desktop, added to the end of your ad and formatted like standard ad copy.

Structured Snippet

Structured snippet extensions consist of a header and a static list of values relating to the header topic.

Strengths

Like callouts, structured snippets are a way to highlight hotel advantages without taking up ad space. However, they have the added benefit of organizing these advantages under a specific topic.

Restrictions

Character Restrictions

  • Value Text: Max 25

Relevant Header Types

  • Amenities
  • Destinations
  • Featured Hotels
  • Neighborhoods

Other Restrictions

  • Up to 10 values per extension
  • Headers can repeat, but values can not

Appearance

Structured snippets will show up the same way on mobile and desktop, added to the end of your ad and formatted like standard ad copy. 

When a structured snippet extension does show, all values will show in the same order you choose when setting up the extension.

Call

Call extensions add your phone number to an ad.

Strengths

Calls make it easy for users to contact your hotel, increasing the likelihood that they follow through. This is especially helpful if your hotel’s paid search account tracks phone calls as a conversion. 

Restrictions

Other Restrictions

  • Must be verified by Google
  • Must be accurate and current

Appearance

Calls will appear differently on mobile and desktop. 

However, the number will always be displayed with whatever formatting you choose at extension setup. In this example, we opted for something other than the traditional (XXX) XXX-XXXX format.

Promotion

Promotion extensions highlight monetary deals at your hotel.

Strengths

Promotions are an easy way to call out exclusive offers and persuade customers to book with you instead of your competition.

Restrictions

Character Restrictions

  • Text: Max 20

Format Options

  • $ off [text]
  • % off [text]
  • Up to $ off [text]
  • Up to % off [text]

Appearance

Promotions will appear differently on mobile and desktop, but will always follow the ad. 

In this example, “Valet Parking” was the text.

Using Google Ads Extensions

Overall, Google Ads extensions are an efficient way to highlight benefits of your hotel without distracting from your core message. They’re a great way to grab the attention of customers, and can even increase clicks, conversions, and other key performance indicators when used correctly. They’re easy to set up, and don’t take much effort to maintain due to their simplicity. 

So what are you waiting for?

Learn more about Google Ads extensions by contacting GCommerce Solutions below, and get started today.

KEEP READING

The Evolving Landscape of Performance Marketing: Embracing Change for Success

How Your Hotel Can Be Found on TikTok Search: TikTok’s New Search Ads Toggle

Paid Search Test: Google Ads For Hotel Restaurants

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