People love to travel, so much so that they turn to blogs for vacation ideas, on-site activity recommendations and to publish photos from their trips. Sometimes, people are less enthused about being in-transit, and they turn to branded content to keep them busy. The web has enhanced the travel experience, allowing people to gather first-hand insights into potential trip destinations or catch up on ideas for work and at-home play en route.
Mobile devices: The best travel companions yet
According to an eMarketer report, “Marketing to Mobile Travelers: Device Usage During Travel Offers New Touchpoints,” travelers are more likely than any other type of internet user to own tablets and smartphones. Prosper Mobile Insights surveyed these mobile-technology lovers and found that 98 percent of travelers take their devices with them on vacation. Approximately four in five travelers used their devices all the time along the way.
98 percent of travelers take their devices with them on vacation.
Tablets become go-to solutions for in-flight boredom
However, brands shouldn’t look to convert vacationers while they’re laying out by the pool or on the beach, but when they’re stuck in the middle seat between two heavy-breathing strangers on a four-hour flight. FlightView’s “2012 Flyer Survey” found that four in five U.S. travelers turn to their smartphones while in the air, and two in five people grab their laptops or tablets. Mobile phones may seem like the dominate tool used by travelers to access the internet in-flight, but TripAdvisor’s recent study shows that tablets continue to gain grown on smartphones. In-flight internet provider Gogo says as of December 2012 tablets are the most-connected devices in the air.
How to engage these connected travelers
Brands can market products and services toward travelers in the air using innovative marketing strategies. Content creation and Pinterest marketing, for example, provide people with countless hours of entertainment, and can also lead to website conversions. Using social media marketing as a vehicle to deliver custom content to audiences, businesses can pull travelers in with clever social media content posted via Twitter or Pinterest. In fact, Brafton has already reported about Pinterest’s influence over consumers interested in travel or other relevant content.
Marketers often think of mobile users as on-the-go people, but sometimes they’re stuck in one place with nowhere else to go. Well-written and targeted content can reach people in-flight, and if media effectively engages readers, they may even convert before their toes even touch the sand.
