ARCHIVES: This is legacy content from before Marketing Dive acquired Mobile Marketer in early 2017. Some information, such as publication dates, may not have migrated over. Check out the new Marketing Dive site for the latest marketing news.

Wynn Las Vegas taps mobile for geo-targeted ads in taxis

Luxury hotel and casino Wynn Las Vegas is driving awareness via a mobile advertising campaign in taxis that serves geo-targeted content about popular destinations around town.

The ads are appearing on Samsung Galaxy tablets that have been placed inside 1,000 Las Vegas taxi cabs for a year. Through the use of GPS technology, the effort delivers geo-targeted audio and video tours of Wynn Las Vegas, local attractions and as well as shopping and nightlife spots to visit based on their point of embarkation.

?Wynn is a luxury hotel brand, so we are concerned with the way that our brand is represented, and the quality of the screen in the cabs is quite good,? said Michael Weaver, senior vice president of marketing at Wynn Las Vegas.

?The goal with these videos was to make the content more informational and less of a sales pitch,? he said. ?We wanted to create more of a conversation.?

?In Las Vegas, there are not many opportunities for a one-on-one conversation with a consumer. But the majority of people reach Las Vegas through a cab from the airport.?

QR code-enabled reservations
The campaign gives Wynn an opportunity to communicate directly with visitors based on their location in Las Vegas while offering a fun, interactive way for travelers to plan their activities. The goal is to entertain and engage passengers while also showcasing the hotel.

Taxi riders can also scan a QR code that appears at the end of videos to make a reservation at the hotel or for one of its shows.

Wynn Las Vegas worked with Show Media to load the taxis with the tablets and equipment.

The hotel has created custom content specific to the Las Vegas Strip and the downtown area to offer visitors real-time, relevant information. Using geo-fencing technology, Wynn is able to deliver relevant messaging to taxi riders who are within a 300-foot radius of an attraction.

There are 16 different personalized video messages that play depending on where a user is in Las Vegas.

The videos also show the resort?s restaurants, shows, nightclubs and shopping facilities.

Various phone numbers for the resort are also displayed so that riders can use their mobile phones to call to make a reservation or find out more information.

Show Media picked an Android tablet for this strategy because it is an open platform and offers high-speed 4G mobile network access.

The ads are running in taxis in Las Vegas for the next year.

Show Media sells back-lit displays for taxis in New York, Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

?The concept is to have a screen in front of a passenger when they use a taxi cab in Las Vegas to make the media engaging,? said Laurence Hallier, CEO of Show Media.

?Digital gives you so much more engagement with a taxi passenger,? he said.