In an effort to reach mobile and desktop users when they would be most interested in booking a tropical vacation, the campaign was triggered when the temperature last winter dipped below 32 degrees in eight cities. The tourism board and its agency Mindshare partnered with Amobee to automate the delivery of ads based on weather signals and audience insights. 

?Leveraging weather data to inform real time audience targeting and campaign delivery on mobile is really powerful when used strategically; it provides a brand with increased contextual relevancy that results in greater performance and consumer engagement,? said Assaf Henkin, senior vice president of Amobee Brand Intelligence Solutions at Amobee.  

?What?s important to understand is it?s not the actual weather that makes the campaign relevant, it?s the advertiser?s message being received by an audience who is in the right mindset to engage with that specific mobile creative because they are affected by their environment caused by a change in the weather,? he said. 

The U.S. Virgin Islands wanted to increase the number of bookings last winter by using data and audience insights. 

Using Amobee?s Triggers solution, the tourism board set a threshold of 32 degrees to determine when a campaign would go live or put on hold. When the temperature dipped below this level, ads were delivered across Atlanta, Washington, Philadelphia, Charlotte, New York, Boston, Minneapolis and Chicago. 

The ads focused on the allure of travel to warmer climates, encouraged viewers to book a vacation in the U.S. Virgin Islands and highlighted promotional opportunities. 

Audience insights generated by Amobee?s Brand Intelligence technology were also used in the targeting. 

By using weather triggers and audience insights, the tourism board hoped to reach the right audience at the right moment with a relevant message. 

The campaign increased click-through rates by 22.5 percent on mobile and 20 percent on desktop. 

Additionally, the number of bookings increased during the campaign, a direct result of site traffic generated by weather-triggered units. 

Travel brands continue to push the envelope on mobile marketing, recognizing that travelers are, by nature, on-the-go and increasingly rely on their smartphones before, during and after a travel experiences. 

For example, SpringHill Suites by Marriott capitalized on the popularity surrounding mobile video by leveraging a programmatic interscroller format to offer users an immersive tour of a room, resulting in nearly three times higher ad engagement than the benchmark for hospitality brands (see story). 

?Mobile is an excellent channel for trigger-based marketing because it is a channel and device that caters to being in the moment,? Mr. Henkin said. ?Brands should consider their objectives and look at defining what triggers can be used to help get their message in front of the right audience in the right mindset.?