How to Ride the Wave as Travel Takes Flight Again
About Test With TikTok
Test With TikTok is an initiative to encourage experimentation amongst marketers. It helps advertisers in SEA achieve more with TikTok solutions and enhance the performance of your marketing campaigns. We work with you to deliver returns on your investment, and prime audiences for your messaging on other platforms. We'll be offering tips and tricks for boosting your brand, driving sales, and growing your business on TikTok.
2022: The year travel makes a major comeback
After two years of travel chaos that saw borders closed due to pandemic restrictions, travel and tourism are finally returning to some form of normalcy. Enormous pent-up demand has been unleashed around the world, in line with the easing of travel restrictions and the success of mass vaccination programs globally.
Making up for lost time, people are now spending more on travel. A new trend is also on the rise with workcations. No matter the purpose, people are taking longer trips and give themselves a longer lead time in making their decisions. Many are opting for domestic travel as people remain safety-conscious; in 2021 up to 76% of all bookings were staycations, and 7 in 10 focused their research on places with low COVID cases. But one thing is a common demand everywhere: people want to treat themselves to epic experiences.
For marketers in the travel vertical, this is a major opportunity they will want to grab to grow their business.
TikTok's infinite loop of Joy keeps the good times coming
Just from casually checking out user content on our platform, we know TikTok users love to travel. In fact, 77% of TikTok users said they plan to travel internationally, while 93% of them plan to travel domestically in the next 6 months. The TikTok community travels frequently, and are eager to share their experiences online. Today's digital-first consumers almost always check out destinations online before they book. And TikTok is a key hub where people can share their experiences, or research and decide if their planned trip is worth taking.
On our platform, there is a seamless journey from discovery to conversion, through what we call the infinite loop of joy. Let's break down how that works:
Discovery: At this stage, our users are dreaming - they are not sure where to head to, and are seeking inspiration to discover new places to visit through the TikTok app. Users discover content on their #ForYou page that inspires them. Up to 76% of users say TikTok inspires them to travel in this way.
Consideration: At this stage, users are planning for their trips. They do their research to find more information about their preferred destinations or activities. Some 77% of TikTok users in Southeast Asia (SEA) feel encouraged to research certain travel destinations after seeing them on the platform. The content they consider includes reviews, personal travel experiences, travel hacks, and more. Specifically, users want to know about the cost of COVID travel restrictions, whether they need a vaccine passport, and advice on traveling with kids.
Action: At the Action stage, users are prepared to book and make purchase decisions to finalize their trip, whether for accommodation, flights, attractions, and more.The majority of our users also say TikTok plays a key role in influencing their bookings. Around 69% said that travel content on TikTok encourages them to purchase a product or activity, and 68% said TikTok helps them decide which to choose. Also, 58% said they have booked a travel product or service after seeing it on TikTok.
Review and participation: At this stage, users have arrived at their destination and are both enjoying and sharing their trip in real time. This vibrant community are sharing their experience - often posting about their trips, as 65% of users have said they like to share their travel experiences on TikTok. By sharing their epic travel experiences, they in turn inspire other users and keep the infinite loop running.
(Source: TikTok Commissioned Survey for Travel, APAC, Jul 2022)
Test, test, and test again to make the most of this opportunity
Now we understand the process from the user perspective, but for marketers the question is how to turn this opportunity into business success. The answer, is to cultivate a testing mindset.
Why
There is no one-size-fits-all approach. Even individual brands cannot use the same marketing strategy forever, as the world, and users' preferences, constantly change. Not to mention competitors are always battling to stay ahead. So, we encourage advertisers to continually test out new approaches, to evolve their marketing strategy and identify the right approach for their brand as time goes on.
What
By testing out new strategies, brands can discover untapped opportunities to break through the clutter and achieve real-life results. Then they can apply the lessons learnt to their future campaigns to drive continuous growth for their brand.
How
Check out the scalable testing tactics outlined below for ideas. We've featured past, real-life tests that are relevant for travel marketers, and hopefully inspire you to get testing too.
Test #1: Creator content vs brand content
In one such test, a travel brand decided to see whether Creator content was more effective at engaging the travel community. That's because 1 in 3 TikTok users specifically use the platform to check out Creator content for travel inspiration, and 70% are more likely to be influenced by Creator content. This travel brand wanted to see how that worked on the campaign level.
The test was designed around comparing boosted content made by Creators against boosted content made by the brand. Both types of content were hosted on the brand's TikTok Business Account profile. The results showed that the Creator content was more effective for upper and mid-funnel objectives such as driving awareness, with click-through rates ranging from 5%-56% higher than the brand content. However, as the brand content was more product focused, it was more successful at driving conversions, with 7 out of the 8 test ad groups showing a 12%-180% higher conversion rate.
As a result, the conclusion was both types of content complement each other for a full-funnel marketing strategy.
Test #2: Value-Based Optimization vs in-App Event Optimization.
Indonesian travel brand, tiket.com, wanted to test out if TikTok's Value-Based Optimization solution would help to improve user acquisition and return on ad spend (ROAS). The online travel agent ran two campaigns, one with Value-Based Optimization and a control group that used in-App Event Optimization.
The Value-Based Optimization campaign optimized for higher-value users, meaning users who are more likely to spend more. As a result, the Value-Based Optimization campaign achieved 16% higher value per purchase compared to the control ad groups. The Value-Based Optimization campaign also optimized cost per purchase and cost effectiveness, with 219% higher ROAS compared to the control group and 63% more efficient cost per action.
The conclusion here was that while in-App Event Optimization is useful for driving action such as purchases, Value-Based Optimization will drive both quantity of conversions and quality of these users who are purchasing by boosting checkout value of these opportunities.
Three types of travel content that drive results
We've covered the importance of testing out new strategies, but no campaign is complete without great content. For travel brands specifically, here are the three types of content that drive results in this vertical.
Content that inspires Inspiring users drives FOMO (fear of missing out) and wanderlust. It gives people the nudge they need to think about taking a trip, and then consider all the possibilities in the wide range of places and experiences on offer.
Content that informs This type of content adds value and enhances experiences, for example with insider tips and tricks, or by showing how to make the most of a trip.
Content that entertains Entertainment is the main means of engagement, and it’s usually entertainment that sells an experience in an authentic and enjoyable way. This is achieved mainly through strong storytelling.
Let's get testing to ride the travel resurgence wave
When you adopt a testing mindset, there's less pressure to get everything right the first time. As consumer preferences continually change, and users' main consideration factors adapt with the times, testing is your best bet at making the most of the travel resurgence trend.
Stay tuned for more updates and advice from Test with TikTok.
Read the previous Test with TikTok blogpost here.
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