As part of our Scotland is Calling activity, we've launched the latest phase of our Expedia partnership marketing campaign.
The campaign is running across both the UK and US (via Expedia and Hotels.com) markets with the aim of boosting bookings through autumn / winter and into spring 2023.
If your business is listed on these sites, please take the time to update your profile / listing to benefit from the extra traffic generated by the UK and US campaigns.
The Expedia campaign aims to increase awareness and consideration of Scotland as a year-round destination and position Scotland as a responsible and inclusive tourism destination.
We’ll also look to increase bookings to Scotland for autumn / winter from the UK market (those living outside Scotland) and increase the duration and value of these visits to Scotland.
We have a dedicated bookable landing page on Expedia.co.uk and Hotels.com to drive travel during the short booking window, with the hope of increasing stays during the autumn / winter period. Activity will include cities messaging.
Activity takes place from 2 September 2022 to January 2023.
For the US, we’ll have two phases of activity. Phase one will have a dedicated content led “spotlight page” focusing on driving inspiration of Scotland.
In phase two, we’ll have a bookable landing page, which will be more focused on converting travel for 2023.
Activity takes place from 15 October – 30 November 2022 (phase one) and 1 February – 31 March 2023 (phase two).
The campaigns have VisitScotland branded banner adverts that will direct users to a landing page with inspirational Scotland content, to encourage bookings.
More than 11 million
impressions as a result of the campaign (estimate)
During the height of the pandemic, we worked closely with Expedia Group Media Solutions to promote domestic travel while borders remained closed to international visitors.
As more countries began reopening their borders, we quickly adjusted our strategy and extended our campaign focus into international markets by promoting Scotland as a destination for North American and European travelers.
Spanning display media, social media, video and more, the campaigns generated strong results. For every $1 spent the return was more than $59.
In North America, the activities have generated +115% room night growth and +156% increase in passenger demand, period on period.
The European campaign generated +87% room night growth and +89% passenger demand as well, period on period.
We were also recognised as an Expedia Group Media Solutions 2022 Partner Award Winner for Campaign of the Year in the EMEA region. The awards celebrate campaigns that demonstrate best-in-class innovation, originality, flexibility, and success in travel marketing and advertising.
If you have a listing on Expedia or Hotels.com, please ensure you update this.
To capitalise on the additional traffic generated by the UK and US campaigns, businesses can take part in promotional activity to help their listing stand out, increase visibility and likelihood of bookings at their property.
Expedia will be communicating the activity to businesses to showcase how they can get involved.
If you have any questions about updating your listings on Expedia please contact: Partner Central via the following link on this page or call 0203 027 8181.
A survey from Expedia Group found that nearly two-thirds of Gen Z travellers (those born between 1997 and 2012) are planning “revenge Travel” to make up for lost trips during the COVID-19 pandemic.
To plan their travel, Expedia finds that Gen Z consumers are turning to online travel sources, specifically online travel agencies, 31% more than they were prior to the pandemic.
According to Expedia Group first-party data from the Expedia Group Media Solutions Q2 2022 Traveller Insights Report, travellers are looking to go further afield.
Results indicated a more than 50% year-over-year increase in global traveller demand for long-haul flights (flights with a duration of 4+ hours) and quarter two delivered more than 100% year-over-year growth in traveller demand for flights from the US to Europe.
Expedia is hosting an Edinburgh Partner Event on 29 September from 5.45pm - 8.45pm. It will include short presentations, one of which highlighting the VisitScotland partnership with Expedia Group.
You'll also hear more on market trends, sustainable practices and get the chance to network.