Machine Learning For Travel Advertising: How Secret Escapes Reduced Cost-Per-Lead By 38% Leaders in Travel 2019

1. Confidential
Machine Learning for Travel
Advertising: How to Reduced
Cost-Per-Lead By 38%

2. Welcome to the worst-kept secret
in luxury travel!
● Hand-pick hotels and offers
● Suspiciously good prices
● 50 million members worldwide
● International team
Secret Escapes
Intro

3. The Era of
Machine Learning

4. Timeline of ML
Machine Learning
DECADE SUMMARY
<1950s Statistical methods are discovered and refined.
1950s Machine learning research is conducted using simple algorithms.
1960s Bayesian methods are introduced in machine learning.
1970s 'AI Winter' caused by pessimism about machine learning effectiveness.
1980s Resurgence in machine learning research.
1990s
Work on machine learning shifts from a knowledge-driven approach to a
data-driven approach.
2000s Unsupervised machine learning methods become widespread.
2010s Deep learning becomes feasible, which leads to machine learning
becoming integral to many widely used software services and applications!
*Source Wikipedia

5. AI, Machine Learning & Algorithms
Machine Learning
AI
Machine
Learning
Deep
Learning
• Broader Term
• Any technique that allows
computers to mimic human
intelligence
• Enables machines to improve
at tasks with experience
• Algorithms that permit
software to train itself

6. ● Digital Travel Sector continues to grow!
● $2.6T additional in value by 2020
● Increased competition across channels
results in more expensive CPL/ CPA.
● Big Data: The amount of available travel
data is staggering.
● Raising customer expectations.
Why is Machine Learning Important?
Machine Learning For Travel Advertising

7. Infinite Customer Touchpoints
Machine Learning For Travel Advertising

8. Humans vs. Machines
Machine Learning For Travel Advertising
40x

9. Machine Limitations
Machine Learning For Travel Advertising
Machine CAN Machine CANNOT
Forecast Create something new
Analyse Go beyond their task
Re-produce Collaborate
Recommend Replace all humans

10. ● Recommendation Engines
● Flight fare and hotel price forecasting
● Optimised disruption management
● Data-driven UX personalisation
● Intelligent travel assistants
● Fraud detection
Real-Life Examples of ML in Travel
Machine Learning For Travel Advertising

11. Switching
Machine Learning
ON

12. Things to Consider
Machine Learning For Travel Advertising
FEARRISK
MONEY

13. Once you get internal buy-in
Machine Learning For Travel Advertising

14. Supercharge your Digital
Marketing Strategy

15. Google/ Bing/ Facebook ML
1. Smart Bidding
2. Dynamic Search Ads
3. Responsive Search Ads
4. Data Driven Attribution
5. Similar Audiences/ Lookalike
6. Universal App Campaigns
7. Dynamic Prospecting Ads
Supercharge your Digital Marketing Strategy

16. Smart Bidding
Google Case Study

17. Goals:
● Improve cost per lead
● Identify the most efficient bidding setup
Approach:
● 3-6 months testing across multiple territories
and every single time tCPA won!
Auction-Time Bidding
Case Study
Target CPA
Target ROAS
Max Conversions
Enhanced CPC

18. Win even more customers & achieve better results!
The Results
-38% lower
Cost per
Acquisition
+23%
better CTR
Bid
Case Study

19. “With seasonality adjustments, you can apply a predicted conversion rate
adjustment and Smart Bidding will consider that adjustment for the date range
selected, while trying to hit your target CPA”
Seasonality Adjustments
Case Study

20. Other ML-Powered Tools

21. DSA are the easiest way to set up Paid Search
campaigns.
Advantages:
+ Easy to set-up
+ Higher ad relevance
+ Stronger CVR, lower CPA
Disadvantage:
- Lack of control
Dynamic Search Ads
Machine Powered Tools
CTR
+25%
CPC
-29%
CPA
-35%

22. + Higher CTRs & CVRs due to the improved ad space and effectiveness
+ Time saving and easy to scale
Responsive Search Ads
Machine Powered Tools

23. DDA generates a custom model for
assigning conversion credit to
marketing touchpoints.
+ Better decisions about where to
invest marketing budgets.
- Available only to Google Analytics 360
customers.
Data Driven Attribution
Machine Powered Tools

24. Finds new potential customers whose
search behaviour is similar to that of
people in your existing remarketing list.
+ Relevant audience targeting
+ Automatically generated
+ Easy way to expand your reach
Similar Audiences/ Lookalike
Machine Powered Tools

25. Automatically designed and optimised
based on your App listing.
+ Automated targeting and bidding
+ Easy set-up: budget and goal (CI or LTV)
+ Runs across all Google properties
+ Video, Image, Text, HTML5
Universal App Campaigns
Machine Powered Tools

26. DPA solution combines what Facebook
knows about their users and delivers
personalised recommendations based on
your product feed.
+ Reach more potential customers
+ Easy Setup (Pixel + Feed)
Dynamic Prospecting Ads
Machine Powered Tools

27. Closing Remarks

28. KEY TAKEAWAYS
Improved
marketing
efficiency
Brings 'real time’
data to life
NB: It is still
learning!
Delivers results
at scale
Target the right
users at the right
time

29. Questions?

30. Thank you!
Rumyana Miteva
Head of Performance & Revenue
@mitevar
rumi@secretescapes.com