Presentation given by Colin Carter from Weather2Travel.com at Affiliate Window's All Aboard 2015 Travel Event on 2nd November 2015.

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Why travel is the best and worst
vertical in affiliate marketing
Colin Carter
Weather2Travel.com

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A bit about us
• Who we are
– Weather2Travel.com launched online in 2005
– Weather guides for EVERY country in the world
– Designed specifically for travellers
• What we do
– What’s the weather like in Barbados?
– When is the best time to go to Thailand?
– Where can I go that’s hot and sunny in October?

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Weather & Climate
• Climate - Monthly weather averages
• Weather - 5-day forecasts/current conditions
• When to Travel - Best time to visit Phuket
• Destination Finder - Where to go when
• Weather content by month/destination
• Provide weather content to third-party websites

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Media first publishing approach
• Content media & marketing
– Unique blog content
– Well respected travel writers
– First class imagery & video content
– Interactive tools & widgets
• Building an audience
– Blog content, newsletter & social media

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Holiday weather overview

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Best month to travel

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Where to go when

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Fully responsive

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Clients & Partners

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How does weather fit into the
research & booking process?

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The importance of weather
• One of the most important factors in
choosing a holiday destination
• Ipsos report - Top factors to UK travellers
– 1st Climate (45%), 2nd Budget (36%)
• Travelsupermarket Travel Trends
– 1st Price (42%), 2nd Weather (32%)
• Hamburg University research
– 42% checked climate before booking
– Top stats: Max temperature, sea temperature,
sunshine, and days with rain

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Is there any correlation between
holiday & weather research online?

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Google Trends - January

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Google Trends - August

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Researching & booking holidays
researching
decision-making
booking
destination
perception
pre-planning decision-making
preparation
packing
travelling
post-booking
brochure content
word of mouth
climate guides
reviews & forums
weather forecast
social media
travel guides
holidays
flights & hotels
car hire, airport
parking & extras

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Working with travel brands

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Promoting travel brands with
affiliate marketing through content

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Affiliate marketing
• PPC / SEO - Bedroom affiliates
• Voucher / Cashback
• Google updates - e.g. Panda, Penguin
• Retargeting / Basket Abandonment
• Technology - Datafeeds / Widgets
• Autolinking - Skimlinks, Awin Convert-a-Link
• Big Data - Deduplication, Attribution

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Travel industry
• Move from High Street to online
• Birth of Mobile
• Recession - Price driven, savvy shopper
• Birth of Tablet - Second screening
• Mergers & Acquisitions
• Social media
• Always online

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Current challenges
• Tracking
– Last Click - Sales vs Branding
– Deduplication - e.g. against PPC
– Mobile tracking / sites
– Multi-device / Offline sales / Adblockers
• Communication & reporting
– Little or no interaction with content publishers
– Silos - regional & departmental
– Lack of information about sales
– Payment periods

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What is being done?
• Assists
• Cross-device tracking
• Convert-a-Link
• Click to call
• Content Widgets
• Opportunity Marketplace

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Device performance

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Assists

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Assists & Device reports
• Assisted sales - Affiliate Window
‘Sales and leads for which you have driven a click but
was not the last referrer or the winning publisher.’
• How can they be used?
– Assists data is not the complete picture
– Enable publishers to change strategy
– Analyse EPCs across devices

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Can we do more?
• Communication
– Closer ties between marketing / sales / PR & branding
– Sharing of statistics in both directions
• What was searched/clicked from publishers
• What was purchased from brands
• Looking beyond the ‘Last click’
– Cost per Interaction / Cost per Engagement
– Post Impression / Time on site
– Hybrid models (CPA + CPC + CPM)

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Time on site

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The future
• Redefinition of what is ‘performance’
• New types of measurement
• Publishers at the centre
• Closer ties between PR, branding and sales
• Improved communication
• Shared statistics in both directions
• More publishers being paid something

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Thank you
Questions
Colin Carter
colin@weather2travel.com