Use Location- and Weather-Triggered Ads to Really Ramp Up Your Campaign

You know that feeling when you see ads pop up online for sites you just recently visited, maybe even for items you currently have saved in a shopping cart? Sometimes it seems a little creepy, but for the most part, you get it, you were just on the site. But what if you started seeing ads that seemed to know where you were headed while you walked down the street, or seemed to know that you forgot your umbrella and it looks like it’s about to pour?

Weather and location-triggered display ads are some of the more recent laser-targeted ad technologies to take hold in the digital marketing arena. And they can be extremely valuable for their highly granular targeting and segmentation capabilities. So how can you use these two powerful tools to your advantage? Below are some tips on how to leverage weather and location-triggered display ads to ramp up your advertising campaigns:

Weather-Triggered Advertising

According to the British Retail Consortium, weather wields a huge influence on consumer behavior, coming in second only to the state of the economy. One of the main benefits of weather-triggered advertising is that weather is a universally experienced phenomenon; nobody is exempt from the effects of weather, and it can affect what you wear, where you might go and what activities you plan to do.

Weather-responsive advertising enables marketers to communicate a highly personalized message to prospects that will hit them right where they are with timely, relevant and hyper-local data. Here are some ideas to help you successfully incorporate weather-triggered advertising into your marketing strategy:

• Tailor your product or service offerings to current weather conditions. For example, a company that sells snowblowers or gas-powered generators might advertise in the immediately before or during a heavy snowstorm. A spa might offer a special discount package during inclement weather days. A clothing retailer can capitalize on warm, sunny days by offering shorts, flip-flops or bathing suits.
• Temperature and/or storms don’t have to be the only consideration; you can factor in other weather-related issues where they apply as well. For example, hair product manufacturer Pantene began focusing on addressing hair problems that are commonly caused by weather-related conditions such as dry heat or high humidity. The company partnered with The Weather Channel to serve display ads on Weather.com pages that featured forecasts and information pertaining to these specific conditions. Pantene’s ads featured special discounts and coupons, as well as directions to the closest stores where Pantene products could be purchased.
• Utilize historical weather data to inform your marketing strategy. Have you detected any trends in terms of how weather may have affected foot traffic, sales, etc., in the past?

Location-Triggered Advertising

Location-based data is a universal part of our online experience now; our smartphone photos are automatically geo-tagged, our apps are GPS-enabled and many of our online transactions are location-specific based on IP address.

Location-triggered advertising is especially useful for Internet-connected smartphone users, as it gives brands unique opportunities to offer personalized content as well as promotions that are customized to the user’s real-time experience. Here are some tips to help you take advantage of location-specific display ads that will deepen customer engagement and drive sales:

• Reward loyalty using location-based data. Many retailers offer users the opportunity to rack up redeemable points or unlock rewards for visiting a physical store. Other businesses offer timely percent-off coupons or special promotions via display ads that are triggered when users are within a certain proximity of a brick-and-mortar location.
• It is a very common thing nowadays for consumers to use a mobile device while they’re shopping. With the right location data, businesses can offer customers an enhanced in-store experience by providing them with on-the-spot ads featuring exclusive promotions, or detailed information and reviews for the products they’re seeking to purchase.
• Consider geofencing to provide customized ads to a niche-specific audience. For the uninitiated, geofencing is a location-based targeting technology that utilizes the GPS coordinates of a given location in order to create a “virtual perimeter” (a.k.a. fence) around that area. For example, if you sell sports team-related merchandise, you could initiate an advertising campaign that geofences certain stadiums, giving you instant access to an audience that will more than likely be interested in gear that reps their team.

Advertising technology such as weather and location-triggered display ads is still somewhat in its infancy, but even in these early stages the opportunities truly abound. Keep the above ideas in mind to provide your target audience with greater engagement and a more meaningful interaction with your brand.

Want to learn more about what location and weather-triggered ads can do?