Travel search engine Kayak.com has announced the European launch of Kayak Network ( www.kayaknetwork.com) paid search solution. (11/8/2007)
The service has already attracted European brands such as British Airways, KLM, lastminute.com and ebookers.com.
Kayak Network is a patent-pending advertising platform optimised for the travel industry. Unlike traditional paid search, which relies on keyword combinations, Kayak Network enables advertisers to target their marketing based on specific search criteria including destination city, origination city, trip dates, length of stay, specific airline/hotel/car brands and car type.
Additionally, when a Kayak user clicks on a Kayak Network ad, their search information (destination, travel dates, etc.) is passed to the advertiser´s website, allowing the advertiser to display relevant search results instead of a generic landing page. This enables marketers to more effectively target when their placements are displayed, the messages in the placements and the landing pages Kayak takes the user to, which results in stronger click through rates and higher ROI.
"The goal of emarketing is to convert lookers to bookers and our advertisers report that Kayak Network sponsored links convert two-to-three times higher than generic search," said Annie Wilson, Kayak Business Development Director, Europe. "The conversion rate is higher than other sites because Kayak Network provides advertisers with contextual search parameters and sends the user´s search details such as dates of travel, destination and preferences to the advertiser. They can then use the information to create more relevant search results, thus increasing the likelihood of consumer purchase."
According to the company, a self-service extranet, the Kayak Network is an online marketplace where prices are driven by demand and the performance of ads.
Advertisers also get better position, and pay less, if their ads perform well. Travel marketers can set a maximum cost per click and/or maximum amount per campaign. Kayak Network will turn off campaigns when the maximum amount is reached. Network users can manage their campaigns easily with robust reporting tools tracking impressions, clicks, click-through rates, average CPC, cost, and average position within search results.
The following services are offered through the Kayak Network extranet:
- Purchase Sponsored Links: Promote sales and target specific need periods along the right rail of the results page. In the US there are currently over 3,300,000 sponsored link clicks, a growth of 300% from July 2007.
- Add a Hotel or Update Description: Add or manage property content including description, images and amenities at no charge. Kayak is the only site that allows hoteliers and consumers to add properties to the database, enabling even the smallest B&B to be displayed alongside major hotel brands.
- Secure the Top Two Results in Hotel Search: While Kayak´s hotel results are displayed by relevance using an algorithm of popularity, search behavior and references, advertisers can bid on the top two spots which are clearly marked as sponsored.
