Targeting International Travelers? Fine-tune your campaigns with insights into this audience segment

At InMobi, we deliver 200 Billion ad impressions a month. By processing and studying the data signals accompanying each impression over the last six months, we get a peek into the consumers at the other end of the 1.2 trillion impressions. Understanding the attributes of these consumers is paramount as it helps fine-tune your advertising messaging and investments.

A case in point - the international traveler segment. In my earlier post, we analyzed the top international destinations of outbound US travelers and found them to be Mexico, Germany, United Kingdom, Canada, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Netherlands, France, and India. Now, we take this analysis further by evaluating the’ device platform, age and gender mix of these travelers.

The Importance of Platforms

There are several differences between Android users and iOS users that every marketer should keep in mind before planning and executing campaigns. According to a comScore report, the household income of iOS users is typically higher with 41 percent of iPhone owners falling in the $100,000+ income segment vs. 24 percent of Android owners. Some reports even position iOS users as spending as much as 4x Android users. This directly correlates with the finding that iOS users are more likely to engage in m-Commerce where smartphone users are more likely to make purchases on their devices on a regular basis. And when it comes to signalling brand loyalty - a major factor for marketers to determine long-term market share, iOS takes the cake. Around than 70% of the iOS users are highly satisfied with their devices and more than 80% of those users had previously owned an iOS device.

Figure (i) shows the iOS vs Android device trends of the outbound US traveler split by the choice of destination country

The Gender Paradigm

The shopping behavior for men vs women is clearly different. Extensive research has shown that:

• Men tend to follow a utilitarian, more logic-based approach. You need to tell them why they should buy your products and why it makes sense for them to purchase it. While,
• Women are mostly hedonic shoppers. To reach and engage women, you have to create emotive shopping experiences that resonate with them. Women want to know more about you, your brand, the lifestyle you sell and how your products are going to make them feel.

In addition, 22.2 percent of men said they used their smartphones to shop while only 18.2 percent of women did so. Men are loyal to brands while women are loyal to good service. A study by the Erasmus University showed that once men found a brand that worked for them, they were more likely to stick with it, which is especially true for apparel, automobiles, financial services and home electronics, while women showed a greater degree of loyalty if they received a good service.

Figure (ii) shows the gender mix of the outbound US traveler split by the choice of destination country

The Age Deviation

The key difference of mobile behaviors by age groups is the mobile intent. While engaging with their mobile phones, older consumers tend to have a clear idea on what task they want to accomplish, while younger consumers tend to have less of a distinct purpose and are more open to new experiences while engaging with a wide range of activities on their devices. Also, while older consumers are more loyal to the brand when it comes to shopping, the younger consumers prioritize price over brand.

Figure (iii) shows the age-group trends of the outbound US traveler split by the choice of destination country

A shout out to marketers - consumers across platforms and demographics are engaging and spending on mobile. And as you can see in the international traveler segment, the user demographics and platform can vary quite a bit by where they travel to. To maximize the ROI on your campaigns, ensure that you create targeted campaigns keeping all the above attributes in mind, to engage the right audience with the right message.