Brand USA Finds Success with Lightbox Catalog Ads

First in travel industry to leverage new Google Lightbox advertising technology

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Jul 09, 2013, 12:20 ET

WASHINGTON, July 9, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Brand USA offers travel partners enhanced cooperative programs with Google Lightbox. This interactive-multimedia advertising platform is generating significant results for Brand USA. Lightbox ads begin in standard, scalable banner ad units, but then expand into a near full-screen canvas that supports full rich-media capabilities. Advertisers can embed a YouTube video, game, or travel experience in a banner ad to grab the customer's attention. Lightbox ads qualify user engagement by requiring users to hover over the ad unit for two-seconds before expanding. Brand USA was the first business to embed an interactive travel guide within this type of ad.

"The Google Lightbox has exceeded all expectations for engagement with the advertising format generating amazing results," said Christopher L. Thompson, president and CEO for Brand USA. "What makes this platform unique is that it allows travelers to engage users with our brand, USA destinations and travel brands through great storytelling without interrupting their online experience."

Each Lightbox ad generates 3.2 percent engagement rate and rising as the campaign is continually optimized. This represents up to 30 times improvement over traditional banner advertising. The overall campaign showed $0.19 per engaged user (compared to $1.43 per engaged user of a printed catalog. Note: Employing catalog user as alternate comparison due to use of printed guide assets as a source of design for the ad format in this test).

Through Google Lightbox, a user is able to interact with the advertisement, open the highly experiential ad unit, read and view the content, including video, and never leave the site they are browsing. Only when the consumer is truly inspired and decides to take such action are they able to enter the website or digital property directly to the content they were consuming.

"This drives users to engage in a trusted environment and engage only as they move down the consideration and conversion funnel to traveling to the USA," added Yvonne La Penotiere, chief marketing officer for Brand USA. "Our partners are able to work with us on this Google platform in many formats to deliver tailored lifestyle messaging, video content of regions and states and truly engage a highly targeted consumer audience via the many optimization tools that Google provides to drive efficiency in digital marketing."

About Brand USA
Brand USA is the public-private partnership responsible for promoting the United States as a premier travel destination and communicating U.S. entry/exit policies and procedures. Established by the Travel Promotion Act in 2010, the organization's mission is to increase international visitation to the United States while working in partnership with the travel industry to maximize the economic and social benefits of travel. These benefits include creating jobs essential to the economy and fostering understanding between people and cultures.

For industry or partner information about Brand USA, visit www.TheBrandUSA.com. For information about travel to and around the United States, please visit Brand USA's consumer website at www.DiscoverAmerica.com.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Camila Clark
Brand USA
202-735-2305
443-280-1794
[email protected]

SOURCE Brand USA