TripAdvisor introduces Sponsored Hotel Maps Results

TripAdvisor introduces Sponsored Hotel Maps Results

I recall hearing about this feature a while ago but it wasn't until today that I noticed the interesting addition to the map widget when I was doing some work on my travel reviews based on a recent trip to Sicily.  I took a screenshot of the sponsored badge for Hampton Inn that you can now see as the default brand every time TripAdvisor shows a map.

What brands are participating?

  • Hampton Inn
  • Best Western
  • Comfort Inn
  • Quality Inn

Why this is interesting?

This is also showing up for hotel results as you can see from the screenshot below, which I think is great for Hampton Inn but maybe other hotel brands might not be as excited? I have also noticed that there are two types of messages being used to market the sponsors

  • Map brought to you by...
  • Sponsored by...

I would imagine the branding impact is being measured linked to banner impressions which are likely directly impacting more Hampton Inn bookings via TripAdvisor platform but also increasing top of mind awareness of the Hampton Inn brand among travellers.  I can see that there is two Doubleclick tracking pixels that are loaded to track user interaction with this sponsored element.

How does the sponsored map work?

It seems that if there is no suitable Hampton Inn properties available a click on the banner just opens up Google Maps which I guess is the standard result you get before the sponsored widget was showing.

But if there is a suitable sponsored listing available you get the following result showing below.  What I find interesting is that the platform doesn't seem to take region into account which I think is a limitation of the sponsored product at this point.  In Milan there are several Best Western hotels available but the default is Hampton Inn so you have to manually select the BW icon to see any other sponsored results which I think is not intuitive based region.  

Limitations of TripAdvisor's Sponsored Maps?

Since the sponsored element is using Doubleclick tracking pixels so it's also very possible to block the element from being shown to users as you can see from the screenshot below. A simple click on the element with AdBlock allows me to create a filter that blocks that floating_sponsor element and that sponsored element has now vanished forever.

Sponsored Maps are the new native ad?

Google has also recently announced that it's rolling out a sponsored mapping platform to allow for promoted pins. You can see the example for Walgreens showing below which are much less intrusive than traditional banner ads which is great for big brands with the budgets but what about the smaller players?

What are your thoughts on sponsored maps?

I do see sponsored maps as another native advertising model opportunity for large websites such as TripAdvisor and it's something Google is also pushing forward on.  So do you think TripAdvisor needs to have some more logic built into the product to cater for regions where the sponsored brand doesn't have any locations?

To view or add a comment, sign in

Insights from the community

Explore topics