Outdoor event managers and tour operators know the weather can change in a moment, catching the best of us off guard. However, a new advertising technology plans to turn the unexpected rain shower into profits. So, the question must be asked - if advertising can be based on the weather, can tour operators sell tickets based on the weather?
Earlier today, advertising authority Ad Week broke the news of a new technology for real-time advertising based on current weather conditions. Surprisingly, the weather-based ad service has already been adopted by some very big brand names. According to Ad Week, the technology cooperation deal between Twitter and The Weather Channel is helping Ace Hardware sell more snow shovels and fertilizer at just the right moment.
Ace Hardware tested location-based mobile ads before and after snowstorms to pitch items like shovels and de-icers. Buoyed by the results—and underscoring how brands have begun using the weather to target on-the-go consumers—it now plans to buy mobile ads when the temperature is optimal for green thumbs to get planting.
The process that serves ads for snow shovels within minutes of it snowing is not only real-time, it is also location specific. Ad Week also mentions how Taco Bell is making use of weather-based ads, but "only when the local temperature exceeds 48 degrees." A Fair-weather friend has taken on a new meaning in corporate advertising.
The technology is referred to as "push" meaning the advertisements do not get sent until the last split second, and only to people in a specific place.
In the context of events, real-time push notifications to groups were featured earlier when a new app from email marketing company Mailchimp was announced. The app, called "Gather", allows event organizers to communicate with their ticket buyers in real-time, right up to the moment the event is scheduled to start, by text message (SMS).
Mailchimp Gather and the weather-based advertising technology does present an interesting possibility for tour operators.
Sightseeing tours, by walking, trolley or boat, are very much affected by the weather. Tours get rained out, yes, but they may also take advantage of unexpected weather improvements as well. Taco Bell thinks nice weather will sell more tacos, and, in theory, tour operators could do the same.
Say, for instance, the weather forecast calls for overcast skies and windy conditions. But then, unexpectedly, the weather breaks and the sun comes out, proving the weatherman wrong. That could be an opportunity for tour operators to push advertising to area residents, saying they should advantage of the sunny day and impulsively buy tour tickets.
If tour operators sell tickets using the weather-based ads, it wouldn't be much of a stretch to push a coupon with an ad redeemable at a future date. The novelty of getting a "rain check", in real-time, minutes after the weather goes from bad to good would be entertaining in and of itself.
So, for now, tour operators can let the big corporations work out all the bugs (they can afford it!). In the mean time, you can start using the push advertising already up and running on Twitter and Facebook today - but there's no tie in with the weather yet.
Also up and running today are coupons. The ThunderTix plan for tour operators includes support for popular coupon platforms like Groupon. We also help you make last minute changes to your tour schedule, weather related or not. Sell your online event tickets with us and gain access to our many coupon options, including automatic group discounts.
