megabus is a leading value coach operator in England, Scotland, and Wales, with a focus on making travel simple for its customers. We have been providing Paid Search and Paid Social services within the Digital Team for a number of years. Given the highly competitive nature of the travel industry, megabus faces strong competition from both coach and train operators.
During this time, the travel industry has experienced impressive growth, driven by the rise of new services and a growing focus on sustainable travel, as more people prioritise eco-friendly options (Adapted – World Economic Forum, 2023). megabus is favoured for several reasons, including its value for money, convenient access to major bus stops, comfort, and the ease of booking through its website. As a result, it is crucial to effectively manage megabus’ offerings, which include over 100 daily journeys across the UK.
How we approached the challenge
megabus tasked our Digital team with the challenge of attracting new users. This involved targeting the right audience to minimise churn from ad spend across Paid Channels, all while maintaining strong revenue figures.
What did we do?
To tackle the challenge in an integrated way across both the channels, we focused on making our campaigns both efficient and engaging. Given tighter budgets, we used a mix of prospecting (to attract new users) and retargeting (to re-engage people who had previously shown interest). We continuously tested the balance between these two strategies to ensure we were growing our audience while also converting those already familiar with the brand.
Along with this, we ensured the marketing lists used by Paid Social, were adopted within Performance Max to reach maximum potential clients across different Google Ad Products so that they do not remarket to the same customer base, whilst reducing cost per customer.
For new user targeting, we used a combination of interest- and behaviour-based targeting (e.g., showing ads to people interested in budget transportation) and Advantage+ targeting. Advantage+ uses Meta’s algorithm & Machine Learning, to find the highest-value audiences by analysing who is most likely to convert, making it a powerful tool for efficient targeting.
Paid Search on the other hand adopted the assets used on Paid Social that performed better, to reduce churn on upper funnel and mid-funnel activities whilst switching on YouTube Video as well as Demand Gen activities. We also introduced Broad Match in a controlled way, without increasing spend and decreasing churn with tightly themed keywords whilst expanding our overall coverage.
To prevent ad fatigue, we collaborated closely with the client to develop creative briefs and provide recommendations, ensuring that content was regularly refreshed. This involved experimenting with various ad formats, including videos and static images, to keep the ads engaging and relevant. The assets and messaging were kept consistent across all channels, effectively delivering megabus’s key selling points, such as affordable travel options. This aligned approach helped to reinforce brand credibility throughout the full funnel of the user journey.
If you would like to learn more about our Digital offering and how we can drive sustained growth, get in touch today.