Dive Brief:

• Facebook added flight information to its dynamic ads for the travel industry, which it introduced last year for hotel and destination bookings, according to a company blog post. The targeted ads are capable of showing people an ad with a specific flight they viewed to remind them to complete their booking. Facebook, Instagram and Audience Network will carry the ads that are tied to browsing behavior. 

• Cathay Pacific, an early tester of the dynamic ads, cut its cost per acquisition by 15% and boosted booking volume 16x, according to a testimonial. Delta Air Lines also tested out the ads.

• Facebook said that travel marketers can consider three strategies to connect with travelers, such as using mobile-first video to raise awareness, sharing loyalty member promotions and driving bookings with its dynamic ads.

Dive Insight:

Facebook recognizes the massive shift in the way people think about travel booking, with 85% of people using a mobile device to make travel plans, according to a study conducted with GfK. Travel marketers spent about $6 billion on digital advertising in the U.S. last year, according to eMarketer, and digital travel sales are forecast to reach $755.9 billion by 2019.

Facebook is moving in on Google Flights, whose travel ad sales totaled $12.2 billion last year. Google Flights is currently a leader in the space as the first platform 10% of frequent flyers turn to to start their airfare shopping, according to a recent survey by the airline data firm OAG.

As a social media company, Facebook wants to distinguish itself from search engines by emphasizing its role in helping people talk about their travel plans with friends and family. Mobile devices were particularly popular for summer-related conversations, and were 12x as popular as communicating through a desktop computer, Facebook said.