Travel marketers, take note: On Tuesday, Google took the wraps off of new local search ads on Google Maps.

Ads for relevant destinations will be inserted at the bottom of turn-by-turn navigation on user smartphones, with a button that says “add stop?”

Advertisers with physical business locations will be able to highlight where they are when Google users search for things like “hotel” or “tours”.

In an experiment, some Maps users may begin to notice “promoted pins” that display company logos and pinpoint the locations of nearby cafes or restaurants along their driving route when viewing the route via Maps.

While local businesses are the primary target of such ads — thanks to the new ability to push special offers via the promoted pins and business pages– travel brands will be also interested. A third of mobile searches on Google are queries that have to do with location, including many travel-related queries.

Ads will be personalized to a user’s interests according to what the search giant has learned from his or her past search requests and other online behaviors.

As of now, consumers can’t deactivate promoted pins. Google-owned directions service Waze has had a similar ad product for some time.

In related news, the search giant is extending the reach of Google Display Network (GDN) remarketing campaigns by giving you access to cross-exchange inventory. It says Scandinavian airline SAS “drove about 20% more conversions at a similar CPA for its remarketing campaigns” via this method.

Read original article