A Growth Engine for Europe

Luc-Olivier Pierre is the Deputy Director and Marketing Director of the Allier Departmental Tourism Committee (DTC). With half of his marketing budget invested online, he manages web-based campaigns advertising Allier as a travel destination. Google is an intrinsic part of the DTC’s operations, with Gmail and Google Calendar used to organise its work. It has already been using Google AdWords for two years. As a local public body, the DTC teamed up with nine tourism partners in 2014 to launch a joint operation targeting French Internet users. Its conversion rate is measured by the number of site visits longer than 25 seconds. “AdWords allows us to adapt each campaign to what’s on offer. We therefore use the tool differently depending on whether we’re promoting accommodation bookings, all-inclusive trips, cultural visits or hiking routes,” explains Luc-Olivier Pierre. “We have to be extremely responsive when it comes to adjusting our campaigns. AdWords is an especially effective tool, and the only one that allows us to target our audience so precisely.” The budget for the company’s 2014 AdWords campaign ran to tens of thousands of euros. “The campaign was a great success!” says Luc-Olivier; he’s planning another campaign in the near future.