How we used geo-targeting to increase the effectiveness of the summer campaign for Decathlon

Geo-targeting represents one of the biggest opportunities for companies that know their target groups and the exact locations where their customers are located. Unlike traditional search campaigns, geolocation campaigns allow you to capture users at a specific location and then show them a banner ad when they are most inclined to buy.

Don't confuse geo-targeting with GEO - optimization for AI tools. Geolocation campaigns use the GPS coordinates of mobile devices to identify and then reach users based on their physical presence in specific locations.

Decathlon's summer geolocation campaign

Decathlon is a French company that aims to "make sport more accessible" and develops sports equipment for more than 70 sports. In the Czech Republic, it is one of the largest sellers of sports equipment and has a strong position especially in the outdoor activities and camping segment.

We have been working with this prestigious brand on digital campaigns for more than a year. After successful autumn and spring campaigns, Decathlon approached us with a challenge to prepare a summer campaign that would target a specific audience - visitors to campsites.

The right campaign targeting

The decision to target campsites did not come about by chance. Decathlon has a wide range of camping equipment in its portfolio, from tents to sleeping bags to camping furniture such as folding chairs, reclining chairs, stable tables or entire camping kitchens.

When planning the future strategy with Decathlon's marketing department, it became clear that people who spend their holidays in campsites are the ideal target group for Decathlon's summer campaigns. In addition, at Triton IT we have advanced experience in geo-targeting, which allows us to build audiences based on precise GPS coordinates with a targeting perimeter down to the lower hundreds of metres.

How does geolocation targeting work?

Geolocation technology works on the principle of a multi-step process:

1. Location mapping

First, we build a detailed map of the target locations. For Decathlon's summer campaign, we focused on two main types of campsites:

• Campsites along rivers ideal for paddlers and water sports enthusiasts
• Classic holiday campsites designed for family holidays

After identifying all the campsites in the country that are aggregated on camping enthusiast portals, we compiled a list of these places along with their exact coordinates.

2. GPS data collection

When a user enters the geofence (virtual perimeter) around a campsite with their mobile device, our system registers their presence. Targeting accuracy is in the lower hundreds of meters, which means we can identify people right in the campgrounds, near tents or on the paddling trails.

3. Building an audience

We categorize recorded users into specific audiences and then store this data for future ad serving purposes.

4. Retargeting

We can then show camping gear banners to these users even when they are no longer at the campsite, but perhaps at home or work. That is, in places where there is more space to buy the necessary equipment for the next camping trip.

Together with the Decathlon team, we carefully planned the launch of the campaign, timed exactly for the peak camping season, so that the banners hit users when they are most motivated to buy additional equipment. The banners included a wide range of products such as camping furniture (chairs, tables, deck chairs), barbecue equipment, outdoor clothing or water sports accessories.

Results of the summer geolocation campaign

Decathlon uses the services of Marketup, which manages the Campaign Manager 360 tool, to measure the performance of its campaigns. This was specifically configured to track our geolocation impressions and verified not only the technical accuracy of the campaign setup, but also confirmed the high success rate of the entire strategy. By connecting with CM360, we were able to track how users captured in the campsites subsequently behaved after seeing the ad.

This external verification from an independent tool confirmed that our geo-targeting did indeed reach the relevant audience, who then went on to Decathlon's website to complete their purchase.

Key campaign metrics:

• CTR (Click-Through Rate): 0.89%
• Impressions: 1,954,555 impressions
• Clicks: 17,439 clicks

Precise geo-targeting to campsites and paddling trails resulted in Decathlon's high relevancy of display ads, nearly two million banner impressions and an above-average CTR for this type of display campaign.

What makes geo-targeting so effective?

The success of this campaign illustrates several key benefits of geo-targeting:

1. Relevance

We reach a clearly defined target group that congregates in predefined locations, These people make up the most relevant group of users who are regular customers of our client.

2. Accuracy

We target with sub-hundred metre precision, allowing us to distinguish between a visitor to a campsite and someone just passing by.

3. Scalability

We can target hundreds of different locations across the country at the same time.

4. Scalability

We can accurately measure each banner display and evaluate its effectiveness.

The future of geolocation marketing

The case of Decathlon shows the huge potential of geolocation campaigns for retail brands. With the increasing accuracy of GPS data and expanding data mining capabilities, we expect this type of targeting to play an increasingly important role in digital marketing.

For brands like Decathlon that have clearly defined target audiences tied to specific locations and activities, geo-targeting is an effective way to achieve high relevance while optimizing costs.