Your business possibilities with Waze Ads

Navigation devices are a dime a dozen these days, so what sets Waze apart? Well, not only is Waze the world’s largest community-based navigation app but it also allows businesses to set up branded pins that appear on the map. The platform boasts smart ROI reporting mechanisms and has been hailed as the next big thing in location-based marketing. If you don’t believe us, ask Google – The tech conglomerate purchased the Israeli company in 2013 and Waze is set to continue growing and lighting the way for future location marketing trends.

So, hop in and let’s take a closer look at this amazing platform.

Navigating Waze: Who, What & Where:

WAZE. OUTSMARTING TRAFFIC, TOGETHER. This is their slogan and the statement doesn’t disappoint if you have used this app before you know you’re guaranteed to save time with each trip. How do the community-based updates work though? Users download the Waze app to join the community and start their journey. Waze then collects map data, travel times and traffic information reported from their users and deliver it in real-time results via the app to improve navigation times.

Users can report the following:

• Accidents
• Traffic jams
• Speed
• Traffic traps
• Road Blocks

They can also update the following info via the online map editor:

• Roads
• Landmarks
• House numbers etc

Waze is currently active in 13 countries worldwide including South Africa and as long as Wazers are sending updates, the platform will continue to grow.

Waze App Screenshots

Waze Ads:

Right, so now that we understand how the community stuff works, let’s have a look at how businesses are capitalizing off this unique app. Waze also happens to be a location-based ad platform that offers branded pins that appear as users navigate close to your business. Through these branded pins and banners, Waze allows users to navigate straight to their chosen business via the app.

There are 4 ad formats that Waze offers for businesses:

• Branded Pins: Described as Digital Billboards, these are perfect places branded pins that inform and remind drivers that your business is on or near their route. Wazers tap the pin to reveals your company’s branding and info.
• Takeover Ads: These ads appear anytime the driver is at a complete stop near your location, without the user clicking on your pin. This is a great way to promote special offers.
• Arrows: A well-positioned signpost that appears in the first moments after opening the app, indicating that your business is nearby. Once the user taps the arrow the map moves to your business’s branded pin.
• Promoted Search: Your locations will be promoted to the top of the search results and include your brand’s logo.

Branded Waze Pin

What’s Driving Your ROI:

Wazers can choose one of the following call-to-actions once your ad appears in any of the above formats:

1. Drive There
2. Save Location
3. Save For Later
4. Save Offer
5. Call Now

These call-to-actions are all measurable and a clear ROI can be provided with reports including the following stats to help you optimize future budget:

• Navigations, saves, website visits
• Benchmark comparisons by category
• Average distance driven from ads
• Unique reach & frequency
• Impressions distribution by distance
• Driver loyalty / return visit

The Final Destination:

Location-based marketing is growing and constantly evolving and if your business is not along for the ride, you can be sure that there is a competitor who is.

Setting up a Waze campaign can be simple enough if you understand your company’s target market and how to optimize your allocated ad spend.

What happens if you have a franchise or a multi-location company? Here are a few of the problems that can arise:

• Allocating budget across multiple locations can be tricky and if it isn’t configured correctly you are likely to spend budget on locations with less traffic at incorrect times.
• Setting up ad campaigns can be extremely time-consuming as there are very specific location data formatting requirements for the platform.

Social Places has a dedicated team who work on customizing our client’s ad campaigns and working out the best way to allocate their budget to boost their brand across a range of incredible location-based advertising platforms, including Waze. We handle all the reporting and work out your ROI for you on a store and brand level. Check out our Go Ads product suite on our website for more info à https://socialplaces.io/goads/

Take a moment to download Waze and use it on your next journey, you won’t be disappointed.