Hostelworld, a leading online platform for hostel and budget accommodations, launched a Meta App campaign early in 2023. The campaign aimed to retarget existing app users and enhance brand engagement and bookings rates. As the Senior Graphic Designer and project owner, I led the creative efforts, art directing, designing, producing, and supervising the work of motion and video designers.

The goal of this Instagram campaign was to create native ads for the Meta App that align with Hostelworld's brand, incorporating familiar formats and the organic style of their social media content. Working alongside the Brand Design and Copywrite Team, I pushed the visual language to new heights, introducing fresh layouts, gradient tones, and paid ads solutions. The main creative objectives were to grab attention with an "Extreme" approach, engage the audience with compelling copy and eye-catching design, and inspire and connect through relatable content.

Following a benchmark study, we selected various ad groups to experiment with: Carousels, Tweet Style, Notification Style, Reviews, Travel Tips, Organic Reel, and App Walkthrough. Each ad group aimed to connect with the target audience through relatable and engaging content. Carousels allowed users to swipe through captivating storytelling and travel tips, while the use of real travelers' reviews built trust and familiarity. The Notification Style approach mimicked urgent notifications, sparking curiosity and longing for travel experiences.

By emphasizing the absence of travel, we created relatability and a memorable user experience. The campaign's results were impressive, with a 15% increase in bookings, 9.4% growth in app installs, 5% increase in click-through rate (CTR), and a 10% boost in the conversion rate. Overall, the Meta App campaign proved to be highly successful in achieving its goals, engaging the audience, and seamlessly blending the ads into the platform with a touch of the Hostelworld brand.

Copy by Luke Moss