Publicitas Digital to sell Chinese travel website Qunar.com's online advertising space

Publicitas Digital will exclusively sell digital advertising space of the website on a domestic and international level.

Publicitas Digital (India) has tied up with Qunar.com, a travel information website based in China, to sell the latter's digital advertising space exclusively on a domestic and international level.

Qunar is a search engine designed to help travellers compare air ticket and hotel room prices, and to provide other travel-related information.

According to Michelle Ong, senior sales director, Qunar.com, the company has witnessed interest from travel brands globally to market themselves on the site and with India being a preferred tourist destination, it made sense to strengthen ties between the two countries.

"India being one of the fastest growing travel destinations for Chinese travellers, we were seeking to appoint an India-based partner with strong local presence, history, resources and recognition by brands and media agencies within India," says Ong.

On the choice of Publicitas, Ong says that the agency excelled in all criteria Qunar was looking for, along with strong sales house qualities.

"We are excited to see what Publicitas can bring to us in the near future. Together, we are confident our synergy will surely bring to the table the best tailor-made solutions for each client's needs in India that aim to reach out to the most digital-savvy, affluent Chinese travellers," she says.

Forming one of the largest blocks of outbound travellers in the world, the Chinese make for a prime target audience for the tourism industry worldwide. Publicitas recognises the opportunity along with the challenges.

"The media landscape in China is not easy to navigate. Publicitas has, over a decade, invested in building competencies to assist its clients reach their audiences in China. We now have fully trained multilingual staff in Beijing and Shanghai who work with our offices around the world to deliver the right target audience across media platforms. Our partnership with Qunar in India is important as it will enable Indian companies, tourism boards and tour operators to reach the Chinese travel market with ease," says Marzban Patel, chief executive officer, Publicitas India and Asia.