1.4 million visitors arrived in Qatar.
Our media plan knew where they were coming from before they booked.
Who the client is
Nestlé Travel Retail runs Nescafé and KitKat campaigns across global airport hubs. For the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Dubai and Doha became the twin focal points: Qatar drew 1.4 million visitors over the tournament, and Dubai served as an overflow hub benefiting from 328 daily fan shuttles crossing between the two countries.
comtogether was brought in to build and run paid media for both brands across the full tournament window, targeting travelers at the point of highest intent in each phase of their journey.
32 nations. One airport. No shared playbook.
Fans from 32 participating countries were converging on the same two airport hubs. But they do not use the same platforms, respond to the same signals, or move on the same timelines. A blanket geo-targeted campaign would waste most of the budget reaching the wrong people through the wrong channels at the wrong moment.
The competitive environment made this harder: every major advertiser in the region was fighting for the same inventory during the same window.
Nationality first. Location second.
The real variable was not location but nationality, and the right trigger was not arrival but booking intent.
By tracking booking signals by country of origin as the tournament draw progressed, we could predict which nationalities would travel in which volumes and when. Each region operates in a different digital ecosystem, which meant a different channel mix, different creative formats, and different data sources per audience group.
Budget had to be allocated before the traffic arrived, not after.
Booking intent tracked per country of origin. Budget allocated by nationality volume ahead of travel, not after arrival.
Audience fully in-market and in proximity to product.
Creatives adapted to airport context. KitKat and Nescafé messaging aligned to duty-free purchase moment.
One plan. 32 audience segments.
Booking intent tracking layer across all 32 World Cup nations. Intent signals by country of origin used to predict travel volume and timing per nationality group.
Media plan segmented by nationality and digital ecosystem. Each country group reached through its primary platforms and data sources, not a single channel applied universally.
Three-phase creative structure for both Nescafé and KitKat. Distinct creative sets for pre-trip, in-trip, and in-destination, with messaging adapted to each purchase context.
Real-time budget reallocation as the tournament progressed through group stage, Round of 16, and knockout rounds. Budget followed audience movement, not a fixed plan.
Every metric moved. Against stiff competition.
CTR grew 93.75% from pre-games to the group stage and Round of 16. Results held even as advertiser competition peaked during knockout rounds.
What this case proves
Event-driven travel retail is not about being present at an airport during a spike. It is about reading booking intent early enough to build the right media structure before the audience arrives, and keeping it flexible enough to move with the tournament.
Intent data is the planning layer. Phased creative is the execution layer. The two only work when they are built together from the start, and when budget follows audience movement rather than a fixed allocation set before the campaign launches.
This activation not only outperformed benchmarks on every efficiency metric but did so during one of the most competitive advertising windows in the region. The proof is in the CPM: costs fell while competition rose.
“comtogether has been a valued partner for Nestlé when it comes to digital engagement in the travel retail channel. Florian and the team have quickly understood our strategic aims, supported us in tailoring the right engagement solutions and then in turn helped us take learnings and adapting the following year's plans.”
