The difference between rich media and standard banner ads can mean a big difference in click-throughs and conversions for advertisers in the travel industry, according to research from Eyeblaster (which can be found in emarketer.com). Web users were more than 2.6 times as likely to click on a rich media ad than a static banner, based on the study of billions of impressions of airline ads. Conversion rates were also up, by 198%. Airlines account for about 29% of display ad impressions in the travel industry.

Placement also had a significant effect on direct response. Ads served against lifestyle sites, homepages, instant messaging and weather sites performed above average, while click-throughs on travel sites themselves were slightly below average. Dwell rates, an alternative measure of engagement, were highest on news, travel, finance, and instant-messaging sites.

Eyeblaster found that most Web users are exposed to an airline display campaign only a single time, but increased exposures lead to more clicks and conversions. According to the “Airline Advertising: Preparing Your Online Media for Takeoff” report, four exposures is optimal for advertisers, meaning Internet users are underexposed to airline campaigns and not clicking as much as they could be.

“The business of selling airline tickets has significantly changed since digital channels have become available to consumers,” said Gal Trifon, CEO and co-founder of Eyeblaster, in a statement. “Airline marketers have a real opportunity to capitalize on the plethora of travel content found online and results indicate that more ad impressions are needed to drive consumers down the conversion funnel.”