A question that we are repeatedly asked by clients, new to performance marketing, is: "Should we build a mobile strategy within our affiliate plans?".

The answer is always the same. Absolutely.

NB: This is a viewpoint from Diego Gomila, CEO and founder of AffiliRed.

Most travel companies have already embraced mobile. The ones that haven’t are probably including mobile in their short-term plans.

The problem, however, is that most travel companies approach mobile separately and with a different strategy to other campaigns.

They shouldn’t.

Mobile sales are part of online sales and should be incorporated within the online marketing strategy.

Recent surveys show that PC and laptops sales have fallen dramatically, whilst sales of tablet devices have increased.

If you add this to the fact that smartphones are increasingly moving towards a tablet look and feel, travel companies should be developing an overall online strategy that adapts to all type of devices.

Like most other industries, travel is exploring highly innovative and creative ways to engage and interact with their customers.

Social media platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Google+ provide a direct and approachable service and travel companies, like holiday comparison site Icelolly with its Valentine’s competition earlier this year, are using these in new and exciting ways.

Pinterest continues to attract users with travel being perfect for the visual media of sharing travel stories and ideas.

The Pinterest-like site Trippy has also expanded its brand, emphasizing the importance of social media and the sense of community with boards and shared content that inspires users.

One final thing, don't be fooled into thinking that social is just for the young - the fastest growing demographic on twitter is the 55-64 year age bracket.

As we head into 2014 I think we’ll see a huge expansion in performance marketing with a multi-channel, multi-device strategy.

Approximately 40% of last-minute search queries were made on mobile devices last year and this is set to rise in 2014.

To meet the demands of performance marketers – especially ROI, conversion, and measurability – Facebook has announced radical changes to its platform.

Its campaign creation and management has improved, offering new creative options, mobile advertising capabilities, and targeting tools.

It is increasingly a top choice among performance marketers to drive sales, acquire customers and generate revenues.

So, with these changes and the creativity that inevitably follows, performance marketing is going to play even more of a crucial role as the travel industry increases its multi-channel strategy to reach its markets.

NB: This is a viewpoint from Diego Gomila, CEO and founder of AffiliRed.

NB2:Mobile apps image via Shutterstock.