Many people stayed home to avoid the cost of the actual travel. But now that travel is back on the menu, they will likely look to make it count more -- a renewed mindset where enjoying the journey is as important as the destination itself.

Marketers will also need to start thinking about how they can offer rich advertising experiences to consumers so that their marketing initiatives resonate and engage the viewers.

While retargeting is a great tactic to get lost leads back to your site, what the vendors won't tell you is that it's greatly biased to overemphasize conversions if evaluated on a post-impression (a/k/a view-through) attribution model.

It's starting to feel like when the going gets tough, the travel industry goes shopping. And who can blame it. Retail therapy just might be the next wave of smart marketing for those brands interested in better connecting to new and existing customers in meaningful ways.