United Airlines | Sightly
United Airlines and Sightly used TikTok’s API-powered cultural intelligence to move at the speed of PR, outperforming campaign benchmarks and capturing real-time consumer attention.
The objective
Connecting with travelers at the speed of culture
United Airlines wanted to inspire the next generation of travelers by meeting them where trip ideas truly take off — on TikTok. The brand's goal was to increase awareness and stay top-of-mind among Gen Z and Millennial audiences, who heavily influence travel decisions. Guided by its media agency Carat, which identified Sightly as the ideal partner, United sought to bring its purpose, ‘Good Leads The Way’ to life in real-time conversations, from destination inspiration to trending cultural moments. Together, they aimed to balance cultural relevance with brand suitability while ensuring media efficiency. TikTok's reach and video view objectives were selected to help United appear in the right moments, with the right message, and at the right time.
The solution
Using TikTok's Discovery API to power cultural relevance in real time
To keep pace with the speed of culture, United Airlines turned to Sightly's proprietary Brand Mentality® platform, a system designed to pair brands with the right moments, moods, and audiences in real time. The Discovery API, as part of TikTok's Organic API product suite, was a key driver of United's TikTok campaign success. Integrated into Sightly's Brand Mentality platform, it provided real-time access to the top 200 trending hashtags each day, including those gaining high engagement and eligible for targeting. This allowed the platform to pinpoint where audiences were most active, connecting United's campaign to the highest-engagement cultural conversations on TikTok in real time.
United's TikTok strategy focused on travel-related hashtags such as #travellife, #glamping, and #bucketlisttravel, as well as cultural tentpoles like #Oscars2025 and fan-driven content around #TheSummerITurnedPretty. Through API integration, Sightly made it possible for United's ads to appear alongside the most uplifting and brand-suitable moments, effectively connecting the airline to audiences in a contextual, emotionally resonant way.
Three creatives were developed for the campaign, each designed to feel native to TikTok. Two featured playful group chats of friends booking or extending trips, while the third and most successful ad followed a toddler’s “day in the life” while traveling with United, narrated by a trending TikTok voice filter. The lo-fi aesthetic and relatable scenarios helped the content blend seamlessly into users' feeds, creating authentic engagement rather than interruption.
By combining TikTok's cultural reach with Sightly’s real-time intelligence, United achieved dynamic optimization throughout the campaign, reducing CPMs, improving CTR, and building brand equity with younger travelers. The result was a forward-thinking activation that demonstrated how airlines can connect emotion, culture, and performance on TikTok.
The results
Flying high with cultural intelligence
The campaign delivered measurable success across every major performance indicator. Hashtag segments powered by Sightly's Brand Mentality technology achieved a 62.5% higher CTR than those without the technology, while overall CPMs dropped by 22%. United’s most engaging creative, the “toddler travel day” spot, tripled engagement benchmarks, proving that authenticity and cultural alignment drive meaningful attention on TikTok.
Beyond performance, the collaboration helped United validate TikTok as a critical consideration channel for reaching Gen Z and Millennial audiences. The partnership set a new benchmark for how airlines can blend creative storytelling with real-time intelligence to make every impression both intentional and inspiring.
Tips & takeaways
Leverage real-time data to stay culturally relevant. Integrating TikTok’s Discovery API allowed United to align campaigns with trending moments and conversations as they happened.
Pair automation with creativity. Combining Sightly’s Brand Mentality® platform with authentic, story-driven TikTok videos created content that felt native and emotionally resonant.
Balance cultural relevance with suitability. Using technology to identify brand-suitable trends ensured United appeared in uplifting and appropriate contexts.
Meet travelers where inspiration begins. TikTok’s mix of discovery, storytelling, and community made it the ideal platform to influence travel intent among Gen Z and Millennials.
With 'Good Leads The Way' as our campaign platform, we were looking for more than just a media partner, we needed a cultural amplifier. Sightly brought that to life with purpose and precision, helping us move at the speed of culture, while staying true to United’s voice. They did not just show up in the right places, they made sure we showed up in the right way. From social to OLV, their tech team turned insight into impact, delivering performance we could feel and measure.