While most hotel brand advertising this summer will focus on a specific product or hotel location, the new TV ads launching by national brand Hampton Inn break through the ordinary to offer a new source to plan summer getaways, sending viewers to its site to find not just hotel rooms but thousands of ideas for fun activities across the U.S. and Canada.  Hampton’s new 30-second commercial spot is a fast-paced visual tour of what consumers can find with a simple “click” to experience the festivals, sporting events and other activities near 1,200-plus Hampton hotels through www.hamptoninn.com. “Parents, kids, singles and retirees each have something different in mind when it comes to the ‘ultimate summer getaway,’ ranging from big outdoor entertainment facilities to small family and couple activities, all of which can be found by launching off the Hampton Web site homepage,” said Judy Christa-Cathey, vice president of marketing, Hampton.  “As more travelers move to using the Internet for their vacation planning, we want to move right with them, becoming more than just a hotel source, but an easy resource for leisure ideas, and for planners who want to do a variety of things in one location.”
At an investment of more than $5 million in media, the new commercial, dubbed “Playtime,” is scheduled to air on major cable networks this summer, a place where the brand also will compete with ads for third party travel sites.  It marks the brand’s first purely leisure-targeted TV campaign and the first TV advertisement that focuses on the capabilities of the new www.myleisuretrip.com site, launched this year by the Hilton Family of Hotels.  New print and online advertisements will focus on the fun experiences offered by the site, accessible through www.hamptoninn.com.  With the new TV spots, Hampton also will launch its newest promotion PlayCations ? next week, aimed to add more fun to planning a trip online through the site.

“Over the past year, Hampton experienced a 28 percent increase in online reservations; therefore, we designed the new ad to address the way people think about planning a vacation,” said Jim Dzwierzynski, management director, Foote, Cone & Belding - Chicago, which produced the TV spot.  “In addition to appealing to the dot com bookers, we also made sure the ad showcased those core amenities important to all guests, such as Hampton’s On the House? Hot Breakfast and Our Best Rates. Guaranteed.”
Though the new leisure advertisements have a very different style than Hampton’s more recent TV spots that primarily target the business traveler, the new spots are a part of the brand’s overall “We love having you here” campaign.  The lyrics in the new advertisement use the familiar “Wouldn’t It Be Loverly” tune from the brand’s other TV ads…but with a new, fast-paced pop/rock beat.
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