As it moves out from under the Hilton Hotels Corp. umbrella to build its own brand, Hilton Garden Inn is launching a campaign encouraging guests to make online reservations for weekend stays.
A print and online effort from Foote, Cone & Belding in Irvine, Calif., promotes a sweepstakes that offers weekend guests the chance to win 10 free weekend stays a year for the next 10 years.
It is the first campaign to launch under executive creative director Holland Henton, who joined in March from McCann-Erickson, New York. FCB has had the account since 1998.
Campaign spending was undisclosed. Hilton Garden Inn, Hilton's midpriced offering, spent $2 million on ads last year, per CMR.
While hotel occupancy has not rebounded entirely since Sept. 11, client senior director of marketing Mark Nogal said, "Leisure travel is anticipated to lead the charge back because people have adjusted their lives in terms of spending more quality time with their family."
Ads feature a logo introduced earlier this year—a flower whose four petals each contain a "G" wrapped around an "I." Ads retain the tag: "Everything. Right where you need it."
One execution with a futuristic twist shows a couple relaxing by the pool, their lawn chairs hovering in midair and cars flying overhead.
"The idea is that the whole world around you may change, but you can always count on the warm and inviting experience you'll get at Hilton Garden Inn," Henton said.
Another ad has a page of legal copy and the line, "Only a sweepstakes this great could make our lawyers this nervous." The concept stemmed from the amount of legal text required by some states to detail the sweepstakes rules, said Henton. "Sometimes, instead of running away from a problem, you have to embrace it," he said.
Print ads will run from June through August. The online effort includes banners and buttons.
Hilton Garden Inn, based in Beverly Hills, Calif., has 136 hotels in 38 states.