Holiday Inn Express Advertising Drives Brand Growth and Awareness; Hotel Company Extends 'Stay Smart' Campaign
ATLANTA -- Holiday Inn Express, the fastest growing brand in the midscale without food and beverage hotel segment, introduces new television ads to begin airing April 19.
These ads provide a fresh addition to the already successful Stay Smart® campaign created in 1998 by Minneapolis-based ad agency Fallon McElligott. In fact, the positive response to the campaign was instrumental to Holiday Inn Express achieving its goal of reaching $1 billion in revenues in 1999 -- a year ahead of schedule. In addition, aided brand awareness increased 23 percent since the campaign began.
"Consumers relate to the campaign's platform of taking a lighthearted look at being smart," said La Detra White, marketing director for Holiday Inn Express. "In turn, they are able to make the connection that Holiday Inn Express provides good value so they feel they've made a smart lodging choice when they stay at one of our hotels."
"The first two rounds of the Stay Smart campaign were especially successful, but we knew we couldn't rest on our laurels," said David Lubars, president/creative director at Fallon McElligott. "So the new work offers some new creative twists. At the same time, we've jealously guarded the strategy, which focuses on the feeling you get when you stay at a Holiday Inn Express, as opposed to specific hotel features."
In this round of creative, the "smart" examples are rooted in what could be real-life situations as opposed to the more outrageous, hyperbolic scenarios from past work. The settings for the new spots are a wedding reception and the waiting room of a dentist's office. The main character in each spot makes a smart decision regarding their respective predicaments, thereby capturing and communicating the Stay Smart message of Holiday Inn Express.
Further success of the Stay Smart campaign is demonstrated by the hotel brand's recognition as a finalist for the American Marketing Association's 2000 EFFIE® Awards. The annual competition recognizes the most effective advertising campaigns each year, and it is the only national award that honors both creative achievement and success in driving business results. Holiday Inn Express was also an EFFIE Award winner in 1999.
The ads will air on cable television targeted at a 25- to 54-year-old male audience. Programming will include sports (ESPN, ESPN2, as well as broadcasts of Major League Baseball and the National Football League), news (CNN, Headline News, MSNBC, The Weather Channel, and Fox News Channel), and "smart" cable (Discovery Channel, A&E, The History Channel, and The Learning Channel). The new executions will rotate along with two spots from 1999 ("Parachutist" and "Surgeon").
Holiday Inn Express is the modern hotel for value-oriented travelers, where competitive rates are offered to both business and leisure travelers. Guests Stay Smart at Holiday Inn Express, where they enjoy a free continental breakfast bar (featuring fresh fruit, cereal, and pastries), free local phone calls (U.S. and Canada), and the ability to earn Priority Club points that can be redeemed for great merchandise, airline miles or free stays in more than 2,800 hotels. There are currently more than 1,000 Holiday Inn Express locations around the globe. For more information about Holiday Inn Express or to book reservations, call 1-800-HOLIDAY or visit
Fallon McElligott Minneapolis manages the consumer voice of some of the world's leading brands. With billings of approximately $575 million, the agency's clients include, among others: BMW of North America,