Choice Hotels International Inc. has launched its newest multichannel national marketing campaign, “A Stay for Any You.” The largest in Choice Hotels’ history, the campaign stars actor and writer Keegan-Michael Key in national TV and streaming TV ads and social media content.
The campaign highlights some of the reasons people travel and how, with a portfolio of 22 hotel brands, Choice is able to meet the needs of all travelers. The broadcast ads were cowritten by Key, his partner Elle Key and McKinney, Choice’s creative-agency-of-record.
“While guests travel for many different reasons, from family vacations and romantic getaways to business trips, what’s universal is the need to find a hotel that provides the right amenities at the right price in the right location,” said Noha Abdalla, CMO, Choice Hotels. “Keegan-Michael Key, using his one-of-a-kind comedic style and celebrated versatility, brings to life several real-world scenarios to showcase how Choice Hotels has the perfect hotel to meet any traveler’s needs, bookable on ChoiceHotels.com.”
Keegan-Michael Key added, “I’m excited to play Choice’s ‘Any You’ character, which resonates with me and that moment in the travel planning process where I’m figuring out what version of me is going on this trip. Thankfully, Choice has a hotel for all versions of you—whether that’s business you, family road trip you, or weekend getaway with friends you.”
The new marketing campaign is the first since Choice Hotels integrated the Radisson Hotels Americas brands into its reservation system and migrated members of Radisson Rewards Americas to its Choice Privileges rewards program. The campaign is aimed at the value-conscious family, young professional and business traveler audiences, according to Abdalla, with Key bringing various travel scenarios to life. Choice worked to execute the media buy with Havas, and the campaign will run across broadcast, cable and streaming TV, SiriusXM, Spotify and social and digital platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and Key’s own social media handles.
The campaign features four Choice Hotels brands: Radisson, Cambria Hotels, Comfort and Quality Inn.
This ad campaign comes on the heels of last year’s “Where Travels Come True,” starring Zooey Deschanel. “As a marketer, you just want to continue to build on your learnings and think about the current business opportunities and challenges,” Abdalla told Hotel Business. “This year’s campaign with Keegan is a little different. Instead of the Fairy Hotel Mother, he plays all of these different versions of himself, which fits his kind of character and persona really well—but also addresses the insight and the personas that we’re trying to target—which is the fact that, as a traveler, you come to this moment in that booking process where you’re like, ‘OK, what type of trip is this? Who am I going to be on this trip?’”
