Dive Brief:
- Hotels.com has recruited NBA stars Nikola Jokić and Jimmy Butler for a new campaign, “Hotel like a Pro,” an effort that seeks to promote travel through to lens of NBA players, who are often on the road, according to a press release.
- The campaign will premier during the marquee Christmas Day games and includes 10-,15- and 30-second spots, which will air throughout the season in the U.S. and Canada. The ads showcase Hotel.com’s mobile app and One Key rewards program.
- Additionally, the effort will include branding and campaign elements at arenas across the country along with integrations in the NBA2K video game. The move marks Hotels.com’s fourth season as the Official Travel Partner of the NBA.
Dive Insight:
Hotels.com is promoting its travel perks through the lens of NBA players, dubbed by the brand as the “ultimate road warriors,” based on the observation that they spend half of the basketball season traveling and staying in hotel rooms. In addition to Jokić and Butler, the “Hotel like a Pro” campaign includes appearances from NBA players Peyton Watson and Jaime Jaquez Jr., who collectively highlight their own unique “hotel hacks,” per the release.
“This campaign is rooted in the insight that being on the road for over 40 games and 40,000 miles every season makes NBA players quite the hotel experts,” said Michele Rousseau, Expedia Group’s senior vice president of global marketing, in release details.
Premiering Christmas Day, the campaign includes a series of ads that promote Hotels.com’s One Key rewards program, which was launched in the U.S. in July, along with a shopping tool within its mobile app meant to help travelers compare and narrow down hotels. In one spot, “Pony Friendly,” Jokić combines his love for horses with hotel scouting, teaming with Watson to identify pet-friendly hotels.
In another ad, “Coffee,” Butler, who started a $20-a-cup coffee shop during the 2020 NBA Restart in Orlando, per the release, educates Jaquez on the art of comparing coffee — a nod to how travelers can compare hotels within the Hotels.com app. A third spot sees Jokić take advantage of the One Key loyalty program to plan a trip home. The spots were filmed at the Roosevelt Hotel and Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles.
In addition to promoting the unique quirks of traveling, the “Hotel like a Pro” campaign also represents the continuation of Hotel.com’s yearslong partnership with the NBA as its Official Travel Partner. The move follows other creative marketing plays by the booking platform this year, including a tie-up with English filmmaker Edgar Wright (“Baby Driver”) for a campaign that also spotlighted its mobile app.
Hotels.com’s latest campaign comes as consumers signal an interest for in-person experiences, like travel, that were put on hold during COVID-19’s peak, even despite inflationary pressures. Travel spending was up 3.5% year-to-date as of September, according to data from the U.S. Travel Association. Along with Hotels.com’s recent marketing efforts, parent company Expedia has similarly sought to drum up additional interest in travel with moves like integrating ChatGPT into its mobile app, joining a slew of others that have attempted to tap into the hype around generative artificial intelligence.
