Goals: Clearly state your marketing goals. What did you strive to achieve using this piece or program?
Days Inn® by Wyndham – the iconic hotel brand known for making guest’s days brighter for 50+ years – set out to create a fun campaign that would put a spotlight on the brand during the busy summer travel season while connecting it with younger travelers. Designed to build brand awareness and drive consideration, the campaign would also look to begin teasing the brand’s newly redesigned guest rooms to the masses with subtle references in campaign creative—a first for the new design.
In May 2023, the brand introduced what it coined its latest “Complimentary Amenity” – a mirror that literally dished out compliments to guests! Dubbed “the world’s most flattering mirror” – the mirror was a play off of recent studies showing compliments are scientifically proven to reduce stress, lift spirits, and boost confidence. Amid younger generations’ rise in mental health concerns, Days Inn rooted its campaign in this timely insight.
The mirror, voiced by beloved TV personality Ross Mathews – co-host of The Drew Barrymore Show, judge/producer of RuPaul’s Drag Race and formerly ‘Ross the Intern’ on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, launched at select Days Inn locations across the U.S and Canada. The “complimentary” mirror encouraged guests to Seize the Days and reinforced the brand’s sunny disposition.
From praising guests for just how much they light up the room to admiring their signature style, Days Inn designed each pre-recorded message to ready guests to head out and Seize the Days® — Mathews delivered undeniably funny, morale-boosting messages sure to make anyone smile with each compliment illuminated by Days Inn’s cheery brand voice, while directly engaging with Days Inn guests. Among a few of the compliments:
• Hello Sunshine! You are looking fantastic today.
• Loving this look—if I weren’t a mirror, I would totally steal it. (But I am… so I wont.)
• This is such a fantastic color on you—change nothing. It’s perfection!
Results: Which of your original goals did you achieve and how? How did you measure the effectiveness of the piece or campaign? Entrants should provide quantifiable results of their tactics or campaigns. (for example, click through rates or ad equivalency)
• The campaign garnered over 50 earned media placements across broadcast, online and social, totaling over a billion impressions, making headlines in top publications like Forbes, OK! Magazine, The List, Morning Honey, and The Frommer’s Travel Show Podcast, among others.
• The campaign also generated over 1.1 million social impressions and more than 118,000 engagements, including an Instagram post from Ross, which generated 1,033+ likes alone.
• Traffic to DaysInn.com increased 2.4% YOY.
• Anecdotally, franchisees were vocal in expressing their love for the campaign, with dozens asking how their hotel could be part of similar opportunities in the future.
Return on Investment: How much revenue has the piece or campaign generated and how does this compare to your goal? What was the return on investment?
This campaign exceeded the goals outlined above. While not designed to be revenue driving, it significantly outperformed brand benchmarks across earned, social and digital, while helping drive greater franchisee engagement.
Entry Title
Days Inn by Wyndham - Complimentary Mirror
Division
Public Relations/Communications - PR Campaign Consumer
Category
Public Relations/Communications