'Have a Life' Television Campaign Combines Blunt Messages, Humor and
Un-Branded Ads to Urge Americans to Take Back Their Vacations
ORLANDO, Fla., Feb. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- The First Commandment of television
theme park ads is to show families enjoying theme parks' rides. The Second
Commandment of television theme park ads is to give people a phone number or
web site to use in case they want to visit the theme park.
Universal Orlando is breaking both commandments with its new multi-million
dollar television ad campaign, a radical step for a theme park destination --
and a radical step for any company.
The ads started their run as un-branded spots that pushed consumers to a
specially designed micro website dedicated to the issue of vacation
deprivation -- a trend that is great for corporate America, but bad for the
working class. The commercials point out that Americans don't take vacations
-- and as a result line the pockets of corporate CEOs, line the pockets of the
pharmaceutical industry and line the pockets of funeral directors who bury
them after they work themselves to death.
In one ad, an undertaker looks straight at the camera and thanks Americans
for working themselves into early graves. In another, a pharmaceutical
industry spokesperson commends overworked Americans for driving his industry
to record profits thanks to "stress-induced illness and depression." And in a
third ad, a slick, smirking corporate executive points out that a dedicated
"twenty-six percent of Americans don't take any vacation time at all,"
selflessly transforming "their time" into "our money."
Only recently has Universal Orlando begun to brand the television ads.
The idea, Universal says, was to first allow the unbranded ads to draw
attention to a national problem and then use the branded spots to hint that
its theme park resort might be able to help.
"Given the pressure of living in today's society, where technology has
made it increasingly possible for people to be constantly connected to their
jobs, the need for some time to unwind and de-stress is more important than
ever," says Kurt Kostur, vice president of marketing communications for
Universal Orlando, in explaining the strategy behind the campaign. "We want
people to look at this advertising and see Universal Orlando as their vacation
advocate, as the place that helps them get the most out of their vacation
time."
The ads were created by independent ad agency davidandgoliath (dng) on
behalf of Universal Orlando Resort. The agency's initial assignment was
simple: create advertising that could drive traffic to
http://www.universalorlando.com . To do this, the dng team crafted a message
based on insight that America is vacation-deprived. They found that nearly
half of those surveyed in a Gallup poll said they don't feel they take enough
vacation time, while only 55 percent take all of their allotted vacation days
in a given year. One in five people surveyed said they feel guilty taking
vacation time, and compensate by checking in while on vacation.
"It's a highly motivating premise to remind consumers that skipping their
vacation usually benefits all the wrong people," says dng Creative Director
Liz Gumbinner. "We're jumping on this unbelievable notion that it has now
become a badge of honor to work day and night at the expense of all else. No
other country in the world works as hard as we do. We're hoping to inspire
Americans to step back, reassess their priorities and then take that amazing
vacation they deserve. It's a funny campaign, but a very serious message."
The spots direct viewers to the web site, http://www.iwantmyvacation.com ,
where they can get information about the effects of vacation deprivation as
well as specific vacation options offered by Universal Orlando. All the spots
close with the campaign theme line, "Have a life, take back your vacation."
The first spot in the campaign broke January 24 and the media plan
includes buys on such network hits as "The Apprentice," "Law & Order S.V.U.,"
"Dateline," "Fear Factor" and "Joey." There is a significant cable buy
supporting the network media as well.
Agency credits also go to copywriter Melissa Pipeling, art director Anne
Bioty, and chief creative officer David Angelo. The spots were directed by
Kevin Samuels of the production company H.S.I., Los Angeles.
Universal Orlando Resort ( http://www.universalorlando.com ) includes two
dramatically distinct and adjacent theme parks, the Universal Studios motion
picture and television theme park and Islands of Adventure, Orlando's next
generation theme park. Universal Orlando Resort also includes CityWalk, a 30-
acre dining, shopping, club and live-entertainment venue, as well as premier
on-site Loews hotels and world-class film and television production
facilities.
davidandgoliath (dng) is a national full-service independent agency of
hand-selected professionals with outstanding creative, media, marketing,
account planning, account management, TV and print production capabilities,
supported by an outsourced network of national and global resources. Founded
in November of 1999, davidandgoliath is headquartered in Los Angeles with
field offices in New York, Chicago and Atlanta. To learn more about dng,
visit http://www.dng.com .
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