ATLANTA—IHG Hotels & Resorts this week launched a global marketing campaign for the company’s two largest brands, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express. The new unified communications strategy celebrates authentic moments of human connection and the role these two brands have played in connecting people all over the world for nearly seven decades. “We’re there” launched in the United States on June 10, 2019, and will roll out globally later this summer.
The first Holiday Inn opened in Memphis in 1952, and the brand now spans nearly 4,000 hotels around the world. Its heritage of human connection, authenticity, and ubiquity is the inspiration behind the launch of “We’re there.” The company said that message is particularly timely now, as inclusiveness and the need to connect on a personal level are essential elements of emotional wellbeing and global unity.
In a world where technology increasingly dominates how people connect, celebrating real, in-person moments matters now more than ever. A proprietary survey conducted by IHG in the U.S. found that in the last 12 months, many Americans have communicated more often digitally than in person: 67 percent have primarily engaged with a good friend through digital channels and 59 percent admit to communicating more with family members via technology than in person (including 39 percent with parents or guardians). Even business travelers are looking for more in-person connections—88 percent state they would rather have a meeting in person versus virtually.
“Being there in person matters,” said Claire Bennett, global chief marketing officer for IHG. “We know the reason people travel is not exclusively about the location itself; it’s almost always about the people. Travel brings families and friends closer, creates stronger relationships among business colleagues, and connects the world.
“Across our hotels, we share some of the most important moments in our guests’ lives—from birthdays and weddings to key business trips and job interviews,” Bennett continued. “The history and heritage of these two brands in particular means we’ve always been there, so our guests can be, too. The launch of ‘We’re there’ reminds us all of the importance of these ‘people’ trips and how we can help make that happen in more places, for more people, more often.”
