Two years ago, Embassy Suites Hotels executives realized they were sitting on a golden opportunity. Or, a golden bear, as it were. The hotel chain had worked previously with the national retailer, Build-A-Bear Workshop, which has stores nationwide where consumers can build customized stuffed bears, and concluded the stuffed animal company was the ideal partner for the family-oriented hotels. One of the hotel chain’s properties had run a previous promotion with the retailer, and it seemed like a perfect partnership to carry forward, says Jennifer Hoffman Jones, director of brand marketing and communications for Embassy Suites Hotels, based in Memphis.
Looking to boost family business – a core market segment for Embassy Suites – the hotel chain, part of the Hilton family of properties, worked with Build-A-Bear to develop a joint promotion. The plan was simple: Children who had already built a bear at one of the Build-A-Bear mall workshops could bring it with them on their stay at an Embassy Suites property – and receive several bear-themed gifts for an extra $10 fee. “It helped drive business to Build-A-Bear,” Jones says, “and, for us, we had a great name like Build-A-Bear behind us.” The promotion, open to the public, has been promoted on the company’s Web site, with some word-of-mouth helping to increase awareness. To date, however, Embassy Suites hasn’t invested in a major marketing push for the bear promotion.
Moving forward, the two companies brainstormed and created a travel pack that includes everything a child’s bear might need upon check in. For example, the Sleepover Pack includes a bear-sized Embassy Suites-imprinted robe or pajama pants and T-shirt set, bear slippers and a shower cap, soap and lotion for the guests, along with a $5 Bear Buck$ gift card to use at a Build-A-Bear Workshop store. Later, a spa package was created with a terrycloth robe for the bear, a shower kit with soap and lotion and a $5 gift card. Participating Embassy Suites Hotels (currently 120 out of 182 total), Jones says, “can mix and match” the kits or focus on one specifically, depending on their property and guest demographics.
At a profit of $5 per kit, Embassy Suites has sold more than 75,000 of the bear packs to guests. But the real value lies in the number of guests the program has pulled in: an additional 15,000 stays and $14 million in revenue. That’s a lot of cash generated by stuffed bears.
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“This is a great promotion,” says Maggie O’Neill, senior director of Pepper Commotions, an experiential marketing firm in New York. Because plenty of hotels aren’t kid friendly, it’s smart for Embassy Suites to tap into a wide-open marketplace by enticing the children as much as the adults, O’Neill says.
That said, she does think the program could be even more robust than it already is. How? O’Neill sets forth a 10-step game plan to pump up the Build-A-Bear promo.
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Step 1
“These are two really strong brands,” O’Neill says. Both Embassy Suites and Build-A-Bear Workshops have national name-brand recognition among millions of consumers. To not capitalize on that fully is a missed opportunity. O’Neill suggests that Embassy Suites executives start by beefing up publicity within the Build-A-Bear stores where the bears are first purchased. The whole point of joint promotional and marketing efforts like these, she says, is to get consumers thinking about a particular brand long before they ever make a purchase. Point of purchase displays within stores, for example, or marketing materials upon checkout that customers could take with them could alert families to hotels where they can add to their vacation experiences, long before the vacation planning actually starts. Similarly, Embassy Suites might partner with Build-A-Bear to offer a sweepstakes for a Build-A-Bear vacation to one winner from a Build-A-Bear party at one of their stores. Events at the retailer reinforce the Embassy Suites partnership, in conjunction with ad specialty giveaways, keep the brand names of both top of mind for consumers once they leave the Build-A-Bear stores.
Step2
In an age of online chatter, parents are just as vocal as the next group. And they’re as active online as anyone else. It’s apparent from the company’s Web site alone that this hotel group is “very family oriented,” O’Neill says. So why not get the word out – starting with the internet. In addition to its family demographic, the hotel chain is also thought of as a business traveler’s mecca by many consumers, and that brand image may conflict with the family-themed one. To spread the word, O’Neill says Embassy Suites could advertise, enter discussions or otherwise market their program online, particularly through blogs oriented to, say, mothers, who may be interested in finding unusual hotel programs for their upcoming summer vacations. “The point is to hit them early,” O’Neill says, before they’re midway through planning travel. And targeting them through mediums like online blogs, which they may visit daily or weekly, is one way to do that.
The whole point of joint promotional and marketing efforts like these is to get consumers thinking about a particular brand long before they ever make a purchase.
Step3
Admittedly, the Build-A-Bear check-in kits at participating Embassy Suites are clever. But, “If I’m being asked to spend another $10, is there something else that I can get for my money?” O’Neill asks. Particularly in a tight economy where every dollar counts, it’s important to make sure guests walk away feeling as though they got their money’s worth. The kits, as cute as they are, seem a little too bear-centric, she says. Why not include more products for the human hotel guests, rather than just the stuffed animal? An extra snack or soap product for the guests would add to the pack’s value.
Step4
More to the point, O’Neill says the hotel chain could really leverage this promotion toward greater revenue by offering $10 off the purchase of an actual robe for the adults, or perhaps a reduction in a spa treatment, a meal in the company’s restaurant, babysitting services or other incentive.
Step5
Embassy Suites would be wise to extend the promotion beyond the check-in counter, O’Neill says. “A pop-up kiosk by the pool where kids could come over and pick out a swimsuit or goggles” related to the Build-A-Bear and Embassy Suites marketing messages would help cement the experience in guests’ minds and build the promotion’s strength. “The beauty of this program is that you can evolve it,” Jones acknowledges, adding that the hotel chain plans a summer promotion attached to the Olympics, as well as a continuation of the original Build-A-Bear guest program in the fall.
Step6
O’Neill thinks that Embassy Suites would be wise to pump up the fanfare at the front counter when kids receive the bear kit. Currently they’re given the kit upon check-in with not much more than a friendly welcome. But, O’Neill says, the hotel could extend the Build-A-Bear marketing experience by treating the bear as much as a guest as the people are. For example, the bear could be welcomed separately at check-in. Then, the stuffed animal could receive privileges and services throughout its stay, just as the human guests do. If people get chocolates on their pillow, for example, “maybe the bear gets some trail mix,” O’Neill says.
Step7
Those hotels that choose not to participate in the program should still help market it with collateral and signage materials in their own lobbies, O’Neill says. “If I’m traveling for business, I might see a sign,” take note of it, and “tell my friend” as well, says O’Neill.
Step 8
O’Neill says the kit’s contents and packaging are impressive. But she thinks the products inside could have more staying power with guests. The soap, for example, could be made in the image of a bear on a rope and imprinted with the Embassy Suites logo – an item kids and families might be more likely to hang onto after their stay at the hotel is over. Along those same lines, she also suggests incorporating a theme into the kit’s packaging – putting the contents into a bear sleeping bag, for example, to capture the idea of accommodations on the road more explicitly.
Step 9
As with any good marketing and promotional product campaign, keeping it alive after the event is crucial for continued brand strength. To that end, O’Neill says, Embassy Suites should incorporate clever gimmicks into the departure by giving the bear a check-out slip, for example. And, a thank-you note sent to the children would be an additional way to keep the hotel’s name in front of the family, while also extending the Build-A-Bear promotion. It also gives the hotel another opportunity to include a small promotional product – an item for either the bear or the child, such as a photo card of the child and bear that was taken at check out. That will keep the Embassy Suites logo in front of consumers that much longer.
Step 10
To maintain the program, Embassy Suites might want to consider a future direct mail campaign—they could start with collecting the e-mail and mailing addresses of guests who come to their hotels who might be interested in family-oriented programs. Keeping the company top of mind, O’Neill says, with strong activity and brand name-based programs, such as the Build-A-Bear initiative, are key to building the brand’s strength among one of its core consumer groups, the family guest.
“The main point here is that Embassy Suites and Build-A-Bear are two really strong brands,” O’Neill says, “and, together they could build this program out more and more so that both companies could benefit.”
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