Travelocity debuts first ads from new AOR Doner amid travel surge

Travelocity’s Roaming Gnome is ready to guide consumers out of quarantine. The travel brand is launching a new campaign today to encourage post-COVID travel, marking the Dallas-based company's inaugural project with their new agency-of-record, Doner. Travelocity brought on Doner in May after formerly working with Proof. This change comes as the travel market rebounds after the lengthy disruptions caused by the pandemic. The new ads remind travelers who may have skipped their vacations last year that their perfect getaway awaits, and Travelocity is happy to help make it happen. One spot shows a family—parents, three kids, and grandma in tow—as they come to realize the hotel room they booked is more honeymoon-suite than family-friendly lodge. Kids climb into the stand-alone bathtub, nibble on the rose petals decorating the bedspread, and mom laments, "It looked bigger online.” Another depicts an ill-fated girls' trip continuously interrupted by work. Suddenly, the roaming gnome—Travelocity's long-time brand mascot, appears to help guide the travelers on their dream vacation. "In this campaign, the Roaming Gnome helps underscore how travel planning doesn’t have to be an eternal loop of balancing schedules, budgets, everyone’s wants and needs," says Laura Molnar, head of brand marketing at Travelocity. The gnome also appeared in early 2020 ads from Proof. Doner's ads begin airing today. As lockdowns are lifting and Americans begin to plan more vacations, David DeMuth, CEO of Doner, predicts a summer surge. “I think 47 million people are going to travel this Fourth of July," he says. "Apparently, America is ready to travel and we'd like them to travel through Travelocity." The coronavirus pandemic was immensely disruptive to the travel industry, forcing people to cancel trips they may have been planning for months or years. Now that conditions are safer, the industry is seeing a major boom and brands are responding with fresh marketing. Marriott recently aired its biggest campaign yet, for example, as did Travelocity's sister brand Expedia in April. “Travel is indeed back in a big way and Americans are aching to get out there," says Molnar, noting an April study that Travelocity conducted found that 70% of people will be taking a vacation this year. Some of the spots feature a multi-generational group as Travelocity tries to target families, especially Latinx households, in the campaign. Ads were filmed in English and Spanish. “Travelocity, being one of the first OTAs [online travel agencies] has always been a champion of travelers, and our overall goal right now is to become the most trusted and family-friendly travel site," says Molnar of the 25-year-old site. "While we never want to alienate any of our existing customers, we will be working to streamline and re-focus our strategies to better resonate with and address the unique needs of our family and Latino family travelers." DeMuth says one lesson from the pandemic should be not to wait to book a trip. “There’s a lot of people that put trips off and I don't think there's any better time than now, as the world begins to open up and people can travel safely to say, seize your someday, you know, make someday today," he says.

Travelocity debuts first ads from new AOR Doner amid travel surge

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