Aspire Card Marketing Plan
Viral Solutions Team Account Director..... Ari Codespoti Research Director.........Kara Boyle Media Director......... Sally Blodgett Art Director....... Nicole Cederberg Art Director........ Charles Pimienta PR Director................. Ellie Bourdo PR Director...........Karlea Schuelke
Table of Contents Situation Analysis..........4-11 Campaign Strategy.......12-18 Media Plan....................19-26 Creative Plan.................27-33 Public Relations Plan...34-43 References....................44-46
Situation Analysis
History
Situation Anlaysis
Conrad Hilton opened the first Hilton hotel in 1925 in Cisco, Texas, aiming to create “The best hotel in Texas”(1). Today, Hilton owns over 7,000 properties worldwide and houses 18 brands in the hospitality industry. The company is a leader within the hospitality industry and is well known for its ownership of hotel chains including Doubletree by Hilton, Embassy Suites by Hilton, Hilton Garden Inn, and Hampton by Hilton (2). In 1958, the Hilton Carte Blanche credit card was announced, a premier travel and entertainment card owned by Hilton Hotels. Carte Blanche was “reserved for men of responsibility,” and offered perks including a directory number, check cashing privileges in hotels, and accommodations worldwide (3). Hilton now offers four credit cards with American Express and the Hilton Honors program. These four cards are each meant for a different type of consumer. The Hilton Honors Aspire credit card is the most advanced of the three personal credit cards. The card is still in its infancy, as it launched on January 18, 2018 (4). It offers perks including 14 Hilton Honors bonus points for every dollar spent, automatic Diamond status, and access to priority pass airport lounges. The card does require an annual $450 fee but is designed to benefit frequent travelers (5). American Express and Hilton first partnered in 1995 and have expanded their product line over the years (6). It is now the exclusive card for Hilton Honors members to earn points. By making purchases with a Hilton American Express credit card, consumers can grow their points on the Hilton Honors (HHonors) guest loyalty program.
Industry Trends The hotel and motel industry within the United States is predicted to grow 5.7% within the next five years according to IBISWorld (7). There is an expected rebound after Covid-19 and the pandemic of 2020. Consumers are looking to rebook canceled trips and demand for hotels is rising. Domestic tourism is also expected to rebound faster than international tourism as smaller mid-sized cities are growing in popularity (8). There is low market concentration within the hotel and motel industry. According to IBISWorld, the four largest operators account for less than 5% of industry revenue. These operators include Intercontinental Hotels Group Plc, Marriott International Inc, Choice Hotels International, Inc, and Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. (9). Much of their growth and expansion occurred through franchising. The projections for the hotel industry are positive, with an increase in growth and profit despite the increased competition. Consumer spending is expected to rise as well as domestic travel (10).
Within the card reward program services industry, industry revenue is also projected to grow annually by 2.9%. Card companies are focusing on targeting wealthier consumers. 21% of the card reward program services market is travel-based cards (11). Hotels and airlines have retained many customers through loyalty card programs and the demand for travel is picking up, increasing demand in the travel segment.
Competitive Anlaysis While there are multiple competitors of Hilton’s Aspire card from other brands, Hilton itself also has a few options for consumers. With four cards total, Hilton offers three personal credit cards and one business credit card, all providing points and perks with every purchase.
When deciding what card to hold, consumers will first determine their loyalty to a certain hotel brand or if they even have loyalty to a specific brand. From there, they will weigh the costs and benefits, particular to them individually.
Consumer Analysis Our agency used 2019 and 2020 Simmons OneView data, as well as secondary data from multiple sources to learn about our target consumers for the Hilton Amex Aspire Card. Simmons revealed that those enrolled in a hotel rewards program are more likely to be men than women, especially those who work a full-time job at a business-related job. When it comes to their preferences surrounding travel, they are almost 50% more likely to use an airline or hotel chain where they are a loyalty/rewards member (12). Zooming in and analyzing HHonors Members, most are between 40-49, holding a master’s or another postgraduate degree. The majority work in a business or office setting in a leadership role, resulting in a higher income level. Simmons revealed a 519 index for those making $250,000 or more. When it comes to travel, HHonors members are likely to spend anywhere from $5,000-$9,999 on travel and like to travel to different places (13). They also prefer to use an airline or hotel chain where they are loyalty members. However, if someone is an HHonors member, that does not mean they will be an ideal customer for the Aspire card. Current American Express cardholders also need to be analyzed. Amex cardholders are more likely to be men, mainly 35-54. The majority of cardholders have a postgraduate degree or higher with a full-time role at a private company or corporation. Amex customers hold even higher positions than HHonors members, such as CEOs and Vice Presidents, making upwards of $100,000 annually and living in the western US (14). From the Simmons data, audience self-concepts and views determined the primary and secondary markets for the Aspire card. Our primary audience sees themselves as much more work than family-centered, finding themselves to be efficient and organized, intelligent and well-informed, and confident and self-sufficient. Our secondary market was the opposite, seeing themselves as more family-centered and valuing experiences and memories. They see themselves as gracious and sophisticated, enjoying frequent travel with their friends and family (15). Primary Target Market From the Simmons data and analyses, the Hilton American Express Aspire Card is meant for men like Bill Walker. A middle-aged high-spending businessman who values elite status and brand name when traveling. He believes he deserves the best service and treatment when traveling. He is a current HHonors member, as well as an American Express cardholder (16). Secondary Target Market Outside data proved beneficial when determining the secondary market. The Aspire Card is also meant for couples like Andrew and Leo Brown. The two are in their mid-thirties and love to make plans with their large group of friends. The Browns value adventure and memories, especially through travel. They enjoy staying at Hilton as they are ranked number 1 on the 25 Most LGBTQ Friendly Brands (17). More details about our two main audiences can be found further down in the report.
Media Usage Analysis When planning the right method to advertise the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Credit Card, it is important to look at what types of media consumers are using. To analyze the media habits of consumers we ran custom reports from Simmons Insights. Consumers who are already members of the Hilton Honors reward program are 26% more likely to use Twitter as a social media site than the rest of the population. They are also 22% more likely to use Instagram and 14% more likely to use TikTok as a social media site than the rest of the population. People who stay at Hilton hotels when they travel are 21% and 20% more likely to use Twitter and Instagram as social media sites (18). The media habits of consumers who travel are also important. Consumers who have traveled domestically in the last 12 months for any reason and stayed at Hilton hotels are 24% and 23% more likely to use Twitter and Instagram respectively than the rest of the population. Similarly, consumers who have traveled domestically in the last 12 months and are members of the Hilton Honors loyalty program are 28% and 23% more likely to use Twitter and Instagram (19). The Hilton Honors Aspire primary target consumer is a middle-aged businessman. From Simmons data, it was determined that these customers generally read print media that have to do with business and financial operations. Specifically, they are over 100% more likely to read Barron’s, The Economist, and Fortune. Men working in business between the ages of 25-49 are also over 100% more likely to read Barron’s and The Economist. Forbes is also a popular magazine among men working in business ages 25-49 and 50+ with those age groups being 53% and 27% more likely to read the magazine (20). Aside from print media, the Hilton Honors Aspire primary target consumer utilizes broadcast media as well. Men aged 25-49 tend to watch a lot of sports broadcast networks. ESPN and ESPN2 are among the most popular networks for that demographic, being 103% and 67% more likely to watch those channels. Men aged 25-49 are also 23% more likely to watch FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports 2. As for males over the age of 50 who work in business, they mainly watch news networks. They are over 50% more likely to watch BBC America and BBC World News, and 73% more likely to watch CNN. They are also 61% more likely to watch MSNBC and 43% more likely to watch FOX News (21). Overall, it is clear that print media focusing on business-centered magazines, like Barron’s and The Economist, are ideal channels to market to our target audience. As for broadcast media, marketing on various news networks will help us reach our target audience in the 50+ age range, but marketing on popular sports networks will help us reach males working in business in lower age groups. For social media, marketing on Twitter and Instagram will help us reach the audience of people who tend to stay at Hilton hotels when they travel.
Creative Analysis There is no indication that Hilton is hiring anyone outside of their company to do their marketing. This is beneficial, allowing easy communication with Hilton marketing. Hilton’s brand is based on luxury. Their hotels are made to make guests feel lavish. Their branding compliments this with their sleek white logo and fonts. The Hilton Honors logo, which is shown on the card, is a white box that writes out “Hilton Honors” in two easy-to-read fonts. The colors Hilton uses the most are shades of blue. On the Aspire card, the same is true with blues, purples, and reds. The blue in this card is found throughout their website as well (22). Between the blue pools and oceans seen in advertisements to the blue on the website used to highlight perks about the cards, the branding is clear across all platforms. The Hilton brand uses the slogan “For The Stay” in many of its campaigns, as well as “It Matters Where You Stay” (23). Hilton posts a variety of video advertisements on YouTube featuring many different plots to cater to a multitude of audiences. Paris Hilton has recently been featured in many of these video advertisements possibly in order to connect with a younger audience (24). However, for the Aspire Card, Hilton currently has very few traditional commercial and print campaigns. Its most recent advertisements are website displays using a picture of a city and the card next to it (25). One thing that works well in this ad is the synchronization of colors on the card and the image. Something that is very present in advertising for the Hilton Aspire card is YouTube reviews (26). There are various videos from creators who earn a commission for reviewing the card, most with 5,000 to 20,000 views. This indicates that it may be important to utilize influencer reviews and endorsements during our campaigning for the card.
Public Opinion and Stakeholder Analysis Hilton aims to appeal to upper-class middle and senior-aged professionals. These individuals are targeted due to their high status, pursuit of luxury lifestyles, and desire to stay in five-star rooms at premium prices. In a study conducted by Yung-Chun Chang, Chih-Hao Ku, and Chun-Hung Chen, they analyzed the trends of reviews for Hilton Hotels and the rate of google searches compared to competitors. They found that Hilton was Internet searched more from 2012-2017 compared to Marriott and IHG. They also found that of the 634,277 reviews they analyzed for Hilton Hotels, 500,316 were positive. Hilton has recently closed their corporate office in Moscow and suspended new hotel developments and investments after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. They have received public backlash, however, they have not removed their brands from the hotels that are still active in Russia. They responded to this backlash in a statement where they stated that they would be donating any profits from business operations in Russia to the humanitarian relief efforts for Ukraine. They also partnered with American Express Co. to donate 1 million room nights to refugees. Within the past few years, Hilton has taken steps to outreach to the LGBTQ+ community. The Vice President of Global Marketing for Hilton, Amy Martin Ziegenfuss, explains that research by Community Marketing & Insights Inc. estimates the United States LGBTQ+ travel industry to be about $115 billion (27), which is a large portion of their industry. The LGBTQ+ community as a whole spends more on travel than the general population, as well as takes more trips, and is also far more likely to travel internationally (28). Hilton is the lead sponsor of the D.C., NYC, and Boston pride parades. They have also helped build awareness about the community by partnering with lead LGBTQ+ organizations. Hilton earned excellent scores on the Corporate Equality Index on the Human Rights Campaign for having a safe environment for LGBTQ+ employees. In a Hilton commercial where there appeared to be a gay couple, an anti-LGBTQ+ group expressed a large amount of backlash against the hotel, but Hilton refrained from removing the ad. There are specific benefits that apply to stakeholders, Hilton rewards members, and shareholders. For example, stakeholders are only given certain benefits when they are a part of The Hilton Owners Club. This is a program reserved for hotel investors who are in a leadership position with an ownership group of record with 1% or greater ownership. However, shareholders are allotted almost no universal benefits besides a $.15 dividend on each share. Hilton rewards members are offered a variety of benefits including 20-100% ‘points earning bonus on stays’, rollover nights, food and beverage credit, and a number of other luxury perks. In 2007, Hilton Hotels transitioned to a private sector in the stock market. However, in 2013, they returned to the public market allowing more investors into their stocks.
SWOT Analysis Strengths Hilton is a well-known brand in the hotel industry and has solidified itself as a leader Partnership with American Express brings increased visibility, trustworthiness, and credibility Branded messaging fits the target market through the theme of “Ascension to great heights” Hilton is reaching a powerful demographic with a highincome
Weaknesses High cost of the card could potentially deter possible customers from researching the benefits Hilton Honors Aspire card is not well-advertised
Opportunities
Threats
Many people rebooking canceled trips, hotel demand is high Large market for LGBTQ+ community, as a leader in LGBTQ+ hospitality industry Starting to make stronger campaigns for Hilton Honors Aspire card
New strain of COVID-19, impacting travel again War between Russia and Ukraine, Hilton locations in those areas closing temporarily Other housing options beside hotels, such as vacation home rentals, taking over the hotel industry
Key Issues and Implications The Hilton Honors Aspire card is not advertised sufficiently and therefore only reaches a small number of consumers. They are neglecting a larger possible audience that comes with heavy advertising. Advertising through business journals and news networks would easily reach the primary target market. On top of that, Hilton Aspire is also missing out on another market: the LGBTQ+ community. This underutilized market could lead to more cardholders and HHonors members as a whole. Hilton already is a large supporter of the community, offering the “Stay Hilton. Go Out.” package during pride month. The package allows guests staying at Hilton while attending LGBTQ+ events complimentary high-speed internet, a one-year subscription to OUT magazine, two welcome beverages, and late checkout (29). Aside from the lack of advertising, the Hilton Honors Aspire card comes with a hefty annual fee that can also deter people. There are many other hotel and travel credit cards on the market and many with much lower fees. The $450 price tag can be a dealbreaker for many travelers, despite the benefits. The Aspire card needs to emphasize its benefits while advertising to attract and keep attention. Lastly, although the hotel industry is predicted to boom in the coming years, there is always the threat of travel being shut down once again. The travel industry is bruised from COVID-19 and threatened by the possibility of new strains and new viruses. What’s the point of paying for the Hilton Aspire card if I can’t leave my house? Aside from health reasons, multiple Hilton hotels have been temporarily shut down in areas of conflict. If conflict expands to more cities and countries, more hotels could close and restrictions on travel could grow. Hilton must make it clear that not only are their hotels and services clean, but they are safe for guests to stay in. They need to emphasize the ease and perks of traveling with the Aspire card, especially when it comes to these threats.
Campaign Strategy
Consumer Target Campaign Strategy 1, Primary Consumers: Who is Bill Walker? Bill Walker is a high-spending businessman in his late 40s. He lives outside of Chicago, commuting to his office in the city frequently during the week. He works as an executive within his private corporation and is being considered for a raise. Due to all of his time spent at work, he does not make a lot of time for his family. He stays late and travels on the weekends meeting with partners and clients. Bill’s typical day begins at 6 in the morning when his alarm clock rings. He immediately brushes his teeth before spending 30 minutes Bill Walker on his elliptical. After his shower, he eats a quick breakfast, consisting of whatever his wife Marie sets out for him. He drives to 48 Year Old work, arriving by 8:30. Bill’s day is spent in and out of meetings, Hilton Honors before grabbing lunch at a nearby restaurant with his boss, Paul. They return to the office and Bill gets his itinerary for the weekend, Married planning his presentation for the client he’s meeting with. He leaves the office around 7, returns home to eat dinner, and continues taking calls and working on his presentation. When he leaves for his business trip, Bill arrives at Chicago O’Hare International Airport well before his departure. He likes to move with ease throughout the terminals, spending the majority of his time in an airport lounge. Due to his frequent travels, he has built up a vast amount of points on both Delta Airlines and Hilton Honors. Bill boards his flight in boarding group 1, taking a seat toward the front of the plane. Depending on the time of day, he’ll either order a ginger ale or a glass of scotch. Bill Walker enjoys top brands and top service, since he travels so often he frequently splurges on upgrades and benefits. When Bill does take a break from working, he and Marie enjoy vacationing. They prefer elaborate trips, differentiating themselves from their friends’ travel and typical destinations. They like to venture out on excursions with an element of thrill, such as surfing big waves in Maui or running with the bulls in Spain. 2. Secondary Consumers: Who are the Browns? Andrew and Leo Brown are a married couple in their mid-thirties. Andrew is a residential real estate agent focusing on single-family homes in the northern California area, while Andrew works as a strategy consultant for a mid-size corporation in the area. The two have been together for eight years and married for three. They do not have children at the moment but have been talking about the possibility. Andrew and Leo love to travel and vacation, whether it’s a weekend getaway in a neighboring area or a ten-day trip across the globe. Andrew and Leo have a large group of friends, organizing plans with them multiple times a week. The couple is definitely known as the “planners” of their friend group, always trying to set up new events. They enjoy trying new restaurants and hosting movie nights and other get-togethers for their friends. The Browns value experiences and making memories with the people they love.
While the couple is still establishing their careers, they make a decent living with enough money to buy these experiences. When it comes to vacationing, Leo is much more creative, coming up with possibilities and ideas of where to go, while Andrew organizes the logistics. Their teamwork allows the couple to work well together, whether it’s just the two of them planning a night away, or a group of twelve’s week-long vacation. Demographics The Browns In this campaign, we will target Mid-30s middle-aged high-spending professional businessmen who Adventure seeking frequently travel for work, but who Stay at Hitton also value traveling for pleasure. Our primary market is upper-class white men, while our secondary market is middle/upper-middle-class men. The majority of these men in both markets are in long-term relationships with both men and women. We are aiming for this market because of Simmons OneView data revealing the majority of both Hilton and American Express members are middle-aged men between the ages of 30-49. We also feel that targeting our secondary market, the LGBTQ+ community, will lead to increased brand awareness and increased enrollment in our rewards program. The LGBTQ+ community as a whole spends more on travel than the general population, takes more trips, and is also far more likely to travel internationally (30). Due to these factors, we feel that penetrating these markets will lead to a huge boost in the success of the Hilton brand as a whole, the Hilton Honors Rewards Program, and the Hilton Honors Aspire Card. Values/Attitudes: Based on Simmons data, our primary audience sees themselves as extremely work-centered. They describe themselves as dominating, authoritarian, and aggressive. Outside of work, this market segment sees themselves as daring and adventurous especially when it comes to organizing vacation plans. Our secondary audience sees themselves as more family-centered than work-centered. They value spending time with loved ones, seeing themselves as gracious and sophisticated. Behaviors: Our campaign is centered around audiences who are obligated to travel for their career but enjoy traveling for pleasure (primary audience), as well as those who seek experiences with others in order to make lasting memories (secondary audience). We want to target audiences who are susceptible to both upgrades and benefits. Our primary audience already prefers traveling with upgrades and is willing to spend more in order to feel more at home and comfortable. However, our secondary audience is purely focused on frequent travel. By targeting frequent travelers, we hope to encourage them to upgrade to the Aspire card and make their travel much easier and much more enjoyable, while also being rewarded for it in the process.
Positioning and Branding Business Objective/Competitive Advantage The ultimate business objective of our campaign is to increase our market share while continuing to build brand loyalty and grow our consumer base. Due to the relatively high price of our card, we would like to reinforce the idea that our customers are earning and saving while traveling and enjoying themselves. Since our primary consumers are business travelers who already are aware of Hilton, we would like to cement the idea that their business travel is not just for work, but it is also providing them with benefits for their personal travel. As a long-time ally of the LGBTQ+ community with a history of partnering with humanitarian organizations, we would like to increase our brand awareness among members of the LGBTQ+ community, establishing the message that Hilton is the right choice for them (31). What is your unique selling point? Hilton is the oldest major hotel chain in the United States, first opening its doors in 1919 (32). Starting as a singular 40-room hotel in Cisco, Texas, Hilton has now expanded to ownership of 18 hospitality brands, with over 7,000 properties spanning 123 countries and territories (33). Throughout this long history, Hilton has partnered with countless charities, foundations, and humanitarian organizations, solidifying the brand as one of the most trustworthy names in the hospitality industry and being named the World’s Most Valuable Hotel Brand in 2022 (34). Our primary consumers, being busy travelers who often work and travel long hours, can look to our long history of success, and trust that their stay will be both comfortable and hassle-free. Due to our expansive network of properties, Hilton Honors Aspire Cardholders can be assured that wherever they are, there is a place for them to relax, unwind, and take a load off. The benefits that come with the Hilton Honors Aspire Card make it the perfect card for frequent travelers, enabling cardholders to earn while they enjoy. Once enrolled, cardholders will instantly achieve top-tier diamond status providing them with perks such as food and beverage credit, free breakfast at international locations, complimentary room upgrades, a 100% bonus on base points earned, late checkout, access to executive club lounges, and a fifth night free on reward stays (35). The Aspire Card is superior to many of other competitors’ brands, including Marriott, as enrolling in a rewards card at their equivalent level would only give “mid-tier, gold status” (36). In addition, the Hilton Honors Aspire Card is the only top rewards card where holders receive free-night stay certificates upon enrollment (37). Enrollment also includes 150,000 points, which is the highest points received amongst other top-rated rewards cards (38). These perks make the Hilton Honors Aspire Card the premier choice for not only business travelers, but also make an excellent choice for those who value personal travel with their loved ones.
Ultimately, the Hilton brand establishes trustworthiness within our target consumers due to our long-standing commitment that our customers’ comfort is our number one priority. Furthermore, the benefits that are included in enrollment to the Hilton Honors Aspire Card are superior to those of our competitors in a number of ways, with the Aspire Card leading many categories of comparison. Positioning Our goal is to position ourselves as a luxury, high-end card for frequent travelers. While we feel that the current “don’t live life without it” campaign is successful in many ways, we also feel that the positioning could be improved to fully capture our message. We propose a transition to a campaign focused on the message of “earning and enjoying”. This slogan reinforces the idea that frequent travelers are getting rewarded for going on vacation and living their lives to the fullest. Additionally, we feel that this slogan implores business travelers to reframe their opinion on their business travel, shifting their mindset to one where they can see the value of traveling with our card. Our campaign will employ sleek, classy visual elements to appeal to our primary consumers while also enticing our secondary audience to sign up for our card. Additionally, we want to position ourselves as the premier card on the market, showcasing our long history of client satisfaction, commitment to world-class hospitality, and the plethora of benefits that come with purchasing the card. Branding We want our branding to be one that demonstrates trustworthiness, excellence, and true care for our customer’s needs. We feel that branding ourselves this way will speak to busy travelers who want easy, efficient, smooth travel experiences, all while being rewarded with a range of benefits. We feel that this branding will effectively establish brand loyalty among our existing consumer base, while also conveying our values to potential consumers. We would also like to showcase our core values of “hospitality, integrity, teamwork, leadership, ownership, and now” into our branding, in an attempt to evoke a range of emotions from our clientele. These values attach a positive correlation to our brand, showing that the Hilton Honors Aspire Card is the right choice for travelers who value seamless travel experiences.
Timing Our campaign is going to begin in October and last through February of the next year, but there is going to be an extra push in December and January. Our customers have spent their year working hard and earning a vacation they deserve to enjoy. The social media advertisements of the campaign will be primarily pushed on weekday afternoons times when our target audience is taking a break from a busy work day to scroll through social media. The television advertisements will be shown during weekday evenings when consumers are watching their favorite networks to unwind from the day. Based on the Simmons data regarding where our primary and secondary audiences live, we plan to focus our advertisements in mid-sized counties in the western and midwestern United States (i.e. the smaller, family-friendly cities where people commute from for work). We plan to focus our advertisements on areas with a population range of 10,000 - 30,000 people and are located within the metropolitan area of a major US city. For example, the suburbs of Chicago, San Francisco, Denver, St. Louis, Seattle, etc. Our Simmons crosstabs indicate that advertising in regions like this will reach as many of our primary and secondary consumers as possible. The majority of our advertising budget will go towards advertisements on sports television networks (specifically FOX Sports and ESPN), and also to full-page advertisements in the magazines read by our target audience (specifically Barron’s, The Economist, and Forbes). We will also include advertisements in magazines geared toward our secondary audience (specifically Travel & Leisure and Food Network Magazine). The rest of our budget will go toward advertisements on social media (specifically sponsored promotional posts on Twitter and Instagram). We will also allocate a portion of our budget to audio advertisements to play over select podcasts in the business & finance category.
Creative Concept (The Big Idea) Our campaign aims to communicate that although the Aspire credit card is expensive, it will give a great amount of savings and perks to those who use it. Our message is that if you already love to travel, why not earn and save while you’re doing it? This campaign aims to reach a primary market of businessmen who already travel and see Hilton as a luxurious and well-respected hotel. We want to make business travel mean something in their personal lives and add some of the fun back into it. Their travel for work should earn them savings so that they can decompress during personal travel. We want to separate the work and personal sides of traveling and emphasize that while staying at a luxury Hilton hotel, you can enjoy traveling regardless of the reason.
We also plan to target our secondary audience, Andrew and Leo Brown, a gay married couple in their thirties. They always experience life to the fullest and what better way to do that than by earning points adventuring around the world and enjoying benefits for it at Hilton? They already love to travel, so we want to convey that if they invest in an Aspire card, they can earn premium perks for travel they already plan on doing, saving them money and allowing them to enjoy even more of what Hilton hotels have to offer. Hilton has teamed up with LGBTQ+ organizations in past years, and we want to continue to send the message that Hilton is the place for them. Our two keywords are “earn” and “enjoy”. We want our customers to earn while they are traveling for business, and enjoy those perks when they travel for fun. Our key insight is that we know they already travel and dine. After we launch the campaign, we want people to be more aware of the Hilton Honors Aspire Credit Card. We aim to make sure those who are already traveling, specifically to Hilton hotels, know about the Aspire card because it would fit perfectly into their life. We also want people who love new experiences, to become more aware because if they want to start traveling more, the Aspire card will get them there. We hope that our customers will realize that the annual fee is not too much for the number of benefits they will receive toward things that they love doing. The message we want to send out is that the Hilton Honors Aspire card is a card that supports how you already spend and then rewards you for it. We hope that our customer’s perception of the Aspire card will change from an overly expensive card to one that is beneficial to them. From something that is an extra expense to something that will pay off in time through experience and enjoyment while traveling. This card aims to save customers money by doing things they already love, not make them pay for more, and we plan to show that through the “Earn and Enjoy” campaign.
Media Plan
Objective
Media Plan
The objective of our media plan is to reach as many members of our primary audiences as possible, while also keeping in mind the media habits of our secondary audience. The key moment to reach our target audience is when Bill Walker is making his commute to and from work. He might scroll through Twitter while taking the train into the city, or he might pick up a copy of his favorite magazine at the station. We are also trying to reach our secondary audience, Andrew and Leo Brown, through similar media channels. As a couple who works hard and travels a lot to take the edge off, the key moment to reach them is in the evening when they are relaxing at home. The media channels we have picked to run this campaign depend on research performed through Simmons OneView. Through research we found that members of our target audience are likely to read finance, business, and travel magazines; watch sports networks, and use Twitter as a social media site. By picking specific media channels that our target audience use, we can design a campaign that will promote the Hilton Brand and the Hilton Honors American Express credit card to audiences that will earn points and enjoy rewards. Our campaign is going to begin in October and last through February of the next year, but there is going to be an extra push in December and January. Our customers have spent their year working hard and earning a vacation they deserve to enjoy. However, there will also be some digital media advertisements that run during the entire campaign. The social media advertisements of the campaign will be primarily pushed on weekday afternoons times when our target audience is taking a break from a busy work day to scroll through social media. The television advertisements will be shown during weekday evenings when consumers are watching their favorite networks to unwind from the day. We want our customers to feel like they are earning their rewards. Based on the Simmons data regarding where our primary and secondary audiences live, we plan to focus our advertisements in mid-sized counties in the western and midwestern United States (i.e. the smaller, family-friendly cities where people commute from for work). Cities with a population range of 10,000 - 50,000 people that are located in the metropolitan area of a major US city. For example, the suburbs of Chicago, San Francisco, Denver, St. Louis, Seattle, etc. We feel that advertising in regions like this will reach as many of our primary and secondary consumers as possible. We hope that by placing advertisements in magazines that our target and secondary audiences are the most likely to read, as well as sponsored posts on social media networks, we will build awareness of the brand in these consumer groups. Advertisements placed on sports television networks will initiate a call-to-action response in the consumer - we hope these will be impactful and spur them to make an informed decision about which hotel chain rewards credit card they should be signing up for.
Overall, our media plan is designed to reach as many consumers in our target and secondary audiences as possible. We want Bill Walker to read about the Hilton Honors American Express Card on the train into the city for work in The Economist. We want Andrew Brown to see a post for the Hilton Honors American Express card on his Twitter timeline between real estate appointments. We want Leo Brown to see a commercial for the Hilton Honors American Express card when he sits down to watch the San Francisco 49ers game on Thursday night.
Overview Based on the strategies we have outlined above for our media plan, we are going to allocate our budget accordingly. Since our campaign is primarily designed to run between November and January, those are the months where a lot of our budget will be allocated. However, there are portions of the budget that will be allocated to digital media advertisements year-round.
Budget Allocation: The $20,000,000 budget for this campaign has been divided up among impact media, digital media, and traditional media to effectively reach our target audiences per the campaign strategies we have laid out. In addition, $2,000,000 has been set aside as a contingency for any other costs that come up during the campaign.
According to the Simmons data, men aged 25-49 are 53% more likely to have viewed the Monday Night Football program 4 or more times in the last 12 months. We purchased the advertisement to be aired in October, November, December, and January to coincide with other parts of our campaign. We purchased a national newspaper advertisement for three months between November and January. This timing will coincide with the rest of our campaign. We know from Simmons data that our target audience is likely to read multiple types of print media. We have purchased product placement for the Hilton Honors rewards credit card in 3 episodes of a network television show. These episodes would be aired in November, December, and January to coincide with the rest of our campaign. We know from Simmons Data that our target audience is more likely to watch cable television such as ESPN and ESPN2, as well as cable channels such as FX, and HBO.
We plan to promote the trending Twitter hashtag, #EarnAndEnjoy, for four months through the year - November, December, January, and February. The keywords embedded in the site that we want Search Engine Marketing to be used for are:
Earn Enjoy Vacation
Travel Hilton Hotel
Stay Business Trip Rewards American Express
Creative Plan
Creative Brief
Creative Plan
Our current key issue is that the Aspire card is not seen as affordable. There are plenty of other hotel credit cards out there with lower yearly fees. But through this campaign, we aim to differentiate Hilton from that. We want to show that this Hilton Aspire card is allowing the customer to earn luxurious experiences through the travel they are already doing. To do this, we will promote the benefits instead of the fees. Our two target audiences both make a good amount of money to be able to afford this card. So what we plan to do is persuade them that this credit card isn’t an extra expense, it's an investment that rewards loyalty to the Hilton brand with some of the best perks available in the hotel card market. We plan to advertise through commercials on our audiences’ popular networks and in magazines, as well as on podcasts where our audience might get their financial advice. Each of the advertisements will promote a cohesive “Earn and Enjoy” message, but with different backgrounds and lifestyles spread throughout the campaign. We want our advertisements to be versatile in showing the reasons people travel as well as what they like to do for fun. For our primary audience, we will have advertisements showing business and personal travel side by side to show that you can “earn while you work, & enjoy while you vacation”. But also, we want advertisements for people in our secondary audience that might not travel for work but instead travel just to get away from the busyness of life. To do this, we will have different print ads all within the same “Earn and Enjoy” campaign. One of our print advertisements will show a side-by-side of a man on a business trip and then the same man on a family vacation. One will focus on earning the savings and the other will focus on enjoying them. In both, he will have his Hilton Aspire card in his hand but he will just be using them in different ways. Another print advertisement will show a male gay couple earning while they work at their homes and then enjoying a meal at a restaurant inside a luxurious Hilton hotel. This print advertisement will highlight that Aspire card customers earn and enjoy in a variety of ways, with this couple earning by working late nights from home and enjoying by sharing a fine-dining experience while vacationing at a Hilton hotel. In our commercial advertisement, we will take a different approach to the earn and enjoy concept by showing someone earning something outside of their profession, like someone running a marathon. After introducing a runner that traveled to another state to participate in a marathon, we’ll show clips of them running a marathon before cutting to them jumping into their comfortable Hilton bed, wearing a medal around their neck. Our audience craves experience and they are very driven to do things. Something like running a marathon is hard work, but our audience loves the challenge. This commercial will show our audience that the Aspire card will reward their hard work and effort, like a soft bed after a 26 mile run. The music for this commercial will be either a pop alternative song or a 60s/70s pop rock song, according to a Simmons search on what our current customers listen to the most. As of right now, Great Balls of Fire is an option that is also connected to a movie, Top Gun. Simmons, also showed that a lot of our customers like movie and tv soundtracks so that song would double dip. Another possibility is Real Gone by Sheryl Crow.
Our podcast advertisement will be about 20 seconds long, and it will primarily run as a pre-roll for finance podcasts. The ad will begin with 10 seconds of soundbites outlining the day of a working father, beginning with an alarm clock and ending with a sigh of exhaustion. We will then have a narrator explain that Hilton knows how busy life can get, and that's why the Aspire card helps customers earn a break from it all. The ad will not only connect with our overworked primary and secondary audiences, but also appeal to a broader audience of parents that may relate to the exhaustion of the parent in the ad. Our banner advertisements will be in many different variations, similar to the print advertisements. They will showcase a Hilton Aspire card being swiped with images in a polaroid style of our audiences having fun at hotels. Some of the banner advertisements will feature Bill Walker's family while others will feature the Browns. All of our advertisements will have the same blue and purple colors as the Hilton Aspire card. We want our advertisements to resemble the credit card design so if people see an advertisement and then are looking for the card they will remember the blue, reds, and purples along with the Hilton brand’s sleek white logo. Also, our ads use the card and colors as if the card is being swiped so people understand you earn by swiping. Our campaign will have a serious yet positive tone. Buying a credit card is a large investment, especially one with a $450 annual fee. So we believe we need to be serious with the information we are giving because our audience is not taking this credit card decision lightly. They need to trust our brand and know that we are worthy of this investment. But still, everything surrounding travel should be positive because we want to encourage travel. We want to be informational and serious when discussing the card while having happiness and fun prominently on display when discussing its benefits.
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30 Second Commercial
30 Second Spotify Advertisement
Podcast Pre-Roll Ad: 25-30 seconds The ad will open with ~10 seconds of sounds that outline a busy parent’s day: *alarm clock going off* (1 sec) *baby crying + parent comforting them* (1 sec) *cars honking* (1 sec) *office phones ringing + background coworker voices* (2 sec) *cars honking* (.5 sec) *grocery store barcodes scanning* (1.5 sec) *cars honking* (.5 sec) *parent humming lullaby + cooing baby* (1 sec) *parent brushing teeth* (.5 secs) *parent exhausted sigh* (1 secs) Narrator: We know life can be a lot of work. That’s why the Hilton Aspire card offers premium hotel rewards to give you and your family a well-earned break. *waves crashing on beach + parent relaxed sigh* (1.5 seconds) Narrator: Earn and enjoy with the Hilton Aspire card
Public Relations Plan
Strategy
Public Relations Plan
At Hilton Hotels, providing a welcoming environment to all and presenting a home away from home feel is of utmost importance. We want to create a space that travelers prefer to stay in over other hotels and hospitality. The implementation of promotional strategies as well as media outreach to reach a broader audience will create buzz across the public and in the news. By reaching out to our stakeholders and loyal customers through direct communication and social media while also offering specific deals to these groups of people, we will be able to maintain their dedication and trust in Hilton Hotels. Hilton is very dedicated to ensuring that everyone and anyone feels welcomed and appreciated in all of our locations. As a result, we are planning on playing to interact with social justice issues that our customers find important. This will largely be reflected through idealized press releases highlighting our support for all communities and pressing social dilemmas as well as promotional tactics that will allow us to create an equalized environment. Overall, we aim to solidify our connections with current and potential future customers of Hilton Hotels and subsequent partnerships.
Hilton Hotels Hilton Hotels & Resorts, as formally addressed, is one of the most popular hotel brands and sites in the world with over 7,000 locations in about 100 countries. The many different brands within the Hilton Hotel Corporation and specific programs that cater to varying individuals and groups allow for the expansiveness of this company to succeed. Hilton Hotels are currently highly rated, according to Statista.com, customer satisfaction remains over 75% within the past decade. Additionally, occupancy rates of Hilton Hotels have also remained over 70% throughout the past decade. Alongside these promising statistics, Hilton Hotels have unfortunately also dealt with a fair amount of public backlash due to certain unforeseen social circumstances. As a result, we have had to troubleshoot frequently and reaffirm our beliefs in equality and justice. That being said, the following plan will help to assure customer satisfaction and loyalty while also increasing the customer base in general.
Stakeholders Our stakeholders include:
1. The Vanguard Group, Inc. 2. Capital Research & Management Co. (Global Investors) 3. BlackRock Fund Advisors 4. T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc. 5. Capital Research & Management Co. (International Investors) 6. SSgA Funds Management, Inc. 7. Pershing Square Capital Management LP 8. Fidelity Management & Research Co. LLC 9. Principal Global Investors LLC 10. Eagle Capital Management LLC These are the stakeholders with the most amount of Hilton company share, although there are many more. They care about our brand because they believe that we are a successful company with a prosperous future and want to take part in our success. Additionally, our brand success directly impacts their professional and financial success as they do have Hilton stock. Issues that are important to our guests include LGBTQ+ rights, global peace, and anti-child sex trafficking movements. According to public opinion polls surrounding the target audience of Hilton hotels, we see certain current events that warranted both positive and negative feedback of Hilton hotels from the public. This included Hilton openly supporting the LGBTQ+ community, especially by offering deals during pride month parades and events. Also, in the past year with the Russian invasion of Ukraine Hilton received some backlash for keeping our Russian hotels open, although we eventually acknowledged the issue and offered free stays to Ukrainian refugees. Hilton hotels also had issues with an accused child sex trafficking operation in China after evidence of such was found. This raised a lot of concerns surrounding the safety and ethical obligations of Hilton Hotels. Specifically, according to Hilton’s Vice President in global marketing, Amy Martin Ziegenfuss, Hilton Hotels have implemented multiple programs and initiatives to provide ample support and a welcoming environment to the LGBTQ+ community. This is particularly important considering research conducted by Community Marketing & Insights, Inc. estimates that the LGBTQ+ travel industry within the United States comes out to be around $115 billion, a very large portion of the hospitality industry. Some of the ways Hilton has accomplished their inclusion are acting as the leading sponsor of D.C., NYC, and Boston Pride Parades, being one of 379 companies that signed on to an amicus brief in support of marriage equality before the U.S. Supreme Court in 2015, and hosting a variety of events including HRC’s Time to Thrive Conference, the Matthew Sheppard Foundation Bear to Make a Difference Gala, the International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association’s Global Convention. Hilton also provides select organizations with room nights to support their fundraising efforts. All of the above efforts were highlighted in a TravelPulse article titled “Hilton Takes a Lead on LGBTQ Outreach'' written by Paul Heney.
In the winter of 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine in a decade-long war escalation, and as a result, was heavily criticized by many including the majority of Americans. In light of these events, many companies began moving out of Russia or shutting down their locations within the country to display their disdain for the invasion. Hilton Hotels has multiple locations in Russia and as a result of the backlash in the media regarding these locations remaining open and thus supporting the economy of the country, Hilton shut down the majority of our locations in Russia. Hilton also closed down the corporate office in Moscow, Russia, while continuing to assure work and pay for impacted employees. Furthermore, Hilton is suspending progress on all new developments and activities in Russia. Additionally, Hilton Hotels released a statement to the public listing other ways of supporting the Ukrainian people and their efforts. This included Hilton Hotels donating about one million ‘room nights’ to Ukrainian refugees and relief efforts around Europe. This was in conjunction with Hilton partners, American Express, the #HospitalityHelps campaign, as well as surrounding community organizations. Hilton also promised to donate all profits from Hilton’s business operations in Russia to the Ukrainian humanitarian efforts. To further assist in these aid efforts, the Hilton Effect Foundation contributed $50,000 to World Central Kitchen and Project Hope. Another social issue that Hilton stakeholders and patrons find important is underage sex trafficking. A little over a decade ago in 2010, a child sex exploitation operation was uncovered in a Hilton hotel in China. Individuals and groups alike keen on the issue called on Hilton Hotels to retain some responsibility for this ongoing event. In response, Hilton’s Vice President of corporate responsibility at the time relayed that Hilton had begun to work with ECPAT-USA alongside other groups in preventing human sex trafficking according to the Washington Business Journal. The public backlash regarding this scenario is primarily what drove Hilton Hotels to assure that we take it very seriously and continue to prevent similar situations in the future. Overall, these are some of the major issues that are important to Hilton and the Hilton community. We intend to play the positive outcomes of these situations to our advantage by using these specific scenarios in advertisements and promotions to show our dedication to these social justice issues and the positive feedback we received from the public.
Encouraging Media to Cover Events A strong relationship with the media is crucial to Hilton. Media outlets provide the opportunity to gain more attention from potential customers along with an even better opinion from the public. To encourage the media to cover events and releases, we will be hosting promotional events. We will be inviting numerous media outlets to improve our relationship and have a place where the media can acquire the information that is important to our brand and that they can cover. We will also hold various press conferences and present press releases with significant news. This allows for the media to have immediate access to important information that is being released by Hilton. We will continue to monitor what is being covered by the media as we value our brand reputation along with public opinion. If issues do arise with Hilton, we will address them immediately to the media with the information that can be shared with the public to remain a reputable brand.
The news sources that Hilton will be in contact with include the New York Times, CNN, the Washington Post, and NBC News along with a variety of smaller, more specialized media outlets pertinent to the Hilton brand. These news outlets include television, print newspapers and magazines, and digital news. This allows Hilton to have a large range of media coverage where we can gain recognition from a variety of potential customers. These media outlets are some of the most recognizable in the nation, giving Hilton a large opportunity to appeal to a wide audience. The smaller news sources included in our list are also vital to the success of Hilton’s range in media coverage because they will likely be circulated through subsequent outlets and to a larger audience in general. The information covered by these outlets will generate buzz within the travel industry and community which will in turn attract a larger audience of those who often travel. By featuring news about and surrounding Hilton Hotels in specified travel media outlets, we will be able to provide specialized information that will create unique advantages within the market.
Media Contacts Stephanie Rosenbloom The New York Times Travel writer
Jon Nickel-D'Andrea Forbes.com Travel writer
Nathan Diller The Washington Post Writer
Patrick Clark Bloomberg.com Writer
Harriet Baskas NBC News Writer
Nancy Trejos USA Today Writer
Maureen O’Hare CNN Writer
Alison Fox Travel + Leisure Writer
Paul Heney TravelPulse.com Writer
Clare Nicholls TopHotel.News Writer
Sean O’Neill Skift.com Hospitality writer
John Ollila LoyaltyLobby.com Writer
Implementation of Social Media Using social media to promote Hilton hotels and create a larger audience is vital to the growth of the company, especially with the importance society places on social media. We will use social media to support our brand by creating a platform that can attract numerous groups of people in order to increase traffic within the hotels and create buzz surrounding the Hilton name in general. Often ‘going viral’ is useful for companies because the name of the company itself is used in everyday conversations. In order to engage with stakeholders, it is important to contact these people and businesses directly to facilitate a connection with them. This would include advertising on social media on how stakeholders can receive special benefits. Specifically, we plan to roll out social media posts that highlight the special offers we offer for members and dedicated customers. By using eye-catching designs and colors and formats that are relevant to the Hilton brand, we will be able to reinforce the recognition of Hilton. Overall, we plan to frequently post on our social media channels, around one to two times a week, with the implementation of ‘stories’ which allow us to post information that is more accessible to our followers and less time-consuming. This timeline and general social media posting plan apply to all of our social media accounts across all platforms. Regarding the release of press releases from Hilton, we plan for them to primarily highlight upcoming events that will directly impact stakeholders and partners of Hilton Hotels. They will address new implementations and certain necessary public issues. For example, if Hilton Hotels receive criticism during unforeseen circumstances, we will circulate a press release reassuring the public that we support what our customers support. Additionally, we will also circulate press releases when Hilton Hotels are recognized for their inclusivity, affordability, and adaptability to every customer. This will allow us to be ahead of the press and create a direct line of communication between us and the public in any situation. Social media promotions will be useful in this PR plan because Twitter and Instagram have a lot of travel influencers. Primarily, it would be useful to collaborate with these users and/or target our advertisements to other users interested in traveling. This could be advantageous because it would offer users deals directly in their feed and promote Hilton hotels.
Public Relations Tactics In order to facilitate more publicity towards Hilton hotels, we intend to initiate the “Home Away from Home” campaign that will be active during Pride Month. This campaign will include numerous additions to Hilton hotels surrounding the US including adornments available for employees to wear to show their support, decor around participating locations, and social media coverage of the cause. Specific aspects such as name pins that highlight employee’s pronouns, gay pride flags displayed around hotel common spaces and on the uniforms of willing employees, and social events offered special to hotel guests promoting the occasion and creating community. Additionally, a press release will be circulated to highlight these initiatives to the media and in turn, to the public.
By showing the LGBTQ+ community the time and effort we at Hilton are proud to put into supporting pride month, we hope to solidify our relationship with those of and in support of this community while also offering the opportunity to act as a partner during pride month. These efforts will reinforce the core message and brand positioning by showing how Hilton is dedicated to equal access and overall support of the LGBTQ+ community. It will highlight the company as inclusive of all and will drive people to explore our hotels as we represent a safe space for any and all to be themselves.
Promotional Tactics With our “Earn and Enjoy” campaign, we are aiming to drive this message with a variety of publicity programs. These programs will allow us to gain coverage from the media, and connect with various brands in an effort to implement our message even further. These events will be publicized through social media posts and press releases. We also want media outlets to promote these events as the press coverage allows us to gain a wider audience and generate conversation about Hilton as a brand. One of the promotion events that Hilton will offer is a networking event with a raffle. Included in the raffle will be deals for Hilton rewards, and Hilton Aspire card rewards. This will allow Hilton to include the branding campaign of “Earn and Enjoy”, as it allows those that participate to earn deals for participating in the event, and thus enjoy them. It is also a great opportunity for media outlets to come and cover the event, giving Hilton an opportunity to have an even more reputable name within the media. Hilton locations around the nation will also be offering a community complimentary breakfast in addition to learning more about the Hilton Aspire Card. This will allow Hilton to inform community members on the Hilton Aspire card, thus gaining a larger audience. It will also give media outlets an opportunity to Hilton locations connecting with the community and those that are possibly interested in what Hilton has to offer. In tandem with the “Earn and Enjoy campaign”, we also intend to sponsor a run where those who perform the best will receive incentives such as discounted rates and free upgrades. Most significantly will be how these contestants will earn special deals with our Hilton Aspire card such as receiving a flat discount rate or enjoying the perks of the card for free the first year.
Budget and Media Kit In order to successfully highlight Hilton Hotels and corresponding events in the media, our media budget will consist of the following. We would like to have a media tour in the largest cities in the US. These are largely where the majority of travelers within the US travel to and will place Hilton Hotels at the forefront of their minds when coordinating travel plans. The cities we hope to hit are New York City, Chicago, and Los Angeles. As a result, the total budget for media tours will be about $30,000. Producing a press kit which includes the production itself, news releases, a backgrounder, and a fact sheet, along with the distribution of the kit to our media contacts will cost another $30,000. Media relations that would increase the circulation of the aspects of this press kit will cost $50,000. This will allow us to follow up with our media contacts and coordinate specialized interviews and statements. In order to successfully connect with our media contacts, we need to hire a spokesperson and negotiate a contract with them. In all, this will cost about $500,000. As we intend to host numerous events that will promote consumer traffic, we will likely be spending around $2 million for all events as well as the marketing for the event itself. Additionally, we want to include consumer promotions as well to create familiarity with the public. This will cost $60,000 to successfully execute. Overall buzz marketing will circulate all of our events, promotional strategies, and Hilton Hotels name recognition and recall. This is especially important to us because it will allow the media strategies we have in place to support themselves and generate press on their own. This will cost us about $50,000. Product placement is not an overly important marketing strategy that we intend to focus on, but will provide specific and idealized information to prospective customers as well as the general public. As a result, we will be spending $500,000 for the Hilton brand and Hilton Hotels to be featured in network television.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 13, 2022 Issued by: Hilton Hotels Public Relations Team Contact: Ellie Bourdo, (262) 490-2262, hiltonPR@gmail.com HILTON HOTEL HOSTING A NETWORKING RAFFLE EVENT, “RAFFLE, WIN, ENJOY” MCLEAN VA. – Hilton Hotels will be hosting a networking event where attendees can participate in a raffle with prizes including deals for Hilton Hotel and Hilton Aspire card rewards. The event, titled “Raffle, Win, Enjoy” aims to promote Hilton’s “Earn and Enjoy” campaign, providing media outlets the opportunity to connect with Hilton Hotels Public Relations Team. There will be information available for attendees about the campaign to provide media outlets with more information. It will take place on March 11, 2023, at Hilton Hotel Headquarters in McLean Virginia at 7:00 p.m. “This event is an excellent opportunity to connect with media outlets and create an even better relationship. We’re looking forward to promoting our ‘Earn and Enjoy’ campaign through this event and showing everyone what it’s really about,” said Lucia Samaniego, the Public Relations Director at Hilton Hotels Corporation. The prizes in the raffle will include free hotel stays, Hilton Aspire card points, Hilton Hotel points and more. These prizes will connect with the “Earn and Enjoy” campaign, as it allows participants the opportunity to win and enjoy prizes. “Our ‘Earn and Enjoy’ campaign is a big part of how we’re trying to promote the Hilton Aspire card, so we wanted to create an event where people can, in a sense, ‘earn and enjoy’ some prizes, while learning about our campaign. It’s going to be a great time for both our team and our attendees.” Samaniego said. In addition to this exciting event, Lucia Samaniego will make an appearance to directly connect with the faces of the various media outlets that are in attendance. “I’m especially looking forward to directly connecting with those that are interested in our campaign. It’ll be a great opportunity for both of us to gain a better relationship with each other.” Samaniego said. For more information on the event, please visit hilton.com/events. ###
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 13, 2022 Issued by: Hilton Hotels Public Relations Team Contact: Ellie Bourdo, (262) 490-2262, hiltonPR@gmail.com HILTON HOTEL HOSTING COMPLEMENTARY BREAKFAST FOR COMMUNITY MEMBERS MCLEAN, VA. – Hilton Hotel will be hosting a complimentary breakfast and learning event for community members on Feb. 5, 2023. There will be 50 Hilton locations participating in the event in the capital of each state in the nation. This event, titled “Learn and Enjoy” is open to all, where there will be breakfast items available, along with an informational seminar regarding the Hilton Aspire card. The event is an opportunity for Hilton to connect with the community and provide individuals with more information regarding the card. Lucia Samaniego, the Public Relations Director at Hilton Hotels Corporation will lead the seminar at the Richmond Virginia Hilton location. There she will provide attendees an opportunity to learn more about the Hilton Aspire card and connect with media outlets in attendance. “This event is a great opportunity for us to show more individuals what the Hilton Aspire card is and the benefits that come with it. We really want to show that this card is for anyone and everyone,” Samaniego explains. This event aims to promote Hiltons “Earn and Enjoy” campaign. The seminar will include information regarding the campaign along with Hilton Aspire card information and benefits. There will be a Q&A portion of the seminar as well. Media outlets are welcome to attend this “This seminar gives us the chance to show, not only the public, but media outlets all over the nation a chance to learn more about our campaign. We want to showcase all the benefits that come with the Hilton Aspire card. It’s an excellent way for us to showcase that, and for our audience to learn more, ” Samaniego said. Those interested must sign up for the event at hilton.com/events. ###
References
References 1. https://www.hilton.com/en/corporate/ 2. https://stories.hilton.com/brands 3. https://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/4093000.html 4. https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/credit-cards/amex-hilton-aspirebusiness-ascend-honors-credit-cards 5. https://www.hilton.com/en/hilton-honors/credit-cards/ 6. https://thepointsguy.com/2017/06/hilton-drops-citi/ 7. https://my-ibisworldcom.ezproxy.library.wisc.edu/us/en/industry/72111/industry-at-a-glance 8. https://my-ibisworldcom.ezproxy.library.wisc.edu/us/en/industry/72111/industry-outlook 9. https://my-ibisworldcom.ezproxy.library.wisc.edu/us/en/industry/72111/competitive-landscape 10. https://my-ibisworldcom.ezproxy.library.wisc.edu/us/en/industry/72111/industry-performance 11. https://my-ibisworld-com.ezproxy.library.wisc.edu/us/en/industryspecialized/od5842/industry-outlook 12. Simmons OneView 13. Simmons OneView 14. Simmons OneView 15. Simmons OneView 16. Simmons OneView 17. https://www.travelpulse.com/news/lgbtq/hilton-takes-a-lead-on-lgbtqoutreach.html 18. Simmons OneView 19. Simmons OneView 20. Simmons OneView 21. Simmons OneView 22. https://creditcard.hilton.com/d/hilton-aspire-credit-card/? utm_mcid=3571206&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=%2Bhilton%20 %2Baspire&utm_cmpid=1356231510&utm_adgid=55044007580&utm_tgtid=kwd1211485138771&utm_mt=p&utm_adid=624838771572&utm_dvc=c&utm_ntwk=g&utm_ad pos=&utm_plcmnt=&utm_locphysid=9018948&utm_locintid=&utm_feeditemid=&utm _devicemdl=&utm_plcmnttgt=&utm_programname=cchc&gclid=Cj0KCQjw1vSZBhDuA RIsAKZlijS9zxmqizVqtJDvRhHaa3B3LM3qWREN62kuVk27FI9kHSXJCyjK0QaAn85EALw_wcB
_devicemdl=&utm_plcmnttgt=&utm_programname=cchc&gclid=Cj0KCQjw1vSZBhDuA RIsAKZlijS9zxmqizVqtJDvRhHaa3B3LM3qWREN62kuVk27FI9kHSXJCyjK0QaAn85EALw_wcB 23. https://www.hilton.com/en/p/for-the-stay/ 24. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hpSSmyGVUM 25. https://advertisers.mediaradar.com/american-express-hilton-honors-cardadvertising-profile#Creative 26. https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=amex+hilton+aspire+card 27. https://www.travelpulse.com/news/lgbtq/hilton-takes-a-lead-on-lgbtq-outreach.html 28. https://communitymarketinginc.com/lgbtq-tourism/ 29. https://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/4060096.html 30. https://communitymarketinginc.com/lgbtq-tourism/ 31. https://marketingtherainbow.info/case%20studies/cs-travel/hilton 32. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_chained-brand_hotels 33. https://www.hilton.com/en/corporate/ 34. https://stories.hilton.com/awards 35. https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/travel/hilton-aspire-vs-bonvoy-brilliant 36. https://thriftytraveler.com/reviews/credit-card/hilton-aspire-card-best-hotel-card/ 37. https://thriftytraveler.com/reviews/credit-card/hilton-aspire-card-best-hotel-card/ 38. https://www.forbes.com/advisor/credit-cards/best/hotel/
PR Plan Source List
https://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/4060096.html https://www.travelpulse.com/news/lgbtq/hilton-takes-a-lead-on-lgbtqoutreach.html https://www.hilton.com/en/p/lgbtq-pride/ https://communitymarketinginc.com/lgbtq-tourism/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2022/03/15/hotels-russia-marriotthilton-ihg/ https://stories.hilton.com/releases/hilton-statement-on-ukraine https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/hilton-working-abolish-child-sextrafficking-2010-11-03 https://www.bizjournals.com/washington/news/2010/10/31/hilton-responds-tochild-trafficking.html