Jared Brill

JAMS 307-001

Creative Brief Template

Creative Brief

Client: Aloft Milwaukee Hotel

Product: Quality hotel rooms/banquet halls/bar and group sales

Medium: Quick Look Ad, Print Ad, Outdoor Ad, :60 Radio Ad

WHO?

Men and Women with a tasteful lifestyle. Hip, trendy, big-city, well-established travelers who

expect a stylish, fast-paced hotel environment.

WHAT?

Be happy and productive while staying at Aloft. Get your work done and then join the

excitement in the Re:mix lounge. Aloft has a 5-star ambiance with fresh deals and nightly

specials on tap. Aloft caters to the social, energetic young professionals who are drawn to this

unique hotel hideaway with amenities-galore riverside.

INSIGHT

The new way to stay and play.

SUPPORT

The urban, stylish and contemporary atmosphere is a must-see. The WXYZ bar host’s local and

national live music concerts in Re:mix. Boats are welcome to dock on the river to enjoy a night

out at Aloft. Live music, happy hour, loft specials and the Star wood loyalty program are just a

few of the reasons to visit the happening hotel on the river.

MANDATORIES

Become apart of the lifestyle brand and take advantage of style at a steal.

http://www.starwoodhotels.com/alofthotels/index.html 414-226-0122

Jared Brill

Advertising Work Plan

Product: Aloft Milwaukee Hotel

Situation Analysis

1) History:

As we all know, the Aloft concept was developed in 2005 with the first hotel opening in

Montreal in 2008. The main concentration of this campaign will be on Aloft Milwaukee

which was founded on December 10th, 2009. Our main affiliation and motto is that the

Aloft is a vision of the W hotels. The W opened in 1998 in New York. It has been a

global powerhouse showcasing luxurious hotels with an innovative touch as you know.

Starwood Hotels and Resorts own Aloft Milwaukee and we need to capitalize on the

benefits it offers our customers. Starwood hired Aimbridge Hospitality which is an

investment company that manages our Aloft property. Aimbridge was founded in 2003

by Les Bentley, former President of Wyndham Hotels and Resorts and Dave Johnson,

former Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at Wyndham Hotels.

2) Current Situation:

Due to our diligent work and dedication, the Aloft is currently ranked 3rd

in Milwaukee

for hotels based on occupancy. There are 15 downtown hotels and the 2 that are ahead of

the Aloft in occupancy growth are the Marriott Courtyard and the Residence Inn. Our

sales team helped Aloft Milwaukee experience a 34.4% growth rate since last year. The

combined average of Milwaukee hotel’s growth last year was 2.2% There are 28 W’s in

the US and 49 Alofts in US. which gives us more room to expand and compete. There

are currently 7,519 total Aloft rooms in the world, 43 of the 49 hotels are in America.

There are 4 Aloft’s in Asia and 2 in Europe. Aloft Milwaukee sold 27,806 rooms so far

in 2011. The average occupancy rate for the hotel this year is 72.2% which is a good

percentage statewide. Starwood’s top 5 markets in revenue for hotel properties are New

York: 12.7% Hawaii: 6.2% Phoenix: 5% Boston: 4.4% Chicago: 4.3%. There are

presently 145,000 Starwood employees. We need to begin our expansion to other

countries to broaden our brand and create awareness.

3) Target Audience:

Demographics - Predominantly white business men and women traveler’s ranging in age

from 25-40. They at least hold a bachelor’s degree and work for prominent firms such as

Johnson Controls, Northwestern Mutual, Accenture, IBM etc. Frequent guests of the

Aloft are mainly from the US and are non-local.

Psychographics - Hip, younger professionals dominate the hotel’s scene. The unique,

contemporary style attracts the similar type of guest. Customers are usually big-city

commuters with high expectations in a stylish, fast-paced environment. Energetic and

social young professionals flock to Aloft hotels to conduct business and mix in some

fashionable fun at the same time. The psychographics of this product are new

generations of travelers who are youthful, reasonably well-off clients who love the value

and style Aloft hotels have to offer. We have a solid backbone to begin our integration

and brand awareness.

4) Geography/Seasonality/Purchase Cycle:

The core of Aloft guests are from the US, but a plethora of races and cultures thrive at

this establishment as you all know. 43/49 Alofts are based in the US, so expanding the

product is necessary. In our experiences in hospitality, the summer time is the time to

travel and the Aloft is buzzing during the months of June, July and August. Winter time

in Milwaukee is the slowest time for hospitality and hotels. Growth in other countries to

gain brand awareness is our goal and essential in Aloft Hotel’s success.

5) Competitive Analysis:

Primary competitors - All other local Milwaukee hotels pose competition. Marriott

Courtyard is Aloft’s main competition, Residence Inn is second. By occupancy growth,

Marriott=#1, Residence Inn=#2 and Aloft=#3. The remainder of hotels in the city are

primary competitors like the Hyatt, Intercontinental, Pfister, Hilton and Hotel Metro.

Secondary - All other Motels or resorts in the Milwaukee area pose a secondary

competition threat. Condo’s and apartments with short leases could be considered

competitors as well.

6) Media Analysis:

The majority of our advertising for the Aloft is executed through Print, TV, Sales

meetings and cold-calling. Creating and maintaining frequent customers should be our

main goal at Aloft. Rewarding devoted clients through Starwood’s loyalty program

initiates media strategy’s in place to generate more revenue. Offering happy hour

specials at the WXYZ bar is part of the effort to reach out to more potential clientele.

Our unique verbiage of the hotel and its features sets us apart from other hotels in the

area.

7) P.R. Analysis:

Promoting the Aloft product by selling the idea of, “The new way to stay and play.” This

message is released to the public with hopes of it generating a buzz in the area to have

guests steer away from the traditional hotels. Starwood’s loyalty program is an activity

that we use to retain loyalty. Our sales personnel advertise free live music shows in the

Remix lobby which are promoted by P.R. agents throughout the Midwest. How can we

improve this? Our local professional business parties raise awareness and an environment

for networking with local clients and possible customers. Aloft advertises our state-of-

the-art lofts (rooms), WXYZ bar, Tactic rooms for banquets and weddings as well as our

brilliant river-view that separates the hotel from most in the city.

8) SWOT Analysis:

Strengths - Unique, contemporary hotel different than most Milwaukee hotels. Youthful,

stylish following who enjoy the value and style the Aloft has to offer. Integrity is

practiced through transparency and responsiveness. Aloft Milwaukee is a non-traditional

style with a 34.4% growth rate increase which is currently the 3rd

best hotel in Milwaukee.

Weaknesses – Cater to mostly well-off, younger business travelers. We need to expand

product to attract other demographics. The Aloft is a limited-service hotel with the

demands of a full-service property. This is a challenge for our team and we need to think

of ways to fight this continuous battle. There is no restaurant, room service and bellman

for example that well-traveled customers rely on.

Opportunities – Aloft is a newer product that has a lot of room to grow nationally and

world-wide. There is room for a more productive and effective marketing campaign to

generate brand awareness and conduct more sales. Strengthening of the brand will

ultimately create more revenue.

Threats – Losing customers to other hotel competition is our main threat. There are a

good amount of full-serviced hotels that can offer more services than Aloft. The trend

towards a different type of hotel which started strong, could slowly disintegrate and

therefore lose business. Aloft has been criticized for being too slick and formalistic with

our approach. We abandoned the phrase, “Aloha” as it was deemed to be tacky. Other

threats could be real estate investments and the ability to manage our growth.

Campaign Unit

1) Current brand Position:

Aloft has the brand position of being a “vision of the W hotels.” We have transformed

into a stylish, limited-service, non-traditional hotel. Clients want to stay in a fresh, trendy,

sociable atmosphere. Low room prices with a contemporary style are the brand positions

that our team will be sticking to.

2) Communications Objectives:

We want to focus on widening the consumer base and broadening the clientele.

Becoming a world-wide household name is the goal.

3) Consumer Needs: Creating a fun, hip, socially acceptable hotel that accommodates needs of all travelers.

Mixing in pleasure with business is key in consumer needs.

4) Major Features and Benefits:

-The new way to stay and play

-Style at a steal

-Contemporary, hip and trendy business casual hotel with having fun as a major priority

-Cheaper version of the W hotel

-Non-traditional, unique hotel

-Colorful, trendy, contemporary, individualism is encouraged

-Starwood loyalty program

-Guest of the day

-Gold/Platinum amenities

-Great downtown riverfront location

5) Main Message:

Aloft is for the business and leisure traveler. Fresh, fun and fulfilling! The new way to

stay and play.

6) Call to Action:

“Don’t waste any more time on indulging at an Aloft near you to experience the new way

to stay and play. Come join the buzz at Aloft and see why style at a steal is the new

standard in hospitality!”

Jared Brill

JAMS-307

CLIENT: Aloft Hotels MEDIUM: :60 Radio TITLE: The New Way to Stay and Play DATE: 11/21/11 MUSIC Indie Rock Song performed by Phoenix, “Lisztomania”

ANNOUNCER Take control of your destiny by becoming a guest at Aloft

Hotel! We will show you why the Aloft brand is the new

way to stay and play.

Book a loft at our funky property this week and receive half-

off any loft style, and also get 2 free drinks from the WXYZ

bar! Our liquid chefs fuse together some majestic

concoctions that will have you coming back for more!

Style at a steal is our motto, and we thrive on exceeding

guest’s expectations by going above and beyond.

Take advantage of this epic deal and join the excitement and

thrill at an Aloft near you. Call us @414-226-0122 or go

online @ aloftmilwaukeedowntown.com to make your

reservation. See you on the river!

It’s Eclectic.It’s Savvy.

It’s Aloft.Reinvent the way Reinvent the way you stay and play. A funky, fresh riv-erside loft awaits you at our stylish, urban hideaway.