Skift Take
Virgin Hotels could become a victim of its own hype. By building interest in this less than overt and trendy campaign, it may be setting itself up to fall short of guests' expectations.
After much talk and delay, the first Virgin Hotels property is set to open in Chicago in January 2015 and the brand is teasing future guests with promises of a tech-centric, design-savvy hotel experience.
There was first a guerrilla marketing campaign in the streets of Chicago. Now animation studio Not To Scale and ad agency One Trick Pony have created a two-minute animated film contrasting the Virgin Hotels experience against its competition.
Common scenarios in which guests must pay for Wi-Fi, sleep in an uncomfortable bed, or overpay for bar snacks are labeled “unbrilliant.”
The Virgin alternative, including a mobile app that controls room temperature and takes room service orders, free high-speed Wi-Fi with no bandwidth restrictions, a vanity table, and two sections to every room are labeled as “brilliant.”
The question remains whether Virgin Hotels can deliver on its hyped guest experience.
Watch the video below for Virgin’s animated teaser of its upcoming product:
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Tags: richard branson, virgin hotels
Photo credit: Guests at Virgin Hotels can order bacon from their smartphone, according to a new teaser video. Not to Scale / Vimeo