FT. LAUDERDALE, FL— Given the marinas and yachts serving as nautical backdrop for the Super 8 Motels conference being held here, “Steady On” might best describe the direction new brand president/CEO John Valletta is navigating this morning for franchisees of the veteran economy chain. Eight weeks at the helm, Valletta is asking owners and managers in attendance to build on the foundations of the brand’s past, while maintaining the robust momentum its currently enjoying in this awkward economy. And to do it all while looking at the business of the brand from the perspective of the guest in order to deliver on excellent customer service. “We’ve got some great things [on the agenda], not only here at convention, but thinking forward,” Valletta told HOTEL BUSINESS®. “Super 8’s heritage has been built on intense loyalty of the guests and incredible quality and consistency of the product and tremendous passion from the franchisees. So you’ve got these very focused and passionate franchisees delivering very, very high-quality product and service to extremely loyal guests… call it a recipe for success.” Valletta said the message at convention stresses a need to renew that passion, “to take a renewed attitude toward ‘clean and friendly’— that’s one of our mottos— and go about our business with even more vigor and more passion than we have in the past. As good as we’ve been, we’ve got to do it even better. That’s the primary message at this whole convention: focusing on the achievements of the past, as good as they are, and how we can take those and make them better and turn them into a positive force going forward.” While its roots entrenched in low rates and economy its apt segment, Super 8 stands in many consumers’ minds as a “cheap” brand from price point perspective. “It’s not so much cheap, cheap, cheap, it’s value, value, value. As we look at our marketing and advertising for next year, the shift and the focus is going to be less about us, and less about the product being the hero, and more about the guest,” said Valletta. Toward that Super 8 brought in a new ad agency, WORK, Inc. of Richmond, VA, to craft a brand strategy and translate it into a new marketing campaign, a multimillion dollar effort that has as its tagline: “See you along the way.” “We’re going to be focusing on [consumers’] needs, letting them know we understand their needs as they travel and letting them know that when they get to Super 8, their needs will be fulfilled. That our service is still clean and friendly and that our system is still as good as it’s ever been,” said Valletta. Super 8’s research department did a drill down of who comprises the brand customer, and will set the advertising effort toward those targets. In sight is a married male professional with two teenage children, with an average age of 47, who travels from his small hometown or rural setting at a 50:50 ratio business to leisure. Secondary brand users are married retirees in their 60s from small towns or rural areas, with grown children, and who travel for fun. The network radio and cable television ad campaign will chronicle the trials and tribulations of such travelers on the road, e.g., the flashing red police lights in the rear view mirror, creating empathy with this traveling community so it then chooses Super 8 as its “understanding” brand while recognizing the motels as part of the community. “It’s a series of commercials designed to bring us into the car… and our campaigns are focused on dealing with those issues that people deal with when they’re on the road as this community of travelers,” said Valletta, noting “And somewhere between where you are and where you’re going there’s a Super 8.” The logo makes its impression as background and an anonymous narrator serves as spokesperson “The guests are the focus, no puppets, no Willard Scotts,” he added. The spots will air throughout the United States and in Canada’s 12 provinces. Cable TV ads will appear next spri
Super 8 Motels President John Valletta