Expedia’s brand health data showed that people believed our services would take care of their trip, but they didn’t feel cared for by the brand.

So Expedia adopted an empathetic tone and acknowledged the reality of how tricky it can be to make travel happen. We showed travelers the many ways Expedia can help surmount their travel hurdles—no matter what.

Each film in this campaign is designed to foster an emotional connection to the brand, which led directly to capturing the high travel intent latent in the market.

Following a father and young son, the piece match-cuts the child’s hands running over a common beige carpet as he imagines the feeling of sand on the sunny beaches of Jamaica, his father’s childhood home. Inspired to show his son the place where he grew up, the boy’s father utilizes Expedia to make this goal a reality. The spot ends with the family in Jamaica creating new memories, experiencing what, before that moment, had only been a dream.

The spot far exceeded benchmarks with a 75% in Enjoyment metrics. There was also a strong showing of 57% in relevance, with customers on social media writing that the relationship told through the casting reflected their own lives: “One day me and my son will go on a trip like this,” and “I cry every time I see this commercial. I feel so close to it thinking about me and my mom. Thank you.” Through a breadth of down-to-earth obstacle stories, we were able to increase brand affinity and favorability by 10%.