Travelers frequently dream about their next trip, but barriers like price often hold them back from actually taking it. A new ad campaign from Priceline seeks to interrupt what it has coined "dreamscrolling," and turn those thoughts into bookings.
The campaign is a continuation of the OTA's "go to your happy price" brand platform, said Lesley Klein, senior vice president of strategy and brand marketing at Priceline (Priceline is part of Booking Holdings, No. 1 on Travel Weekly's Power List).
It's also geared toward younger travelers, Klein said, with a Priceline study last year finding that while more than 50% of millennials and Gen Zers dream about vacations every week, hurdles like complexity and price often hold them back from booking.
"This campaign is all about silencing those travel worries and enabling people to book those trips and find the best deals to do so," Klein said.
The ads seek to capitalize on those who dreamscroll, which Priceline calls the hours people spend browsing travel content on their phones.
"It's really designed to interrupt the daydream, whether that is in a TV format or in the social media scroll, and show people that our great Priceline deals help make those dream trips within reach," Klein said.
For instance, the campaign's first commercial features a man snoring on a bed, dreaming about attending a NCAA tournament game. He wakes up in a stadium seat, proclaiming he's wanted to go to a game since he was a kid. He promptly turns into his childhood self, while brand ambassador and actor Kaley Cuoco, acting as a "travel guru," encourages him to try Priceline for last-minute flight deals.
"Travel safe, man-child," she signs off.
The ad also targets the type of travel Priceline's survey found that young comsumers prioritize: experiences such as concerts, festivals and sports.
The latest campaign will run throughout the year across broadcast, digital and social media, with takeovers on Meta, TikTok, YouTube, SB Nation, DirecTV and Peacock. It will also incorporate an influencer campaign and podcast ads.
Priceline also put out some real-world activations for the campaign, including an interactive, bookable March Madness bracket. Klein said users could easily see hotel deals in the tournament's host cities.
Also being introduced is Priceline's "Actual Reality Goggles," or AR Goggles, Klein said.
"If people are spending hours on their screens, our twist on AR Goggles is actually all about transporting people out of their dream world and back into reality," she said. "The product isn't actually real. It's a satirical headset."
The "headsets" first came to life on April 1 (fittingly, April Fools' Day) in a video featuring comedian Atsuko Okatsuka. Brothers Shareef and Shaqir O'Neal, sons of former NBA star Shaquille O'Neal, planned to don the goggles courtside during the NCAA Final Four games.
"It's really about that through line of our key message: We want you to go experience these things in real life," Klein said. "We don't want to hold you back. A Priceline travel deal can get you there. We are just trying to deliver that through the humor and irreverent tone that Priceline is truly famous for."