- Sarah Knapp

Marriott is showcasing its colorful clientele in a new advertising campaign. Titled "The Driven," the ads do not use professional models, but instead incorporate actual customers of Marriott.
 
Marriott selected guests for the campaign who were not only professionally successful, but also personally engaging and well-rounded people, according to Michael Darne, vice president of marketing for Marriott Hotels & Resorts. "[Marriott wanted to develop a campaign] to solidify consumers' perceptions of the Marriott brand," he said.
 
For example, Olu from the Boston area is a pediatrician, tri-athlete and father, who says in his ad at Marriott.com: "At the end of the day, when I think that I've accomplished a lot, it just makes me feel completely content, completely at peace and I usually have a great night's sleep."
 
The hotel chain used social media tools to recruit these customer-spokespeople, getting the word out through Twitter and the Marriott Rewards online forum. It also leveraged on-property general managers. Marriott continues to look for new clients to feature, so guests can still sign up at Yourmarriottstory.com.
 
The campaign, developed by New York-based agency mcgarrybowen, launches in the U.S. and Canada this year and expands internationally next year.
 
The first phase was out-of-home advertising that has begun to appear in airports. A microsite, WhereTheDrivenGo.com, shows off various Marriott features including its redesigned lobbies. Marriott has deemed the campaign a multi-year effort.

Marriott spent $49 million on media last year, per Nielsen. For the first seven months of this year, the chain spent $18 million.