Noha Abdalla, chief marketing officer of Choice Hotels International, is on “a really fun journey and evolution,” with the brand.
“The ability to come to work every day and think about how to continue to build the Choice Hotels brand and help drive performance, but also underpinning all of that is our loyalty program,” says Abdalla. “How do we continue to evolve and build value into the loyalty program so we can help create more value for our guests and create that loyalty to Choice Hotel brands?”
The hotel group has been expanding and diversifies the types of hotels in its portfolio. Historically, the company has been focused on mid-scale and economy hotels, but now the group is offering extended stay hotels, as well as upscale options.
The company recently launched its 2025 campaign, “Experience More with Choice,” based on the insight that people are prioritizing experiences. The spot stars actor Keegan-Michael Key, who has worked with the brand.
“Keegan-Michael Key plays the role of the Vacation Maximizationer, showing people how they can get the most out of their vacation,” explains Abdalla. “On average, U.S. workers take about 11 vacation days, and while we’re not necessarily saying they should take more, we want to make sure they make those 11 days count.”
The campaign includes the “Time Off Toolbox” – a webpage where consumers can get a customized message from Keegan to send to their boss to ask for time off. Workers can also craft personalized out-of-office replies on the site.
The campaign also highlights business travel and the idea of leisure. “Our hotels are located in key cities where a lot of people travel for business,” says Abdalla. “Our loyalty program sees many business travelers collecting points and then using them for leisure travel with their families.”
Brand Innovators caught up with Abdalla from her office in Rockville, Maryland to talk about working with Keegan-Michael Key, sponsoring NASCAR driver Daniel Suárez and what travel looks like in 2025. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Can you talk about your approach to storytelling, especially as you’re introducing new hotel brands into the marketplace?
Storytelling is something that we have to keep top of mind and use whenever possible. The objective is to really connect emotionally with your target guest and to relate to them. We do a lot of storytelling in our ad campaign. For example, we’ve selected Keegan-Michael Key as our spokesperson, and what he does a really nice job of is that relatability factor. Even though he’s a celebrity, people feel really at ease with him. He’s well known, but he’s also trusted. He scores over the 95th percentile in the e-score ranking in terms of recognition and likability relative to other celebrities, and with our target customer, it’s even as high as 100.
What we’re really trying to do is make sure that people see, through the ad campaign and the stories that we’re telling, that they see themselves. They see that when you come to a Choice Hotel, you can be yourself. You don’t have to pretend to be somebody else or get all dressed up. You’re going to get a good value for your money, and you’re going to get a hotel location where you want to be so that you can go out and experience what you want to experience.
Through our ad campaign, we are telling those stories about things that people can relate to. Whether it’s extending a business trip into leisure – being at the business trip maybe at a Radisson and then going to the Cambria rooftop for a drink – or going on vacation with your family and wanting to fuel up on that free hot breakfast before you go out to the game that you’re going to watch at a Comfort Inn. You could be staying at a Quality Inn with your family and you want to fuel up on that hot breakfast and spend more time outdoors.
One of the things that we really lean on is this idea that Choice Hotels has a hotel for any occasion that you want, in any location you want to be in, at all the various price points and it’s going to be a good value for your money. That’s really our goal with the storytelling that we do.
Can you talk about how you’re showing up in culture?
We know that there is a trend now with consumers really prioritizing experiences. Whether it’s traveling for a concert they want to see, a culinary experience they want to have, or a college sports game they want to attend, we know that this is something our consumers are prioritizing.
We want to make sure that not only do we provide the hotel and the backdrop for that experience, but also within our loyalty program, we give our guests an opportunity to use their points to redeem for experiences that money can’t buy.
For example, we’ve got a partnership with a company called Learfield Sports that gives us access and sponsorship of college football and basketball games. Our Choice Privileges members can utilize their points to redeem for experiences at these games – tailgating, sideline opportunities, and things they couldn’t normally get – because of their loyalty to Choice Hotels. That’s our opportunity to be part of culture and what people are talking about, such as these big college games.
We also do the same thing with a company called Trackhouse. We’re a sponsor of a NASCAR driver, Daniel Suárez, and that gives us an opportunity to give that access to our Choice Privileges members through the use of points.
Another way we show up in culture is by meeting our customers where they’re spending the most time. We know that a lot of people spend time in social and digital channels, so we’re making sure that our content is appearing in those channels where our target customer is spending time.
Is it directly from your channels or are you also working with influencers – or both?
All of the above. Whether it’s Keegan’s channels, our channels, influencers’ channels, or showing up as pre-roll, we’re making sure that we are in the channels where people are not just spending time but also thinking about travel. How can we inspire them in the channels where they are generally thinking about where to go next?
Last year you ran one of your biggest campaigns to date. Can you talk about that campaign and what you’ve learned from it?
The campaign performed well. We learned that there was an opportunity for us to showcase our upscale brands in a new way. We were able to move the needle in terms of brand awareness and likelihood to book. We found that our ads drove an 11% higher number of people saying they were likely to book versus those who didn’t see the ads. And there was a 40% higher likelihood to book with Choice Hotels. We also saw a 76% higher brand favorability for Choice Hotels.
What we learned is that Keegan-Michael Key is very relatable and effective, which is why we brought him back for 2025. We also learned that more people needed to be made aware of our upscale brands and associate them with Choice.
How is the travel industry innovating, and how is Choice evolving with these innovations?
Consumer expectations continue to evolve, so the travel industry has to keep up. Loyalty programs are a big part of that. People want to make sure they’re getting value in return for their loyalty.
We recently made changes to our loyalty program, allowing members to book 50 weeks out instead of just 100 days, book premium rooms with points, and introduced “Reward Saver,” which offers discounted point redemptions during low-occupancy periods.
In terms of technology, we use AI on our website to personalize search results based on past stays and user behavior, ensuring more relevant recommendations.
What are some travel marketing trends for 2025?
A major trend is that travelers prioritize experiences over destinations. Almost half of travelers choose destinations based on culinary experiences. More people are using TikTok, Instagram, and Pinterest for trip inspiration. We’re focusing on that shift and aligning our marketing efforts accordingly.
