2023 Winner

CASE SUMMARY

Hilton Canada became Golf Canada's official hotel partner through a multi-year agreement, but their plans for a big launch were delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. After waiting for two years, Hilton was ready to debut their partnership in person at the RBC Canadian Open in July 2022. However, a standard promotional booth was not enough to showcase the luxurious amenities of Hilton hotels. So, they built a fully functional one-bedroom pop-up hotel, "Hilton on the Green", just off the 3rd green of the RBC Canadian Open in Toronto and at the 8th tee of the
CP Women's Open in Ottawa.

The pop-up hotel was launched with a national contest, where six lucky golf fans could win an overnight stay in the 200sqft luxury hotel. The activation drivers included digital banners, social media, HTML email, a robust PR campaign, and influencer outreach. The pop-up hotel featured amenities from all 18 Hilton brands, including Frette linens from Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, Byredo Mojave Ghost bathroom amenities from Conrad Hotels & Resorts, and DoubleTree cookies. The overnight stay included a personal concierge, golf cart, and gourmet meals.

The campaign was a huge success, generating 0.50 billion media impressions, 1.96 million social engagements, 273+ media stories, and 313+ organic social posts. The campaign was covered in eight countries, including the USA, France, Germany, Spain, China, Japan, India, and Canada. The campaign had 11,000 contest entries with a conversion rate of 40%. Golf Canada's Chief Commercial Officer, John Sibley, said that the pop-up hotel was among the most innovative partner activations they have had at the
National Open Championships.

The success of the campaign resulted in the client's promotion, and the pop-up hotel will now travel to new locations to give people the stay of a lifetime. The pop-up hotel was made with Canadian-made materials and sustainable resources.

Credits

Executive Creative Director: Steve Miller
Creative Director: Patrice Pollack
Art Director: Patrick Carter / Rebecca May
Copywriter: Sam Rudykoff / Darren Marranca
Group Account Director: Zach Wright
Account Director: Ashley Sommerville
Production Manager: Amanda Fusco
Integrated Producer: Terra Stephen
Production Coordinator: Raphaele Sohier
Account Coordinator: Caeleb Quinn
Production Partner: Artam Design Inc.
PR: Vanessa Francone
Social: Jacquie Kostuk, Nicole Eum

Video: Stephen Weir
Photography: Jake Killorn, Bryan Ulrich