Ascott Citadines Connect Fifth Avenue New York

The Ascott Limited (a member of CapitaLand, Singapore) was over the moon to have its property opened in New York in 2018 Q4, and we were privileged enough to be bestowed the opportunity to create the launch campaign via a series of programmatic digital banners and in-flight advertisements. One of the key benefits of deploying a digital campaign is the ability to hit the target audience precisely, which was what the shout-out of the new property – Citadines Connect Fifth Avenue – was all about. As one of Asia’s largest diversified real estate giants that is headquartered and listed in Singapore, CapitaLand was proud to have Ascott’s portfolio expanded with a property in New York, and Citadines Connect was a new line of business hotels with select services. The digital campaign was supplemented with print advertisements in the Travel + Leisure USA magazine.

The campaign is a continuation from its earlier days, back when the property was known as Hotel Central Fifth Avenue. The visual concept is a vivid New York City skyline illustration accompanied with animated graphics.

This subliminal message sells the property’s prime location as they are located right in the heart of New York City – perfect for the ones looking to experience the best of Manhattan and Times Square. Regardless of business or leisure travellers, they will find themselves being spoilt for choices with a myriad of activities in close proximity to the hotel; from intoxicating musicals at the Theatre District to eye-opening exhibitions at the Modern Museum of Art to quaint little shops in the Fashion District – the list just goes on and on.

Bearing in mind the diminishing attention span of the target audience, we kept the storytelling simple. The pre-launch teaser announcement that “transformation in progress” (for the previous Hotel Central) was followed by the actual launch advertisement stating “same great location; better New York experience”, linked by a single red thread transforming from randomity to the New York skyline illustrated. A clean layout with succinct messaging was the path we chose to go with. The approach was also in line with the overall brand direction for Citadines Connect.