Tui brand awareness ‘same level as Thomson’

Speaking exclusively to TTG at the Tui Retail Conference 2018 in Sarigerme, Turkey, last week, Katie McAlister explained that since last year’s Tui marketing campaign around the name change, brand awareness for Tui in the UK was “close to 50%” – the same level achieved by Thomson.

The campaign reinforced Tui’s new branding with the slogan: “We cross the Ts, dot the Is and put U in the middle”.

McAlister explained that Tui’s latest marketing campaign, launched last month, is intended to “deepen the relationship with customers and make them love the brand”.

“Year one’s campaign was more functional and established the brand. With year two, we have used emotion to tell the story of the benefits of taking a Tui holiday,” said McAlister.

The new advertising campaign focuses on the relationship between a mother and a teenage daughter.

At the start, the teenager is bored and plays on her phone, but by the end of the advert she is dancing and laughing and hugs her mother.

McAlister added that the campaign creative, produced by agency Y&R, was the result of extensive consumer research. It revealed the importance of “reuniting and spending time together on holiday” she said.

There will be different executions of the creative, including a version targeting couples. These will go live over Christmas and run through to January for peaks. It will also feature in print and on social media channels.

McAlister, who was promoted to chief marketing officer in June and whose remit was recently extended to sales, said some of the main preoccupations for marketers today were “prioritisation” within the digital marketing sphere, and ensuring advertising is targeted.

“It’s clear who our customers are and what they want,” she said. “Now it’s about making our messaging consistent and personalised.”