Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Holidays are to launch multimillion pound marketing campaigns in back-to-back TV adverts during The X Factor on Saturday.
The campaigns are the first to be worked on in tandem following the consolidation of the brands’ creative output with agency AMV BBDO in March.
Each has a separate brand message and visuals but has been designed to complement the other. Both feature “hyper-real and playful” imagery used to establish the concept of a “magical departure from the ordinary”.
The Virgin Atlantic campaign is based around the brand ‘Depart The Everyday’ and marks the airline’s return to TV advertising alongside print, radio, digital and social activity. Adverts feature actual cabin crew who took part in an internal audition process.
Consumer-facing activity will be supported by a trade campaign, with agents encouraged to engage with the new brand and make sales to win prizes.
The Virgin Holidays campaign features the brand “The World is your Playground” and will be extended across the operator’s retail estate.
Both campaigns will focus on key destinations including New York, Las Vegas and Florida, with an increased focus on the US West Coast and creative options for the Virgin Holidays campaign including the Caribbean.
The two brands said the investment in the brand “refresh” was part of a focused growth strategy and greater collaboration between the businesses.
Amber Kirby, Virgin Holidays marketing and customer director, said: “The start of the process was looking at the two brands and establishing their relationship – are we cousins, brother and sister or even twins.
“The consensus was that we were cousins, with distinct identities and different jobs to do, but with a lot of common ground around the Virgin experience and sense of service which begins on a Virgin Atlantic flight and continues in the destination.”
Andy Reekie, senior consumer marketing manager for Virgin Atlantic, added: “We had various concepts on the table but this idea of playfulness and other-worldliness was the one that researched best.”
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