A Project That Almost Never Happened
July 11, 2012. 12:50 pm CST. I receive an email from Regina Breaugh—a name I’ve never heard or read—with the subject line “Marketing Team looking for Agency Partner”. Given the volume of junk mail I receive, not to mention the number of junk messages I’ve received with similar subject lines, I almost delete it. The thought still makes me shudder.
Turns-out Regina (Senior Marketing Manager with Baymont Inn & Suites in Parsippany, NJ) has been referred to us by her colleague Kristie Cain—whom I have also never met, but who’s nevertheless recommended us because her good friend (our beloved client and former AE) Chris Lambert said really nice things about us in the past. And yes, Regina’s team is looking for an Agency Partner.
February 15, 2013. 11:07 am EST. Delta flight 401 lands in Newark carrying Yours Truly. I’m headed to Parsippany, and a Strategic Planning meeting with several members of Baymont Inn’s Executive Team. Together, we’re producing a video to celebrate the efforts Baymont owners and employees routinely undertake to create special connections with their guests.
I’ve come equipped with a number of thoughts on how this video should be done, but it doesn’t take long to see that Baymont’s team has a lot of their own ideas. And here’s the truly amazing part: I like nearly all of their suggestions. No kidding.
Location shoots follow in Chicago and Atlanta—with Yours Truly directing the performances. Over the next few months, new ideas for the video emerge, one after another, through an agency-client working relationship that’s as pleasant and productive as they come.
Needless to say, we’re genuinely proud to be associated with everyone we’ve met at Baymont Inn & Suites. From the corner office in Parsippany to the front desk in Houma, Louisiana, “Hometown Hospitality” really is more than a slogan for Baymont people; it’s who they are.