Broken Heart Love Affair’s hot streak is carrying over into 2021 as it has won new business south of the border with Internova Travel Group.
The assignment will begin with a campaign that will roll out this spring in New York and the California area, says co-chief creative officer Carlos Moreno.
Internova is an international network of travel agencies, including Nexion, All-Star Travel Group and Travel Leaders. It does business in the United States, Canada, Mexico and 80 other countries, though BHLA’s first assignment with the company is focusing on a campaign for the U.S. market.
Though yet to be launched, the campaign – the company’s first – will focus on the benefits of booking travel with Internova, which uses a person-to-person approach, instead of through online services. It will include an online piece that is being handled by BHLA’s sister company, Lifelong Crush.
“Nobody has really done anything where you can bring awareness to the idea of the benefits of using a human being when it comes to booking your travel experience, especially when you are spending a good chunk of money on it,” Moreno says. “That’s going to be our job: how do we encourage people to travel with people?”
Though business in travel and tourism has been hurt due to the pandemic – and recovery isn’t likely until people can vacation safely – the last nine months have also shown where opportunities in the sector lie. According to BHLA’s chief business officer, Bev Hammond, Internova is positioned well to promote a new message after people had poor experiences booking travel through online services in 2020.
“Travellers discovered some of the limitations of booking without humans in the last year when trips were cancelled. There was a lot of learning, and I think there’s a real opportunity for the client now,” she says. “People are ready to hear it.”
“Nothing is normal anymore, we don’t know how things are going to evolve — especially in the travel industry,” Moreno adds. “But I think the differentiation that Internova brings to the table is going to be beneficial to a lot of people out there.”
On the campaign, BHLA will work with media agency Wavemaker. The two agencies pitched Internova together after having worked on other assignments together in the past.
The Internova win is the latest in a string of victories for BHLA since it launched last year, which most recently included a brand strategy assignment with rewards program Air Miles in December.
