Thomson Holidays is launching a £5 million advertising campaign more than two months before the traditional turn-of-year period.
The Tui Travel-owned tour operator’s biggest-ever branding campaign will make its TV debut on October 22, with a 90 second advertisement during ITV1’s X Factor.
Traditionally, major operators launch their sales campaigns on Boxing Day to tap into the peak New Year booking period and their campaigns are kept a closely-guarded secret in the run-up to Christmas.
Thomson’s campaign runs until May 2012 and will feature across TV, cinemas, online and national newspapers.
It features a young boy talking about what is important in life and why time together is so special. Filmed at a variety of Thomson resorts, it encourages viewers to switch off and focus on the importance of spending time with loved ones.
In the ad, the boy says: “Time. So much to answer for. Never enough hours in the day. Not enough days in the week. It’s time you put down your phone and held your loved one’s hand. Those close to you; share with them a week or two and they’ll cherish it forever.”
Music accompanying the ad is an orchestral arrangement of The Pixies track “Where is My Mind” by acclaimed producer Guy Farley.
Thomson’s head of marketing Jeremy Ellis said: “This campaign is the biggest and boldest Thomson has ever embarked on. As a company we pride ourselves on understanding our customers better than anyone else and we know how important quality time is.”