Phil Vassar and Little Big Town say: “It’s time to wake up!”

by nicole ~ September 23, 2008

Just to be clear on where my biases may lay, I had no idea who Phil Vassar and Little Big Town were until I read this article.

Now that we have that out of the way, this New York Times article reports on a new Red Roof Inn marketing campaign, which is directly targeted towards country music fans.  As part of their campaign, dubbed “Red Roof Loves Country” they have launched a new site, which includes videos and music from country stars like Little Big Town, Phil Vassar and KingBilly. Not only can you book a room through the site, but also see where these country stars are playing next so you can plan your vacation.

If you call Red Roof Inn or are a guest requesting a wake- up call, you can expect to hear the voices of Phil Vassar or Little Big Town on the other end of the line.  They’ll tell you either to “please hold” or “wake up” and then, of course, will let you know about their videos and interviews on Red Roof’s new site (you can preview these phone messages on the New York Times site).

According to the article in the Times using country music as part of marketing campaigns is gaining popularity:

“The campaign is another example of a long-popular trend of marketers’ turning to country music to appeal to consumers. Recent examples include a fragrance from Coty, named after the singer Tim McGraw, and a reality series, ‘Nashville Star,’ on NBC.”

As the article states, using country music to attract consumers isn’t anything new, but will it work for Red Roof? During tough economic times companies are doing all they can to keep steady business, but is music the answer?  While more families are staying home now instead of going on vacation will they be influenced by a jingle, or solely by price?  Also, while country music is very popular in the United States, will it work in all regions?  I’m a bit a skeptical…