Atlantis
Atlantis
Atlantis
Endless summer vibes in paradise.
Endless summer vibes in paradise.
Endless summer vibes in paradise.
Industry
Hospitality
Role
Designer at ST8MNT
Team
Josh Newman – Creative Direction Scott Cameron – Business Development Parker Foote – Creative Direction, Design Emily Giglio – Project Management Grace Goga – Design Elle Sommerville – Design Sean Powell – Design
Deliverables
Campaign: Art Direction Key Art Design Copywriting/Messaging Display Ads (Animated & Static) Landing Page Social Media Content OOH/Billboard Email Print/Publication
Atlantis is a resort located on Paradise Island in The Bahamas. It features over five miles of beaches, the largest waterpark in the Caribbean and a vast selection of amenities. After developing a visual direction for Atlantis’ summer campaign, we designed a landing page to help promote the resort’s seasonal offerings and encourage users to explore its extensive range of opportunities.
Audience
The main audiences of the campaign were families seeking memorable vacations and couples looking for romantic escapes. We also considered small groups of friends in search of a fun summer getaway.
Audience 1
Audience 1
Families
Audience 2
Audience 2
Couples
Audience 3
Audience 3
Friends
Brand Attributes & Moodboard
Aqua resonance.
Our team was subsequently working on an identity project for a concert series hosted by Atlantis — although not selected for that particular project, one of the moodboards called “Aqua Resonance” was salvaged for the summer campaign.
Our team was subsequently working on an identity project for a concert series hosted by Atlantis — although not selected for that particular project, one of the moodboards called “Aqua Resonance” was salvaged for the summer campaign.
Campaign Concepts
Crafting summer in paradise.
The Atlantis identity was built from a fairly simple collection of elements, so we were given free rein to explore what a new campaign could look like without a long list of constraints. In fact, it was almost encouraged to make something that looked different and exciting next to existing brand applications.
Although the campaign’s working key message was “Summer is fun in paradise,” we were also given leeway to explore other messaging options. The three concepts we landed on were given the names Endless Summer, Stories of Paradise and Moments & Memories.
The Atlantis identity was built from a fairly simple collection of elements, so we were given free rein to explore what a new campaign could look like without a long list of constraints. In fact, it was almost encouraged to make something that looked different and exciting next to existing brand applications.
Although the campaign’s working key message was “Summer is fun in paradise,” we were also given leeway to explore other messaging options. The three concepts we landed on were given the names Endless Summer, Stories of Paradise and Moments & Memories.
Concept 1
Concept 1
Concept 1
Endless Summer
Endless summer fun at Atlantis is brought to life through sun-bleached imagery paired with vibrant colors and bold type. Unique headlines are used with each layout to allude to the unwavering thrill and relaxation that all audiences are guaranteed to experience.
Endless summer fun at Atlantis is brought to life through sun-bleached imagery paired with vibrant colors and bold type. Unique headlines are used with each layout to allude to the unwavering thrill and relaxation that all audiences are guaranteed to experience.
Concept 2
Concept 2
Concept 2
Stories of Paradise
Stories of Paradise utilizes a sequence of images within each layout to tell a more comprehensive story of summer experiences in paradise. The complimentary use of dispersed type and light texture would help emphasize the campaign’s fun and playful qualities.
Stories of Paradise utilizes a sequence of images within each layout to tell a more comprehensive story of summer experiences in paradise. The complimentary use of dispersed type and light texture would help emphasize the campaign’s fun and playful qualities.
Concept 3
Concept 3
Concept 3
Moments & Memories
Moments & Memories captures the spirit of Atlantis through imagery that represents the duality of memory and experience. Joyful closeups of families and couples, paired with beautiful natural scenery and attractions from around the resort, showcase the diverse landscape and exciting opportunities of Atlantis.
Moments & Memories captures the spirit of Atlantis through imagery that represents the duality of memory and experience. Joyful closeups of families and couples, paired with beautiful natural scenery and attractions from around the resort, showcase the diverse landscape and exciting opportunities of Atlantis.
Messaging
Rays for days.
With the approval of Concept 1, we brainstormed a variety of short phrases that communicated the core idea of “Endless Summer,” allowing the campaign to scale across each deliverable and target demographic. To compliment the large, bold sans serif letterforms of the campaign’s main headlines, additional phrases such as “Your sunsoaked summer awaits” or “Wish you were here” are set to the side in a delicate handwritten typeface as though it has been written on a postcard.
With the approval of Concept 1, we brainstormed a variety of short phrases that communicated the core idea of “Endless Summer,” allowing the campaign to scale across each deliverable and target demographic. To compliment the large, bold sans serif letterforms of the campaign’s main headlines, additional phrases such as “Your sunsoaked summer awaits” or “Wish you were here” are set to the side in a delicate handwritten typeface as though it has been written on a postcard.
Landing Page
A series of continuous marquees and sliders helped inform users of the resort in a way that felt truly unlimited.
In the site’s header section, we incorporated a text marquee that transitioned with a unique headline along with the relevant campaign imagery. Upon its launch, along with an array of other deliverables, the landing page successfully helped increase traffic to Atlantis’ main site and boost conversions for summer bookings.
In the site’s header section, we incorporated a text marquee that transitioned with a unique headline along with the relevant campaign imagery. Upon its launch, along with an array of other deliverables, the landing page successfully helped increase traffic to Atlantis’ main site and boost conversions for summer bookings.
Campaign Deliverables
Setting an endless summer in motion.
Although it was fairly smooth sailing from this point forward, our team faced one major final challenge – how to create animated html5 display ads. Since no one had experience making these in the past, a couple of us, including myself, took the challenge head-on and quickly learned how to use Adobe Animate. We were able to bring the typography and visual elements to life, creating a more dynamic campaign experience for Atlantis’ audience.
Although it was fairly smooth sailing from this point forward, our team faced one major final challenge – how to create animated html5 display ads. Since no one had experience making these in the past, a couple of us, including myself, took the challenge head-on and quickly learned how to use Adobe Animate. We were able to bring the typography and visual elements to life, creating a more dynamic campaign experience for Atlantis’ audience.
Conclusion
Collaboration for days, and endless room for growth.
This campaign was a fun and rewarding team effort. In my time at ST8MNT, it was one of the few projects where almost everyone had the opportunity to contribute. Internally, the process was very collaborative, and the Atlantis team was great to work with. It was also an exciting personal challenge to learn Adobe Animate and create html5 ads for the first time without a third party vendor.
As I look back and reflect on various stages of the process, there are several challenges we faced and areas where I have the opportunity to improve in the future:
It’s easy to look through a project brief and think, “I’ve got this – I know what I need to do here.” There may even be pressure to move forward as quickly as possible. But often, when it comes down to it, there can be a lot of vague information that hasn’t been clarified. For instance, a broad target audience listed as “All markets (Family, Couples, Friends)” leaves a huge amount of room for different interpretations. As a creative partner, there are times where diving into more detailed information and analytics about a project hasn’t been anticipated or factored into the scope of work – sometimes it’s necessary to simply work with what you have. For better or for worse, this was one of those projects. However, I still could have taken the initiative to at least ask for more details about the audience. This likely could have helped direct our focus and given us a more substantial justification for our decisions.
Another related challenge was the lack of access to insightful data throughout the course of the project. Without transparency about analytics through multiple rounds of critical feedback and creative output, it was difficult to know whether the campaign was actually resonating with our target audience. If the purpose of design is to creatively achieve a particular goal or solve a problem, in order to be truly successful, there needs to be a clear aim – I could have asked more effective questions about the project’s goals to help determine that aim from the beginning. Asking the right questions with a stronger emphasis on the “why” rather than just the “what” could have improved our strategy and helped establish more effective talking points upon the project’s conclusion.
This campaign was a fun and rewarding team effort. In my time at ST8MNT, it was one of the few projects where almost everyone had the opportunity to contribute. Internally, the process was very collaborative, and the Atlantis team was great to work with. It was also an exciting personal challenge to learn Adobe Animate and create html5 ads for the first time without a third party vendor.
As I look back and reflect on various stages of the process, there are several challenges we faced and areas where I have the opportunity to improve in the future:
It’s easy to look through a project brief and think, “I’ve got this – I know what I need to do here.” There may even be pressure to move forward as quickly as possible. But often, when it comes down to it, there can be a lot of vague information that hasn’t been clarified. For instance, a broad target audience listed as “All markets (Family, Couples, Friends)” leaves a huge amount of room for different interpretations. As a creative partner, there are times where diving into more detailed information and analytics about a project hasn’t been anticipated or factored into the scope of work – sometimes it’s necessary to simply work with what you have. For better or for worse, this was one of those projects. However, I still could have taken the initiative to at least ask for more details about the audience. This likely could have helped direct our focus and given us a more substantial justification for our decisions.
Another related challenge was the lack of access to insightful data throughout the course of the project. Without transparency about analytics through multiple rounds of critical feedback and creative output, it was difficult to know whether the campaign was actually resonating with our target audience. If the purpose of design is to creatively achieve a particular goal or solve a problem, in order to be truly successful, there needs to be a clear aim – I could have asked more effective questions about the project’s goals to help determine that aim from the beginning. Asking the right questions with a stronger emphasis on the “why” rather than just the “what” could have improved our strategy and helped establish more effective talking points upon the project’s conclusion.
A positive response goes a long way.
Despite the challenges and personal learning opportunities, the project was successful in the sense that the client was happy with the work we produced and wanted to continue the engagement past the end of the campaign. Even if the engagement wasn’t based on shared metrics, there was validation in the client’s reaction to our work and desire to involve us in future brand executions.
Despite the challenges and personal learning opportunities, the project was successful in the sense that the client was happy with the work we produced and wanted to continue the engagement past the end of the campaign. Even if the engagement wasn’t based on shared metrics, there was validation in the client’s reaction to our work and desire to involve us in future brand executions.
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