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Royal Caribbean target teens with ‘awesome’ YouTube campaign
Royal Caribbean said it has taken some funds earmarked for TV advertising and used it instead to sponsor two series for Youtube network AwesomenessTV.
It is a brave move for the cruise line to invest heavily with a teen-focused network, however Carol Schuster, senior VP marketing at Royal Caribbean believes teenagers have a big influence in family vacation choices.
"Teens are our sweet spot from a guest perspective and they really get the most out of our ships." Schuster said.
"We did take money from our TV budget to do this," she said, adding that "a sizable investment" has been made for the two series.
The first airs on July 6 and features AwesomenessTV star Josh Levya aboard a Royal Caribbean ship trying out the ship surf simulator and the world’s longest zip line on water.
Then, beginning August a scripted show entitled "Shipping Julia" will premiere, which will follow a Romeo and Juliet-style romance set on a Royal Caribbean cruise.
Royal Caribbean spent a total of $45.6 million on TV advertising during 2013.
The AwesomenessTV network of YouTube channels attracted almost 8 million unique viewers during May and was acquired last year by DreamWorks Animation – a Royal Caribbean content partner.
AwesomenessTV has also produced a series of 30-second ads for Royal Caribbean that will be aired across its YouTube network and may even be rolled out as TV ads, Schuster said.
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