Yatra.com Unveils New Digital Campaign #ReasonToTravel

Yatra.com, one of India’s leading travel portals, has launched latest digital campaign ‘Reason to Travel’. The campaign aims to promote travel in the post-pandemic world. It is encouraging people to travel not just for essential work, but also to take a break. The reasons range from visiting one’s girlfriend or getting dumped to going back home and eating maa ke haath ka khana.

Unfortunately, the pandemic put a lid on the buzz. No more travel, not even to the next district without a thousand thoughts about health and safety and infection running through your mind first.

The campaign has been conceptualised by Indian Storytellers. As a prelude to the digital campaign, the company is running contests on their social media platforms asking individuals to share their own #ReasonToTravel and win gift vouchers. The brand film has been launched on social media channels.

This ‘confessional’ ad has people revealing their reasons to travel, made by an agency called Indian Story Tellers. One wanted to travel back home to his mom’s home-cooked food, someone else had to travel to attend his own wedding while another must travel to meet his girlfriend or else a breakup will ensue… the reasons were aplenty.

Commenting on this new campaign, Shweta Singhal, head of marketing & new business initiatives, Yatra.com, “Over the last couple of years, we have seen that the pace of urban life drove Indians to take frequent, short vacations to break the monotony of their daily lives. However, due to the COVID – 19 pandemic, individuals were unable to travel. The campaign #ReasonToTravel spreads the message that it is time to travel again and aims to rekindle the desire to be on the move.”

To understand this communication better, we spoke to Carlton D’Silva, co-founder, House of Awe, who remarked, “It’s really strange to see an ad out for a travel brand because let’s face it … The skies are really not open.” He further said that when it comes to the ad, clearly it’s quite fake… “get everyone to a single location, everyone gives a good reason to travel and then pepper it with a few ridiculous ones … and oh not to forget we are oblivious of the pandemic cause there is not a mask in sight even if it’s in a working environment!”

Granted its an ad and we need to see them speak but then in times like these what is the message we are sending? “They could have done the same in a closed environment but they chose to make this ad in a working environment with people around. Bad choices all around,” signed off D’Silva.