The Boar’s Head Inn in Charlottesville, Virginia occupies a particular position in the Mid-Atlantic hospitality landscape — a AAA Four Diamond country resort affiliated with the University of Virginia, set against the Blue Ridge Mountains, with an Old Mill Room dining room that had earned 16 consecutive Four Diamond awards, an intimate spa, championship golf, and meeting facilities capable of hosting groups that demand both professional-grade conference infrastructure and the kind of unhurried elegance that only a genuine country inn provides. The positioning line said it plainly: a country resort at the University of Virginia. The creative challenge was to make each of the inn’s distinct offerings feel like the primary reason to go — without any of them contradicting the others.
Serving as creative director, account executive, and photography director as a contractor through The Meridian Group, I developed and produced a segmented print advertising campaign system built around a single unifying campaign line: “It’s at the heart of our charming inn.” The line did precisely what a good campaign line should — it answered every question the campaign asked while reinforcing the inn’s essential character with each repetition. Each ad led with a direct question addressed to a specific audience motivation, then answered it with the same quiet confidence.
For the leisure escape market: “Looking for a Captivating Blue Ridge Resort Escape?” For the meetings market: “Looking for an Unrivaled Resort Meeting Destination?” For the dining market: “Looking for an Epicurean Destination?” — with the Old Mill Room’s 16 consecutive AAA Four Diamond Awards doing the persuasion work in the body copy. For the spa market: “Looking for Your Own Personal Oasis?” — accompanied by a $99 Lavender Salt Body Scrub promotional piece that made the spa feel accessible as well as luxurious. Rate promotional executions — Summer Midweek Rates from $139, Summer Sunday Brunch at $49 — completed the system, giving the campaign direct response capability alongside the brand advertising.
Photography direction was conducted on location at the resort — a more extensive production than the parallel Kingsmill Resort engagement, involving both property photography and model setups across the guest rooms, the Old Mill Room dining room, the spa treatment areas, the fireside sitting areas, and the grounds. Each setup was directed to carry the warmth, intimacy, and unhurried quality that the campaign line promised. The photography didn’t illustrate the ads. It was the ads.
Creative Direction, Photography Direction, Account Executive, Print Advertising, Rate Promotional Advertising, Segmented Market Campaigns, Print Production Management