CASE STUDY
Luminous, Legendary – Marrakech
Incentive Trip Branding
Each year, this luxury automotive company rewards its top dealers with an exclusive trip to motivate performance and celebrate their achievements. Morley partners with this client to coordinate the year-long incentive program and plans the trip. As part of Morley’s inhouse creative studio, I collaborated with another designer and creative director to develop the branding for this trip to Marrakech, Morocco. This project captures the luxury and sophistication of the client’s brand while celebrating Moroccan culture and craftsmanship.
Campaign Development
Creating the trip branding began with researching the destination. The goal was to create a flexible system of graphic elements for use across a variety of collateral items that would serve as an extension of the client’s brand and capture the unique spirit of Marrakech. The resulting campaign was inspired the following architectural and cultural symbols which are deeply rooted in Moroccan culture. Each element also took on a symbolic meaning for retailers who attended this trip.
Riads
The luxury hotel where participants stayed, originally a palace, was designed around several riads, or internal courtyards. These lavishly decorated private riads represent the height of Moroccan luxury. They are quiet, secluded retreats in the middle of a bustling city. I thoughtfully designed these pieces to reflect the craftmanship and luxury of this environment.
Logo Design
After identifying these significant cultural symbols, my team and I developed multiple logo options for our client to review. Our client selected this logo, which I created. To complement the logos from two previous trips, this trip logo needed to be circular and have a strong central focal point surrounded by text. I chose a lantern illuminating the shape of an arch as the focal point to set the stage for the luxury experience that participants earned.
Pre-trip Mailer
The bulk of the campaign collateral was designed in two phases: a pre-trip mailer that participants receive before the trip, and a series of items that participants receive while they are on the trip. The pre-trip mailer was designed to prepare participants for the trip to come, providing a taste of the luxury experience that awaited. Participants received a large box with two smaller boxes inside. I created a lantern illustration and geometric pattern for the interior boxes. The tone-on-tone black pattern was inspired by the shadows cast by lanterns and by geometric tile work. Inside the boxes was an assortment of gifts, accompanied by a congratulatory note.
Travel Guide
The boxes also contained a travel guide with important trip information. On previous trips, travel guides were tall, narrow, spiral-bound books with tabbed sections. The previous format was functional, but didn’t align with the client’s high-end brand, so for this trip, I reformatted the travel guide to give it a premium feel. I changed the orientation from portrait to landscape, removed the tabs, and swapped spiral binding for a cleaner looking saddle stitch. I also added a soft-touch finish and copper foil on the front and applied a grid-based editorial layout to the interior pages to create a true luxury feel. Along with the print version, I developed an interactive flipping book version for participants to access from anywhere.
On-site Collateral
The branded experience continued on site in Marrakech. I designed a suite of collateral which was produced utilizing a soft-touch finish and spot gloss coatings. Upon arrival, participants received a folder containing an arch-shaped card with welcome message and additional cards containing personalized schedules for the trip. Each night, participants received themed gifts which were accompanied by pre-printed notes and, on one night, personalized labels for perfume. Travel staff also had blank notecards on site to write additional notes to participants. Event signage further incorporated the lantern motif and patterns. The experience culminated in a final night dinner under the stars where name cards, menus, and custom menu pockets continued the theme.