Putting industry verification on every host’s and paying traveller’s radar.

I-PRAC has invested hundreds of thousands of pounds in creating an industry-first verification platform, as well as the tools and resources property hosts need, to grow their short-term rental business.

The brand is big on education. When legitimate operators become I-PRAC verified, via an online application, they receive thorough guidance from I-PRAC’s team, to ensure they’re leveraging their accreditation efficiently – and generating more direct bookings as a result.

As such, the business model is simple. The more members I-PRAC has, the greater the company’s revenue; and the greater the chances of the short-term rental industry being rid of con artists.

There is a moral, feel-good element to I-PRAC; and so, partnering with the brand feels like partnering with a genuinely good cause.

For this project, I-PRAC asked us to craft a narrative for a video advert that would be shared across a global audience of travellers and property hosts. The end goal here was two fold: First, to show travellers the peace of mind that comes with booking accommodation that is I-PRAC verified.

And secondly, to encourage more legitimate operators to pay for verification, and use their I-PRAC membership to attract more bookings.

Our first concept meeting was a bonfire of ideas. There was much to be said about the traditional explainer video (a smartly dressed person, methodically explaining the benefits of verification). But we knew in order to influence the actions of millions of guests and short-term rental hosts, we would need to influence their emotions first.

We decided to do this with a heartwarming story.

Nostalgic, dopamine-creating content, so consumers bond with I-PRAC.

When a person watches a film, shot from the point of view of the main character, they immediately put themselves in the protagonist’s shoes.

This is a proven, scientific theory and what storytellers refer to as ‘transportation’. We see what the main character is doing in a story, and imagine ourselves going through the same experience ourselves.

In order for I-PRAC’s advert to tug at people’s heartstrings (as we wanted), it was important for us to tell the story of a character who is easy to relate to. We decided this character would be a child – because not only would this child be endearing to watch, they would also serve viewers with a healthy dose of nostalgia. That ‘take-me-back-to-my-childhood’ feeling, which puts people in an optimum position to trust and buy.

During the storyboarding phase, we mapped out a story of a young boy who longs to play football with his parents. However, the young boy’s parents are most often distracted due to busy lives – and more specifically, the stress of booking a family stay with a short-term rental host they do not 100% trust.

By the end of the advert, the family is seen checking into an I-PRAC verified property. The parents appear relaxed and more present with their son – who is delighted to have his Dad kick his football back to him. The story pays homage to the value of peace of mind and quality time with loved ones. This is one of the most meaningful benefits of booking with I-PRAC verified hosts; and as such, the advert shows consumers what I-PRAC as a brand enables people to do. It is about so much more than accreditation.

Directing 5 year-old Bryson and family, over a creative 2-day shoot.

Once our story had been approved by I-PRAC, it was crunch time. We spent weeks looking for (and securing) the best acting talent in the West Midlands. Our team purposefully reached out to actors from ethnic minority backgrounds, as there is little representation of people of colour in the wider travel and leisure industry.

The Lammy family kindly allowed us to shoot large parts of the advert from their home. As you often find in projects like these, we had to get creative for certain parts of the shoot as well. This included asking a homeowner from across the street if we could feature the outside of their house as the (fictional) I-PRAC Verified holiday home, which would appear at the end of the advert. Thankfully, the locals of Coventry are co-operative people.

Shooting was spread across two days, with the team at LRB Media taking care of all the technicalities to a T. In this time, we even managed to film a montage to visually represent the passage of time – this leaned into our idea of the main character excitedly counting down the days to his family holiday. The experience of working with Bryson (age 5) was pure joy; and his real-life and on-screen parents were brilliant at helping us direct him, where needed.

A number of viewers have praised the attention to detail in this advert. This might not have been the case if we hadn’t spent a large amount of time in the planning stages: Briefing actors on costume, staging every scene, and buying the necessary props (including a dinosaur themed toothbrush for young Bryson) to help us get our story across as authentically as possible.

A heart-winning advert, that makes consumers take transactional action.

At the time of going live, all 14829 I-PRAC verified members were celebrated for their continued contribution to supporting the short-term rental industry. The story of Bryson beamed across social media timelines. Those who did not know what I-PRAC was, educated themselves about it immediately; and just over 50% of those who did, signed up for I-PRAC verification. This has added lifetime fiscal value to the business; and will only continue to increase as I-PRAC carries on sharing this evergreen advert across its global channels.

The fruits of our creative labour can be found here. We give special thanks to Bryson and his parents, and the LRB Media team – especially Luke Barnett.