Objective

Promote public transit in a one-day event organized by the Montreal Transit Commission.

Strategy

Demonstrate the benefits of Public Transit through high impact stunts and integrate relevant news content.

Plan

A multi-platform campaign was executed that engaged the city at a variety of touch points. On event day, the cover of Montréal's major daily (La Presse) was wrapped with the transit message. Inside, conventional advertising messages were integrated into journalistic content. In radio, a live morning show was aired from a double-decker bus. We pioneered a new type of product placement using traffic reporters to promote public transit. Environmentally-friendly billboards were also pulled along by bicycles.

Results

The transit event was the most successful in history, with an increase of 60% in attendance. And media coverage valued at 4 times the investment.

The campaign was awarded a Gold in the Public Service category at the 2006 Media Innovation Awards.