Objective
In the markets covered by VIA Rail, Canada's national rail passenger service, the car is the fastest option when the road conditions are ideal. Most of the time however, when traffic and bad weather get in the way, the train becomes the best solution. When consumers plan a trip from Point A to Point B, their primary concern is to have the shortest travel time. This is a global truth, but it is especially powerful in Canada because its vast territories can make travel time even longer. Because of their unconditional love of cars, drivers tend to be overly optimistic about how long it actually takes to get somewhere by car, failing to factor real-time road conditions into their calculations.

The way to success

Train ridership YOY
+12%
Revenues YOY
+14%
Conversion rate YOY
+14%
The big idea
The campaign strategy was to leverage real-time traffic and weather data to maximize the relevance of the message for motorists. We compared real-time travel information for both transportation options: when traffic or bad weather conditions arise, drivers were reminded they took the wrong transportation mode.
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The execution

Partnerships with Google Maps and the Weather Network made our data strategy come to life. We created programming interfaces specifically for this campaign and integrated the data feed at each touch point, enabling the real-time data management and synchronization across all out-of-home and digital channels.

Our challenge was to provide drivers with real-time traffic information on each of the 16 stretches of highways covered by VIA Rail.

At any given point in time, the message was customized to each consumer. It took into consideration their current geo-position, their predicted end destination and real-time traffic and weather data.

Execution

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Before

We identified drivers about to travel by targeting those who looked up for weather or traffic information for a destination outside their home town with digital banners and SEM communicating real-time travel times for car versus train.

During

With digital out-of-home, we covered all of the major highways between Quebec City and Toronto. The message was adapted in real-time, displaying the estimated arrival time based on the location of each sign and current traffic conditions. Because it was based on the geo-location of each board, the message was always customized.

After

We leveraged our out-of-home partnership to collect all the mobile deviceIDs of drivers exposed to the advertising as well as drivers who were stuck in traffic jams. We then re-targeted these drivers as they arrived at their destination, displaying a personalized message that reminded them of the frustration of being stuck in traffic and the benefits of taking the train.

A succesful campaign

Cannes
2018
Best in Travel
Cannes
2018
Data - Real-Time Data
Festival of Media Global
2018
Cristal Festival
2018
Media Innovation Awards
2018
Prix Média Infopresse
2018
Meilleure utilisation des données de la recherche
M&M Global Awards
2018
Creative use of Data
CMA Awards
2018
Creative use of Data
Client testimonial
The strength of this campaign lies in the holistic view of the media ecosystem from Touché!, their understanding of the state of mind of motorists in organizing their intercity travel and the development of highly innovative media solutions. As a result, surgical interventions with highly qualified motorist audiences have been possible. Through their data analysis and logical orchestration of media, the train's benefits have been amplified at key moments, leaving a strong emotional footprint that increases the train's rate of consideration for future trips. All of this in a nice working atmosphere levelling up. Simon Y. Parent Principal director, Marketing and Optimization

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