AdAge Small Agency of the Year
what we did
industry
travel
collateral
brand identity
digital
television
out of home
modes activated
browsing
exploring
planning
the challenge
The Alaska Railroad was competing against other leading means of transportation for fully independent travelers: car rentals and tour buses. They were faster, less expensive, and provided more flexibility. Our task was to increase train ridership and sales by seven percent during peak season.
we were curious
We began researching our target, the bucket list traveler, and came to an interesting realization.
The very things that could be considered a negative were very much a positive for them. The slower pace of a train ride gave riders a backstage pass to Alaska, enabling them to savor every view they’d never be able to see on a well-paved public road. In short, for this group, the journey was equally as important as the destination.
genuine human understanding
Bucket lists are extremely personal.
They represent a passion to experience something in a whole new way. There’s a lot to see in Alaska and those who embark on a journey here want to pack in as many memories as possible. Yet as one traveler put it, “The experience was unreal. I couldn’t catch it all on my phone.”
the wild idea
You can’t capture all the places the railroad traverses in a single shot, so we decided not to even try.
Instead, we created almost surreal imagery that captured the bigger value the train offered over a car or bus. It’s something that can only be found far, far from ordinary.
the result
Revenue increased by 23% YoY
Online sales exceeded goal by 40%