Hull Trains: Restoring confidence in public transport post pandemic

Client: Hull Trains

Scope: Creative, Research & Strategy, Media & Communications

Understanding the client

Hull Trains is an open-access railway operator that operates long-distance passenger service trains between Hull, Beverley, and London King’s Cross.

With travel restrictions easing, Hull Trains were keen to connect friends and loved ones once more. The long summer days and warmer weather represented the ideal opportunity to re-ignite travel inspiration with their customers.

Gathering insights and expertise

Hull Trains was an established brand keen to re-establish itself in the eyes of its customers and bolster ticket sales for what would typically be one of their busiest periods. The campaign needed a multi-pronged communications strategy and an integrated approach which leveraged the emotional pull to reconnect with family, friends, and loved ones following an extended period of lockdowns. The objective was to target family and friend audience types with a heart-felt creative backed up by a compelling offer that would inspire travel and deliver real ticket sales.

Collaborating to meet objectives

CWA worked closely with Hull Trains’ team to set out objectives, identify challenges, and map out a social and PR strategy.

We worked with the client to create content that would help communicate the campaign’s key message, including high-impact emotive headlines and imagery re-igniting the desire to travel through compelling offers. Creating relevance through key visuals, the campaign targeted the two different audiences with specific imagery and messaging to turn intent into purchase.

Delivering added-value results

Crucially, CWA developed a framework to turn strategy into deliverables. The campaign utilised key media placements to generate brand awareness with a targeted digital approach delivering real leads.

Social media was pivotal in targeting key audiences in relevant locations, using personalised content tailored to each audience group.

Further fuelling this approach was video content, filmed in Hull where the public was asked what they looked forward to most now they could travel. Capturing the hopes and desires of the public, this video content was shot and edited for use on social media and became part of CWA’s PR approach to leverage the longing for travel and how Hull Trains can enable this.

The collaboration between CWA and Hull trains helped bolster ticket sales and re-ignite a love for travel in the brand’s customers. We reached 410,000 people across select social media channels and more than 55,000 with our VoxPox campaign. Our campaign click-through rate was significantly higher than the industry average, resulting in higher engagement levels and more ticket sales for Hull Trains.