South Western Railway Tells Customers to 'Seize the Day Trip' with Integrated Campaign by Engine

South Western Railway has launched a major new brand campaign created by Engine, the global marketing services network, as it tells customers to “seize the day trip”.

 

South Western Railway is the new franchise recently taken over by FirstGroup and MTR which has pledged to deliver £1.2bn investment across the network

 

Engine’s fully integrated campaign runs for two months and is delivered across print, digital, out-of-home advertising, consumer PR, social media, TV and radio. The campaign is flighted in two phases. The first phase — launching the new brand identity, brand ambition, and objectives for the franchise over the next few years — kicked off on September 4th. The second phase, which will be live from September 22nd, encourages leisure travellers to ‘seize the day trip’ by taking a South Western Railway train to one of the hundreds of destinations along the network.

Engine won the business following a competitive pitch in June. It represents a strengthening of its relationship with 70% franchise owner FirstGroup following Engine’s continued success delivering brand and PR activity for TransPennine Express, which it pitched and won at the start of 2016.

 

The work was produced by Engine agencies WCRS, Mischief, MHP, NuFu and Fuel and runs with the line “The journey starts here.”

 

The line is indicative of South Western Railways marketing ambitions; to excite customers about the improvements and innovation coming; to invite people to think about the ease and accessibility of the train as the starting point for an exciting day trip; and to rally the staff and stakeholders involved in the improvements taking place over the next seven years.

To bring the campaign to life, South Western Railway has worked with top industry talent: Film Director Simon Ratigan and photographer Arnel DeSerra have produced films and images which capture the mood and character of the quintessentially British destinations served by the franchise.

 

Engine has embraced SWR’s new brand identity and logo to deliver a clean, crisp art direction, with a friendly tone of voice and brand imagery. This creates a distinctly fresh feel for the brand as it embarks on its programme of change in the coming years.

 

Joost Noordewier, Commercial and Business Development Director at South Western Railway, said: “Our new brand campaign represents a fresh direction to market South Western Railway. The journey we’re on really does start here. Our £1.2bn investment in new trains and services will deliver noticeable improvements for all our customers over the next few years, making it even easier for people to connect to the best our region has to offer. Engine has developed a strong campaign identity for the new brand, which will become more and more recognisable over time.”

 

Rob Carter, Client Managing Director at Engine, said: “It’s not often you have the privilege to establish a new brand from a standing start. In a category that can be prone to hyperbole, Engine deliberately set out to deliver a campaign whose strength comes through its simplicity, honesty, authenticity and charm. This is a seamlessly integrated, exciting campaign for a business that will improve train travel across the south western network.”

 

Further work will launch over the coming months.