This Canadian Postsecondary Institution Celebrated the Polytechnic Difference
According to the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada, the country has 223 public and private universities, and 213 public colleges and institutes. That’s a lot of options when it comes to a postsecondary education!
Of course, while the luxury of choice is nice for prospective students, it can be awfully difficult for various schools to properly stand out amidst the crowd. After all, if each chooses to run its own marketing initiatives and make noise, it stands to reason that it’d take a very special campaign indeed to cut through and buy its share of the attention pie.
This is exactly what Seneca Polytechnic, alongside partner agency Ultralight Creative, were aware of when taking on the task of launching a new platform across TV, online and out-of-home. Aiming to emphasise not just what makes Seneca special, but answer the question of ‘Why Seneca?’, the result was ‘This is Seneca Polytechnic’, a campaign which demonstrates how Seneca connects its approach to education with the ambitions of its students.
Centred around Seneca’s graduates from across different fields, the work – in particular, the hero spot – intentionally moved away from documentary-style storytelling, opting in favour of a sleek edit and strong sound design. Narrated by Seneca’s president, David Agnew, it not only serves as a standout piece of creative in a category that can often fall into the sea of sameness, but a new definition for the institution – a reminder of what makes Seneca and its approach to polytechnic education stand out.
To learn more about how this came to life from both a strategic and creative perspective, LBB’s Jordan Won Neufeldt sat down with Seneca Polytechnic’s vice-president, strategy and brand, Renata D’Innocenzo, as well as Ultralight Creative’s founder and CCO, Matt Hassell, for a chat.
LBB> Breaking through in a very competitive category is no small task! As such, what was the brief, and what immediate ideas came to mind?
Renata> With ‘This is Seneca Polytechnic’, we were looking to evolve our marketing approach, building on the successes of past campaigns such as ’Challenge Accepted’ and ’Driven by Ambition’. All these campaigns have had one thing in common: a focus on our graduates and their career accomplishments.
For ’This is Seneca Polytechnic’, it was important to define the Seneca Polytechnic difference, so we decided to go even bolder, focusing on ownable, strong messages that define ‘polytechnic’, and big, bold visuals. This ‘seeing is believing’ approach was tailored to capture attention across online, broadcast and out-of-home.
Matt> Right away, we knew the heart of the story had to be ambition – both the institution’s and the students’. There’s nothing more compelling than that energy. It’s what drives people forward, and we wanted to capture that feeling in a way that would resonate.
LBB> Specifically, what made you want to address the question of ‘Why Seneca’? What made this the right way to stand out in a very competitive category?
Renata> Seneca rebranded as a polytechnic in 2023, and other schools soon followed. With the polytechnic landscape in Canada rapidly becoming more crowded, when we started to discuss concepts for our 2025 campaign, we immediately knew we had to put a strong focus on the value of a polytechnic education – specifically, a polytechnic education at Seneca. ‘This is Seneca Polytechnic’ was the result, and already, the campaign has helped redefine who we are.
LBB> In many ways, the name of the campaign is more than a slogan – it represents your approach to education. Tell us more about this! What should more Canadians know about your institution?
Renata> ‘This is Seneca Polytechnic’ is a statement that not only speaks to the value of a Seneca education, but the importance of providing our students with the skills to make them career-ready and world-ready. Our institution strives to meet students where they are, delivering personalised education that works for them and build the skills they need to excel in their careers. The bespoke approach to education is one of the things we do best at Seneca.
To encompass all this, we aimed to be direct and concise with our messaging in this campaign, using bold, clear language and impactful visuals to promote the best of Seneca to students, employers and partners. Each of the five statements used in the campaign were carefully chosen to define what our target could expect from a Seneca education. For us, the campaign very much defines who we are, and doesn’t just promote what we do.
LBB> Notably, you utilised AI-infused insights mixed with strategy to get to this core idea. Tell us about this process! How did it inform your key takeaways?
Matt> We always start with strategy. Before jumping into execution, we worked with the client to define exactly what needed to be said. From there, we used AI in a really interesting way. First, we fed AI images of our brainstorm stickies and notes to help organise and synthesise key themes quickly. Then, we trained our own AI models to behave like our target audiences, using them almost like an additional voice in the room that could help us see if we were landing the right messages. It wasn’t about AI making decisions for us, but about expanding our thinking and refining our ideas before moving into creative development.
LBB> Building on this, how did these refined ideas guide your creative approach? And what made the decision to move away from documentary-style storytelling the right one for this opportunity?
Matt> When it came to creative, we wanted to move beyond the traditional documentary style. Instead of just observing ambition, we wanted to make people feel it – the energy, the movement, the sense of possibility. AI helped us be more prolific in our early explorations, allowing us to generate hundreds of moodboard variations, push our thinking visually, and quickly prototype ideas.
LBB> What was the writing process like? How did you develop a script for David Agnew that authentically represented the college, while planning for visuals that could celebrate the five graduates?
Matt> Writing for David Agnew meant crafting something that felt natural to him, while also reflecting the institution’s voice. Having worked with him before, I had a good sense of his tone: confident, inspiring, but always grounded in reality. The goal was to highlight the Seneca Polytechnic difference in a way that felt both fresh and authentic to his leadership style.
Visually, this year, we wanted to do something different. Rather than taking a straightforward, linear approach, we set out to capture the excitement and drive of these students – what it actually feels like to be in their world. The visuals had to match that ambition. We wanted it to be bold, dynamic, and immersive, pulling the audience into that energy.
LBB> Let’s talk more about the graduates. What was the selection process like, and what made these five right for your campaign?
Renata> For the selection process, we looked for graduates thriving across a wide range of industries, who also represent some of the core areas of study at Seneca. In each case, they benefitted from the hands-on skills learned through their Seneca education, whether they now work in healthcare, aviation, business or creative industries. The common thread with all five is they graduated from Seneca both career-ready, and world-ready.
LBB> In particular, some of the sequences involving the lab and medical spaces looked super cool! What did it take to bring these to life?
Matt> Thanks! That’s one of my favorite parts. The lab was staged, but we worked closely with Vlad, our grad, to make sure everything felt real. It was important to strike the right balance between enthusiasm and authenticity, making it visually exciting while keeping it true to what students actually experience.
LBB> The edit is also super clean. Who did you work with for this, what inspired the multi-panel visual approach, and how did it all come together in post?
Matt> We worked with Rooster Post through Campsite Studio, and the team absolutely nailed it. We had a pretty clear vision going into the shoot of how we wanted the final edit to flow, but as always, the magic really happens in post. They brought additional nuance and rhythm that sharpened the storytelling and took it to the next level.
Regarding the multi-panel grid, the idea for that came up early in the process. It ties back to the word ‘poly’, which means ‘many’. Many pathways. Many opportunities. Many roles Seneca prepares students for. Instead of just showing one perspective at a time, we wanted to showcase multiple aspects of a student’s journey at once. It felt like the perfect visual way to reinforce what makes Seneca unique.
LBB> The soundtrack is also a standout element. How did this come to life?
Matt> We did an extensive music search, but what really made the difference was the ambient sound design. Those small details and layers – the hum of a lab, the echoes of a lecture hall, the kinetic energy of a workshop – helped bring the world of Seneca to life. It’s something you feel more than notice, but it adds so much depth.
LBB> What challenges did you face during this project, and how did you overcome them?
Matt> Honestly, the biggest challenge was narrowing it down. We were intentionally prolific in the early stages, generating tonnes of ideas, and that meant making some tough choices. There was a lot of great material that didn’t make it to the final cut, but that’s part of the process – knowing what serves the story best and focusing on that.
Renata> With any brand campaign, we always start with a long list of programmes and graduates we may want to feature. The challenge comes with narrowing that list to best showcase Seneca, what we can offer students, and the value of a polytechnic education. There are always so many amazing options, but bringing everything into focus and telling a strong, impactful brand narrative is what we ultimately pushed for, and achieved.
LBB> What lessons have you learned from making this campaign?
Matt> More than anything, this experience reinforced how important trust is in the agency-client relationship. Seneca gave us the space to push the brand in a bold new direction – both visually and in messaging – and that kind of trust allowed for real creative breakthroughs.
Renata> With this campaign, we were reminded that it’s important to use language, visuals and graphics that look and feel very different from what we’re seeing in the industry, in order to stand out in a very crowded landscape.
LBB> How does this campaign fit into Seneca’s branding for 2025 and beyond? Is the platform something that’ll be expanded?
Renata> The campaign will be running on television and out-of-home across the Greater Toronto Area in the coming months. There is also a strong digital component for Canadian and international audiences.
Overall, ‘This is Seneca Polytechnic’ will be the cornerstone for our branding in 2025, and we are excited to see the campaign inform our other advertising and branding activities.
LBB> Finally, is there an element of this campaign you’re most proud of?
Matt> Honestly, it’s the way the whole team – client, agency, and partners – came together. There were no egos, no unnecessary preciousness – just a group of passionate people working toward the best idea. Everyone had a voice, and the work is stronger because of it.
Renata> We are proud of how this campaign builds on our past work with a fresh approach, both in terms of messaging and visuals. More than that, we love how it uniquely positions us as a leader in postsecondary education and, because it features our graduates, it makes us even more thrilled with the result.
