How we launched a new bus brand in just three months
First launched in 1995, First Bus has recently given their buses a major overhaul, to make every single journey more convenient and enjoyable than ever.
When we became their sole creative agency for Scotland, we developed a new brand position, ‘First Bus: Full of More’ and showed how we could bring these launches to life through engaging and creative activations that echoed this new statement. Lucky for us, they loved our ideas.
The Brief
Back in April 2019, First Bus presented us with their new business plan to launch a tour service in Edinburgh. They approached us to develop the identity, positioning and also roll out a strategy. With a set launch date in early July (just in time for the Edinburgh Fringe) the entire project was to be completed in just three months.
Inspired by the name, we specifically designed the Bright Bus Tour fleet to stand out from the rest. Designed with vivid, clashing, eye-catching colours and some of Edinburgh’s most iconic landmarks, you couldn’t miss them if you tried.
Brand Strategy & Identity
Although owned by FirstBus, Bright Bus Tours had to be a brand all on its own. Our strategy team researched the current marketplace, to find the new bus brand’s niche. From there, we delivered brand positioning and strategy.
Naming, personality, tone of voice, logo, visual style—you name it. We built the Bright Bus Tours brand from scratch and provided detailed guidelines for future creative.
Marketing Strategy
With such a short window to launch, marketing activity had to run like a well-oiled machine. Our strategy team developed a pre-launch, launch and post-launch strategy that gave us a structure to drum up interest on the run-up to the Fringe, and build a strong campaign, even the noise of the festival.
72M
Impressions
460K
Engagements
38K
Website visits
Experiential Launch Campaign
Working with First Bus, we developed experiential activity for the launch and arranged street teams to walk around Edinburgh handing out ‘Scottish Survival Kits.’
Our content production team shot and edited the brand film which was used at multiple touch points throughout the campaign. We also created the concept of the ‘Scottish Survival Kits’ and designed a flyer with useful facts about each of the items in the bag.
