How we helped the nation’s 60-somethings expand their world, one bus journey at a time.
First Bus, one of the UK’s largest bus operators, needed to boost their revenue from senior passengers.
Across the UK, use of senior concessions cards still hasn’t recovered to its pre-pandemic levels. So, we were tasked with creating a campaign to put that right. We needed to create a campaign flexible enough to boost senior concession travel across the UK, even though the eligibility age varies across different countries.
Insight & Strategy
Our team started by digging into government and industry data which revealed a surprising truth. Most 60-somethings already had concessions cards – they just weren’t using them. So, rather than drive people to sign up, our message could be simpler: pull the one you have out of your knick-knack drawer.
We commissioned specialist research which asked communities of 60-somethings why they weren’t travelling. What the audience told us transformed the brief: As you age, your world shrinks. You inadvertently tend to go fewer places, with fewer people, than you used to. However, the bus is the ideal vehicle for broadening that world out once again.
The Idea
Our team articulated our thinking into a simple and motivating call to arms.
So what if you’re in your 60s? If you’ve still got a thirst for adventure and want to wring the most joy out of each day, then your bus pass can be so much more than just an unloved perk in a drawer. Forget 40. Or 50…
Life begins at bus pass
A simple, universal campaign platform that reframed the bus pass as a symbol of freedom. A campaign that bucked geriatric conventions to inspire and liberate 60-somethings across the nation.
The Creative
The campaign focused on three stories that epitomised 60-somethings grabbing life by the horns. Ones which balanced joy, fun and adventure with the practicality of physical age and bus travel. Not geriatric and clichéd, nor patronising and inaccessible.
A soul music night, an afternoon life drawing class, and a paddle boarding taster session.
Following the strategy, we wanted to show more than just the bus journey – we wanted to show how it also connects you with others. So, each story featured a friend and companion sharing the joy.
These stories were then activated through ATL channels including BVOD, national radio, and targeted social content.
This was then supported by an integrated PR drive (in partnership with Stripe), where 1980s TV star Aneka Rice toured the campaign with a UK-wide roadshow.
We loved working with Made Brave on Life Begins at Bus Pass. Leading with strategy and insight, they’ve supported in creating more than just a campaign. This is a mindset and vibrant outlook. Togetherness, confidence, friendships and a rejection of the stereotypes of ‘older age’.
This integrated project helps us speak directly to millions of bus pass holders across the UK, in their own voice to drive bus pass usage and a positive attitude towards public transport as a proposition.
