Marketing Communications Group Project

London Underground – You’re Welcome Too MG4602 – 22-03-13

1 London Underground – You’re Welcome Too MG4602 – 22-03-13

Contents

1 Executive Summary

2 Introduction

3 Historical and Cultural Impact

4 Corporate Background

5 Communications Audit

6 Market Research

7 Corporate Objectives

8 Visitors’ Pack

9 Advertisement Design

10 Communication Methods

11 Conclusion

12 Recommendations

13 Appendices

1. Executive Summary

The London Underground (LU) or Tube is one of London’s best known attractions. However, as a resource to the city of London, the operators; Transport for London (TFL), have not capitalised on the value the LU can add to the bottom line for the organisation and indeed London itself. One significant area of weakness is the way in which it communicates or lack thereof with key stakeholders such as tourists. Communication with commuters also leaves a lot to be desired with its Facebook page1 having just over 136,000 likes and established as recently as September 2012, the page has yet to have one post added to it outside of the cover photo. Social Media, as a resource is severely undervalued and given that 2013 is the 150th anniversary of the underground, the campaign aims to create awareness of the tube as an attraction to tourists using the anniversary as a method of adding value to our communications.

Our video campaign is designed to target the tourist before they arrive in London with the slogan: The London Underground: You’re Welcome Too. The video will play like a short mystery movie encouraging tourists to engage with their imaginations with shots of well-known London Landmarks included in the video ending with a well-known personality, actor Alan Rickman of Harry Potter and Love Actually Fame, a Londoner himself, welcoming tourists on board. We feel this campaign personalises the underground and extends the market by which, until now, focused solely on the commuter. The video campaign will be supported and the message reinforced with a print media campaign targeting both national and international visitors to London.

To support the message of ‘you’re welcome too’ we propose a Visitor Oyster Card Pack is designed, providing visitors the opportunity to order these in advance online before arriving to London, also meeting the corporate objective of increasing sales through the expansion of the target markets. The Oyster Card Packs, in addition to providing essential information such as maps and location of stops will also providing interesting, quirky and fun facts about the underground designed to meet the needs of tourists who visit any attraction with the added advantage of providing fun facts on their chosen mode of transport, making London Underground a tourist attraction in itself.

1 https://www.facebook.com/pages/London-Underground/523907844292638?ref=ts&fref=ts (Accessed March 19th 2013).

2. Introduction

In this report we plan the repositioning strategy of the London Underground with the aim of opening the transport mode and making it more accessible to tourists. Historical and cultural impact of the London Underground will be discussed, this is important as we need to pin point the ‘je ne sais quoi ‘of the Underground so we can find a unique selling point that we can build upon in the hopes of enticing more users. A large sub culture has been based around this mode of transport in the form of Tube enthusiasts, blogs, anniversary celebrations and merchandise and we hope to capitalise on this. The Roundel (the symbol of the Underground) is also fast becoming a brand in itself. The corporate background of the London Underground is outlined with a focus on Transport for London the body that oversees the management of the London Underground. A communications audit has been carried out on the London Underground and we have identified a number of areas that could help effectively promote the Tube. In relation to market research it was decided that a survey would be the easiest method to identify the wants and needs of tourists. The target market is too broad to warrant a focus group and we felt we would reach more users far and wide through the survey. Marketing objectives are outlined in great detail before we describe our main objective. For this project we have decided to concentrate on two things: Creating a visitor's pack and an ad campaign surrounding the visitor’s pack. Through our market research we have identified a need for a visitor’s pack which will aim to support tourists and make using the London Underground even more accessible. The advertisement description is discussed supported by storyboards and a rough prototype video hosted on YouTube. We then move onto discuss alternative communications methods including PR to support our campaign.

3. Historical and Cultural Impact

3.a History of the World’s First Underground Passenger Carrying Rail Service

The growing population of London in the mid-1800s brought major congestion to the city through the addition of extra rail termini. Charles Pearson (solicitor to the city of London) came up with a solution to London’s traffic problems, relocating slum dwellers to the outskirts of the city as well as providing them with jobs and cheap rail travel. His initial plan was rejected by Parliament however Pearson joined forces with another group of entrepreneurs whose plan for a connecting line under New Road was approved. The Metropolitan Railway was born in August 1954.2

The ‘Cut and Cover’ method was used to construct the tunnels. This method meant streets were dug up (cut); tracks were laid, covered with a brick tunnel with the roads/street rebuilt (covered). 3

While the London Underground brand was officially formed in 1985, this year the ‘Tube’ celebrates the 150th anniversary of its first journey in the guise of the Metropolitan Railway (Met) as it was then known. On the 9th of January 1863 Metropolitan Railway passengers embarked on the first underground rail journey in the world out of Paddington Station on an 18 minute journey to Farringdon Street.4 40,000 passengers took the journey that day. 5

Early lines were only built just below street level however with the advent of the Greathead Shield (developed by James Henry Greathead) deep level tube lines were opened to passengers from 1890 onwards. 6 Electrification of the London Underground commenced in 1900 but it was 1905 before the first electric service ran from Baker Street to Uxbridge via Ruislip.7

2 http://www.ltmcollection.org/resources/index.html?IXglossary=Public+transport+in+Victorian+London %3a+Part+Two%3a+Underground (Accessed January 18th 2013)

3 http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/modesoftransport/londonunderground/1604.aspx (Accessed January 18th 2013)

5 http://www.ltmcollection.org/resources/index.html?IXglossary=Public+transport+in+Victorian+London %3a+Part+Two%3a+Underground (Accessed January 18th 2013)

6 ht tp://www.ltmcollection.org/resources/index.html?IXglossary=Underground+lines (Accessed January 19th 2013)

7 http://www.ltmcollection.org/resources/index.html?IXglossary=Metropolitan+Railway+%28Met+Rly%29 (Accessed January 19th 2013)

During the Blitz in the Second World War the people of London sought shelter in London’s many Underground stations. The Tubes were not organised for this type of function and after some initial chaos the arrangements improved and bunk beds, refreshment areas, even libraries and live entertainment in some stations.8

Having been run by a number of different boards detailed in the table below Transport for London took over the running of the London Underground in 20039

1902 Formation of the Underground Electric Railway Company of London (known as the Underground Group).

1933 The Underground Group and the Metropolitan Railway become part of the London Passenger Transport Board.

1948 The London Passenger Transport Board was nationalised and became the London Transport Executive.

1963 The London Transport Executive became the London Transport Board, reporting to the Minister of Transport.

1970 The Underground is passed to the London Transport Executive, reporting to Greater London Council.

1984 London Regional Transport (LRT) created.

2003 Tube becomes part of Transport for London (TFL)

8 http://www.ltmcollection.org/resources/index.html?IXglossary=London%27s+transport+at+war (Accessed January 19th 2013)

9 http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/modesoftransport/londonunderground/history/1606.aspx (Accessed January 19th 2013)

3.b Oyster Card

TFL introduced the Oyster Card in June 2003. The contactless card was initially on sale via the Oyster Card website and in September 2003 ticket office sales were introduced. The Oyster Card can help reduce fares on the London Underground as well as keeping the holder’s journey ticket free.10

3.c Stations

What began as a task to link the already established stations of Paddington, Euston and Kings Cross via subterranean railway has evolved into some 270 stations11 currently serviced by 11 lines throughout London. The LU has some interesting facts about almost all of its stations; for example Waterloo during the three hour morning peak is the busiest, servicing some 82 million passengers per year.12 Consequently it also has the most escalators (23). Baker Street Station has the most platforms (10) and King’s Cross holds the honour of having the shortest lift shaft 2.3m/7.5ft.13

10 http://www.smartcardalliance.org/resources/lib/London_Oyster_Card_Profile.pdf (Accessed January 20th 2013)

11 http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2013/jan/08/london-underground-facts-and-figures (Accessed January 18th 2013)

3.d History of the Roundel

‘ The Roundel’ first came into the public’s consciousness in 1908 and went through various incarnations before it became the more familiar logo we see today. In the beginning a number of different underground companies agreed to use the term underground for all their combined advocation of services. A distinctive logotype, designed with a large initial U and final D, began to appear outside stations and on advertising material. Like the bar and circle, this marks a powerful trend towards establishing a coherent unique graphic distinctiveness for the LU. 14 In 1910, the roundel changed again when the word ‘Underground’ appeared across the bar and circle symbol signifying a unified company trademark.15

Roundel Logo c 1914

In Oct 2012 a book featuring reinterpretations of the historic logo by 100 contemporary artists was published to celebrate over 100 years of the Roundel’s existence. These had previously appeared as posters throughout the underground network. Artists such as Sir Peter Blake and Yinka Shonibare were amongst the contributors to the book which sees the logo reimagined in paintings, photography and digital manipulation.

14 http://www.ltmcollection.org/roundel/about/detailedhistory.html (Accessed January 18th 2013)

15 http://www.ltmcollection.org/roundel/about/detailehistory.html (Accessed January 18th 2013)

3.e The Tube Map The design and layout of the Tube map has long been a fascination for many since its first incarnation in 1908 but it wasn’t until 1931 when Henry Beck a LU engineer came up with the first diagrammatic version of the map, the basis of the map that is still used today. Beck set out to create a map that focussed on clarity rather than geographical accuracy when laying out the best routes and stations for passengers to use.

'Looking at an old map of the Underground railways', ...... 'it occurred to me that it might be possible to tidy it up by straightening the lines, experimenting with diagonals and evening out the distance between stations'.16

Presentation drawing of Tube map by Harry Beck, 1931

Interestingly Mr Beck was only paid 5 Guineas for his work. Since its first appearance the tube map has been added to several times yet Mr Beck’s original design remains the foundation for all new incarnations.

16 http://www.20thcenturylondon.org.uk/beck-henry-harry (Accessed January 19th 2013)

3.f Cultural Impact

Merchandise

The London Underground brand is often seen as kitsch with TFL having their own store selling a wide range of merchandise http://shop.tfl.gov.uk/ Merchandise usually features the Roundel, as well as Tube maps and ‘Mind The Gap’. Similarly this merchandise can be purchased in official (and unofficial) stores, museums and from vendors all across London. There’s even a London Underground Monopoly

London Underground Enthusiast’s Internet Presence

There are many blogs and fan sites as well as pages on social networking site Facebook dedicated to the London Underground samples of which are listed below. http://london-underground.blogspot.ie/ - A blog dedicated to London Underground trivia. http://peopleonthetube.tumblr.com/ - A pictorial blog featuring people on the London Underground. http://150greatthingsabouttheunderground.com/ - unofficial birthday celebration blog. http://underground-history.co.uk/front.php A fan website dedicated to the history of the London Underground. http://www.abandonedstations.org.uk/ A site dedicated to spotting unused stations whilst taking your journey.

17 http://shop.tfl.gov.uk/ImageCache/Products/1677.1.298.298.FFFFFF.0.jpeg (Accessed January 20th 2013)

Art on the Underground

Launched at the beginning of the new millennium Art on the Underground (previously Platform for the Arts) combines visual arts events and works with artists in various Medias. This LU sponsored initiative seeks to18:

• Unite the LU’s diverse audience of customers and staff by presenting international contemporary art in a unique environment.

• Engage with its audience by encouraging their participation, enjoyment and interest in contemporary art.

• Offer the Tube as an exclusive location and opportunity for beginners and established artists by displaying and championing their work.

• Through varying programmes of both temporary and permanent installations the LU hopes to participate in the design of the cultural landscape of London.

•Increase its authority and recognition as an esteemed art programme with all of its audience and stakeholders both domestically and internationally.

Television Documentaries

2012 was a great year for Tube Spotters as two documentaries featured on British television stations, BBC and Channel 4. The Channel 4 documentary, “Confessions from the Underground” was an expose concentrating on the unseen, dealing with the daily stresses and concerns of employees. Whilst the six part BBC documentary “The Tube” looked at night workers, upgrading works, on track suicide attempts, ticket inspectors and much more.19

18 http://art.tfl.gov.uk/about (Accessed 19th January 2013)

19 http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01cmsfd (Accessed 21 March 2013)

3.g 150th Anniversary Celebrations

TFL in conjunction with the London Transport Museum supported by various sponsors organised a range of activities to coincide with the 150th anniversary of the London Underground which took place on January 9th 2013. The events aim to explore the history of the London Underground and how it will impact the future. 150 Londoners detailed their experiences of the London Underground on the Evening Standard newspaper and historical milestones were detailed on TFL’s official Twitter and Facebook pages. The London Transport museum is also selling a wide range of souvenirs.20However the main event was a restored Met Locomotive No.1 steam train pulling the Metropolitan Railway ‘Jubilee’ carriage No. 353 which was built in 1982 and the Chesham set of coaches21 on January 13th and January 20th 2013 along part of the original Metropolitan Line (now

20 http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/projectsandschemes/25979.aspx (Accessed January 20th 2013)

12 London Underground – You’re Welcome Too MG4602 – 22-03-13 known as Hammersmith & City Line).22 The Metropolitan Railway electric locomotive No. 12 ‘Sarah

Siddons’ will also form part of this train. 23 24 4. Corporate Background

The London Underground (LU)is in a unique position in that it is seen as a tourist attraction in itself much like the black taxis, its logo is recognised around the world. It’s unique selling point is the fact it is the only underground service in London, stretches for more than 400 km with the most distant place served being Chesham, 47 km west of central London25. More than 3.5 million passenger journeys are made a day with a record of more than 1.1 billion passenger journeys made on the underground in 2010/201126 and increased to 1.171 billion for 2011/201227.

Revenue generated by LU for 2011/2012 was £1,981 million28. According to the Transport for London (TFL) annual report (2012, p.75), the cost of operating the underground system for 2011/2012 was £2,178. There is a clear deficit therefore between the cost of operating the LU and

22 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-20998737 (Accessed January 20th 2013)

24 http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/gallery/2013/jan/13/london-underground-steam-train-anniversary- 150th#/?picture=402310392&index=0 (Accessed January 20th 2013)

25 http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/modesoftransport/londonunderground/1608.aspx#techinfo (Accessed January 18th 2013).

26 http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/corporate/lu-factsheet-jan2012.pdf (Accessed January 18th 2013).

27 http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/corporate/tfl-annualreport-2012.pdf (Accessed January 18th 2013).

13 London Underground – You’re Welcome Too MG4602 – 22-03-13 the revenue generated from it and therefore is not a self sufficient transport service. However, as the LU forms part of the overall Transport for London (TFL) body, their income is supplemented from government grants, third party funding, loans and other such sources.

Despite the LU’s recognition as a tourist attraction, it does not rank in the top ten world’s subway systems as ranked by passenger numbers, the lowest being Hong Kong with 1.378 billion in 201129, and the highest being Tokyo at 3.151 billion passengers for 2010. Clearly Chinese population has a lot to do with such a high passenger number. London’s population as of the 2011 census stands at 8.1 million people 30. However, the LU does have other quirky facts which it doesn’t communicate in a relevant manner to the many tourists and users of the LU, more importantly the potential tourists and fans of underground subways such as the LU, which has the potential to attract many tourists itself.

4.a Transport for London

TFL was established in 2000 31and is the body responsible for London’s transport system which includes: ● London's buses ● London Underground ● Docklands Light Railway (DLR) ● London Overground ● Tramlink ● London River Services ● Victoria Coach Station

4.b Brand Values

Through outlining their vision, strategy and challenge, TFL outlines their key values for the London Underground.

28 http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/corporate/tfl-annualreport-2012.pdf, page 71 (Accessed January 18th 2013).

29 http://www.mta.info/nyct/facts/ffsubway.htm (Accessed January 18th 2013).

30 http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/davehillblog/2012/jul/16/london-population-rises-12 (Accessed January 18th 2013).

31 http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/about-tfl/4510.aspx (Accessed January 18th 2013).

Vision

TFL speaks about the Mayor’s transport vision stating that he wishes for London’s transport system to be up there with transport systems in other global cities. There is also an emphasis on providing opportunities for the users as well as maintaining and achieving high environmental standards. TFL wish to provide a world class service in relation to the London Underground and believe this can be done, however upgrades and challenges will need to be faced along the way.32

Strategy

Their strategy is to concentrate on a reliable train service whilst adhering to high customer care standards using well train staff and quality infrastructure. Safety is also paramount as TFL strive to offer a fast efficient service whilst avoiding delays and improving travel time.33

Our challenge TFL identify their main challenge which is to keep London on the move whilst upgrading, improving and transforming the tube. An investment programme is in place to counteract lack of investment in the past and improve the level of refurbishment. TFL and London Underground are currently overseeing the biggest rebuild/improvement project the Tube has seen in 60 years.34

32 http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/modesoftransport/1574.aspx (accessed 20th of January 2013)

5. Communications Audit

We now turn to take a look at the current communications procedures, if any, of the LU. While attempts are being made to communicate better with the LU customers, attempts are weak and not sufficient for the number of commuters who use the service of the underground and more importantly their different reasons for doing so. Overall, the London underground has never really promoted itself as its customers have no alternative underground option. Press Releases are issued to media to update the public on various transportation issues. Commuter is an app available for download on smartphones and provides live travel data for TFL London Underground, London Overground, Docklands Light Rail (DLR), and UK National Rail services 35. The app is, naturally, practical orientated with the ability for the user to monitor lines, disruptions and allows you to share your routes with your friends on social media. However, it is important to note the service offered by the app, is for a combination of transport services as provided by TFL, useful to the daily commuter and as such app highlights two important issues. Firstly, the LU brand is not being utilised and promoted and secondly, the app has shown the focus of the TFL, as regards the positioning of the LU, is on regular commuters as opposed to tourists and those who would visit London to use the LU.

Social media is an obvious major weakness. As discussed in the corporate background section, more than 3.5 million trips are made daily on the LU and 2011/2012 saw more than 1.17 billion passengers use the facility. Comparing this to the LU Facebook page and the results are a cause for concern with a total of just 133,054 likes36 and the last update being September 12th 2012 when they updated their cover photo, not forgetting the fact they only joined Facebook on September 3rd 2012. There have been no other posts relating to any of the services, facilities, disruptions or even history of the underground on their page which would be of interest and of use to the small number of followers.

Clearly, there is no social media strategy regarding the procedure for having the Facebook page, regarding updates and posts which would be an effective way of growing the likes and followers. The only call to action on the Facebook page is a link to their website, which is for the TFL and therefore covers all methods of public transport for London and LU users must wade through a rather complicated site to get their required information on the underground.

As introduced, the TFL website (www.tfl.co.uk) is difficult to navigate also for users of the various forms of London Transport to sort through. One would think, a logo and link of the various forms of London Transport on the TFL homepage for users to navigate to the transport of their choice, would be more effective and beneficial for the user.

35 http://commuter.cc/ (Accessed January 18th 2013).

36 http://www.facebook.com/pages/London-Underground/523907844292638?fref=ts (Accessed January 25th 2013)

Looking at Twitter then, the official TFL twitter account has 77,217 followers 37(which include all forms of London Transport, not just the LU), again a dismal performance considering this page represents the all of London’s Transport options. There are also twelve 38 other official underground pages, which represent each of the lines on the tube. A breakdown of the followers on each of these sites follows:

Figure 1: LU Twitter Followers By Line:

Northern Line Victoria Line Central Line Piccadilly District Line Circle Line Jubilee Line Met Line W+C Line Bakerloo H+C Line Line Line 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 14,022 13,051 15,600 11,246 12,561 7,745 13,021 8,903 5,595 7,652 6,479

Total twitter followers by line and on the TFL account amount to 193,092, which is just over 60,000 followers more than on their Facebook account. The reasons maybe, firstly LU has their own twitter accounts and secondly these accounts are set up according to each line so these match the needs of commuters depending on their location. When one looks into each of those twitter accounts, it is

37 https://twitter.com/TfLOfficial (Accessed January 25th 2013).

38 https://twitter.com/search/users?q=london+underground (Accessed January 25th 2013)

39 https://twitter.com/northernline (Accessed January 25th 2013)

40 https://twitter.com/victorialine (Accessed January 25th 2013)

41 https://twitter.com/centralline (Accessed January 25th 2013)

42 https://twitter.com/piccadillyline (Accessed January 25th 2013)

43 https://twitter.com/districtline (Accessed January 25th 2013)

44 https://twitter.com/circleline (Accessed January 25th 2013)

45 https://twitter.com/jubileeline (Accessed January 25th 2013)

46 https://twitter.com/metline (Accessed January 25th 2013)

47 https://twitter.com/wlooandcityline (Accessed January 25th 2013)

48 https://twitter.com/bakerlooline (Accessed January 25th 2013)

49 https://twitter.com/hamandcityline (Accessed January 25th 2013)

17 London Underground – You’re Welcome Too MG4602 – 22-03-13 clear this is the main method of social media communication used to interact with their users regarding service failures, delays or all operating to normal status.

We can summarise two things from this, firstly the LU sees its target market as being primarily that of the daily commuter and doesn’t consider other segments of the market such as tourists. Secondly, if twitter is the preferred form of communication, outside of the official TFL website, then the numbers of followers are a cause of concern. With information as valuable as service failures being provided on twitter, the LU and TFL are not effective with promoting this service amongst all the different users.

If one was cynical, one could suggest, the lack of effort into communication and in particular social media is because the TLF know they have a captured market and that Londoners take the tube for granted. Yet, even communicating to commuters is ineffective. Take for example, the Waterloo line, as discussed in the section on stations, this is the busiest line during the three hour morning peak with 82 million passengers a year, yet their twitter account, as shown above, has just 5,595 followers. The TFL clearly are limiting themselves with failing to recognising the other segments in the marketplace, such as tourists, who would certainly embrace the brand heritage of the LU, which is seriously under promoted.

5.a Competitor Communications

There are no direct competitors as there is no alternative underground line to the LU. As regards comparison of indirect competitors it is worth looking at London Bus who for 2010/2011 had more than 2.2 billion passengers50 twice that of the London Underground for the same period and this figure rose to 2.3 billion for 2011/201251. London Bus provides real time bus information online, using a web-enabled Smartphone and via SMS for all the Capital’s 19,500 bus stops 52. London Tramlink carries more than 28 million passengers a year and serves more than 7 mainline stations and more than fifty bus stops53. However, with twitter, London Bus is performing poorly with just 11,88354 followers on its official TFL page. Perhaps it is worth mentioning again at this stage the all of London Transport is managed by Transport for London (TFL) so it stands to reason while the services they offer are in competition, for commuters, weaknesses in areas such as social media are appearing to be a common denominator. There appears to be no official twitter page for London Taxis, but one twitter account has 2,091 followers55. The London Overground official twitter account has 15,976 followers56, while the London Tramlink has a dismal 304 followers57.

As part of a marketing campaign by Tour Operator Royal Caribbean, New York commuters were treated to “pimped out” subway cars at the 42nd street station. The campaign, which was run from December 2011 to February 2012 aimed to promote Royal Caribbean cruise ships with a focus on luxury and onboard services. Passengers were offered salon and spa treatments and even had the chance to enjoy an in carriage performance of the musical Chicago. Social media platforms including Twitter were used to support the campaign and offer the commuters the chance to win free tickets and much more.

50 http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/corporate/london-buses-factsheet.pdf (Accessed January 18th 2013).

51 http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/corporate/tfl-annualreport-2012.pdf (Accessed January 18th 2013).

52 http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/corporate/london-buses-factsheet.pdf (Accessed January 18th 2013).

53 http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/corporate/tramlink-factsheet.pdf (Accessed January 18th 2013).

54 https://twitter.com/TfLBusAlerts (Accessed January 25th 2013).

55 https://twitter.com/LondonTaxi (Accessed January 25th 2013).

56 https://twitter.com/search/users?q=LONDON%20overground (Accessed January 25th 2013).

57 https://twitter.com/London_Tramlink (Accessed January 25th 2013).

6. Market Research

6.a Survey Analysis - London Underground – See Appendix 13

Our London Underground Survey aimed to identify visitors’ reaction to the brand, the service and the mode of transport itself. 69 respondents took part in the survey and were asked a variety of questions regarding their experiences of travel in London, all respondents used the tube while visiting London and all respondents can be considered visitors or tourists.

Q1. When visiting London what mode of transport do you mostly use?

The graph shows the responses to the question regarding most used mode of transport while visiting London. An overwhelming 91.30% or 63 of the total respondents indicated they used the London Underground. Taxi use is 7.25% or 5 respondents; Bus service use is a surprisingly low 4.35% or only three respondents, indicating a confidence and sense of familiarity with using the ‘tube’ and also a perceived idea of easy navigation as opposed to travelling by bus.

Q.2 What affects your decision to choose one form of transport over another?

This question posed the question regarding why users choose the tube over other forms of public or private travel. The clear winner in this category is ease of navigation with 78.26% or 54 respondents finding it easy to find their way around the tube network. Cost is an important factor with 36.23% or 25 of 69 respondents feeling it was a value mode of transportation.

8.70% or 6 respondents claimed other factors affected their decision, including safety concerns, fear of the unknown, hot weather making packed trains unbearable, rush hour on the underground,

Q.3 Do you recognise the above symbol? (Roundel)

This question and reference to the symbol of The London Underground Roundel was answered by 58 of the 69 respondents and of those 58, 98.28% recognised the symbol, just 1.72% or 1 of the respondents of 58 respondents did not recognise the symbol. Eleven respondents skipped the question which is indicative that they also did not recognise the symbol, however the results confirm that the LU Brand and symbol is very recognisable and memorable.

Q4. Would you avoid the Underground for any reason?

Respondents were asked if they would avoid using the London Underground for any reason and 69 respondents answered this question, 40.58% or 28 respondents said they would avoid using the tube, however the majority at 62.32% or 43 respondents claimed they had no reason to avoid using the tube and were comfortable using this form of travel at all times . Analysis of the responses indicated the following reasons why visitors to London would avoid this mode of transport. Reasons why 28 or 40.58% of users may avoid the London Underground also included line closures, delays on lines due to maintenance or rush hour travel when trains may be uncomfortably packed with commuters. Perceived safety was a major concern, especially if travelling at night or travelling alone when respondents indicated the London Underground may be dangerous or confusing to visitors. Taxi or Bus was considered a safer mode of transport at night if a visitor or travelling alone.

Q5. Do you think the Underground is geared more towards...?

Respondents were asked if they thought the London Underground was geared more towards Tourists, Residents or Both. 68 Respondents answered the question, of those 68 respondents 39 or 57.35% felt that it was targeted at both Residents and Tourists, 42.65% of 68 respondents or 29 people felt it was geared towards Residents in the main and the minority at 8.82% or 6 respondents felt it was geared towards visitors/tourists to the city. Overall, the perception seems to be that the London Underground is a visitor-friendly service, designed for use by both visitors and residents/commuters. Perceived safety was a major concern, especially if travelling at night or travelling alone when respondents indicated the London Underground may be dangerous or confusing to visitors. Taxi or Bus was considered a safer mode of transport at night if a visitor or travelling alone.

Q6. Would you ever take the Underground for pleasure?

69 respondents answered this question and the majority of 57.97% or 40 respondents indicated they would or do not use the London Underground for tourist related or “fun” trips around London. This indicated that London Underground is perceived as a ‘utility’ mode of transport and scope is there to convert this perception with a targeted marketing plan to entice visitors to travel around London using the tube as part of the visitor experience. Reasons why visitors/travellers did not see LU as a tourist friendly or pleasure mode of transport in order of popularity are mainly:

It is seen as a functional mode of transport only; Public Transport is far from pleasurable; Used for practical reasons only; Too crowded, not scenic; Don't see it as ‘fun’; Only necessary for A to B trips; Use it as it is quick and efficient only; Not interested in ‘pleasure’ trips; Novelty factor wore off long ago; 42.03% or 29 respondents indicated they would use the London Underground system for pleasure trips, positive reasons for this usage pattern were expanded upon as follows are: Because it is enjoyable and steeped in history; enjoy observing the ‘hustle and bustle’ of big city life;

Q7. Do you know what an Oyster Card is?

68 Respondents answered this question, with a majority of 57 or 83.82% of respondents indicating they were familiar with the ‘Oyster Card’ whilst travelling in London. This positive reinforcement of visitors’ awareness of the travel card indicates that visitors do purchase Oyster Cards and may see it as a cost effective means of pre paying for travel around London. 11 respondents or 16.18 of 58 respondents in total were not familiar with the Oyster Card however marketing and tourist information in advance of travel or on arrival could reduce this further.

Q8. Would you be interested when travelling in London to purchase a ‘Traveller’s Pack’ containing pre-paid Oyster card along with a map featuring unique facts and specialist tube tours?

69 respondents answered this question and again a large majority of 76.81% or 53 indicated they would purchase a Traveller’s Pack designed to enhance tube travel, respondents were asked if ‘unique facts’ and ‘specialist tube tours’ were of interest and the response indicates that this would be a popular addition to simply purchasing a travel card.

23.19% or 16 respondents indicated they were not interested in a “Traveller’s Pack” whilst visiting London, however per travel information and marketing could reduce this percentage.

Q9. For those of you that use the Underground how well do you think it promotes itself?

56 respondents answered this question and the analysis indicates that of these 56 visitors or users, the majority of 44.64% or 25 respondents felt the service was ‘OK’, with 28.57% or 16 responding the service was ‘Good’, 9 respondents or 16.07% felt the service was ‘Excellent’ and 10.71% or 6 respondent of 56 felt the service was ‘Poor’, no respondents indicated the service was ‘Very Poor’. This result is encouraging, as the majority of users of 56 respondents were somewhat satisfied with the service, 89.28% of 56 or 50 respondents thought the service was ‘Ok’; ‘Good’ or ‘Excellent’.

7. Objectives

7.a Corporate Objectives

To move towards self-sufficiency regarding funding needed to maintain and upgrade the underground versus the amount of revenue currently being raised through usage: the city of London currently subsidises the operation of the underground and in order to relieve the pressure of this subsidy on the residents of London, diversification into a new market is required.

7.b Marketing Objectives

To launch the London Underground as a tourist attraction in its own right or as an alternative attraction for tourists who are considering visiting London.

7.c Brand Objectives

To increase traffic on the underground during off-peak hours and at weekends.

7.d Communication Objective

To create awareness of the history and significance of the London Underground to potential tourists, both in the domestic and international market.

To remind tourists the underground is not just for commuters.

7.e Communication Mix Objectives

Advertising

The objective of the advertising campaign is to inform potential tourists to London of the experiences one can have on the London Underground and the places it can take you. We have selected an online video advertising as the primary media to be used to communicate with potential tourists before they arrive at London. London is a major destination for visitors to the UK.; in 2011, 15.3 million visitors visited London58. The video will be placed on sites such as:

● www.lonelyplanet.com

● www.visitlondon.com

● www.london.com

● www.tripadvisor.co.uk

● www.visitbritain.com

● www.thelondonmagazine.co.uk

● www.britain-magazine.com

These websites are selected based on their target market being the same as ours, for the purpose of the current campaign and also they represent the keywords tourist would look for information on London for places to stay and see before they travel.

The video campaign will be supported by a print advertisement placed in the following magazines and papers:

● Lonely Planet

● British Airways On Board Magazine

● Virgin Atlantic On Board Magazine

● Hello Magazine

● The Sunday Times

These media are selected for the print advertisement to support the message being communicated in the video advertisement but also to target domestic tourists to London within the UK. The media chosen are those specifically targeted at the leisure and weekend market, who are considering a weekend break (in the case of the domestic market) or are already enroute to London via the air.

58 http://www.visitbritain.org/insightsandstatistics/inboundtourismfacts/

7.f Re-Positioning Strategy

As detailed below; we intend to reposition the London Underground in the mind of the tourist as not just being a form of transport but one which is steeped in history and which can offer tourists another view of London from the depths of the city.

● Current Positioning: Only Underground rail service in London

● Benefit: Reaches most tourist and commuter areas

● Distinction: Not just a mode of transport

● Memorable Slogan: The London Underground-You’re Welcome Too.

What makes our campaign different from our competitors? There are no direct competitors and the nearest transport competitor competing with the underground are the Black Taxi’s of London offering Black Taxi Tours of London59. However, the biggest distinction between that campaign and the one proposed for the London Underground is the unique position of the London Underground being a form of a tourist attraction in itself as well as transporting tourists all over London to visit other tourist sites.

59 http://www.blacktaxitours.co.uk/

8. Visitor Pack

Images to create the visitor pack come from the following sources

White plastic Oyster Card holder

http://www.ebay.ie/itm/White-Plastic-Oys ter-Card-Wallet-Holder-Cover-/120784089312? pt=UK_BOI_Office_Office_Supplies_Stationery_ET&hash=item1c1f4af0e0

Blank Roundel http://www.clker.com/cliparts/g/v/d/N/J/t/london-tube-sign-hi.png

Visitor Card http://oystercard.webege.com/visitor.jpg

8.a Visitor Pack Description

The purchaser will receive a white wallet with a “Visitor” Roundel, the wallet will include a topped up Oyster card in a range of values as outlined in the image above. The coloured section in the white wallet will contain laminated fold out booklets as described below as well as an up to date Tube map.

Laminated Booklets

‘I didn’t know that...’ a series of 20 obscure tube related facts these can be updated/changed on a biannual basis to avoid staleness.60

Examples:

I didn’t know that...

● Cadbury’s Whole Nut chocolate is the biggest seller in confectionery machines at tube stations.

● Only one tube station name does not have any letters of the word mackerel in it – St John’s Wood.

● Charles Dickens once worked in a boot polish factory that is now on the current site of the Embankment station

● Not only were the early escalators made of wood, but also the legs of the people who demonstrated them. Wooden legged Bumper Harris was employed to travel up and down the tube’s first escalator to prove that it was safe

These are just a sample of the interesting facts we intend to print on the booklet along with:

Mind that...(a Humorous Guide to Tube Etiquette and Safety)

● Gap...the obvious one? Please take care when exiting and entering the carriages.

● Sleeping Passenger?. if a passenger is asleep and everyone else has left the carriage give little nudge in case they miss their stop -it’s nice to be nice.

● Side etiquette? When travelling on a tube escalator it is always advisable to stand to the right so it allows very fit people to run past you.

● Noise. Don’t shout conversations to your companions from opposite ends of the carriage ...unless you want strangers to shout back unsolicited advice.

● Sandwich....we know you might not have had time for breakfast but not everyone is as fond of egg as you are...

● Umbrella? This is not a weapon to be used against your fellow tube passengers... no matter how much they may annoy you.

Going Underground...(Interesting Routes and Journeys to take on the Tube for Fun)

60 www.boreme.com and Tube London by Rebecca Sams

Examples:

● After marvelling at the London Landmark that is Big Ben; hop on the Jubilee Line at Westminster. Swapping old for new, travel to Canary Wharf, taking in the exquisitely modern station-designed by renowned architect Sir Norman Foster. Not quite underground, but from here you can take the Docklands Light Railway to the delightfully quaint Greenwich Village. Some of the DLR trains are unmanned so hop on board quick to get in the driving seat.

● “Head west on a Metropolitan Line train from Great Portland Street, and as it curves at the junction for Baker Street, look left out of the window and see the Circle Line track carrying on straight, and the lovely lit up view of the Circle/Hammersmith & City branch of Baker Street.”61

● Take the tourist trail from Kings Cross Station. After getting your photo taken at platform 9 ¾ (Disclaimer: please remember you are a Muggle!) make your way to the Kings Cross Underground and take the Piccadilly Line to Covent Garden taking in a bit of shopping. You could even stop off at the transport museum while you’re there! Walk through to Leicester Square and Check out the lights of Piccadilly Circus. From Piccadilly Circus station take the Tube to Knightsbridge and spend more than a few coppers at Harrods. If you end up broke there are always the free museums nearby!

The above are a ‘snapshot’ of what will be on the finished booklet and can also be amended/changed biannually to avoid becoming stale.

61 http://www.geofftech.co.uk/tube/secrets.html (Accessed February 11th 2012)

9. Advertisement Design

9.a Advertisement Description

Medium: Video (to be broadcasted online as discussed in section 7.e)

Narrator: Alan Rickman is our choice as narrator for the video. Initially we were going to choose Stephen Fry, but a team member pointed out that he is the obvious choice, however his voice is very distinctive and is used very often in advertising and as a voice over on adverts.

We therefore chose Alan Rickman based on his voice quality and quirkiness. According to a study commissioned by Post Office Telecoms62 researchers (a linguist and a sound engineer) have found the perfect male voice to be a mixture of Alan Rickman and Jeremy Irons. Alan Rickman is recognisable to all generations due to his varying roles, children may recognise him as professor Snape in Harry Potter and he was also in the film Die Hard 2, Dogma, Love Actually and many more.

Narration: With interesting names like...

And amazing architecture...

Where the Victorians once travelled...

See ghosts of the past...

This is London...

Underground...

And...

You’re welcome too...

Be part of it with a Visitor Pack.

Music: We have chosen Einaudi's "Nuvole Bianche”63 http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=CdDDY5nVA3A as the soundtrack to our advertisement. The music is emotive and we hope it will capture the audience’s attention. The music is easily recognisable and was used in a wide range of British TV shows including Shane Meadow’s ‘This Is England ‘86’.

62 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7426923.stm (Accessed February 7th 2013)

63 Ludovico Einaudi. Nuvole Bianche 2010

Description: The narration will begin with the line, “With interesting names like...” and we hope to zoom in on the writing of Cockfosters Station. We’re not interested in divulging the fact that this is anything to do with the London Underground in the initial stages of the advertisement as we want to keep the audience wondering and watching. “And amazing architecture...” here we will show modern and classic architecture of Victoria Cross Station, Kings Cross/St Pancras and Canary Wharf. At this point we want the audience to think we’re just showing architecture and it has nothing to do with a London Underground station. “Where the Victorian’s once travelled” we hope to have shot some footage with actors in an disused station harking back to the Victorian era. We will focus mainly on the people and clothes. “See ghosts of the past...” now we will show footage from the 150th Anniversary celebrations where a reenactor is wearing Victorian style clothing in front of a steam train. Here the audience may start to recognise the connection. Then we have a wide area shot of London and the narration “This is London...”. While the narrator pauses the camera zooms in on the landscapes travels quickly through the streets of London and up to an Underground station and zooms Underground. It’s then the narrator says, “Underground...”. “And...” the camera pauses in front of a train and the narrator then says, “You’re Welcome Too”.

9.b Storyboards

The scene will unfold as per the storyboards below (larger copy in appendices). The narrator will be revealed in the final scene, a shot of which will be used in our supporting print advertisements.

Prototype of Ad

In addition to the storyboards we have hosted a rough prototype of how the ad would look for visualisation purposes using pictures, text and music. We have deliberately not used video footage

32 London Underground – You’re Welcome Too MG4602 – 22-03-13 for this prototype due to cost issues. http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=gMrFXI_TJBo&feature=youtu.be

9.c Advertisement Objectives

What are you trying to achieve with this advertisement? How have you translated your intended brand positioning into your specific ad design? How will it find a space in consumers’ minds? We hope to give travellers (both domestic and foreign) a different reason to get on the tube other than to reach their destination. Our intended brand positioning is to become an alternative tourist attraction. We think the fact that we are re-interpreting the use of the Tube will resonate with travellers who want to experience something different than the usual touristy fare.

What story/message are you trying to tell with your ad? How does the story match the brand with consumer needs/desires…? We hope to use the advertisement in the way that it is filmed to give our customer an alternative way of looking at the Tube. Our shots of various Tube locations will be filmed in such a way as to be not immediately recognisable so as to invoke surprise then curiosity when their true identity is revealed. We hope to resonate with those tourists that are unhappy with using the tube during peak times yet still want a tourist experience on the London Underground.

What consumer responses do you intend to achieve with your ad design? Why and how? How does it differentiate your brand from competitors We hope to invoke curiosity in our customers by our

34 London Underground – You’re Welcome Too MG4602 – 22-03-13 alternative ‘take’ on traditional advertising campaigns used by the LU ( pictured below)

http://www.adverbox.com/ads/london-underground

How does your advertisement work in each of the different media? With our viral video we hope to infiltrate several forms of social media, be they websites or social networks such as Facebook or Twitter. Our print advertisement is to be featured in both domestic and foreign print campaigns to reach both tourists and home grown travellers who are looking for an alternative tube experience. We are also considering editing our viral video to also be included on Twitter’s Vine App which allows a video to be screened for 6.5 seconds.

10. Communication Methods

10.a London Underground Recommended Social Media Initiative

64Governments, corporations and Non Government Organisations throughout the world face a serious trust deficit. Although high-profile institutions have weathered the storm of negative public opinion since the 2008 financial crisis, the 652012 Edelman Trust Barometer reveals that a tide of scepticism is sweeping through most of the world’s biggest economies. At the same time, social networks are enabling consumers to connect and collaborate on a massive scale when making decisions. Consumers are cautious of organisations that do more telling than listening, and more likely to trust their peers than a CEO. Asked whose word they trusted when forming an opinion about a company, Edelman’s respondents judged “people like themselves” nearly as credible as academics or experts. They put little stock in information from authority figures; the credibility of CEOs and government officials experienced the worst annual declines in Edelman Trust Barometer history. These results stem from multiple economic and cultural trends, and they vary by country, but it is clear that social media has given consumers new awareness of their market power.

Organisations and services have embraced customer centricity as a core principle and have employed social media to make it a reality. According to 66IBM’s Global CEO Survey, more than 70 percent of CEOs are seeking a better understanding of individual customer needs and improved responsiveness. They also believe social media utilization for customer engagement will increase by 67256% over five years to become the second most common way to engage customers after face-to- face interactions.

In 2009, author and management 68Consultant Paul Greenberg provided a definition for the new customer-centric approach, which he termed Social Customer Relationship Management:

“ . . . a philosophy and a business strategy, supported by a technology platform, business rules, workflow, processes and social characteristics, designed to engage the customer in a collaborative conversation in order to provide mutually beneficial value in a trusted and transparent business environment. It’s the company’s response to the customer’s ownership of the conversation.”

64 http://blog.hootsuite.com/social-work-business-white-paper-

65 http://trust.edelman.com/trust-download/press-release/ accessed online January 23, 2013

66 http://www-935.ibm.com/services/us/en/c-suite/ceostudy2012 accessed online January 23, 2013

67 http://www-935.ibm.com accessed online January 23, 2013

68 http://the56group.typepad.com/pgreenblog/2009/07/time-to-put-a-stake-in-the-ground-on-social-crm accessed online January 23, 2013

As opposed to using social networks like broadcast media, major businesses are using them to engage users as individuals. Consumers who are engaged feel authentic connection to businesses that connect with them and these customers are far more likely to remember these companies when considering making a purchase decision.

An organisation or business that is successful in delivering value propositions can more easily convert customers into brand advocates. Our research indicates that London Underground are currently providing information to riders via service and other alerts , we feel that they should be far more active in the area of social media. By adhering to social media best practices, London Underground can build ridership, the trust of the service users and use communications systems efficiently.

Social Media networks permit providers of transportation services to reach large numbers of commuters simultaneously and are free of charge, this is essential for the millions of London Underground users including the many leisure travellers navigating the Underground system every day. We recommend social media policies for London Underground to inform, engage and motivate these customers. We believe that in the future the internet will empower infrastructure and devices to broadcast their own status, so issues can be known and resolved with less intervention by staff.

The aim of our social media initiative for London Underground and our recommendations are to inform users of a situation, motivate them to choose another route and engage them to forward the message to friends and colleagues, To achieve this London Underground must be:

Accessible

Different social media networks have different strengths and should be utilized according to reach and purpose served, the most important element of using these resources is to engage customers with service information as opposed to marketing or supplementary information.

● Twitter: Short, Immediate Messaging ● Facebook: Non-Urgent Messaging and Shareable Content ● YouTube and Instagram: Dynamic and Illustrative Information ● Blogs: Lengthy forum for discussion on incidents and policies

To improve engagement, collaboration, analytics and security, resources such as 69Hootsuite are available to automate and publish posting on various networks at once. Hootsuite is our recommended Social Media Management tool for London Underground, this resource, currently has five million users worldwide and is used by such high profile companies as McDonald's, Pepsico, Sony Music and Virgin. Hootsuite will enable LU to :

● Manage Multiple Social Profiles

● Schedule Messages and Tweets

● Track Brand Mentions

69 Hootsuite www.hootsuite.com

● Analyse Social Media Traffic

Pete Cashmore, CEO of 70Mashable says “Hootsuite is an essential tool for managing social networks by allowing users to effectively track conversations and measure campaign results”

Accounts should be easily reachable from London Underground home page, specific routes and tourist information should be described. It is important to choose a name that is memorable, using shorter names on Twitter to use fewer characters and not including tweet in the name.. It is important to target the audience specifically, social media accounts should be advertised within carriages , on train car walls and on platforms as users will easily learn how to find out about service information and interact with London Underground.

We believe it is extremely important if not essential to provide commuter information in multiple languages, as well as meeting legal and social obligations on assisting vision and hearing impaired users. London Underground should set up secondary accounts for example in Spanish and other major languages where possible, if resources are insufficient for this , London Underground should partner with ethnic media and community organisations to ensure important service information reaches users.

We recommend that London Underground transportation use social media such as LinkedIn, for recruitment, Instagram, for documenting field work and Gov.uk to establish and use connections to public agencies to collaborate on shared issues 71research has shown that advanced collaboration methods improve productivity, improve internal coordination making for better service and information for riders.

● Engaging: Ensuring staff of LU respond directly to customers, building community and marketing services ● Responsive: Gathering feedback for internal use and self-evaluating continuously ● Informative: Sending service information at rush hour with other discussions on blogs

We believe that in the future the internet will empower infrastructure and devices to broadcast their own status, so issues can be known and resolved with less intervention by staff

70 Mashable www.mashable.com covers the top social media news on topics like Facebook, YouTube, Gmail, Twitter

71 Chui, M, Manyika, J, Bughin, J, Doobs, R, Roxburgh, C, Sarrazin, H, Sands, G, westergren, M. “The social economy: Unlocking value and productivity through social technologies,” McKinsey Global Institute, July 2012

10.b Supporting Communication Methods to Main Campaign

To support the message of the underground being not just for tourists, a print campaign will be used to support the message of the video campaign and a public relations campaign will be used to launch the campaign. Fundamental to ensuring there is continuity in the message being communicated is the visitor pack, which falls under the heading of promotions, so as the target market are aware of the call to action across all media and again understanding the message of the campaign, as referred to above.

Sales/Promotions

The message of the London Underground, not just being for commuters will be reinforced by creating awareness in the video campaign of the availability of a tourist oyster card with discounted rates, which can be purchased in advance of one’s visit to London. Throughout all forms of promotion, the London Underground Logo will be used as a form of continuity and to represent the brand and reinforce the message of the London Underground not just a mode of transport.

Public Relations

As mentioned, Public Relations will be used to launch the campaign in London with Alan Rickman in attendance. The Mayor of London, Mr. Boris Johnson, and in his role as head of the Transport for London (TFL), will participate in a Questions & Answers Session, with Alan Rickman as the interviewer, and will have the opportunity to outline the message of the campaign and a little bit of the underground’s heritage and history, currently not promoted and which is an area of interests for tourists. Importantly too, the visitors oyster card pack will be clearly displayed at the event and its logo, as designed and discussed by us in the previous sections, will be used at the overall logo for the main event.

Stands will be situated through the event with the cards on sale and more importantly, for future and potential tourists, the TFL website will have a clear link on the front page of the website with the visitors pack new logo clearly identifiable for people to purchase online and in advance of their visit. The reasoning behind using the new visitors logo at the launch in lieu of the actual logo is because the logo and it’s design will resonate in the mind of the audience and guests as being familiar to them but the information is new and the logo is saying VISITORS; hence referring back again to the overall objective of creating awareness of the underground being not just for transport.

We see the Public Relations launch as being critical to the campaign for a number of reasons:

● Create Public Involvement and an event for everyone to attend, including Londoners

● Transform Londoners into Brand Ambassadors for the underground as they are encouraged to let people know about the history and the heritage of London’s only underground transport system.

● People reading coverage of the launch will be reading third party reviews and not paid for advertising and one of the big advantages of this is people will see this form of communication as being more credible and an endorsement of the campaign and the message of the underground being not just for transport, by the media.

Billboard

The billboard campaign will be used to reinforce the message of the underground being not just for transport and that tourists are welcome too, at the points of entry into London City, namely the Airports, and the Bus and Train Stations. Billboard advertisements will be placed in the arrival terminals of all stations and airports as well as baggage reclaim at the airports. The idea behind these locations of the advertisement’s is to support the message of tourists being welcome on the underground as well which has been the central message of the video campaign, used to target tourists before they arrive at London.

The billboard advertisements will be used to welcome tourists to London and remind them of the underground being a central tourist attraction to visit. Here again, continuity will be important and the focus will be on the visitor oyster card pack as the call to action. Kiosks will be set up at easy to identify points in the airports and stations for visitors to purchase their visitor card oyster pack.

The reason we consider these billboard advertisements to be important are as follows:

● Reminds Tourists to use their pre-purchased Visitor Oyster Card

● Reinforces the message that: Visitors are Welcome too!

● Acts as a ‘call to action’ for visitors and tourists who may have seen the video campaign but who haven’t yet purchased a Visitor Pack

11. Conclusion

The ‘You’re Welcome Too’ campaign is a way for TFL to bridge the gap between themselves as a transport authority and tourists who would otherwise feel isolated from such an intricate and complex transport network. To engage potential users we concentrated on putting a unique yet educated stamp on our campaign whilst striving to promote the Tube to our audience in an emotively capturing way. The technology available to marketers in this age makes it easy to focus only on a digital marketing strategy to get the message across however we believe the essence of a great integrated digital marketing campaign lies in the ability to marry both traditional and digital techniques focusing on the strengths of both methods creating a perfect ratio. Traditional techniques such as print, film and PR have not been neglected but instead merged with the usage of social media platforms and advances in modern technology specifically in film making and editing. The way to ensure this is a successful campaign is to remember what we’re selling; we’re selling tourists the chance to travel and even live like Londoners, even if only for a brief period of time they can be involved and feel like they’re welcome too.

12. Recommendations

While there is no doubt that the visitor pack could work in theory and make the London Underground accessible to otherwise reluctant tourists, if TFL wish to proceed they would have to delve deeper into the budget and analyse the feasibility of producing the product. Extra revenue could be generated through sales of the Visitor Pack as well as promoting use of the Underground to tourists at off peak hours. As outlined above TFL really need to do a review on their digital communications strategy and concentrate on using social networking platforms to engage with users thus creating an efficient well run service.

13. Appendices

13.a Group Contract Group Contract

Project Name: London Underground – Connecting commuters with TFL

Project Team Members Names and Sign-off:

Name Contact Details Sign-off on Group Contract Date Nicola Cronin 086 1651174 Nicola Cronin 18/01/13 Nicola-Marie 086 3793131 Nicola-Marie O’Riordan 18/01/13 O’Riordan Rachel 086 4005510 Rachel O’Shaughnessy 18/01/13 O’Shaughness y Roisin 087 2879796 Roisin Thornhill 18/01/13 Thornhill

Team Members and Position (Roles Divided): Nicola Cronin - Nicola-Marie O’Riordan - Project Manager/Final Edit Rachel O’Shaughnessy - Document Editor Roisin Thornhill - Meeting Organiser/Minute Taker/Sub Editor

Individual SWOT Analysis of each Team Member (relative to the assignment):

Nicola – Marie O’Riordan

Strengths: Writing skills, journalistic background, can analyse a large amount of data, condensing and summarizing the results, can work quickly Weaknesses: Slightly disorganized, can procrastinate but uses personal deadlines to counteract this Opportunities: To work in an unusual area that I am interested in. To look into bridging commuter relations with TFL through social media (an area they do not concentrate on). Threats: If my project management skills aren’t up to scratch

Rachel O’Shaughnessy

Strengths: organised and outgoing, willing to help others where I can

Weaknesses: dislikes conflict, slow to challenge those who under perform

Opportunities: background in marketing which will help guide direction of project

Threats: expect everyone to do their share

Róisín Thornhill

Strengths: Background as a PA to Executive Level which means I am used to troubleshooting problems when they arise. Also have a writing background so can bring creativity to the project. Weaknesses: Tends to procrastinate and worry about skill levels compared to others

Opportunities: To work in an environment that suits both my creative and admin skills

Threats: That my skill set won’t match others.

Nicola Cronin

Strengths: Research, Quick Decision Maker, Enjoy Multi-tasking, Calm and Creative Weaknesses: Public Speaking, Presentations, Non-creative tasks, Opportunities: Good Skill Set; Experience in Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness Threats: May miss some Meetings due to work commitments, will endeavour to attend all

Brand/Market Offering Selected:

 London Underground c/o Transport for London (TFL)

Project Plan:

Each week we will meet and assign a number of relevant tasks and targets for each group member. At our next meeting we will discuss each team member’s contribution and the project manager will ensure that the information is laid out correctly, fonts/styles are consistent and the information matches the project brief.

Group Expectations:

Code of Conduct:

As a project team, we will:

 Set achievable tasks  Ask for help when it’s needed  Treat every team member with respect

As a project team, we will not:

 Off load too much work on one team member  Ignore our weekly tasks (unless we have a good reason discussed with team members)

Arrangement of meetings:

 Each Tuesday at lunch time  Other meetings will be scheduled should we see fit

Meeting guidelines/participation at meetings:

 We will try and divide tasks equally

Allocation of work and tasks:

Allocate work and tasks based on a number of issues: Members’ strengths Members’ experience Members’ current workload

Communication:

 Email and text. If a team member does not respond to either of the above methods within 3 days a phone call will be made by the project manager to check in and make sure the team member has seen the message.  Communicate to all group members when discussing project issues for transparency

Guidelines for dealing with non/poor performance of team members and any other problems that might arise:

 If someone doesn’t fulfil their obligations the group, this will be noted through weekly minutes and if weekly tasks are missed for more than 2 wks in a row, this will be brought to the attention of the member and failure to address the backlog and the next week’s deadline will result in the notification of lack of effort to the lecturer via e-mail for her attention.  We will treat absences from group meetings in these ways. If no work has been produced by the member, an email requesting work be completed within 2 days will be sent. No acknowledgment of the mail and failure to do work will result in a warning email being sent stating the member is not completing their share of the work and will be required to do so in order to continue working with the group. If another group member is then required to do the absence members work, the absence member will be brought to the attention of the lecturer. If anyone is doing too much work, a review of the workload will be addressed to ensure other members are doing equal share.  We have agreed that if anyone wants to review any aspect of how we function as a group we will facilitate such a discussion through a group meeting and if required a third party can chair the meeting.  If any discomfort/conflict arises about how we are functioning as a group or working on the assignment, this is how we will deal with it: have a group meeting, outlining issues, the effect it is having on the member and the overall group dynamics.  If communication breaks down completely within the group we will notify the lecture immediately suggesting group breaks up into smaller groups if required.  Exit strategy: if someone wishes to leave the group we will allow them, in so far as they have attempted to resolve any issues they may have had beforehand or as a result of their lack of contribution to the project.

13.b Group Meeting Minutes

LONDON UNDERGROUND

GROUP MEETING MINUTES

08/01/13 - 1.00pm - 2.00pm

Attendees: Nicola Cronin, Nicola-Marie O’Riordan, Rachel O’Shaughnessy and Róisín Thornhill

Location: Western Gateway Building

Agenda: Choose a brand to work on

Minutes by: Nicola-Marie O’Riordan

We met to discuss a brand to work on. After a number of suggestions each member agreed that the London Underground would be an interesting brand to work on. Our aim is to reconnect commuters with TFL (Transport for London). It was decided that Nicola-Marie O’Riordan would work as project manager on this particular project due to her interest in the topic.

LONDON UNDERGROUND

15/01/13 - 1.00pm - 2.00pm

Attendees: Nicola Cronin, Nicola-Marie O’Riordan, Rachel O’Shaughnessy, John O’Shea and Róisín Thornhill

Agenda: Set tasks to complete during the week and divide equally

Minutes by: Nicola-Marie O’Riordan

We decided that we would use Google Drive to collaborate on the project. We also discussed what we wanted in the Group Contract and to each contribute equally. We then discussed the tasks for the week.

Nicola Cronin: What are the competitors doing (not direct competitors in this case but look at New York Subway, Paris Metro etc)

Nicola-Marie O’Riordan: Brand: History, values and culture surround the London Underground

Rachel O’Shaughnessy: Secondary data surround corporate branding, usage, etc.

John O’Shea: Communications audit

Róisín Thornhill: Brand: Logo, stations, Tube maps

LONDON UNDERGROUND

22/01/13 - 1.00pm - 2.00pm

Attendees: Nicola-Marie O’Riordan, Rachel O’Shaughnessy and Róisín

Thornhill

Absent: Nicola Cronin (due to adverse weather conditions), John O’Shea (unexplained)

Agenda: Segmentation & Analysis of our Target Market

Minutes by: Róisín Thornhill

We have agreed that segmenting transport into the tourism section is to be our focus on this project.

Rachel is to liase with John O’Shea and to work on the communications audit. RO’S is to add a taxi section into this.

All - We are to look at previous marketing campaigns from our competitors eg the NY Subway, Paris’ Metro.

NM to compile some Tube statistics eg peak and off peak numbers etc

RT/NMO’R are to organise/host a focus group with a mixture of previous visitors to London who have/have never used the Tube.

NC-when the data from the FG has been analysed Nicola will compile a survey using Survey Monkey on frequency of Tube use.

Next meeting scheduled Tuesday 29th Jan at 1pm in Brookfield Health Centre.

However due to conflicting personal commitments the meeting was later re-scheduled for Tues 5th Feb.

LONDON UNDERGROUND

05/02/13 - 1.00pm - 2.00pm

Attendees: Nicola Cronin, Nicola-Marie O’Riordan, Rachel O’Shaughnessy, John O’Shea Róisín Thornhill

Agenda: Set tasks to complete during the week and divide equally

Minutes by: John O’Shea

A narrative to describe the storyboard is to be sent to John by Nicola Marie.

John is going to draw up the storyboard.

Nicola Marie is working on the traveller packs

Rachel is working on the marketing communications objectives

LONDON UNDERGROUND

12/02/13 - 1.00pm - 2.00pm

Absent: John O’Shea (unexplained)

Agenda: To discuss current status of project including storyboards and traveller pack

Due to time constraints it was suggested that a survey be created instead to measure data instead of a focus group as we would be able to reach a wider audience of users.

RT/NC Róisín to use Survey Monkey to create survey the data of which is then to be analysed by Nicola Cronin.

NM is to continue working on the traveller’s pack

Points to note:

John O’Shea has been contacted on numerous occasions by Nicola Marie regarding the status of the storyboards but so far she has seen no work.

Rachel has contacted John to request additional info for the marketing communications objective but she has received no response

NM as project manager to try and make contact with John to see what the current situation is.

Next meeting is scheduled for Tues 19th Feb

LONDON UNDERGROUND

19/02/13 - 1.00pm - 2.00pm

Agenda: To discuss current status of project including storyboards and traveller pack

NM Nicola Marie has been unable to make contact with John O’Shea so it has been decided that she will do the storyboards for the project. She also showed us templates of traveller pack.

RT is to update the Cultural Impact section of the project with regards ‘Art on the Underground’

NC is analysing survey data.

RO’S has completed marketing communications objective.

It was agreed that NM & RT approach Carol Kelleher and ask her advice on how to proceed with John O’Shea’s unexplained absence.

It was suggested due to imminent deadlines a project in another module that the next meeting be scheduled for two weeks time on Tues 5th March

LONDON UNDERGROUND

05/03/13 - 1.00pm - 2.00pm

Attendees: Nicola Cronin, Nicola-Marie O’Riordan, Rachel O’Shaughnessy

& Róisín Thornhill

Agenda: Current Status of Project

NM has completed the You Tube part of the project

RO’S it has been decided will write the Executive Summary

NM has failed to make contact with JO’S and has sent him an email asking him to confirm if he has left the project, this has been cc’d to Carol Kelleher

LONDON UNDERGROUND

14/03/13 - 11.00 to 12 noon

Agenda: Current Status of Project -outstanding issues

RT is to sub edit the final draft of the project

NC is to insert all graphics into main doc

NM is to have final edit

It has been agreed that the group will schedule a meeting with Carol Kelleher to discuss John O’Shea’s continued absence and lack of communication and proceed as she suggests.

Next group meeting will take place Tues 19th March after meeting with CK

LONDON UNDERGROUND

19/03/13 - 1.00pm - 2.00pm

Agenda: Final Draft of Doc/Outcome of Meeting with Carol Kelleher

RO’S/RT/NM met with Carol and explained JO’S’ lack of communication and contribution to the project, she suggested we submit the project without his name on it.

NM/RT to sub edit and edit final draft.

NC is to insert graphs into final draft

NM or RT will submit doc to Turnitin

RO’S is to print finished doc.

All Doc is to be submitted before 11.30am Friday 22nd March

13.c Storyboards

13.d Survey Graphs

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