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Underground Ads - Creative Advertising in England

Getting creative advertising campaigns seen by the right people is one of the biggest challenges facing any marketing expert. Therefore, before you even think about copywriting or design, you must find the right placements for your campaigns. When looking at opportunities in England, the London Underground stands out as one of the most attractive prospects by far.

Why Advertise on the London Underground?
While the numbers have declined slightly as a result of the pandemic, the London Underground normally welcomes over two million travellers (and often upwards of 4.5 million) every single day. Other key reasons to embrace creative advertising and copywriting through underground ads include;

• A massive 95% of commuters spend at least 45 minutes on the underground each day.
• One in four travellers spend at least 45 minutes standing on platforms.
• Ad campaigns can be shown on trains, platforms, and digital signs throughout stations.
• The London Underground network connects 270 stations.
• Up to six in 10 commuters notices when ads change on the TfL network.

When combined with the demographic data, such as the fact London commuters earn nearly double the UK average salary, it's clear that underground ads offer great potential. However, marketing on the network doesn't come cheaply, which is why you must go the extra mile to unlock its full potential through creative advertising.

Examples of Great Advertising on the London Underground
Creative advertising on the London Underground should incorporate engaging copywriting and eye-catching visuals. Meanwhile, the most influential campaigns will display individual ads on ticket barriers, concourse areas, escalator panels and LED panels, large format station platform and tube tunnel posters, and on the trains themselves.

When done well, underground ads have a massive impact on their audience. The key is to ensure that the creative advertising tactics ensure that the brand's message is both powerful and memorable. Need some inspiration to get the creative juices flowing? Here are five hugely successful campaigns that should do the trick.

CV-Library
The CV-Library advertising campaigns are a natural match for the London Underground network. After all, a high percentage of the foot traffic comes from commuters on their way to/from work. Therefore, anyone that has had a bad day at the office is already in an ideal mindset to consider the prospect of looking for a new job or career.

Adverts shown on station LED displays, and large format platform posters are perfectly placed to hit the audience at the right time while the simple but bold color schemes present a professional yet welcoming appeal. The copywriting succeeds for several reasons, with the main features being;

• The simple question introduces the pain point in a concise yet non-intimidating manner.
  
• Answers to the question create a positive vibe that workers can take control of their situations.
• There are clear CTAs, such as visiting the website or uploading a CV.

Overall, the adverts grab the attention of audiences at the right time and ease them into taking action.

Predator (Book Campaign)Books are regularly promoted on the London Underground for many reasons. Once again, the demographic is perfect because most commuters are educated to a good level. Crucially, the fact that they are reading adverts shows that they're bored and could benefit from having an outlet to pass the time. The Predator book advertising campaign in 2016 was one that achieved great results.

The imagery and design of the large format poster instantly grab the attention of anyone standing on the platform waiting for a tube train while the image of the book removes any confusion about what the product is. The copywriting elements are minimal, but create a big impact for these reasons;

• There are two quotes to verify the success and quality of the book.
  
• The tagline is evocative and encourages the reader to feel curious.
• It throws you straight into the heart of the novel.

Meanwhile, the fact it's available at WH Smith's, which is found at several stations, is another effective feature.

This is Thomas Cook
Thomas Cook made the London Underground network a key feature of its campaign in 2019, targeting well-paid commuters in moments where they are most likely to feel that a vacation is needed. Most of the ads displayed images of destinations and tranquil settings like swimming pools with the main tagline of 'This Is Thomas Cook'. Simple, effective, and straight to the point.

The most telling feature of the campaign sold the idea of making memories and providing a relaxed atmosphere. This was represented well by the small amount of text copy. In most cases, it was limited to details about prices to the destination. It worked well because;

• Readers could focus more on picturing themselves on holiday.
• The information on tube placements included details of the nearby London departure points.
• Campaigns were launched just as the summer period was coming to an end.

The campaign subsequently underlined the impact that even small amounts of text can bring. It also showed the importance of timing.

CBS Outdoor
Creative advertising that holds a user's attention and gets people talking will always perform well. The CBS Outdoor game of identifying 150 brands showed the power of using the full London Underground, as well as the power of social media through the #150brands hashtag. This was when Twitter was still in its relative infancy too.

The game was highly successful because it required minimal copy while it actively encouraged readers to hunt other brand adverts. In turn, they were participating and interacting with the adverts. In turn, the campaign was also able to;

• Keep readers seeing the name CBS Outdoor.
• Associate the company with quality and trust due to the 150-year presence.
• Feel like they were getting added value from the brand for free.

The fact that it served as a competition showed that ad campaigns on the London underground could also promote two-way interactions, which has been a growing concept in the years since.

Conclusion
Ad campaigns on the underground provide some truly phenomenal opportunities to hit a huge audience when they are most engaged with the content. With the right copywriting habits and creative input, their impact on brand awareness and conversions could transform a business forever.

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