This single, liberating thought is the driving force behind everything we do.
The people who live here, do so with an entrepreneurial spirit, an infectious sense of optimism
and a culture of creativity. We believe someone has to be first, someone has to break the mold
and someone has to be great. Why not you? Why not now?
The province is pitching Nova Scotia as the "perfect road trip" in an aggressive marketing campaign to increase first-time visitors and boost overall tourism.
"The province's new tourism direction and marketing campaign will allow us to compete as a top travel destination," said Economic and Rural Development and Tourism Minister Percy Paris. "We want to give Nova Scotians a chance to preview our new campaign, which will inspire more first-time visitors to come to Nova Scotia, travel more of the province, and explore everything we have to offer."
The new campaign, Take Yourself There, uses extensive consumer research to create an emotional connection with first-time visitors. It portrays Nova Scotia as a place where diverse, vibrant landscape and culture, combines with friendly and engaging locals, and accessible seacoast and communities to create the spirit of a perfect road trip.
First-time visitors, who spend 42 per cent more and travel further throughout the province, make up 19 per cent of Nova Scotia's 2 million annual visitors. The number of first-timers has been declining, which the campaign aims to change.
"We will focus our advertising investment in the areas where we have the highest potential to attract first-time visitors," said Patrick Sullivan, CEO of the Nova Scotia Tourism Agency. "If we get them here once, our research shows that they come back again and again.
"It's up to every Nova Scotian to contribute to the unforgettable experiences that turn first-time visitors into repeat visitors, and compel them to share their positive experience with family and friends."
The new campaign, which includes television, newspaper, billboard and online advertising, will run in Ontario and, for the first time in three years, in Quebec in English and French. The province is also marketing in the mid-Atlantic and New England areas in the United States, and overseas in the United Kingdom and Germany, in partnership with the Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership, the Canadian Tourism Commission and others.
"We're excited about where this new campaign can take us," said Donna Hatt, marketing and development manager at White Point Beach Resort. "We believe that visitors' journeys are just beginning when they arrive in Nova Scotia, and that adventure will unfold around every corner. This campaign will provide a great platform for industry to communicate that message and can help to get visitors moving through all regions of the province."
The province will also expand its online presence with a multi-year digital marketing plan. Highlights include a refresh for novascotia.com this year with a completely rebuilt site for 2014. The plan will build on successful social media engagement through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Pinterest. Beginning March 18, visitors will also be able to download a new tourism app from iPhone, iPad, Android and BlackBerry devices.
The 2013 Doers' and Dreamers' guide is available now, in English and French. For the first time, the travel guide was printed on high-quality Nova Scotia stock from Port Hawkesbury Paper and will also be available digitally for download to mobile devices, beginning March 18.
Nova Scotia's tourism industry is an important contributor to the economy, directly employing more than 24,000 people and generating annual revenues of $2 billion. Nova Scotia spends about $5 million on its advertising campaign to market Nova Scotia in key areas.
To launch Quiznos’ social media presence and grow its fan base we developed a strategy that would feature two surges of activity:
Our task was to create an immediate community of brand advocates. So we created the “Quiznos Greatest Contest in the History of Ever Contest” and the rest was history. Quiznos lovers voted for their favourite $5 sub, prizes were won and people shared the good word - 28% of participants to be exact. This equated to a reach of over a quarter million Facebook users and grew the fan base from virtually zero to over 6,000!
We needed to build on our existing momentum and continue to drive the conversation with our new found community. We built the “Quiznos Best Friend Finder” app designed to leverage Quiznos’ NFL sponsorship and allow Quiznos fans to choose which one of their lucky friends they would take to the Super Bowl if given the chance to go. After just 4 weeks there were over 7,000 contest entries and over 7,000,000 impressions. The fan base continued to grow, increasing over 300%.
50 years of innovation is a pretty significant milestone for Mr. Clean. And to celebrate, we wanted to have some fun and acknowledge the special relationship that Mr. Clean has with his consumers. In particular, women are in love with the idea of Mr. Clean and so, the idea was born. He really has been "The other man since 1959".
Most men, especially Alpine drinkers, enjoy spending time in a space they have created for themselves to get away from the household responsibilities and spend time with guy friends. A place to kick back, relax and feel at home – The Man Space. To celebrate this space and further strengthen the connection between our authentic New Brunswick guy and Alpine Beer, we created the Manspace contest. Our Alpine guy was given the chance to upload a picture or video of their favourite man space, with everyone participating receiving a limited edition Alpine Certified Man Space coat of arms. Weekly winners also received cool prizes that they could fill their Man Spaces with, like flat screen TV’s and Alpine reclining chairs. The grand prize was having your man space on a billboard in New Brunswick. Along with the digital and social media components, the campaign was also supported by television and radio. The results - over 1,000 New Brunswick guys uploaded photos of their manspaces to the Alpine context website, further strengthening brand loyalty.
For years, Alpine Lager has been the social fabric of New Brunswick. It's a real beer for real people who enjoy their lifestyle in a place they call home. These TV spots are an honest celebration of what it means to live life in New Brunswick and enjoy everything it has to offer.
Downtown Halifax needed a more effective way to present news and events for the downtown area. Their old site just wasn’t doing the job anymore so a total rebuild was in order. This new site is easily updated by the client to keep current and puts all the info visitors need right at their fingertips.
The Volunteer Market is aimed at raising funds for The Canadian Red Cross, by encouraging people to offer donations in exchange for volunteer services - anyone can be a donor and anyone can be a volunteer. The bottom line is, everyone can contribute. Within a company, employees can post jobs they’d like done (e.g. desk cleaned up, coffee picked up…) and how much they will donate to the Red Cross if it’s completed. Any other employee can agree to complete the task and earn credit for the donation. Volunteers can also proactively post jobs they are willing to do for a certain donation. All offers or donation requests can be kept private to that company, however, people can also make their donation or request open to the public. It’s all about doing what you can and supporting a good cause. In the true spirit of volunteerism, we asked local artists in Halifax to donate their time and design workplace posters to promote the campaign.
Make sure to check out the website: thevolunteermarket.ca and show your support for the Red Cross.
How do you capture that moment you feel when you're standing smack in the middle of a bunch of stuff you really want? Well, that's exactly what the new "Experience the Wonder" campaign set out to do. Designed to demonstrate the feeling you get from experiencing every the Sony Style Store has to offer, it reminds us all of that "kid in a candy store" feeling. It connects our strong, emotional relationship to the Sony brand with the in-store experience.
A very cool new way to buy coffee: pureblacksunshine.com brings you deep into the shadows of the underworld, straight into the middle of a business deal with a difference. An innovative storyline allows visitors to take part in an online shopping experience styled after a drug deal. Working with Lollipop in Toronto, a story was created that unfolds through a series of video clips, allowing the user to make choices at certain points and move through the experience. Doing so gives you a first-hand look at the various roasts and beans that are available for purchase. To make it even more interesting, there are a number of things hidden throughout the site. For example, try seeing what happens when you take too long to make a decision.
This campaign is about inspiring people to take action in their workplace. The concept revolves around workplace safety hazards that are, quite simply, being ignored. They are each in their own way appealing for somebody to do something about the situation presented. By imparting these inanimate objects with these very human traits, we’ve been able to present a very straightforward, direct message in a very emotional way.
The brand recently went through a corporate renaissance to concentrate all efforts on better servicing the business community. We created a unique and fully integrated platform to show Canadians the many ways Grand & Toy understands and can help your business. Whether you’re big or small or just starting out, the new Grand and Toy gets what it means to be a successful business in Canada. We also ensured that the work wasn’t just 100% unique to the Grand & Toy brand but that it could also carry on for more than one campaign. So far, it’s been online, out of home, in newspapers, magazines, DM, experiential, TV, and mailboxes across Canada.
When the brand decided to convert retail stores into more customer-service-focused Business Centres, we were there to help send out the message in a big way.
The web is literally the hub of the business, where thousands of companies across Canada come to order their supplies and research the variety of office solutions available. So we didn’t just re-skin the design we also improved the user experience with better navigation and relevant content on every page. Now with our new look, there’s a seamless connection at every touch point.
We helped create an experiential moment inside the airport so that travellers could have a state-of-the-art place to work and lounge while they are waiting to board their flight. We had staff and all the amenities (wifi, printers and power) so that they could still be just as productive as when they are at their office.
Smoking rates in Nova Scotia were among the highest in Canada – a call for action was required. Young Nova Scotians did not consider smoking an issue and the current messages were not increasing awareness of the dangers of smoking. Smoking cessation was a tired issue – stale health messages preaching the negative effects of smoking.
That’s the message that residents throughout the Halifax Regional Municipality will start hearing today from Stepping Stone, a user-directed, non-profit organization supporting sex workers for more than 20 years. This is the first time the organization has launched a public awareness campaign.
Fairview Mall wanted to attract women who are not just following fashion, but creating their own unique, signature style. We were tasked to showcase the mall’s range of trendy and contemporary retailers, to demonstrate they had the right mix of ‘in’ brands and fast fashion.
In recent years, there’s been the rise of a new fashion influencer – the style blog. Here, the leading bloggers capture not posed models, but real, fashion-forward people owning their style. This is the inspiration that led to the ‘Own it.’ campaign. Shot guerilla-style on the streets of Toronto, the ads feature real women, and celebrate their spirit of individuality.
Shops at Don Mills is a new outdoor shopping destination in an affluent neighbourhood of Toronto. It houses high fashion and gourmet food all in a unique outdoor setting - a first in the city. But Toronto shoppers are creatures of habit, and even though the target lives nearby, they’ll require some convincing to get them to change their usual route and shopping area of choice. We needed to show that we were worthy of a visit and we could use some help corroborating that high fashion and luxury brands live here.
Fourteen wonderful applicants submitted letters of interest for the inaugural Extreme Tourism Fund. While we would have loved to have taken on every project, we’ve selected Nova Scotia Webcams as the recipient of the 2013 Fund. We sincerely thank everyone for their interest and look forward to working with Ralf and his team.
For more information, please visit the Extreme Tourism Fund website.
Anything is possible. For Extreme Group, it’s more than a mantra, it’s the driving force that cultivates everything they do, including a bold expansion from Halifax into the Toronto market in 2007.
CEO, Paul LeBlanc has expanded his focus and this has led Extreme Group to a new and exciting era of agency leadership. Officially assuming the role of President, Chief Creative Officer - partner, Shawn King will continue to grow the agency while maintaining its renowned creative culture. Two new partners have also been named at Extreme – they are long time staffers, Martin Delaney (Vice President, Planning) and Mike Bevacqua (Managing Director, Toronto).
A new executive team has also been formed to lead the agency. Joining LeBlanc, King, and Daniel Tolensky (CFO, Extreme and Karma) are Delaney, Bevacqua and Clare Tidby (Director, Client Services, Halifax). The new leadership team forms a powerful combination, uniting core skills and experience across creative, strategy and account relationship management.
With experienced teams taking the helm in both provinces, LeBlanc’s leadership has evolved to the position of Chief Entrepreneurial Officer (CEO), actively seeking out new frontiers, including the inception of Karma Gaming International: a new breed of casual gaming company.
Shawn King
Daniel Tolensky
Martin Delaney
Mike Bevacqua
Clare Tidby
Phil Sylver
Lee Stafford
Dylan Moggey
