Introduction

With the Silver Line projected to begin running by July, Metro has contracted with TerPR and White + Partners to draft a proposal for the grand opening and subsequent pre and post events in order to raise awareness and excitement about the new line. TerPR and White + Partners have worked hard to ensure that this proposal includes all of the relevant information including primary and secondary research, publics, the actual plan and evaluation tools.

Situation Analysis The $6.8 billion Silver line is the most significant expansion of the Metro System since it opened in 1976. The line will include 11 new stations serving 17,000 new riders and will open in two phases. The grand opening that TerPR and White + Partners are working on currently is for Phase One, but awareness will also need to be built for phase two. This project has been in the works since 1998, and as of this July, it will finally be open for ridership. Because this project has taken almost 14 years, there are a few problems that Metro has experienced and is currently experiencing as they approach this grand opening. The opening has been delayed due to failing to meet criteria outlined in the contract and communications cables that do not meet code. Because of the delay, businesses and city officials have become frustrated with Metro because planning events and promotions has been difficult when they don’t know when the line will actually open.

   

   

SWOT Analysis

Problem

Because it has taken so long to open the Silver Line, marketing and PR campaigns have been put on hold, and therefor current and potential riders are unaware of the new line, its benefits and where it runs. If this is not resolved, Metro will not make the expected revenue from creating the line, nor will it maximize ridership and have positive economic development.

Strengths

• Reached out to the public to get input

on names for the stations • Promotes bicycling and walking near

the line • Names of the lines are relevant, brief,

unique, evocative • Already have an outline of previous

opening plans to work off of • The line connects to Virginia’s

largest employment center

Weaknesses

• Construction is behind schedule • Contractor failed to meet criteria

outlined in the contract • Speakers and cables not up to code • Had to increase the fares • Did not include parking garages/lots

at the new stations.

Opportunities

• Boost economic activity for the region • Spur urban development in Tysons

Corner • Reduce highway traffic • Access to 17,000 new riders • Create partnerships with businesses along

the new Silver Line • Create new jobs

Threats

• Riders are unaware that the new line

exists • Riders who are aware of the new line

are unsure where it goes • Only have 90 days to get the line

running • The line has been claiming to open

for a long time, so people may not believe it is really happening and not show up for the grand opening

   

   

Secondary Research

White+ Partners has already done research that suggests the following: In order to induce trial of the line, customers need compelling information about destination options and about the advantage of rail over auto travel. As cost advantage will not be the most compelling consideration factor for the entire market, the overall value proposition must include traffic avoidance (reliability) and convenience, as well as affordability. Additional TerPR Research Business districts along the line:

The next thing to be considered is the stops that are part of the actual line; most importantly, Tysons Corner. According to Wikipedia, Tysons corner draws 55,000 shoppers from around the region daily. Also, As of 2013, Tysons Corner had 14 million sq. ft. of office and retail space approved or under construction in close proximity to four of the new Silver Line stations (Wikipedia, 2014). Another large town center along the Silver Line is Reston-Herndon. According to Wikipedia, Reston is, “an internationally known planned community founded in 1964, and built with the goal of revolutionizing post-World War II concepts of land use and residential/corporate development in suburban America,” (Wikipedia, 2014). This area has museums, parks, zoos and cultural centers that can now be accessed by a larger population because of the Silver Line.

Tysons Corner Business District Photo Credit: Tom Jackman, Washington Post

Reston, Virginia boasts suburban living with an urban feel, museums and local shops.

   

   

Potential publics to consider: According to the official website for the Silver Line, the line is expected to attract around 25,000 boardings per day (or 50,000 riders per day going to and from the new stations) in the first couple of years – around a third of which will actually be customers switching from the Orange Line to Silver Line because it’s more convenient for them. As a result, there will be fewer rush hour trains between Vienna and West Falls Church. That means that the people that use these stops become part of the primary publics for the Silver Line campaign in terms or raising awareness as to where the line stops. Metro rider statistics: While in theory more people may frequent these destinations because of the Silver Line, a recent Washington Post poll found:

• The vast majority of Northern Virginians rely on cars to go where they need to go • 70 percent of infrequent Metro riders say one reason they don’t ride the rails more often

is that they just prefer driving. • Only 7 percent of commuters there take Metro, 85 percent drive to work • In Maryland, 75 percent of commuters drive, and in the District, fewer than half do.

The problem with this is that many people who would consider taking the new line would still drive to the stations, and currently the new stations lack parking. Having people driving to the station counteracts one of the hopes of the new line, which is that it would provide a more eco-friendly travel option.

Proposed Primary Research For the Primary research, there are a few things I think would be important to find out from both Maryland and Virginia residents who will have access to the Silver Line: v How many people currently drive to work because

they were not able to access their office on the existing metro lines?

v What are people’s current perceptions of the Silver Line? (Good, bad, indifferent)

v Are people more inclined to go to Tysons Corner or Reston from parts of Maryland now that they can use the Silver line? Maybe no one really cares about this?

Through this research, what we would essentially be finding out is what our publics care about, what would entice them to try the line or become a regular rider, what are their concerns and how can this PR and marketing campaign address those concerns and make the public supportive and excited about the new line.

   

   

Method: To conduct this primary research, I suggest using an online survey initially so that we can send it out to a large number of people in different areas across Maryland and Virginia. After people have taken the survey and the data has been analyzed, I propose randomly selecting participants in each region and conducting a focus group. This focus group would focus on the questions previously asked in the survey and expanding on them. I think a total of 10 focus groups across the regions can be formed so that we get a broad mix of opinions based on where the people live in relation to the Silver Line.

Planning

Based on the research presented above, as well as the results that will be found from the proposed primary research, White + Partners and TerPR suggest the following goals and objectives for the Silver Line campaign: GOAL: To build ridership for the Silver Line while positioning Metro and partner jurisdictions as providers of high value transit. OBJECTIVES:

1. Increase awareness about the Silver Line by 80% before the projected July 4 opening. 2. Provide 100% more educational materials to customers about riding the system from the

official start of this campaign through one year from the grand opening. 3. Increase ridership of the Silver Line by 40% within the first year of operation. 4. Motivate 1,000 people to try the Silver Line before the official grand opening.

PUBLICS:

Primary

Residents along the new stations Riders of the Orange line who will now transfer to the Silver Line People who work along the Silver Line Stations

Secondary

General Maryland and Virginia regular Metro riders

Businesses along the Silver Line

Metro employees

Intervening

News outlets (radio, newspapers, TV stations, blogs)

MD and VA local government officials

   

   

THEMES/SLOGANS/MESSAGES White + Partners has chosen the following messages to be projected through the campaign:

- Riding the Silver Line is more affordable than driving

- Leave traffic behind - Convenient

The general theme of this campaign will be to use word play involving other colors. Based on these simple messages, we created the following slogans to echo through the campaign:

Messages: 1. With the constant rising gas prices, Metro wants to try its best to help people save a little

money. Taking the Silver line, as well as the other Metro lines will save you hundreds of dollars in gas.

2. The traffic in the D.C. area has gotten progressively worse. Using the Silver Line allows you

to get to work faster, and even get work done or take a nap while doing it. With the new stations available, taking the Silver Line will prove to be much more convenient that driving.

3. The new Silver Line will help you get where you want to go. Specifically for Northern

Virginians, the Silver Line will give them access to the other Metro lines because they can conveniently transfer to any of the other lines at the designated station. New shopping, business and cultural areas are now available to you because of the Silver Line.

KEY CHANNELS:

Microsite: Silverlinemetro.com

Face-to-face informational sessions

Social Media

Local news stations

Radio

Traditional advertising

“When all you see ahead is red, you know you should have gone Silver.”

“ Metro. Ride the rainbow.”  

 

“Silver helps you save your gold.”

   

   

Strategies/Campaign Components: 1. Raise awareness through the “Know your Metro” campaign:

This will be a social media “mini series” about the Silver Line. This campaign will utilize

Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and Youtube. Followers will “follow” the Silver Line daily to its new stations where it will check in on Foursquare. Each day, a different station will be featured in a short Youtube video that shows the area, the stores and interviews locals.

The videos will be posted on the Silver Line Youtube page, and promoted through Facebook at Twitter. They will also be on the official Silver Line website as well as the Metro official website.

Each video will have a special hashtag that you can only get when you watch the video (it will be located at the end). Each day, 100 people will be chosen for having the best post with the Hashtag, and each day will be a different prize that the people receive (eg: one month free ride pass, t-shirts, special privileges on opening day, etc.)

This will also raise awareness and build up excitement in the areas near the line because these will be the people that see the crew out creating the videos and interviewing people.

2. Promote ridership through company partnerships:

Assuming the line is open before the official grand opening ceremony, we will begin this promotion as soon as the line is safe for riders. For the first year of the Silver Line officially running, Metro will work with shops in Tysons Corner, Reston as well as any other attractions that are now accessible by the Silver Line to have special offers or promotions for Silver Line riders. People who ride before the grand opening will have even more promotions. For example, Metro plans to create a loyalty card for Silver Line riders, and every time you ride the line you get a punch in the card. With every six rides, riders well receive coupons or gift cards to the designated shops/museums that Metro partners with. For riders who receive the loyalty card before the grand opening, they will only need four punches instead of six. Individual offices may also contact the Silver Line to purchase special discount plans for their employees to purchase tickets for the Silver Line for the first year.

   

   

3. Grand Opening Celebration: The grand opening celebration will be a hugely celebrated, regional event. The day will consist of the following:

The week before the official community wide event, we will have a Media day on the Silver Line. The different TV stations, radio as well as writers for blogs and newspapers will be invited for the official ribbon cutting ceremony. The ceremony will feature the head of Metro as well as the head of the project itself. They will have a brief speech prepared for the media, followed by the official cutting of the ribbon. After this, the media will have the opportunity to ride the Silver Line together to each of the new stops. Each stop will have a theme that related to some of the key messages (convenience, traffic, money). At these stops, the media will be able to learn about these aspects of the Silver Line, as well as receive refreshments, and be able to talk to different designated Metro spokespersons that will be available for interviews at each stop.

“Celebrate the Silver Line in red white and blue!”- A regional 4th of July event:

v The main center of this event will be a giant 4th of July barbeque with a live concert and

carnival, all at Tysons Corner. This event will also have special discounts for shopping at Tysons Corner that day. Metro and Tysons will sponsor this event. Celebratory fireworks will happen at dusk.

v To incorporate the Silver Line, there will be two different types of tickets that can be

purchased on-line and day-of for this event:

o A special price (lower) if you ride the Silver Line to the event (you will receive a pass that lets people at Tysons know you took the train)

o A higher price if you just want to attend the event directly at Tysons. o Riding the Metro itself will be free that day

v Riding the Silver Line to the event is an event in itself: There will be giveaways, snacks,

raffles etc. at each stop along the way to Tysons Corner.

v There will also be different clues (related to Metro) that participants will receive at each stop. When participants get to Tysons, they will use their clues to answer a riddle. The first 100 people to get the riddle correct will win a grand prize (undetermined as of now).

   

   

4. Increase educational materials: (Will also incorporate the plans for Phase 2) White + Partners along with Metro set up an educational program in the original proposal that TerPR will keep as is:

Metro is partnering with Fairfax County police on school safety outreach initiatives this fall to increase youth awareness of station and railroad safety.

Online advertising to promote traffic to silvelinemetro.com, as well as a new Riders’

Guide with tips and the new map.

Media conferences so that our intervening publics can help us promote train safety as well as the Silver Line.

“Silver Squad”- Potential customers will also begin to receive information mailed to their

our outreach team will host information tables at festivals and community events, as well as scheduled outreach to local business and civic groups.

Create a hotline that will be available through the first year of the opening that will have

live Metro staff answering questions, and these staff can also send out educational materials to callers. Callers can also sign up for monthly safety newsletters on the Silver Line website.

Proposed method for evaluation

To evaluate how successful this campaign was, I would mostly look at the numbers:

ü Did 1,000 people try the silver line before the grand opening?

ü How many media impressions did we get from the Media day event?

ü Talk to people at the event and document: How did they hear about it? What do they think of the silver line? Have they taken advantage of the educational resources?

ü Pre and Post evaluations: How many people rode the Silver Line on the very first day?

How many one year later? Did we get our 40% increase?

ü Previous awareness about the Silver Line was 55% at the start of the campaign. Create a survey to gauge awareness around July 1. We can also incorporate safety questions to see if the educational materials were successful.

ü Have people sign up for the Surveys and/or focus group at the main event. We can also

have our staff riding the Silver Line to ask people as they are riding, whether on the day of the event or on a regular day.

   

   

Timeline: Pre Grand Opening

 

APRIL 2014

Hotline setup (by April 10- must be running) Set up all social media accounts Secure the planned advertisements for radio/print/TV “Know your metro” for April April 28: Media Q&A at Metro headquarters

MAY 2014

“Know your metro” for May “Silver Squad” begin mailings Update/add to all safety material on website (Continue securing planned advertising) Prepare speeches and program for Media Day

JUNE 2014

(If the line is running:) Preliminary ridersà Begin loyalty card program June 1: Musical performance for event must be confirmed “Know your metro” for June June 27: Media Day/Ribbon cutting

JULY 2014

“Know your metro” for July July 5: General Public grand opening events w/Tysons Evaluation surveys/focus groups

Ongoing (All 4 months)

o Posting and promoting upcoming events on social media o Posting updates regarding anticipated completion date o Educational materials always available on silverlinemetro.com o Hotline available 24/7 (once created in April) o Advertisements will be running in local papers throughout o Planning for grand opening

   

   

Timeline: Post Grand Opening

Because at this point we will not have any large-scale events in the works for the Silver Line, the timeline is a bit more flexible and more of a general recommendation for timing: AUGUST 2014

- Begin write up of results from the initial reaction surveys - Continue soliciting feedback from the July 4 event - Compile this information by the end of August

SEPTEMBER-DECEMBER 2014

- In these four months, Metro should continue PR efforts by reaching out to riders for feedback and offering special discounts.

- Loyalty program is still ongoing - Compile monthly rider numbers in order to evaluate the rise in ridership at end of first

year (July). - December- 2014 year-in-review newsletter highlighting the Silver Line and the events

related to it JANUARY 2015 - JUNE 2015

- See ongoing PR efforts for Sept.-Dec. above - May- Begin promoting summer travel on the Silver Line to help spike ridership numbers

for upcoming review in July. JULY 2015

- One year anniversary commemorative t-shirts and Smart Card giveaways - Final evaluation as related to objectives

###

   

   

Resources Used:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tysons_Corner,_Virginia    http://wtop.com/41/3596733/WTOP-­‐exclusive-­‐Silver-­‐Line-­‐on-­‐track-­‐to-­‐open-­‐by-­‐July-­‐4    http://silverlinemetro.com/sv-­‐neighborhoods/    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reston,_Virginia    http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/metros-­‐new-­‐silver-­‐line-­‐has-­‐to-­‐attract-­‐riders/2013/07/19/ba28b8b2-­‐e33f-­‐11e2-­‐80eb-­‐3145e2994a55_story.html    http://planitmetro.com/2013/03/11/what-­‐is-­‐the-­‐silver-­‐line-­‐and-­‐where-­‐will-­‐it-­‐go/    http://www.dullesmetro.com/stations/ https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=silver+line+metro I also used the materials provided on ELMS.