Westjet Airlines: REAL-TIME GIVING [cannes version]

Credits & Description:

Advertiser: WESTJET AIRLINES LTD
Product/Service: AIRLINE
Agency: WESTJET Calgary, CANADA
Entrant Company : WESTJET Calgary, CANADA
Contributing Company : MOSAIC Toronto, CANADA
Production Company : STUDIO M Toronto,ON, CANADA

Team Lead/Sponsorhip/Experiential Marketing: Greg Plata (Westjet)
Manager/Community Investment/Sponsorship/Experiential Marketing: Corey Evans (Westjet)
Vice/President/Communications/Community Relations: Richard Bartrem (Westjet)
Executive Producer: Mike Mills (Studio M)
Director: Bryan Reid (Studio M)
Director/Pr And Social Media: Whitney Gibson (Mosaic)
Account Manager: Nadine Rashad (Mosaic)
Director: Ben Unsworth (Globacore)
Writer/Producer: Brad Cowan (Studio M)
Manager/Public Relations: Robert Palmer (Westjet)

Describe the campaign/entry:
Holidays can be a cluttered time for brands to activate, but also presents opportunities to capture the sentimentality of the season and create a special experience for brand’s consumers. The airline industry is competitive based on costs and WestJet makes it its mission to provide guests with an experience that will have them coming back for more. WestJet has become known for creating and sharing entertaining videos through social media around holidays such as April Fools and Christmas, but as well, around charitable initiatives. For this programme, we wanted to take the opportunity to create a holiday programme that incorporated giving for both a charitable partner and our guests.
On the heels of the '2012 Holiday Flashmob' video’s success, WestJet wanted to bring joy and happiness to its guests across the country by creating a first-of-its-kind experience incorporating the concept of 'real-time giving' and ultimately capturing and sharing the generous nature of the holidays.
This year, WestJet wanted to spread the joy even further by taking an activation to multiple airports, providing an opportunity to interact with more guests from coast-to-coast.

Results:
Challenge/Objectives:
Holiday travel can be stressful, with airports and airlines at capacity. WestJet wanted to stand out during Christmas by bringing a memorable and heartwarming 'real-time giving' experience to both guests and employees alike. The goal was to create an activation whereby guests could truly witness and interact with WestJet’s fun and caring culture in an environment that is typically slow and dull, giving them a warm and joyful holiday experience they would share with friends and family and remember for years to come.

Strategy/Execution:
Holiday travel can be stressful, with airports and airlines at capacity.
The WestJet Christmas Miracle video was filmed in Toronto, Hamilton (ON) and Calgary (AB), 2 weeks prior to launch ensuring timeliness and seasonality. 19 cameras captured the emotional content and the video was unveiled on the WestJet YouTube page on December 8, 2013.
WestJet set up virtual kiosks at two international airports for two Calgary-bound flights.
Passengers scanned their boarding pass, prompting a live video stream of a WestJet Santa asking what passengers wanted for the holidays.
WestJet’s Digital Command Centre and a team of more than 150 volunteer 'WestJetters' became Santa’s helpers and purchased, wrapped and personalized gifts for the more than 200 WestJet guests on the two flights.
Guests were surprised upon arrival when a festively decorated baggage carousel literally came to life, and on this special day, it was not just their suitcases that arrived, but the gifts they had requested merely hours before.
A strategic communications plan was executed throughout December, including:
Proactive outreach with Canada’s top travel, lifestyle, trends and news media, and influencers.
An interactive press release on Canada Newswire, including the original video, a blooper reel and interview b-roll featuring a WestJet spokesperson.
Broadcast media tour (interviews and consumer giveaways on television morning shows).


WestJet created a unique experience for its guests, that was captured by hidden cameras to develop emotional and timely online content, which engaged and entertained consumers in the target audience in Canada and around the world.
On December 9, 2013, we unveiled the' WestJet Christmas Miracle': 'real-time giving' video on YouTube and amplified reach with promoted posts on Twitter and Facebook, including two posts on the WestJet Blog. The content was first published online, but shared through print, television and radio internationally, and via social networks of people around the world as the most-shared viral ad of 2013 in Canada.


Output/Awareness:
328m+ media impressions worldwide from 1,600+ media stories (exceeded goal of 26m impressions by 1,200%)
Expected that actual impressions are higher than those measured due to the volume of international coverage $0.0001 cost per contact
35m+ views on YouTube – one of the most watched viral ads of 2013 worldwide (exceeded goal of 500k by 7,000%)
192,500 YouTube likes, 172,800 shares, 26,800 favorites, and 29,000+ comments
42.2m Twitter impressions for #WestJetChristmas and related keywords
Trended in Canada for December 9 & 10, 2013
3.2m Facebook impressions from two promoted posts

Action/Business Impact:
Comparing December 10-17, 19-24, 2013 vs. same period in 2012:
86% revenue increase
77% bookings increase
100% WestJet.com traffic increase
11,000% increase of new subscribers to WestJet’s YouTube page (30,747 new subscribers)
Additional 4.58m views on other WestJet YouTube videos, demonstrating consumer engagement beyond this initiative and building brand awareness
235+ countries viewed the video