The Canadian Tourism Commission wanted to inspire New Yorkers and visitors to the city to consider Canada as a vacation destination. The aim was to convince potential tourists to realise that there were amazing experiences to be had all-year round.
The solution was a street-level experiential approach in Manhattan that aimed to make travellers inquisitive via the combination of larger-than-life symbols, ambient sound and street-level activity.
The fronts of three Manhattan stores were wrapped with huge vinyl wallpapers covered by engaging imagery illustrations of unique Canadian experiences. One image showed a voyager facing a immense polar bear with the following question as a headline: Does polar bear breath smell like fish?
The innovative part of the strategy was the fact that each storefront was fitted with "Whispering Windows", a new technology from a company called Inwindow Outdoor that broadcasts sound within a few metres of the display.
In this case the accompanying sound track included a variation of different sounds, each referring to the projected image. For the polar bear subject for example it was a tundra buggy driving over ice-packed snow.
This ambient sound and the engaging illustrations, attracted the observers to come closer to the stores where a promotional team were on hand to give out CTC branded bottles of refreshing water.
According to DDB Canada, the campaign was very well received in New York City and prompted many passersby to stop and ask for more information to the street teams. CTC is considering similar executions in other markets around the world at a later date.