Leading global banking, payments, and shopping service Klarna returned to taxi advertising this spring as part of a wider strategy of OOH, online, social media and print activity, to create broadcast-level noise for their #WhyPayInterest campaign; planned and booked by Bountiful Cow and Kinetic.

Klarna is no stranger to taxi advertising, having used the opportunity numerous times to generate broadcast-level brand awareness to a retail street audience; but on this occasion the brand harnessed the potential of taxis to create heightened message awareness during key moments.

“Klarna branded taxis have played an important role in the ‘Why Pay Interest?’ campaign,” Klarna Marketing Manager Mark Godfrey explains. “From delivering three separate messages at once, to targeting key locations and landmarks, as well as featuring heavily in our PR releases and activity.”

First let’s take a look at the messages - the alternating creatives included surprising financial statistics highlighting the benefits of using Klarna over the traditional credit card model. For example, in 2020 alone, Brits lost over £5.7 billion to credit card interest – that’s £144 every 60 seconds. Meanwhile, those that used zero-cost buy now pay later options saved £76 million in interest payments. Thought-provoking stuff and actually quite an unusual execution for taxi advertising – we don’t usually see copy-led creative on taxis, as many brands feel the opportunity doesn’t lend itself.

Of course, we beg to differ there – the high frequency offered by taxi advertising makes it the perfect roadside communication platform for multiple messages. A campaign such as Klarna’s, with 400 taxis, will be seen on average twice a week by Londoners; in fact for those in the city centre where taxis spend most of their time, real-life campaign visibility will be a lot higher.

Godfrey continues, “As Britain starts opening up again, we wanted a presence on the street and taxis represent one of the safest ways of getting moving again, helping us see our loved ones and taking us to venues and events around the capital once more.”

This powerful campaign, which will reach 7/10 Londoners, comes at a time when there is growing pressure from the Government for regulation of the UK’s booming buy now pay later industry; #WhyPayInterest shines a spotlight on challenging what CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski suggests is an outdated business model. It’s important for online shoppers be aware that Klarna is on the front-foot in this debate, so to create targeted message amplification, Klarna asked the PR Events team at Ubiquitous to arrange a number of bespoke taxi activities.

Convoys of branded taxis are highly effective at turning heads - to draw the attention of pedestrians in Piccadilly, three Klarna taxis continually circled Piccadilly Lights, on which Klarna’s campaign was also featured. A similar tactic was employed to heighten awareness of the Klarna projection on London’s iconic County Hall.

In addition to convoys, Klarna users were offered free taxi rides from Shoreditch’s Ebor Street, where a branded Klarna ice cream truck was set up in front of an interactive mural – what a great way to create an on-street impact for this important message, and combine it with bags of feel-good factor.

High-five Klarna! This taxi campaign is a shining example of how to deliver a broadcast-level OOH reach and frequency that also has a real-life, street-level impact, exactly where and when you want it.

Chantecaille’s beautiful Rose de Mai taxis truly blossomed outside their London Press launch at the prestigious Arts Club in Mayfair.

The exclusive beauty event exhibited their up and coming AW17 product range to high profile journalists and key industry influencers. During the event, the striking rose designed taxis showcased outside of the venue ready for their photoshoot with the Chantecaille team including the Founder’s daughter, Alex Chantecaille, Vice President of Sales and Promotions.

Staying true to the brand’s preeminent quality, Chantecaille ensured that their valued guests continued to be appreciated after the event by providing them with their very own Chantecaille taxi to chauffeur them to their workplace.

Anna Shearer, Chantecaille’s Marketing Assistant commented that “the event was a huge success and the journalists loved the taxis as did Alex Chantecaille!”

On Thursday 10th October, Carven hired 5 of their branded taxis in Manchester for a PR stunt to celebrate the launch of the luxury brand’s new fragrance. Hand-picked ambassador drivers were booked to pick up models and staff from the Premier Inn in Manchester Piccadilly and drop them off in Manchester City Centre for the event.

The drivers showcased their attractive taxis within the city centre whilst the models performed a catwalk through the shopping centre, carrying Carven bags containing the fragrance. Once the stunt was complete, the drivers dropped the models and PR staff back at the Premier Inn! 

For the February 2013 opening of the new Saracens Rugby Club Stadium, Allianz Park, Allianz created four bright blue liveried taxis, to feature in London for eight months. The campaign aimed to directly engage Saracens supporters and to create a stronger bond between them, their club and Allianz.

Safe in the knowledge that the iconic taxi would play a significant part in their overall sponsorship promotion, Allianz decided to further leverage their taxi investment and increase brand awareness by implementing additional PR Event activities using the iconic vehicles.

One tactic was to create a Facebook competition, which ran in May 2013. It ingeniously combined sport with social networking by featuring a film of three of the club’s players filling an Allianz taxi with junior rugby balls. This competition to guess how many balls were in the taxi, was circulated by fans on Facebook, with one lucky school or youth rugby club winning all the balls for the sports facility, alongside a pair of tickets to the Premiership Final at Twickenham.

By implementing the taxi-led competition via social networking, Allianz were able to boost awareness and ‘talkability’ about their association with the Rugby Club, as well as to help inspire a younger generation to get involved in the sport.

Check Em Lads teamed up with Ubiquitous to run a superside campaign in the capital, in the run up to the charity’s 10th anniversary. Phil Morris, who started the Check Em Lads charity, campaigns for men to be pro-active about testicular cancer and his ethos remains the same as it did from the outset, “My aim in establishing Check em Lads was to find a way that was accessible, educational and supportive and importantly, informal”. The ingenious idea behind this campaign is to target, amongst others, male taxi drivers, with an awareness message that encourages drivers to ‘check ‘em’ on a regular basis.

The taxis were used for a professional photo shoot at Carnaby Street, featuring active supporters of the charity, drummer Steve White and radio presenter Ian Collins. Photos of the campaign were used on social networking sites to promote awareness about testicular cancer and the charity itself.

Crocs turned to taxi advertising, with an aim to get the shoppers of London to take a fresh look at their brand and witness how they have ‘evolved’ in their 10th Anniversary year. 10 joyfully outlandish Liveries with a ‘croc skin’ style were created for a one year campaign, illustrating how the brand has re-established itself as so much more than just the iconic clog.

As part of their attention grabbing strategy, Crocs included various promotional tools, to ensure their campaign was miles ahead on the road. From store locations and a Facebook link on their creative to discount incentives on the receipts, all the stops were pulled to achieve a successful edge.

PR elements were also incorporated into the campaign. Crocs chose to offer VIP journeys to their new pop up store and to hand out driver briefing sheets, giving the drivers the opportunity to be ‘brand ambassadors’. The sheets offered a solution to passenger questions and allowed the drivers to assist in the promotion of the product. An added encouragement for the drivers was also given in the form of a free pair of shoes and a set of sunglasses. Providing the drivers with knowledge and experience of the brand gave them an incentive to discuss the extensive range with their passengers and provide interested customers with the relevant information to entice them into store.

Michael Marshall-Clarke, European Marketing Director of Crocs “At Crocs we’re not afraid to break the mould or stand out in a crowd, so our unique crocodile taxi advertising fits well with this approach. In this, our 10th anniversary year, we believe through taxi advertising we will instantly capture the attention of a wide London audience and achieve fantastic, all-access visibility this summer and beyond.”

The "Cabmageddon" competition gave shoppers and party goers free rides home on the busiest night of the year! The free rides were also promoted in the press which meant everyone was looking to get a free ride. A Facebook competition also gave lucky winners the chance to get a free ride by dropping a pin on a map to show where they lived and why they were the most deserving of a free ride! To add extra goodwill and Christmas sparkle, a special build taxi had red antlers added to the roof.

Ubiquitous taxis played a key role in providing impetus for one of the most talked about PR campaigns of December 2011. With a focus on their new Brompton Road store opening, Tommy Hilfiger used 9 uniquely decorated Liveries solely for PR activity and promotion.

Starting with the creative, Tommy Hilfiger not only branded the taxis with their famous preppy style, they also added a festive flare in the form of illuminated bows. The bows, which were secured to the roof, meant the taxis gave the appearance of Christmas presents, turning the heads of intrigued passers-by.

The unique taxis were primarily used at the star-studded store opening, where a host of VIPs could share the taxi experience. Showcasing outside the stylish event and chauffeuring key guests to the exclusive Marks Club after party, the branded cabs were able to create optimum brand exposure.

Surrounding the main event, Tommy Hilfiger also chose to run a series of drive-bys in order to maintain hype. The taxis drove in convoy at key central locations, drawing the attention of Christmas shoppers to the new store. To further facilitate this, models were used to present a preppy girl and boy give-away from the back of the cabs. Giveaways and opportunities for a free ride home provided a successful addition to the whole Tommy Hilfiger experience.

Five of our very best Ambassador drivers were on hand at the IP Expo event, where Violin was exhibiting. The taxis showcased and circled the vicinity of Earls Court to create maximum brand exposure. A press shoot also took place to capture the superside design created especially for the brand. Finally the brand message was driven home by the drivers’ wearing Violin t-shirts.

Courvoisier took their signature ‘punch’ on tour around Edinburgh during the Fringe Festival with the help of our brightly branded taxis. The taxis were on hand to transport key clients and journalists to the most exclusive events during August. To share the Courvoisier love, our Ambassador drivers were given hand-outs to distribute to passengers, including the recipe for the famous punch and the history behind the brand. To gain maximum exposure Courvoisier held events at the most fashionable bars and stores in Edinburgh, which our taxis were used to transport client’s home after a punch or two!