East Midlands Railway has initiated a significant new campaign called “Big dreams begin on the train” with the aim of encouraging customers to persist in selecting East Midlands Railway as their preferred mode of transportation for London-bound travel.
Created in partnership with Atomic London, the campaign includes several spots directed by Brad Lubin, that feature brand character Miles.
In one of them, Miles is on an EMP train to London, ready to meet the girl he chatted with on a dating app. When he sees her message, saying she can’t wait to meet him, he starts daydreaming about how they are going to spend their time together. He thus sees himself drawing a portrait of his lover during a picnic, with music playing in the background, holding hands during a romantic dinner, at a restaurant, and dancing together in a club. He is then brought back to reality by an announcer informing passengers that the train has arrived in London. Grabbing the bunch of flowers he bought, Miles is ready for the date. An EMR staff member wishes him good luck and this gives him a boost of confidence.
“Big dreams begin on the train. Save big with up to 60% off when you book in advance,” the voiceover says at the end of the spot, adding the tagline “EMR. Let’s roll”.
The advert, scored by the 2023 song “Little Bit Crazy” by music and production company Chøppersaurus, from their “Hot City Nites” album, will run across TV, VOD, digital, social, cinema and radio.
“Since we have introduced Miles as our brand character, we have seen great success, with him becoming a recognisable and likeable face of
our brand to all our EMR staff and customers,” said Jenna Cowie, Head of Revenue & Marketing at East Midlands Railway. “This year, we wanted to push Miles further and explore how to build his storyline into something more emotional and memorable for our customers. The Atomic team have certainly delivered, and we are excited to show the EMR staff and customers more of Miles,” Cowie also mentioned.