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Helping TfGM bring the Christmas spirit to the Bee Network

Client: Transport for Greater Manchester

Sectors: Infrastructure,

Services: Photography, PR & Communications, Video Production,

The client

Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) is all about keeping Greater Manchester moving and making it easier for people to get from A to B on the city region’s roads, trains, trams and buses.

They are currently rolling out the Bee Network, a joined up transport network under local control for greener and well-connected travel.

The challenge

TfGM was looking for a partner to support their Christmas, Let’s Go campaign with experiential activity across the Bee Network. The activity was required to take place across a number of weekends in November and December 2024, with a particular focus on the city centre, along with key destinations such as the Trafford Centre, MediaCityUK, Salford Quays and the Bee Network’s park and ride locations.
The main objectives were to increase passenger footfall and fare revenue by creating fame for the Bee Network and to surprise and delight passengers (and potential passengers) with a positive experience in the build-up to Christmas.

The solution

The team at Social came on board with a holistic plan to capture the hearts and minds of the people of Greater Manchester. We achieved this by:

  • Surprising and delighting passengers riding the Bee Network with a festive campaign that appealed to young and old alike
  • Launching our activity by specially renaming two tram stops – Shudehill became Sleighill and Market Street switched to Christmas Market Street
  • Announcing this with a photo and video shoot starring a Bee Network Santa dressed all in yellow instead of his trademark red
  • Inviting press to attend this shoot, with The Manc, I Love Manchester and BBC Radio Manchester securing their own content on the day
  • Landing widespread regional media coverage in the lead up to Santa’s first tram trip
  • Working with two professional Santas as they rode the tram network over five days and visited the Christmas markets, posing for hundreds of selfies and giving away thousands of gifts
  • Securing two local choirs to act as a flash mob, singing tram-themed Christmas carols and filming these performances as well as the delighted reactions from fellow passengers
  • Drafting a content plan for the Bee Network’s social media channels and working with the internal team to deliver the content required.

The impact

The campaign was a huge success, overwhelmingly exceeding targets for impressions, engagement and video views. It reached a total potential audience of 1.2 million, with a social media audience of 745k.

We secured a live phone-in on BBC Radio Manchester with 19 separate mentions across the breakfast and morning shows as well as coverage on the day of the shoot with a report live from the tram. A video posted on their Facebook page was viewed more than 7,000 times.

The Manc also sent a reporter to the shoot, who generated three Instagram Stories and an Instagram Reel, which was viewed more than 37,000 times and received 640 likes. Secret Manchester’s reporter produced a reel on the day which was viewed more than 80,000 times, earning 800 likes, while I Love Manchester’s reel was viewed more than 20,000 times.

The story also received coverage in regional titles across Greater Manchester, including The Bolton News, Bury Times, Oldham Times and the Sale & Altrincham Messenger.

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Our teams are based in Leeds, Liverpool, London and Manchester.

Whether you’re looking for a fully integrated approach, specialist service or you have a project in mind but are not sure what support you might need, please get in touch.

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