Driving foot traffic to their retail locations after lock-down was a significant challenge Western Union faced in 2021. Whilst there was still a pressing need for overseas financial remittance, the target audience didn’t feel as comfortable heading down to the stores, especially under pandemic circumstances. In order to connect with the communities they served, WU sought out ALIVE to plan a campaign that could help them reach their audience more effectively.
Thus, ALIVE was responsible for conceptualising and delivering the #WUCelebrates series from creative design to production as well as staffing and on-site management and logistics from 2021 to 2022. This three-part activation aligned with three major holidays for their target audience: Deepavali, Christmas and Chinese New Year. Over the course of the campaign, an exclusive website was created to host a monthly virtual photo booth that featured fun design elements from that specific holiday. Participants of the virtual photo booth were able to try out the unique digital scratch card feature to see if they had won any of the themed prizes.
To redeem prizes, ALIVE set up redemption counters at carefully curated WU retail locations and gave the chosen locations a seasonal makeover. These locations became hotspots for customers to visit and take photos, which helped drive awareness of the accessibility of Western Union to their audience.
More than 2000 prizes were given away during the campaign series with 4 WU stores receiving a full makeover to celebrate the holiday season. Participants of the virtual photo booth were not limited to SG customers as this was shared within the community and with their families back home to showcase a new, meaningful way they could celebrate and spread joy during the festive season.
