The Campaign

Made Possible By Melbourne was a campaign that transformed an entire city into a free exhibition of the University of Melbourne’s world-changing research. By creating exhibits in poster sites within the city's free tram zone we took research that is usually published in academic journals, and placed it directly in front of the people that might invest in it. These exhibits were accompanied by a digital audio guide, virtual map, free cycling tour and a pop-up cafeteria offering research people could eat and drink, creating an event that enabled people to interact with research. Creating a citywide free exhibition meant that people were already open to our message and strengthened the University’s relationship with Melbourne’s public. By highlighting the contribution the research projects are making towards global welfare we were able to elicit a response – driving people to discover and donate to further research projects.

Creative Execution

Running for one month, the direct campaign used the existing advertising infrastructure in Melbourne's CBD to host an interactive exhibition. First, special builds turned outdoor advertising sites into interactive exhibits. Each story was selected to demonstrate the University’s research endeavor and place it in front of a relevant audience. For example, a story about breakthroughs in prenatal drugs was placed outside the city’s leading pharmaceutical office. A mobile site used GPS to direct our audience to nearby exhibits, and then streamed audio content, providing a guide to the work spoken by the researchers themselves. A transit takeover provided a free exhibition shuttle, designed to move people seamlessly through the citywide exhibition. An activation provided a pop up cafeteria with research people could eat and drink. Supporting outdoor, social and digital communications raised awareness of the exhibition. A call-to-action on each exhibit drove people to online to donate.

Results

During the month long exhibition, Made Possible By Melbourne met every measurable objective in raising awareness of the University’s research projects. The campaign reached 44 million, globally, through PR. The exhibition was featured in 22 international media outlets. The content hub received over 1,036,453 hits within 2 weeks of launch. Estimated foot traffic through the exhibition was 3.2 million. In a tracking study 1 in 3 Melbournians said the campaign changed their opinions of the University, enhancing their understanding of the importance of research and its economic and societal impacts. Ultimately, this exhibition led to an 80% increase in commercial research enquiries, worth hundreds of millions of dollars in investment. Made Possible By Melbourne is now being used as a touring exhibition across Australia, and has become an ongoing publishing platform for the University’s research stories.

Made Possible By Melbourne took University research out of the University and put it directly in front of its target audience to drive awareness and funding for the University. This objective could be measured by the traffic to the University’s research website and ultimately through contributions to the University. By turning an entire city into a free exhibition of world-changing research, Made Possible By Melbourne, helped create a new relationship with the city and its University – people no longer saw as it a centre for learning, but as a leading research centre to be proud of, and contribute to.

Through a 6-month consultation period we selected research content that would be interesting and relevant to our target audiences, and directly engage them to actively seek and donate to research. A mix of media around Melbourne’s central business district was chosen specifically to reach an audience of affluent, university educated, 20-60 year olds including alumni, commercial Research Partners and employers. Targeted media buys made sure the exhibits were placed directly in front of high potential investment areas with relevant research stories. Transit takeovers reached commuters on their way to and from work, and supersites around the city ensured the campaign was unmissable. This large-scale event was designed to gain amplification through PR to engage a wider national audience. A call-to-action on each touch point drove our tech savvy audience online to read about more research projects and also, gave them opportunity to donate then and there.