As part of the comprehensive redesign of both its print and web product debuting Friday, The Globe and Mail is producing an eight-week editorial series that will provide in-depth analysis of topics that define who we are as Canadians.
Called “Canada: Our Time to Lead,” the series will feature what the Globe calls “deep coverage and online discussion and debate” of topics including multiculturalism, women in power, the future of the military and work-life balance.
The series is being supported by a massive multimedia marketing campaign that includes print, online, television, cinema, radio and out-of-home, as well as direct-to-consumer promotions, PR and street marketing.
The campaign was developed by Toronto agency Naked Creative.
Naked president and partner Peter Shier said he’s actually unsure exactly how many pieces of individual creative are in the campaign, but noted that there will be a full campaign–with the exception of TV–for each of the eight topics.
“It’s probably the most comprehensive integrated campaign the Globe‘s ever done,” he said. “Where it generally does eight [campaigns] in a year, we’re doing eight in eight weeks. There are lots of moving parts.”
A 60-second intro TV spot shows a young woman riding a bicycle through a park. As she rides, she talks into the camera, explaining that Canada is not defined solely by commonly cited factors such as hockey, peacekeeping or insulin.
“If you ask Canadians ‘What defines us?’ some might offer up a list of others past accomplishments, but what if, instead, 34 million of us step up, pledging new ones of our own?” she says.
She urges Canada to be “a nation neither afraid of success, nor skeptical of those who seek it,” and closes with “Canada, it’s our time to lead.”
A super directs viewers to the campaign website OurTimeToLead.ca, as one corner of the red background slips down to reveal a sneak peek at the redesigned Globe masthead.
“The Globe has a fairly unique position in Canada, and I think the [Globe] saw the opportunity to articulate an agenda to Canadians they felt was important,” said Shier.
“It wasn’t an issue of coming out and saying ‘Hey we’ve got a colour paper coming’ because that sort of takes a back seat. We’re hoping these eight issues will drive the agenda.”
The site, also by Naked, features a section that invites visitors to create their own Globe front page using their own image, headline and byline. “The traction on that has been phenomenal,” said Shier.
Toronto’s Gaggi Media handled media for the campaign.
