A student bus service offered at a discount sale of £255, which allows students to use any bus in the City of Cardiff for an academic year. Cardiff Metropolitan University had stated they wanted to increase sales, lower traffic congestion and decrease the amount of parking around the University. Taken on as a personal study and development project, research was collected from students around Cardiff to discover why there was a shortage of sales. In light of this, research showed students found the £255 too much to spend travelling to and from University and preferred to drive, walk or cycle. The students that had chosen to purchase a met rider pass, interestingly, had the pass paid for by parents or guardians. This suggested the target audience should be the parents/guardians as well as the students. Fundamentally, the first step involves changing the brand goals, altering the target audience, and instead of the met rider pass being about getting you to and from University, it is a potential key to the city and essentially a key to a University experience.
With this in mind, the next stage was transferring this point across to the target audience in an effective and sustainable way through considered messages and materials. This created the idea of sending out one leaflet, which covered information for both target audiences and without the usage of too much material was measured, before resulting in a three sided perforated recycled card. The left side supplying information to the parent or guardian, about the safety of the met rider, savings in travel expense and the decrease in potential pollution and congestion. Whilst the right side, directed at the student, would entertain the potential destinations that the met rider could take you throughout your university experience hoping this would entice them towards not only the met rider but towards Cardiff as a whole. Accompanied with the completion of a met rider pass would be a pocket sized map, guide and bucket list to the City; this showing the bus routes and destinations along the way along with opening times, phone numbers and relevant information to make sure the met rider and university experience was sufficient is ensuring no one felt lost and had ticked off everywhere before the end of their education.
Next, choosing the appropriate branding and materials was important as it needs to relate to the University colours to confirm it was a Cardiff Metropolitan University experience and could not be found anywhere else. Additionally, it would all be printed on to recycled card that hopefully, would be kept as memorabilia of the time spent in Cardiff.
To conclude, my aim was to evolve a regular bus journey into an adventure. The Met rider now not only will be able to increase sales but increase life in the city, with lower congestion and a safer atmosphere. The usability and social response had been considered and caters for human needs in a fun, sustainable and efficient manner.
