Bus Ads Boost Awareness for Leaf Litter Cleanup

The Leaf Collective is a program run by Griffith University and the ACT Government that encourages Canberrans to clean up leaf litter to protect local lakes. In 2023, GoTransit partnered with Griffith University & the ACT Government to increase awareness with a bus advertising campaign.

The Leaf Collective was established in 2021 to co-design approaches that would support Canberrans to clean up leaf litter.

If left to accumulate, leaves and their key elements (e.g. phosphorus) enter the stormwater system, ending up in lakes and creating harmful blue-green algae which closes the lakes come summertime. Awareness efforts in key areas such as Lake Tuggeranong and Yerrabi Ponds are crucial to help curb this environmental issue and improve the overall health of ACT recreational waterways. 

Prior to this campaign, The Leaf Collective’s marketing strategy consisted of community events and competitions, posters in local businesses, free leaf bag giveaways, and promotion via owned social and digital channels.

In 2023, GoTransit partnered with The Leaf Collective to provide bus advertising in Lake Tuggeranong. A 6-week study was conducted to understand the effectiveness of adding bus advertising to their marketing mix. 

The study was independently facilitated by Griffith University and peer reviewed at the 2023 ANZMAC conference.

Bus advertising efficacy – adding bus advertising to the marketing mix resulted in:

Awareness and Interest

The Lake Tuggeranong campaign generated an 81% increase in prompted awareness and 84% increase in spontaneous awareness compared to the Yerrabi campaign which did not run bus advertising.

The inclusion of Bus advertising contributed to an overall increase of 180% more actions towards leaf litter since the Pilot program first began in 2021.

All results are based on a market analysis comparing engagement and behaviours in Lake Tuggeranong (market that included bus advertising) vs. Yerrabi Ponds (market that ran Leaf Collective’s standard marketing).

The Autumn 2023 Leaf Collective campaign used out-of-home bus advertising for the first time, resulting in the most successful campaign since the program’s launch in 2021. GoTransit’s survey demonstrated that bus advertising significantly drives awareness, interest, and actions taken, making it a vital part of a successful marketing mix.