As the Sarasota region continues to grow into a world-class destination, the city secured funding to create a free trolley program that connects the metropolitan downtown district with St. Armands Circle, a tropical vacation and shopping destination. The Bay Runner Trolley operates seven days a week from 8 a.m. to midnight, with 14 stops that allow residents and visitors to conveniently, seamlessly enjoy sophisticated downtown and a laid back island lifestyle. The trolley also helps reduce congestion on the bustling two-way thoroughfare on and off St. Armands Circle.
To ensure an enthusiastic public reception, build awareness, and garner robust ridership numbers, Next-Mark executed a multi-channel campaign that included vibrant branding, a colorful trolley wrap, voiceover scripts, brochures, supporting video and photo assets, a dedicated website, an app with live trolley tracking, television segments, social media posts, and cross-marketing with SRQ International Airport, City of Sarasota, and area hotels. The tagline “Live more. Drive less.” perfectly encapsulates the aspirations of the trolley program, and the “ding-ding” of the trolley has quickly become an iconic sound in downtown Sarasota, St. Armands Circle, and Lido Key.
