the challenge
Metro has always partnered with the LA County Record/County Clerk Office to encourage the public transit riders of LA to flex their voting muscles during any presidential election, typically in the form of ads on trains, buses, and in rail stations. But can we still do that during a pandemic when people are staying in their homes and aren't taking public transit?
the work
Since public transportation is an essential service and there are still folks who use Metro to get from point A to B, we think advertising on our system is still a valid option. Instead of focusing on print ads, we want to capture attention in a more dynamic, cost-effective way.
Animated ads on social media and displayed at rail stations encouraged safe and early voting with many ways to cast your vote. Vote by Mail (VBM) Drop Boxes were installed at 19 Metro bus and rail stations throughout LA County and Metro provided free fares on election day for those who wished to vote in person at a pop-up mobile voting center across LA County.
Brightly animated ads at Metro rail stations were designed to grab the rider's attention while waiting for their train. The design features different expressions of the word "VOTE" (in collaboration with Tiffany Huang and Raylene Lopez) to showcase diversity and freedom of speech. To avoid confusion with voters, this design features the same palette and diagonal colorblock as the official LA County 2020 Vote Campaign (Every Vote In) and utilizes Metro's fonts and brand guidelines.
The next frame provides clear and concise information on all the ways to make your voice heard.
The next frame provides clear and concise information on all the ways to make your voice heard.
Variations of this design/animation were resized for social media.
The four images below are part of one carousel post on Instagram.
I designed icons that fit within the existing Metro Icon Library to help minimally illustrate the voting options: mail, drop box, and mobile vote center. These icons were used throughout our digital campaigns.
On Twitter, we posted maps that highlight drop box locations and mobile vote centers, with each map using their specific icons. These posts provided a link to our campaign page on metro.net, for the reader to get more detailed information.
We partnered with the Transit App to get our ballot drop box icon on their app. This would give riders directions to their nearest drop box location - making it even easier to vote early and safely.
Voting during a pandemic came with its own unique set of challenges, but by utilizing social media, the transit app and digital ads on our own system, we were able to reach essential workers who depend on public transit as well as LA County residents staying safe at home.
