A 360-degree, multi-market engagement campaign encouraging Canadians to submit their big ideas for a chance to turn them into reality The Room For Thought program sought to strengthen American Express Canada’s position as the go-to brand for exceptional service and experiences, an extension of the company’s current overall marketing strategy. Over 5 months, Room For Thought saw 3 finalists embark on a journey toward realising their potential by giving the tools, mentorship and financial support needed to bring these inspirational concepts to life.

Focusing on the fields of community, music and travel/adventure, the finalists were each given $10,000 and paired up with a high-profile Canadian mentor to get their ideas off the ground. Blending inspirational digital content, tried-and-true media relations, online advocacy, TV advertising, and a visually stunning experiential showcase, this truly integrated PR campaign translated into substantial community engagement both on-line and off. Placing Facebook at the heart of the campaign positioned the American Express Canada page as the hub for all consumer-focused social activity, as our targeted, next generation of potential Cardmembers are all very online active.Since it was average Canadians who would breathe life into this campaign, Amex partnered with us, an integrated PR agency, to bring this program to life, even though its elements are more traditionally associated with the work done by marketing or advertising agencies.The campaign surpassed the high benchmarks we set for ourselves, generating 905 pieces of traditional and social coverage that resulted in more than 99m impressions.

Room For Thought was rolled out in 4 phases: submission, voting, mentorship and experiential.

• Submission (August 2011): To kick off, Canadians were challenged to submit online videos and descriptions of big ideas in the fields of community, travel/adventure and music.

• Voting/Selection (September 2011): Leveraging Facebook, the final 9 ideas (3 for each category) were shared with the public, who voted for their favourite. More than 3,100 votes poured in to choose the winners.• Mentorship (October 2011): Amex paired the winners up with the program’s celebrity mentors, who offered first-hand advice, an impressive contact list and some memorable moments along the way.

• Experiential Showcase (November 2011): Taking place at the Four Season’s Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto, we presented a visually stunning showcase, a ‘room’ based on each winning idea that was open to the public and media over a 3-day period.

The Room for Thought program surpassed the highest benchmarks the team set for itself, generating 905 pieces of traditional and social coverage that resulted in more than 99m impressions.• Traffic to American Express Canada’s Facebook page reached 152,858 (204% of target);• Facebook Friends grew by 47% (46,110);• Net new Facebook Likes topped 14,813 (165% of target);• A whopping 804 ‘big ideas’ were submitted (8x target goal);• Nearly 3,200 votes were cast (4 times the target goal);• True engagement both online and off;• Video views: 10,415 (160% of target).