Taxi company 13CABS has unveiled a new campaign via creative agency THINKERBELL reminding people that while ride-sharing companies continue to use surge pricing in times of high demand, 13CABS do not.

The idea called ‘Good Serge’ utilises a 13CABS driver called Serge who picks the right moment (primarily during peak times) to ‘warn’ commuters about the perils of surge pricing from ride-share companies.

Liz Attia, head of marketing at 13CABS, said: “We love our driver Serge, he’s helping us tell an important story to our passengers – don’t put up with surge pricing.”

THINKERBELL’s Adam Ferrier said: “The communications strategy primarily uses a digital approach with support in outdoor and radio. There’s oodles of contextually relevant content, all created to deliver the right message to the right location, at the right time.”

Jim Ingram of THINKERBELL added: “Surge pricing is a hot issue at the moment. When the trains in Melbourne went down a few weeks back, a certain ride-sharing company surged their prices by 3.6 times. We want everyone to know that with 13CABS, there’s no surge pricing – just Serge driving.

“On that note, 13CABS actually has a lot of drivers named Serge, so the campaign not only communicates a timely message, but also gets the message out in a fun way. Special mention to Cousin Serge for his acting debut.”

The Serge campaign kicks off today with digital advertising and is the first cab off the rank for 13CABS’s new communications approach.

CREDITS

Client: 13CABS

Chief operating officer: Stuart Overell

Head of marketing: Liz Attia

Marketing services: Kim Henkul

Creative agency: THINKERBELL

Strategy and account direction: Alex Grivas

Strategy: Adam Ferrier

Data science: Martin Kemba

Creative direction: Jim Ingram and Ben Couzens

Creative: Shirley Bahar and Andre Augusto Pinheiro

Production: Jackie Fish

Post-producation: Chris Reynolds

Photography: Jay Hynes

PR and social: Natalie Perkov

Communications agency: Collaborate Communications

Media director: Steve Fagan

Account director: Katie O’Mara