OULUSPORA

Oulu is a growing and dyna­mic city. It’s a home to 200,000 people and also the fifth lar­gest city in Fin­land. Still, only a few people know the­se facts. During the Oulus­po­ra cam­paign, Oulu dona­ted a tram full of Oulu-rela­ted cul­tu­ral expe­riences to Hel­sin­ki for six months.

A Tram Fil­led With Oulu Cul­tu­re

Oulus­po­ra – which is Oulu tram in English –  was a very visible tram on the streets of Hel­sin­ki due to the colour­ful and beau­ti­ful Oulu illustra­tions on its sides. It was also a venue for events that int­ro­duced Oulu and its cul­tu­re to the people of Hel­sin­ki.

The cam­paign star­ted in Decem­ber 2017 with a great per­for­mance of Tier­na­po­jat (star sin­gers) and it ended in June 2018. The punch­li­ne of the cam­paign was on the first day of June when the­re was a special per­for­mance in the tram – a Fin­nish Oulu-based sin­ger Elli­noo­ra. During the cam­paign the­re was a lot­te­ry on the cam­paign web­si­te and social media whe­re people could win tic­kets to this pri­va­te gig.

During the spring many pri­va­te and public pop-up events were held in the tram. They were all some­how Oulu-rela­ted. Also, in social media the­re was a col­la­bo­ra­tion with Fin­nish vlog­ger Sita Sal­mi­nen, who has stu­died at the Uni­ver­si­ty of Oulu. 

Ico­nic Oulu Illustra­tions

The tram itself was a very cle­ver and effec­ti­ve mar­ke­ting tool.

The city of cycling, Tier­na­po­jat, the Air Gui­tar World Cham­pions­hips, the Polar Bear Pitc­hing event, Kär­pät the ice-hoc­key team and bar­beque sausa­ge – the­se are all things Oulu is known for. The­se the­mes were fresh­ly and inno­va­ti­ve­ly added to the illustra­tion. The visual gui­dance of the City of Oulu was reflec­ted in the colours and the ove­rall cam­paign ima­ge.

Satu Sini­kum­pu from Työ­maa crea­ted the illustra­tion.

Strong on Social Media

The main source of infor­ma­tion was the web­si­te helsinki.oulu.com. On the sides of the tram, the­re was a text that gui­ded people to the site. On social media, people were gui­ded to use the hash­tag #oulus­po­ra.

On the cam­paign site we com­mu­nica­ted briefly, yet enga­gingly, about the pos­si­bi­li­ties the City of Oulu has to offer. The­se pos­si­bi­li­ties inclu­de, for example, pos­si­bi­li­ty to stu­dy, work and ven­tu­re in Oulu, and enjoy its rich cul­tu­re.