Tag: Marketing

Amtrak Downeaster Celebrates 10 Million Riders

PORTLAND, MAINE – The Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority (NNEPRA) announced that the Amtrak Downeaster celebrated a historic milestone—reaching 10 million riders since its inaugural trip in 2001, a result of a citizen initative started by Trainriders Northeast.

A special celebration took place on board Downeaster Train 686 between Brunswick, ME and Wells, ME on Wednesday, December 18, 2024.  NNEPRA staff handed out cookies and Golden Tickets (valid for a free round-trip on the Downeaster) to passengers to commemorate their part in this historic trip. The on-board celebration, special community partnerships, and an online giveaway have helped make the 10-millionth rider milestone truly memorable for all involved.

Taylor Auclair, NNEPRA

“Reaching 10 million riders is a significant accomplishment which speaks to the value the Amtrak Downeaster service provides to so many people and communities in our region and State,” said Patricia Quinn, Executive Director of NNEPRA. “The Downeaster is much more than just a train ride—it’s a lifeline for commuters, a resource for students, and an essential link to medical care and other important services. Families also rely on the Downeaster to attend events, explore Maine’s beautiful coastline, and visit loved ones.  We are proud to celebrate this achievement and look forward to continuing to serve our communities for many years to come.”

In addition to its significance for passengers, the Downeaster is a cornerstone of the regional economy. Passenger rail service supports jobs and promotes tourism, helping boost local economies in the cities and towns it serves.

NNEPRA is exploring opportunities to expand and enhance service to meet the growing needs of riders and communities in the years ahead. The Portland Station Relocation Project is a priority initiative which will reduce travel time, improve reliability, minimize conflicts with freight trains, reduce operating costs while increasing ridership and revenue and promoting car-free travel.

Special Travel Promotions put in place to Celebrate Downeaster Milestone

The Amtrak Downeaster is celebrating 10 Million Riders by offering special discounted fares for travel during January 2025. “If you already love the Downeaster, or if you’ve haven’t ridden yet, these $30 Round-Trip fares make January the perfect time to take the train!” said Taylor Auclair, NNEPRA Marketing Director.

The $30 round-trip ($15 one-way) fares apply to travel between Brunswick, ME and Boston, MA or any station in between.   The special fares are available for sale now and are valid for travel January 1, 2025 through January 31, 2025. Reservations for these discounted fares must be purchased 3 days in advance of travel. Reference promotion code v232.

For schedules, fares, and more information visit AmtrakDowneaster.com

– Taylor Auclair, Marketing Director, NNEPRA

NNEPRA Partners with the Maine Mariners

NNEPRA is proud to be the official T-Shirt Toss Sponsor of the Maine Mariners, this 2024-2025 season. Leveraging a ridership milestone, Marketing Director, Taylor Auclair has secured a partnership with Oak View Group, the official corporate management team of the Maine Mariners.

At all home games this season, Mariners fans can take their chances and try to catch an official co-branded T-shirt during the exciting T-shirt toss.

As NNEPRA counts down to welcoming the 10 millionth rider aboard, partnerships and opportunities to increase visibility and drive trial are at the forefront of Taylor’s strategy.

Season Pass holders can save 20% on all Amtrak Downeaster travel when they book using the promo code V227. Terms and conditions apply. Visit the Maine Mariners Season Pass Holder dashboard for more information.

“It is my hope that by building on the excitement and allowing everyone to be a part of this ridership milestone, we will reach far beyond our established riders and instead introduce new potential customers to our brand and outstanding service.”
– Taylor Auclair, Marketing Director

View All Partnerships

– Taylor Auclair, Marketing Director at NNEPRA

In Our Station Communities – NNEPRA Remains Active

Spring brings new opportunities for our station communities to engage with residents and visitors. NNEPRA remains committed to supporting and sustaining efforts put forth by small businesses, chamber groups, tourism partners, and rail advocacy members through sponsorships, tabling, and participating in local events. View our recent list of major engagements below.

Governor’s Conference on Tourism

April 24th & 25th – Holiday Inn By The Bay – Portland, Maine

At this year’s conference, NNEPRA was proud to watch Wayne Davis, of TrainRiders Northeast, receive the 2024 WelcomeME Award. His dedication to bringing passenger rail to Maine was the catalyst for the development of the Amtrak Downeaster.

TrainRiders Northeast 35th Annual Meeting

April 30th – Harraseeket Inn – Freeport, Maine

Supporting the TrainRiders Northeast Annual Meeting as Platinum Sponsors, the NNEPRA team, along with partners at Amtrak and MaineDOT, gathered to celebrate the growth of passenger rail in Maine and along the Northeast Corridor.

Flying Colors – Children’s Museum & Theatre of Maine Art Auction Benefit

May 10th – Portland, Maine

NNEPRA partnered with Downeaster Travel Packages to donate a curated travel package to the CMTM’s Art Auction Benefit event. The CMTM continues to bring inclusive opportunities for all children and families to experience, learn, test, and grow within their expertly designed exhibits and hands-on experiential workshops, classes, and performances.

Downtown Worker Appreciation Day

May 25th – Portland, Maine

NNEPRA, alongside transportation partners serving the greater Portland region, b2b solutions, and b2c businesses, gathered to give back to Portland’s Downtown Workforce. With a two-hour lunch window and the location set in Monument Square, hundreds of staff, residents, and visitors poured into the city center to shake off the winter blues and get ready for a busy season in Portland, Maine.

Photo: Egide Foxworth and Portland Downtown
Photo: Egide Foxworth and Portland Downtown
Photo: Egide Foxworth and Portland Downtown

– Taylor Belanger, Marketing Director, NNEPRA

NNEPRA Wins FIRST Place in APTA’s 2024 AdWheel Awards

NNEPRA has won FIRST PLACE in the American Public Transportation Association’s 2024 AdWheel Awards in ‘Best Marketing and Communication to Increase Ridership or Sales – Comprehensive Campaign’ category.

Our Entry Titled: NEXT STOP: Record-breaking ridership on the Amtrak Downeaster was voted on by a selected panel and chosen as the First Place Winner. Entry for this award was created by providing concept strategy, creative executions, and a detailed look at our campaign results in a visual representation compiled with a series of essay questions where we could further walk the judges through our target audiences, campaign objectives, challenges and of course, very successful results.

NNEPRA’s Marketing Director, Taylor Belanger, who spearheads all Marketing Initiatives for the Amtrak Downeaster walks us through the campaign’s framework below.

Objective:

The primary objective of this campaign was to exceed FY2019 ridership and revenue figures and reintroduce the Amtrak Downeaster brand. Secondary objectives were to produce cost effective dynamic ads that could be customized and consistently updated in market to meet the evolving needs of our target audiences and develop content strategies from the market research that identified three core reasons why passenger select the Amtrak Downeaster: Value, Amenities and Destination Experiences.

Wide Angle Lens:

Prior to 2020, the Amtrak Downeaster had a robust marketing presence that included year-round paid media and grassroots outreach from Maine to Boston. Ridership and revenue goals were regularly exceeded. Post pandemic, both our brand awareness and ridership/revenues were negatively impacted and slow to recover. Driven by the need to return ridership and revenues to pre-pandemic numbers, we tasked our new advertising agency Blaze Partners to identify untapped ridership potential and to develop a customer-focused, fully integrated campaign to maximize visibility through paid and owned channels such as the Downeaster website, paid social, search, pre-roll, programmatic, broadcast, and radio. 

Results:

Through a combination of metrics, we have been able to attribute a measurable return from our “Next Stop:” campaign. With record-breaking ridership and revenue wrapping up both Q3 and Q4 of 2023. These include 6.1 million impressions across campaign channels, 153,000 clicks to the Downeaster website, 78,000 conversions. Website traffic was up 8% in Q4 YoY. Paid media continues to drive over 20% of all traffic to the website. Session time tracked on the website also improved by 150% with an average of 5 minutes spent on the Downeaster website.

The success of this initial campaign concept proved to be strong and had legs to grow and flex with market trends and insights taken from top performing placements. This campaign continues to lead our paid media into FY25 where we plan to introduce the next phase of NEXT STOP: _____.

Click to View Broadcast TV
Click to Listen to Northbound Radio

NNEPRA is proud of the success of this campaign, and expresses gratitude to our agency of record, Blaze Partners, for their continued dedication to the success of the Amtrak Downeaster.

– Taylor Belanger, Marketing Director, NNEPRA