The North Face #SeeForYourself experience

It’s January. We’re all making half-hearted efforts to be more active. The gym is full of newbies and you can barely move for joggers. Pardon my cynicism but it will probably only last a month - tops. That said, perhaps this activation from The North Face will provide some inspiration for leading a more active lifestyle.
The retailer, which specialises in outdoor recreation gear for adventurous types (and more recently, experiential marketing activations), transformed another everyday experience into an adventure. The North Face #SeeForYourself cab gave New Yorkers two choices on entry; continue with your day as normal, or go on an adventure to an unknown location – or as they put it ‘see the world for yourself’.
 
Those that did indeed want to see the world for themselves were transported to outdoor exploration locations such as Rockaway Beach, Windham Mountain, The Gunks or the Canyonlands. 

The cab could be distinguished from the other cabs of NY by its big bulky appearance, a surfboard fitted to the roof, bikes hanging off the rear, the emblazoned hashtag #seeforyourself and of course, The North Face logo.

Although very much a live and tangible experience, The North Face integrated it digitally with a dedicated campaign microsite that features: an interactive map of 50 of the brand’s favourite places to explore in the U.S. complete with photo galleries and information; a video; a downloadable rendition of “This land is your land” by My Morning Jacket; an outdoor guide to the 21st century and the opportunity to upload your own #seeforyourself adventure pictures.

The North Face knows its experiential marketing, and the brand’s whole ethos leaves way for plenty of super fun experiential marketing activations. The brand orchestrated two stunts last year that required customers to its shops to prove their exploratory credentials; the floor caved in in this stunt, and the changing rooms were transformed into a real life Arctic challenge in this stunt.

If you liked this taxi-themed activation, you’ll also like this Cuban taxi experience from Transat Holidays, and PlayStation’s pay-by-song karaoke activation. Joss Davidge is a managing partner of BEcause, the award-winning live brand experience agency, dedicated to enhancing Brand Love.

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