VIA 'Hiring Superheroes' Campaign to increase applications for operator positions and maintenance technicians.

Target Audience: VIA's "Superheroes" campaign targets external audiences to increase applications for bus and van operator positions and maintenance technicians. The campaign also targets employees to both energize the workforce and to incentivize them to recruit others for the open positions. The external component targeted an audience aged 25-54, focusing on job seekers with interests in telemarketing or the military, or were individuals with existing driving experience (I.e., military, Uber/Lyft drivers, FedEx/Amazon/UPS, retired police). We developed the internal campaign using the same creative, and reminded all VIA staff, including administrative positions, that they are superheroes – employees dedicated to providing a service to the community.

Strategy Objective:Using one-on-one interviews with employees, VIA determined that operators found great personal pride in knowing they were a part of keeping San Antonio moving. The concept of "superheroes" was born, and VIA embarked on developing a campaign that would stand out among contemporary advertising. The creative featured real VIA operators bearing a superhero emblem or cape and the campaign included streaming TV, radio, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and print media. To expand the campaign, the superhero theme was integrated into internal employee appreciation events and referral programs. All employees received a superhero shirt, recruitment material that included the superhero theme, and were invited to various awards ceremonies integrating the superhero concept.

Situation Challenge: Like many other transit systems — and employers in general — VIA's frontline employee workforce shrunk during the pandemic. While recruitment efforts are on par with pre-pandemic numbers, VIA must increase its rate of hiring to make up for the covid losses. VIA sought to distinguish itself from competition in the market by highlighting the critical nature of VIA's service — and the people who ensure the buses roll out every morning. Those people are our "Superheroes." The optimistic message in the superhero campaign continually reinforced the importance of VIA's frontline workers, ensuring they know they're needed and appreciated. That message resonates, too, in the community and helps strengthen VIA's position as an employer in the San Antonio region.

Results Impact: Initial intent was to drive prospective operators to VIA's website, generating deeper awareness regarding opportunities at VIA and the overall value of working for the agency. The goal was to increase page traffic and applications. In the 12 months prior to the launch of the campaign in April 2023, the employment page averaged 14,000 views a month. During the campaign period, average monthly views were nearly 25,000, an increase of 67%. Application volume also has increased by 11% over the previous 12 months, to an average of 188 submissions per month since the campaign began. Additionally, many VIA employees took ownership of the campaign, and in various videos created for the campaign, explained in their words why they consider themselves a superhero.

Why Submit: The "Hiring Superheroes" campaign is special because it was developed with the intent to not only resonate to those looking for employment but to reinforce the value VIA brings to the community and how all employees play a role in making the company successful. The message that transit workers play a vital "superhero"-level role in the community resonates not only with potential operators, but it also sends the message to the entire community about the value of transit service. This campaign not only increased clicks and applications, it increased our overall value as well.