dum ways to die back stories

1. Dumb Ways to Die
Mocking Death to Millennials
By: Caroline Stone, Ashley Case and Daley Henson

2. Metro Trains
● Franchise operator of railways in Melbourne, Australia
○ Founded in 2009
● A part of three different organizations
○ MTR Corporation - 60% shareholder
○ John Holland - 20% shareholder
○ UGL Railroad - 20% shareholder
● Research found that between November 2011 and January 2012 there were
13.29 “near-miss” accidents

3. McCann Melbourne
● International advertising agency
○ Established in 1902
○ Their motto is “Truth Well Told”
● Approached in 2012 by Metro Trains
to make a PSA for millennials
● Adopted a content model rather
than an advertising model

5. Other advertising mediums
● Print ads
● Tumblr blog
Later, after viral video:
● Children’s book
● Karaoke songs at
train stations
● Two game apps

6. Immediate Response
● Released by a single local
transport topic reporter
○ McCann made sure the reporter
framed it for rail safety
● More than 20 million views on
Youtube a week after release

7. Morbidly Adorable
The quirky, catchy song that goes along
with the video was one of the first tactics
that was successfully used in the “Dumb
Ways to Die” campaign.
● Appeals to target audience’s emotions
● “It got people talking and evidently
singing about railway safety,” John
Mescall, the company’s Executive
Creative Director, said.

8. Social Media
Since they were mainly targeting
young adults, Metro Train’s use of
social media platforms turned out to
be a success.
Their Tumblr page ended up being
the most successful social media
platform. Tumblr allowed users to
reblog content they enjoy. People
entertained by the campaign quickly
shared it with their friends.

9. Getting Children Involved
Although a much younger audience,
children played a key role in the success of
their campaign.
The books and plush toys appealed to the
children’s emotions, which allowed them to
become invested in the campaign. This
would also get their parents and older
siblings interested. The book served as a
teaching tool for children on train safety.

10. Smart Phone App
Metro Trains released a game on Apple and Android devices for the campaign.
This allowed for the players to create their own personal experience with the
campaign.

11. Smart Phone App
This tactic appealed to fans of all ages. Players could Tweet their scores or share
scores on social media, which grew their reach on social media platforms.
In November 2014, Metro Trains released an installment for the campaign titled
“Dumb Ways to Die 2: The Games” This installment featured an athletic theme for
dumb ways to die.

12. Getting audience involved
Metro Trains knew that getting the audience
involved would help spread their campaign.
Metro Trains began hosting several different
events worldwide that helped get the target
audience involved, educated and interested in
the campaign.
They also encouraged the members of their
audience to make cover videos of the song.

13. More Than a Video
They urged viewers to take a pledge on their website to be safe around trains.
Over time, over a million people took the pledge.
Pedestrians could stand next to the characters featured in the song and press a
giant button to pledge to be safer around trains.

15. Success
Metro Train’s successful tactics
helped to execute their intended
strategies. Their great success can
be linked to getting their public
involved with the campaign .
Metro Trains successfully educated
their public on train safety, all while
allowing their audience to have fun.

16. Results
Metro Train was able to provide real results through their fun campaign.

17. Criticism
Some criticized the campaign for giving people various
ideas for committing suicide. Although the song innocently
sings about “dumb ways to die,” it could potentially trigger
suicidal urges or even give inspiration to someone.
Suicide is recognized as one of the foremost causes of
railway trauma.
The video was banned in Russia because the government
didn’t want children to see the various ways of committing
suicide. Although it was banned, the video still aired on an
ABC station in more than 50 Russian cities.

18. Awards
The advertising campaign went on to
win two Webby Awards for “Best
Animation Film” and “Best Public Service
and Activism.”
It was also the most awarded campaign
in the history of Cannes, with 28 Lions.
This was a great success for Metro
Trains, and they are now working on a
sequel for the campaign.
John Mescall and his team receiving the Grand Prix
at Cannes Film Festival

19. Evaluation
Metro Trains mainly received positive feedback for their campaign. The campaign
was covered worldwide, which put Metro Trains on the map.
The campaign earned $60 million in media impressions and reached 46 percent of
their target audience in the first month.
The campaign also generated over a million responses from people around the
world pledging to be safer around trains.
There was a decrease in the amount of near-miss accidents.

20. Continuation
Because of the success of their campaign and its installment, Metro Trains is going
to continue to further their campaign. Their plans are to continue developing their
game assets and branch out into other entertainment platforms.
“What we have is a franchise, not an advertising platform,” Mescall stated.

21. Conclusion
The “Dumb Ways to Die” campaign proved to be a huge success because of Metro
Train’s implementation of their strategies. Metro Trains got the public involved,
which made people become more interested and willing to share the campaign.
Despite minor criticism, “Dumb Ways to Die” will likely stay successful.