• by Les Luchter , 4 hours ago

At first glance, New Yorkers may think that’s an old photo above, since the two men are holding MetroCards, the subway pass that went extinct with the coming of the new year.

But participants in the social media video series “Subway Takes” are still using microphones in the form of MetroCards, and the photo shows host Kareem Rahma (left) discussing public coughing with podcaster guest Dan Rosen. It’s taken from a humorous two-minute video, also featuring other subway passengers, for Haleon’s Robitussin cough medicine that dropped Jan. 13.

“We leveraged the subway's unique environment -- a genuine petri dish of public opinion and shared experience -- to disrupt the conversation around coughing, effectively ‘hacking’ cultural discourse and positioning Robitussin at its very center,” claims creative agency VML to Marketing Daily.

The idea was sparked by the insight that “while individuals often don’t register their own average of 18 coughs per day, the dynamic entirely shifts in public, shared spaces,” VML says. “Nowhere is this more evident than on the subway, where shared air transforms a minor personal cough into a noticeable event that elicited immediate reactions from fellow commuters.”

VML Commerce won the Robitussin assignment last year to “unlock brand equity to drive commerce conversion,” says the agency, so the campaign’s call-to-action  -- found in social media comment sections --  is an offer linking to a $3-off mobile coupon for the OTC product.

Social posts also explain the rationale of the campaign, titled “Commuter Coughs.” 

“You’re watching @SubwayTakes…and the episode gets hacked by coughs,” viewers read on TikTok. “if you’re coughing, stay home and grab some Robitussin.”

“VML U.S. hacked an episode of @SubwayTakes for @Robitussin’s #CommuterCoughs,” read a post on Meta platforms, “highlighting the post-holiday reality: if you’re coughing, it’s time to call in sick.”

“We turned that seasonal pain point [coughing] into a commerce-driving activation that sparks conversation and action,” said a Linked In post.

According to VML, the campaign was designed to “re-establish cultural relevance and drive brand growth during [Robitussin’s] critical cold, cough and flu season. Our objective was to strategically win the ‘cough’ conversation and ensure Robitussin was top-of-mind when it mattered most.”

So far, the agency says, activations on both Robitussin and "Subway Takes” channels are “generating significant views and robust engagement,” with the coupon “also demonstrating strong engagement and redemption rates.”

Next up: a paid media campaign designed to “powerfully amplify” the messaging by “propelling the 'cough' conversation into cultural consciousness and firmly establishing  Robitussin at its epicenter.”