MiO: TTC Streetcar or NXNE’s Most Original Music Venue?

Insight

With a title sponsorship of premier Toronto music festival, North by Northeast (NXNE), MiO set out to make a meaningful impact on its target audience [millennial males] and generate media coverage, all using the mandate to “make it original.” We knew that standing out in this crowded landscape meant more than slapping a logo on a building – it meant creating an authentic experience that no festivalgoer had ever imagined or would want to miss out on. With that, the MiO Squirtcar was born.

Idea

By transforming a Toronto streetcar into an official festival venue and filling it with 19 handpicked artists (e.g. Reggie Watts, Macaulay Culkin’s The Pizza Underground, Dragonette, etc.), we created a moving (literally) party along the city’s hippest stretch for four nights, outperforming all competition, making a lasting impression with our target audience, and generating a huge amount of coverage.

Impact

The MiO Squirtcar became the most talked-about experience at NXNE, blowing the competition out of the water and creating an unforgettable experience for the target audience. Results eclipsed expectations, delivering more than 31 million social media impressions, 30 million paid impressions, and more than 400 million earned media impressions.

The Squirtcar activation was huge for MiO. It allowed us to break through the news clutter, separate ourselves from other brands sponsoring NXNE and dominate the conversation happening about the festival.

- Joe Mele, Brand Manager, MiO, KraftHeinz