Amtrak’s introduction of the NextGen Acela high-speed trains comes alive in a new campaign by creative partner Mekanism.
Designed to encourage drivers to switch to rail travel amidst rising gas prices, the ad visually assembles a train piece by piece to highlight its engineering, mechanical features, and premium amenities. The NextGen Acela is more than a transit update, and this campaign mirrors that sleek, disruptive energy
Here’s what iSpot’s Creative Assessment platform revealed on actual viewer response to the spots.
The Details:
- The :15 “NextGen Acela Has Arrived” (the first displayed in all visuals) was a high-performing creative execution. Overall response across the American gen pop audience placed +54 pts above the travel category one-year norm, landing in the 73rd percentile—meaning it outperformed nearly three-quarters of all travel advertising:
- The creative was a well-rounded spot that punched hardest on Change, which signals real brand perception movement—as intended. Strong Information delivery assisted in ensuring viewers became aware of the new option.
- The Cinematic visual storytelling did the heavy lifting, with this aspect cited by 34% of viewers as the Single Best Thing about the spot at an above-norm rate. The experience sparked strong levels of Curiosity (along with a little initial WTF confusion) and resonated at above-norm rates across age/gender other than with females 18-35 (among whom it trailed).
- Breakthrough ability was a strength with Attention landing +43 pts above norm and Likeability +38 pts over benchmark.
- While purchase intent just met normative levels at 52% Top 2 Box, for a :15 announcing a new product, holding norm on purchase intent while driving exceptional Change scores could be an acceptable trade-off. Moreover, the Change was recalled as specific to Amtrak, with an above-average 71% able to name the brand on an unaided basis successfully after a single view.
- The creative was a well-rounded spot that punched hardest on Change, which signals real brand perception movement—as intended. Strong Information delivery assisted in ensuring viewers became aware of the new option.
- A comparison to the other :15 “NextGen Acela Has Arrived” (Comfort) creative (the third shown on charts herein) and the :30 execution reveals a clear path toward optimized outcomes and budgets in favoring the above :15 “NextGen Acela Has Arrived:”
- This shorter form outperformed the :30 by +30 pts and the secondary :15 by +44 pts. Although an unusual result—:30’s typically enjoy a structural advantage in building brand response, in this case, the :15 not only best resonated with the audience, but it sparked the highest consumer intent.
- Each of the three spots communicated the Change and Information central to the campaign but the primary :15 did so with higher Relevance, breakthrough (Attention and Likeability) and Watchability. Moreover, the extra 15 seconds in the :30 bought nothing additional on the most important persuasion metrics.
- The :30 at 45% Top 2 Box intent placed below norm for the travel category—a meaningful commercial gap given that purchase intent is the metric most directly tied to revenue. A :30 that costs roughly twice the media budget of a :15 and delivers below-norm purchase intent represents a spending efficiency problem.
- This shorter form outperformed the :30 by +30 pts and the secondary :15 by +44 pts. Although an unusual result—:30’s typically enjoy a structural advantage in building brand response, in this case, the :15 not only best resonated with the audience, but it sparked the highest consumer intent.
- Males 36-49 and 50+ were the dominant target across all three ads, each resonating at above average levels. Every execution worked with this cohort but the primary :15 did it best:
- While other spots showed some strength with other demographic segments and also sparked Curiosity, the primary :15 still outpaced the :30 and “Comfort” :15 other than among females 18-35. The latter represented the weakest audience for this campaign overall but the ‘comfort’ messaging appeared to resonate more successfully here, suggesting targeting opportunities for the alternative :15, if desired.
- Viewer sentiment on the primary “NextGen Acela Has Arrived” :15 reveals that this creative successfully repositioned Amtrak as modern and innovative, generating strong positive sentiment and visual engagement.
- The visual effects and “train assembly” sequence resonated powerfully as the ad’s primary asset. The futuristic, tech-forward positioning ensured the message that Amtrak is evolving was received and appreciated.
- Initial product category ambiguity was a minor consideration that overall didn’t undermine the spot’s overall effectiveness and may be key to enhanced engagement through intrigue. While brand recognition after a full view was above average, the initial misdirection had viewers guessing (car, plane, truck, AI company) before the reveal. It is important to note then, that ad skipping and incomplete viewing will result in a non-delivery of the new positioning specific to Amtrak.
- Encouragingly, current Amtrak users showed enthusiasm and brand loyalty in their comments on this spot. While the teaser approach worked for awareness, among others, many viewers wanted more details.
- While other spots showed some strength with other demographic segments and also sparked Curiosity, the primary :15 still outpaced the :30 and “Comfort” :15 other than among females 18-35. The latter represented the weakest audience for this campaign overall but the ‘comfort’ messaging appeared to resonate more successfully here, suggesting targeting opportunities for the alternative :15, if desired.
Sample Comments on “NextGen Acela Has Arrived” :15
“I’ve always loved trains, and it’s encouraging to see a revived interest in train travel. Rail travel isn’t a relic of the past. It’s modern, even futuristic.”
Female 50+
“I was unsure what the ad was about at first, but once all the pieces came together and I realized it was an ad for Amtrak, I was more engaged and interested as I enjoy traveling and have utilized trains when on trips before. The ad was visually interesting with its combination of technological components combining together on a cloudy sky background.”
Female 18-35
“I really like how the Amtrak train was built around the guy in the ad. That visual was amazing!”
Male 18-35
“I’d like to know somewhat of a price range of some destinations. What locations are available?”
Female 50+
“The ad was engaging to watch. With the scenes, it had an imaginative and visionary look and feel to it, and I enjoy the type of shots used for the scenes.”
Female 18-35
“I wasn’t too clear on the details, but it seems like a more advanced train, possibly a high-speed train, was being advertised. If so, that’s exciting. I do ride Amtrak sometimes and find the trains lackluster. Faster, newer trains would be nice.”
Male 18-35
“I like this ad, it was cool and refreshing. It told me the future direction of Amtrak. I would love to take a trip on an Amtrak train across the country.”
Male 36-49
“First, I thought it was going to be about a car, and then I saw things going together and the front of it looked like a plane, and then it was a train and it was Amtrak! I took my kids on a cross country Amtrak when they were younger. Best memories. Boy, we had a great time.”
Female 50+
“I think it could have started off with the Amtrak name a little more obvious because I wasn’t sure exactly what the commercial was for the whole time until the end.”
Male 36-49
“I would’ve never expected Amtrak to feel so modern. That was unexpected.”
Male 36-49
“I really love this ad and everything about this ad is true. I am a true member of Amtrak and I’m going to take a vacation this month on the ninth and I really think this advertisement is a good way to lead people to start paying attention to this company more.”
Female 18-35
“I thought this ad was really cool. I feel it was a cool, futuristic type of video that shows how far Amtrak has come into making itself very luxurious.”
Male 36-49
“Very involved ad. I felt like it was modern, attention grabbing, and made me much more curious about Amtrak. It looks and feels like it is going to be a more popular choice for travel in the future.”
Female 50+
- Encouragingly, the new campaign generally resonated across income levels among American viewers, with the primary :15 achieving the most strength in overall response within each income bracket:
- Amtrak recall was more suppressed among viewers of the alternative :15 as well as the :30.
- While the new campaign appealed successfully across ethnicity, there could be opportunity for some additional creative to appeal more directly to consumers with children:
Ineffective creative, even if delivered to the right audience, results in missed opportunity and performance shortfalls. Great creative delivered poorly also results in failed campaigns.
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Creative Agency: Mekanism