Wunderman Thompson: HSBC’s Lifegiving Light

In New York City, where greenery is in short supply, Wunderman Thompson and HSBC attempted to remedy the situation. They identified billboard locations next to green spaces in Manhattan and created specialist ads that emit coloured light to promote plant growth.

Each digital advertisement included the tagline “What if blue light from an ad could help NYC stay green?” The billboards opened a conversation about the issue of sustainability while also contributing life-enhancing energy to the city.

The ads, which had a positive effect on hundreds of nearby plants, flowers and trees throughout Manhattan, launched to coincide with the UN’s global climate summit (COP26) and received over 22 million media impressions. The story was also picked up by media outlets in both the United States and Canada, generating millions of additional impressions for the campaign.

“To get people’s attention, we needed to show rather than tell,” said Ari Elkouby, the agency’s ECD. “We had the opportunity to use the media available to bring attention to HSBC’s global sustainability commitment and create a positive impact for the city of New York.”