• by Aaron Baar , December 4, 2014

Bilbo Baggins and his compatriots may be traveling by foot in the final installment of the epic Hobbit’s journey onscreen, but in the real world there's a much more practical mode of transport: bus. 

In its first-ever cinema advertising, Greyhound is showing off its ability to get travelers where they need to go — even to the realm of fantasy lands — through a partnership with the upcoming film “The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies” via Screenvision's cinema advertising network.

“A good portion of our customers see movies an average of two to three times each month, and cinema is a great way to get your brand in front of 'cord-cutters' -- those who consume media from personal mobile devices versus traditional channels such as broadcast,” Kim Plaskett, vice president of marketing for Greyhound, tells Marketing Daily. “It was a natural fit to do the promotion with ‘The Hobbit,’ since the movie is centered around an epic journey that requires the characters to traverse great distances.”

At the center of the film partnership is a co-branded commercial that will run in more than 14,000 theaters, featuring elements of the film, with a voiceover stating that the film takes places in a “world of magic and wonder, where anything is possible, every journey is accomplished by walking or riding horses, or riding these things,” making reference to giant trolls. Juxtaposing a Greyhound bus on its way to “Middle Earth,” the voiceover notes that “you don’t live in that world. You live in a wold of Greyhound buses. Affordable, comfortable, modern buses. So as one epic journey ends, yours can begin.” In addition to using footage from the film, the spot also uses the same typeface and voiceover artist that appears in the film’s official trailer.

“What makes these things fun is the way we can stitch these things together,” John McCauley, executive vice president, CMO & Strategic Alliances at Screenvision, tells Marketing Daily. “These little small details are what make it work.”

In addition to the commercial (created by Screenvision’s internal 40 Foot Solutions group) the partnership will also include elements such as trivia during Screenvision’s “Front and Center” pre-show. It was that increased experience that drew Greyhound to the cinema advertising, McCauley says. 

“We have an immersive, captivating experience,” he says. “No ads were skipped this year in cinema.”

The busy holiday film season is also a way to keep Greyhound top of mind as consumers begin planning their holiday vacations, Plaskett says. “As consumers think about their travel plans to visit loved ones for the holidays, we want to make sure that Greyhound is top of mind,” she says.