Toronto businesses begin Buy Toronto Time campaign
By Adnews Staff
The Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas has begun a campaign called “Buy Toronto Time.” Developed by Berners Bowie Lee, the campaign encourages residents of the city to support local businesses. According to the agency, the initiative is intended to “evoke a sense of potential loss” to convince consumers to save businesses that have been affected by the COVID-19 lockdown. It incudes an out-of-home component featuring businesses local to specific neighbourhoods, as well as television commercials, radio ads and social media content. The creative highlights how local businesses make each Toronto neighbourhood unique. The effort also includes posters for businesses to display in their windows. This creative depicts a tombstone shape incorporating the year the business opened and a blank space for when it will close. Businesses can join the campaign at <https://www.buytorontotime.com>. Media space is being donated by Corus Entertainment. Public relations are being handled by Glossy.
“Most people in the city want to help local businesses,” said Michael Murray, creative partner at Berners Bowie Lee. “When a place we love closes we feel a sense of sadness and we often regret that we didn’t do more to help. ‘Buy Toronto Time’ is a campaign that triggers this sense of loss to nudge people in neighbourhoods across Toronto into action.”