The "More Kindness Project" humanises the São Paulo Metro

The problem to be solved was that passengers felt the communication with the Metro was distant and authoritative, be it inside the metro system or on social media. Inappropriate behavior needed to be reversed into good practices and some operational rules for coming in and out of trains had been changing.

Given this, the company created a new institutional language and came up with the Metrotoons, a family of 39 different characters which bring the message of humanity, simplicity, lightness, and fun, however serious the message may be. The passengers may become the protagonist in the messages. The characters show inappropriate behavior in a fun, silly way which may reach out to a larger crowd, and it may be replicated in any language.

We were able to:

• Expose inappropriate behavior in every-day situations, making it sound fun and silly so that passengers may laugh at the situations
• Help minimise the fear and uncertainty that passengers may feel riding the metro after the pandemic
• See an immediate response from children who are learning about metro regulations at an early age
• Use the cartoon characters as a visual communication messenger to back behavioural changes
• Raise awareness of individual behaviours which may affect the commute of all passengers
• Relate to all publics, including foreigners and those who cannot read
• Use the fun language on many campaigns over the course of 2 years
• Show the passengers as the protagonists of the campaign
• Show inclusion and diversity

To measure the behavioural impact of the campaign, there have been periodical surveys carried out. The impact of the “More Kindness Project” can be seen in the rapid behaviour changes passengers have displayed when getting on and off trains. The survey conducted after a year and a half of the campaign shows that 62% of people have noticed the new characters.

Of that group, 72% saw an improvement on the boarding process and 96% of the same group felt the messages were conveyed in a much more positive form (the characters were fun and the stories were easy to understand). The integrated campaign also aims to involve over 2000 employees.