The promotion is one of several in the pipeline this year to raise The Economist's profile and circulation in the city. The refurbished trishaws in the title's trademark red carried the message: 'Don't get taken for a ride', while the drivers were clad in red tees that read: 'Wish I'd read it'.
The promotion extends The Economist's use of unusual media to get its message across to potential readers with "higher than average incomes, better than average minds, but less than average time". It also marked the return of the trishaw to the business district after an absence of 40 years - a deal put together by WPP's guerilla marketing agency Red Card. Apart from bringing a slice of nostalgia back to the city, the promotion also offered free rides to people.
"All of our activity for The Economist is about media immersion; it's about going into the consumers' world and engaging the consumer in a way they want to be engaged, said Red Card director, David Mayo.
The Economist's circulation director for Asia-Pacific, Peter Bakker, added: "Trishaws are not just for tourists. We hope Singaporeans will take this opportunity to experience a bit of their own culture ... at our expense, of course."
Other planned promotions include cleaning cranes with the message, 'Which way is your career going?' at key buildings, and a second targetting Singapore's estimated 15,000 BMW car owners. Owners who have their cars serviced will find a pack on the seat, with a copy of the title, a subscription card and a message that reads: 'We took the liberty of giving you more power'.
