Andrew Ralston Smith - Citizens x NYC Marathon

The Challenge

Many New Yorkers will tell you Marathon Sunday is their favorite day of the year, and for good reason. The race is an inspiring spectacle of grit, jubilation and triumph. As the Official Bank of the TCS NYC Marathon, Citizens needed not only to show up in a crowded sponsor field, but become part of the moment, and win brand association with the energy and community of the race. While awareness existed, consideration and favorability hadn’t fully followed.

The Insight

Everyone in New York, runner or not, has a marathon story. That’s what makes it more than an athletic event. It’s a mirror for the city: ambition, resilience and iconic moments. With 14 branches located on the route and customers in the crowd, Citizens is here for all of it. That became the platform: Made for NYC Moments.

What We Did

We morphed the Citizens “journey lines” into angled racing stripes, so the visual system felt like a brand evolution, rather than a one-off sponsorship kit. Citizens green ran across every touchpoint: subway liveboards, transit shelters, taxi-toppers, taxi wraps, bus wraps, print, email, social, apparel and accessories.

At the Javits Pre-Race Expo, a “Citizens NYC Moments” activation featured an immersive “Times Square” of displays and a digital ticker for fan-contributed messages of support. Social content highlighted the emotion of race day using a stop-motion effect and heavily featured members of Team Citizens, volunteers and sideline supporters.

The Results

67.6MM OOH Impressions; 9.5MM Social Media Engagements; 68,530 Dot Com Visits

Brand consideration and perception scores among marathon participants increased year-over-year. Citizens became one of the most top-of-mind sponsors in the race, trailing only long-term partners.

Personal Note

I ran the 2025 NYC Marathon the same year I art-directed this campaign. You could say it was my quintessential NYC moment.

My Role: AD/Designer

Taxi Toppers

OOH - Subway Liveboards

The “Made for NYC moments” concept came to life on screens at the 59th Street Columbus Circle Subway Station, near the finish line. These screens showcased juxtapositions of everyday moments in New York City with corresponding moments related to the Marathon. We added Citizens green slants as connective visual elements across the displays.

Results: 67.6MM OOH Impressions

OOH - Transit Shelters & Newsstands

It was pretty surreal running past my work displayed on bus shelters located along the Marathon route, and throughout the rest of the city.

Social

We made video content to generate excitement for the race and hype the sponsorship. We prominently featured members of Team Citizens, as well as those cheering from the sidelines, and used a “stop-motion/gif” effect to emphasize the intensity of emotion on display. Many of our Citizens colleagues also shared the videos themselves through an easy advocacy platform.

Results: 9.5MM Social Media Engagements

In-Branch Signage (NYC)

We displayed a slightly modified version of the Hype Video on the screens within NYC branches and installed window clings encouraging customers to send runners messages of support.

Print/Program Ads

We placed ads in the “Official Program & Runner Guide” and “The Brooklyn Paper” for athletes and spectators, respectively.

Email/NYRR Newsletter Inclusions

We used our allotted space in NYRR newsletters to encourage engagement with Citizens before, during and after Marathon Weekend. We invited recipients to the “Citizens NYC Moments” activation at the Pre-Race Expo and thanked them for attending with a chance to win a prize.

Landing Pages

We partnered with an external agency (Miller Zell) to design citizensnycmoments.com, where fans could send messages of support to the runners. We also worked with the in-house web devs on the imagery and copy for citizensbank.com/runNYC, the official Marathon sponsorship page on the Citizens website.

Pre-Race Expo Activation (Javits Center)

We partnered with Miller Zell to design an interactive “Citizens NYC Moments” booth at the Javits Center Pre-Race Expo. We made sure the build matched the rest of the campaign, featuring the signature racing stripes and angular green color blocks. This was also where a digital ticker displayed messages of encouragement and support for the athletes, submitted by attendees and fans.

Taxi Wraps

We offered runners a free ride in a wrapped taxi from the Javits Center Pre-Race Expo, so they could save their energy for race day. As a designer, it was a thrill to see my work in real life and on the road. As a runner, the free ride was much appreciated.

Bus Wraps

Double-decker busses wrapped in Citizens green and featuring our campaign’s racing stripes were strategically parked at the Start Line and the Citizens Cheer Zone located at Mile 12. You couldn’t miss them.