Delta painted nine fake travel backdrops so NYC singles could up their Tinder game

Celebrate Delta's 133 destinations from New York and its 'New York Is Go' platform with something singles would actually use and share.

A painted Brooklyn wall with nine destination backdrops - Eiffel Tower, Dutch tulips, phone booths - so singles could take the travel shot without leaving NYC.

A mural on Wythe Ave, Williamsburg, illustrated by Andrew Rae; a second Smorgasburg wall by Hide Your Kids ('Go Where Your Food Is From'); a June 17 singles event with Tinder offering professional profile headshots; on display all summer 2017.

The wall made its insight usable: research found 74% of women and 62% of men want a partner who shares their travel interests, and the mural handed singles that shot for free. LBB reported no match or booking figures.

In June 2017, Delta unveiled a painted wall on Wythe Ave in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, as a tongue-in-cheek assistant for dating: passersby could snap that rare profile shot in front of the Eiffel Tower, London phone booths or Dutch tulips - 'just no duck faces, please'. Illustrator Andrew Rae added to the wall, which represented nine destinations - Honolulu, Paris, Los Angeles, Pisa, London, Mexico City, Amsterdam, Moscow and Zurich - celebrating that Delta flies to the most destinations of any airline from New York City.

The insight came from looking across the NYC online dating scene and noticing the overwhelming prominence of travel pics, then confirming it with singles research: 62% of men and 74% of women want a partner who shares their travel interests; 1 in 2 singles say travelling is one of their favourite things; 1 in 3 ranked travel as a top priority in 2017; and 57% take at least one vacation a year.

Delta also commissioned a second wall in the middle of Brooklyn's Smorgasburg, painted by illustrator Hide Your Kids, inviting people to 'Go Where Your Food Is From'. Both walls stayed up all summer as part of Delta's 'New York Is Go' initiative, celebrating the airline's 133 destinations out of New York and its de facto status as the city's number one airline.

Travel selfies were the currency of NYC dating profiles, so the wall offered real utility, not just advertising.

Singles research - 74% of women and 62% of men want travel-sharing partners - proved the profile shot mattered.

Nine destinations in one wall showcased the breadth of Delta's 133 routes out of New York.

Partnering with Tinder for professional headshots extended the joke into a real service.

The best out-of-home solves a real user problem - a fake Eiffel Tower backdrop got shared because it genuinely improved people's profiles.

The walls stayed up through summer 2017 as part of Delta's 'New York Is Go' initiative. On June 17, 2017, Delta partnered with Tinder on a singles-centric event letting people take their headshot with a professional photographer in front of the mural. LBB's report gave no downstream numbers for matches or bookings.