JD Williams teams up with Sky Media and Channel 5 for its new Spring campaign

Gok Wan, Judi Love and Helen Skelton star in bespoke cross-platform campaign celebrating women

JD Williams, a leading platform within N Brown Group plc, the inclusive fashion and homeware digital retail platform, today reveals its brand new campaign in collaboration with Sky Media and Channel 5, in a deal negotiated by the7stars, to target its midlife audience.

The partnership will use both JD Williams and Sky Media’s rich data capabilities to ensure the campaign is reaching the retail platform’s target customer (women aged 45 – 65). This data ecosystem will mean Sky Media can tailor campaign messaging to specific customer groups, maximising the relevance and engagement of the creative.

JD Williams continues to take a stand against the ‘invisibility’ of midlife women, celebrating their relevance, roles and individuality in its new campaign fronted by the stars of Sky Media’s channel portfolio. A series of 10” TV idents, 30” and 60” spots will feature TV personality and comedian, Judi Love (Out of Order, Comedy Central), and Channel 5 presenter Helen Skelton (Springtime on The Farm, Dan and Helen’s Pennine Adventure), being interviewed by fashion guru, Gok Wan. The interview delves into their lives to discuss how their style and fashion confidence has changed in midlife.

From the 15^th March, JD Williams will also be the exclusive sponsor of Channel 5 content that leans into the theme of Inspired Living; including female-fronted shows  such as The Hotel Inspector and Susan Calman’s Great British Cities.

In a creative extension of the TV activity, customers can enjoy longform (10 minute) versions of the interviews on jdwilliams.co.uk. During these, Gok will explore Judi and Helen’s individual style using JD Williams’ fashion, shapewear and beauty products, and giving viewers a peek into their lives and wardrobes​. All aforementioned content has been produced by Sky Media.

Leveraging Sky’s full ecosystem of content platforms (linear TV, BVOD, Shortform VOD and AdSmart from Sky), a QR will be used to direct viewers to jdwilliams.co.uk, allowing JD Williams the ability to measure and target its campaign further, as well as gain a deeper understanding of a customer’s shopping journey. Meanwhile, measured activation across Sky Media’s and Channel 5’s digital and social channels, will reinforce the campaign’s message and give viewers even more content to explore.

Live from the 14^th of March, through to the 9^th of May, the integrated media strategy crafted by the7stars will see the campaign play out across Channel 5 and Sky channels, Global OOH sites, Smooth FM & Heart FM 5, Hearst’s Good Housekeeping and Red Magazines as well as paid and organic social.

Sam Walker, Director of Group Marketing and Creative at N Brown, commented: “JD Williams proudly champions midlife women and we’re excited to be launching a campaign with Judi, Helen and Gok to help women feel confident in dressing for midlife style. We understand our customers better than anyone, so we’ve worked with Sky Media to ensure that our campaign messages are more targeted across Sky’s platforms and to benefit from the wealth of data that we’ll gain through Sky’s ability to engage with their audience. JD Williams is all about making women feel amazing, and we’re confident that our new campaign will resonate with our customers.”

Karin Seymour, Director of Client and Marketing at Sky Media, added: “Our JD Williams partnership is a brilliant example of a modern integrated partnership. Production, access to talent and advanced data sharing means that together with Channel 5 and the7Stars, we can drive JD Williams’ business forward by connecting and engaging their ideal audience.”

Peter Dale, VP, UK Ad Sales & Commercial Development, Paramount said: “This bespoke creative partnership is a brilliant example of how advertisers can align themselves with Channel 5 and our high-profile talent to engage and entertain viewers through distinctive, effective campaigns.”

Zach Al-Moajil Cole at the7stars, added: “This is a great branded-content series with a fabulous talent line-up that both reflects and empowers the audience it serves – magnificent mid-life women. It has been a truly collaborative project and it’s great to see the media strategy evolve into a fully integrated, data-fuelled activation incorporating more assets and channels, to really build on the success from last year.”

Sky Becomes First UK Publisher to Report Off-Platform Distributed Video

Sky Media has achieved a significant first in the UK as the only publisher to be able to report ‘off-platform’ distributed video, following development by Ipsos iris and endorsement by UKOM.

This is a significant enhancement to the industry standard for online measurement, which previously only reported video content served on a media owner’s owned and operated platforms.

As media owners continue to adapt their online distribution strategy to serve content across social media and third-party platforms, it is crucial for the measurement world to offer solutions that provide robust and trusted holistic reporting.

Sky is a leading example of an organisation using third-party platforms to increase reach. This development measures the incremental audience gained through video content served across third-party websites as part of the ‘Sky Publisher Player’ (SPP) network.

Data from the first month of measurement showed that SPP increased Sky Sports’ audience by 16% to 9 million UK adults, further accelerating the brand as the largest online commercial sports publisher in the UK, with the ability to reach audiences beyond owned and operated sites.

This step enhances transparency and accountability benefiting both publishers and planners in understanding that reach goes far beyond owned and operated sites and apps.

Ian Dowds, CEO of UKOM, said: “We think the whole industry will welcome this important and exciting development from Sky and UKOM-governed Ipsos iris. It shows that Ipsos iris data brings additional answers in the search for accountability of investment, allowing media owners and advertisers to learn how the online viewing landscape is evolving.”

Graeme Hutcheson, Director of Digital Advertising at Sky Media, said. “As our digital platforms evolves at pace, it’s important to be able to capture the full reach and impact of advertising in a single, simplified view. Collaborating and innovating with UKOM and IPSOS for trusted industry measurement, means advertisers can now see the full impact of our market leading proposition helping them make better, more informed decisions.”

James Oates, Head of Ipsos iris, added: “I am delighted that Ipsos iris is expanding our industry-endorsed measurement with additional video coverage, which reflects where and how the UK online population consumes video content. This is a huge development for Sky and the industry and will drive improved strategic planning for media owners and agencies alike.”

Sky’s pioneering approach to reporting off-platform distributed video is expected to set a new standard for online content measurement, offering a more comprehensive and accurate view of the digital landscape for all players in the industry.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) launch a cross-broadcaster collaboration in anticipation of Census 2021

The once-in-a-decade survey, Census 2021, will ensure big decisions of the future are made on the best information

The Office for National Statistics (ONS), in partnership with MG OMD, are amplifying the digital-first, once-in-a-decade survey with a cross-broadcaster collaboration where ITV, Channel 4, Sky, C5 and S4C will come together to amplify the importance of the survey in one, significant cultural moment. Launching across the 20^th and 21^st of March, the collaborative Census 2021 TV campaign will be co-branded with each of the broadcasters’ logos and each channel will air special channel-endorsed introductions bespoke to their viewing audience viewing.

Featuring contributors from all over England and Wales, the Census 2021 Weekend TVC, which was conceived and bought by MG OMD’s OmniGOV, and created by The Outfit with visual cues taken from the main Census TV campaign created by M&C Saatchi, will broadcast at a high-frequency throughout the 20th – 21st of March including key spots in The Voice final, an ITV special one-off during Sunday Peak – All Star Musicals, Channel 4’s The Circle, and in Wales on S4C during the Six Nations Final. Additional digital activity will also feature on hit shows including Dancing on Ice and The Voice apps, plus an ITV Hub takeover during Census Weekend too. In these cherrypicked spots, the broadcasters will proudly introduce the ad to show their support and emphasise the importance of filling out your census across England and Wales.

Alongside the collaboration, celebrities and influencers will encourage viewers to fill out their census. With appearances from Alan Titchmarch, Angelica Bell, Ade Adepitan, AJ Odudu, Steve Jones, Denise Van Outen, plus former British & Irish Lion and Wales rugby international player Jamie Roberts, in a Welsh language edit, showcasing real life use cases of why the census is so important and impacts the things that they care about.

In addition, Channel 4 will air an exclusive entire Gogglebox ad-break takeover on the 19^th of March, produced by Studio Lambert, to further raise awareness of the importance of this survey with viewers. Six of the much-loved Gogglebox households including: The Sidiqquis, Jenny and Lee, Stephen and Daniel, Pete and Sophie, David and Shirley and The Plummers will discuss  the importance of Census 2021 and how easy it is to take part in the digital-first survey. The partnership was planned and bought by MG OMD and 4Sales.

Alex Pilcher, Executive Director, Head of Clients, OmniGOV at MG OMD adds: “This once-in-a-decade campaign is crucial for shaping the country in years to come and will help ensure that the big decisions are made on the best/correct information. By making the survey a cultural moment with some of the UK’s most loved shows, we hope to convey the importance of taking part to the nation.”

Niall Murdoch, Founder, The Outfit said: “It’s not often a brief like this comes around – a chance to tell authentic, human stories from across England and Wales. We wanted to create a roadblock moment in time across broadcast and social on ‘Census Sunday’. Something truly representative, regional and relatable that would engage the public with genuine and compelling reasons why completing the census can result in positive change for everyone and give a nudge to go and fill in the form. The message is: “don’t be left out – be heard.”

Jaguar Presents: The Racers That Stopped The World – A brand new film that will premiere tonight exclusively on Sky Documentaries

This first activation as part of Jaguar’s 2-year sponsorship of Sky Documentaries tells a story about legends, told by legends.

Ahead of the 70th anniversary F1 Grand Prix at Silverstone, Jaguar as the channel sponsor of Sky Documentaries, have commissioned a film that explores a technological advancement that would go on to save millions of lives, with the addition of exclusive interviews with some true motor racing icons. With the Jaguar sponsorship of Sky Documentaries launch bedded-in, Sky Media have been working with Jaguar and the team at Sky Documentaries to explore opportunities to activate the partnership across their 2-year sponsorship. Less than 3 months into the Jaguar and Sky Documentaries sponsorship activity, we are delighted to confirm that Sky will become the exclusive broadcast partner for Jaguar’s documentary – The Racers That Stopped The World.

For passionate F1 fans, petrolheads, classic car enthusiasts, or those who are simply a fan of great factual stories we have scheduled The Racers That Stopped The World, on Sky Documentaries at 8:20pm tonight, 7th August. Following the channel premiere, the film is repeated at 12:45 on Sunday 9th August, ahead of the 70th F1 Anniversary Grand Prix this weekend. If you cannot wait that long, the 30 minute documentary is available On Demand and Sky Go.

Set against the exhilarating backdrop of the 1952 Mille Miglia, this unique documentary brings together racing legends including Stirling Moss, Norman Dewis (who would have been 100 years old this week), Jackie Stewart, Derek Bell, Martin Brundle and Murray Walker, to recount the tale of one of motoring’s greatest leaps forward. This is the story of the disc brake – and much more besides.

Our thanks to Jaguar and the production company Outrun Productions & The Milk Crate Club, for creating the film. This will be the first of many mutually beneficial partnership activations with Jaguar across the next couple of years – it’s certainly a great start…

Tesco reveals success of its collaborative Christmas campaign

Results announced at this year’s Big TV Festival hosted by Channel 4, ITV and Sky Media

Tesco has announced the results of its Christmas campaign with Channel 4, ITV and Sky Media at the broadcasters’ annual Big TV Festival, now in its third year.

The collaboration campaign cut through at the most competitive time of year and helped the supermarket achieve its fifth year of Christmas growth. The results announced at the Big TV Festival follow on from last year’s call to brands and agencies to present the broadcasters with a joint brief, which Tesco subsequently proposed.

Tesco and MediaCom worked with the three major broadcasters to create ten second clips from their talent and shows including I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!, Hollyoaks, The Chase, A League of Their Own and Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday to air across all three stations. It was the first time a brand has brought all three broadcasters’ talent and shows together in a ‘one TV’ creative partnership.

The ten second clips, produced by MediaCom and Somethin’ Else, were stitched together to form ‘super spots’ that saw Tesco’s time-travelling delivery driver hop through time and channels to deliver Christmas to eight of the nation’s most loved TV shows. The ads were contextually placed on linear and VOD to run during the shows which they feature.
The campaign had strong recall, with 72% of those viewing contextual ads recognising the advertising – smashing the benchmark of 49%. And, the contextuality had additional benefits with viewers seeing the advertising as “capturing the magic of Christmas” (71% contextual versus 59% non-contextual) and being “inspirational” (50% contextual versus 36% non-contextual).

Ultimately, through its relevance and collaboration the advertising worked to increase purchase intent for Tesco.com by 60% amongst viewers of contextual ads compared to non-viewers, at a highly competitive time of the year.1
Nick Ashley, Head of Media and Campaign Planning at Tesco, commented, “2019 marked 100 years of Tesco bringing families up and down the country together to celebrate Christmas with good food. In this unique cross-TV collaboration, we saw our loveable delivery driver magically channel-hop to deliver food to some of the nation’s best-loved shows. The partnership has reinforced the value of context, collaboration and creativity in the TV industry.”

John Litster, Managing Director at Sky Media, added, “TV has always helped brands drive fame and business results, but when Tesco took us up on our offer to collaborate the results not only looked great on screen, but cut through and delivered for Tesco at the most competitive time of year.”

Simon Daglish, Deputy Managing Director, Commercial at ITV, said, “The collaboration with Tesco demonstrates how creative TV advertising has the power and reach to drive both emotional engagement with our viewers and fantastic brand value for our advertisers.”

Matt Salmon, Interim Sales Director at Channel 4, said, “TV advertising remains unique in its ability to deliver powerful results at scale and we are hugely proud of this brilliant creative collaboration with Tesco and our fellow broadcasters.”