Royal London launches bold advertising campaign ‘We’re so yesterday’
Press release
Royal London, the UK’s largest mutual life and pensions company and owner of the Scottish Life, Scottish Provident and Bright Grey businesses, has launched a follow up spot as part of its new above the line advertising campaign.
The second 60” TV ad in this campaign takes us on another entertaining walk through British history. We open at the Battle of Hastings. Our narrator, Roy, gallantly takes a few arrows to his chest. We’re then transported to a prosperous Medieval village where even some entrepreneurial peasants parade around dripping in medallions of gold. The good times don’t last for long though as we then find ourselves shivering in a stark snowy landscape where a once-powerful King and Queen feed off bleak rations. The penultimate scene finds us in more recent history as we watch an eccentric bearded chap trying to flog his latest wacky invention – the Pedaloon! You see, through good times, bad times and faddy times, Royal London have looked after their customers’ investments.
The company announced its intention to move to a new masterbrand last November and over the next two years its UK life, pension and investment businesses will come under a new version of the Royal London brand.
Created by VCCP, the campaign, ‘We’re so yesterday’, celebrates the fact that Royal London has stood by its customers with the values the company was originally founded on back in 1861.
The TV campaign launched on Saturday May 3rd, during ITV’s Britain’s Got Talent between 7.15pm and 8.30pm.
The campaign also includes digital outdoor, press advertising and a take-over of the Bank Tube Station travelator. These channels tell the same story but with a different approach – representing Royal London’s age old values through a range of weird and wonderful iconic British characters, from sooty chimney sweeps to frilly collared Elizabethan royalty. Each image is shot in black-and-white adding to the striking visual effect.
Clare Salmon, Group Brand Director, Royal London says: “The approach that VCCP has taken brings to life the company’s values and heritage in a distinctive, original and highly creative way. We’re aiming for Royal London to become a household name, and we think this campaign will help us stand out from our competitors. ”
Andrew Peake, MD of VCCP says: “We are extremely excited to be working with Royal London. Their proposition of treating customers with the values of yesterday is very compelling and has provided a great creative platform for some exciting work which should be very different from the rest of the category.”
VCCP Media is responsible for the media strategy and planning which includes TV, search, display, digital outdoor, specialist press and the take-over of the Bank Tube Station travelator. The agency was also responsible for brokering Royal London’s four-year sponsorship of One Day Cricket in England which sees the creation of the Royal London Cup.
Creds:
Campaign name: We’re so yesterday
Client: Royal London
Brief: Brand campaign
Creative agency: VCCP
Agency Producer: Ed Mueller
Creative Director: Marcus Woolcott
Copywriter: Chris Birch
Art director: Jonny Parker
Planner: Andrew Perkins
Media Agency: VCCP Media
Media planner: Richard Davies
Production Company: Park Pictures
Director: Nathan Price
Post-production: MPC
Exec Producer: Stephen Brierley
Producer: Tim Kerrison
DOP: Jan Velicky
VFX Supervisor: Jim Radford
VFX lead: Bruno Fukumothi
Colourist: Jean-Clement Soret
VFX Producer: Philip Whalley
Editor/Editing House: Paul Hardcastle/Trim
Sound: Ben Leeves @ Grand Central
Music: Soundtree
-ENDS-
For further information please contact:
Katherine Levy, VCCP : 07912 415880
Lisa Quinn, Group Head of External Communications
Royal London: 0207 506 6719/07919 171907
Editor’s Notes:
Royal London is the largest mutual life and pensions company in the UK with Group funds under management of £73.6 billion. Group businesses serve around 5.3 million customers and employ 2,880 people. (Figures quoted are as at 31 December 2013).
Over the next two years the Group is moving to operate all of its UK life, pension and investment business under a new version of the Royal London brand. Royal London Asset Management came under the new master-brand as of 28 April, and the Scottish Life, Scottish Provident and Bright Grey brands will migrate over the next eighteen months.
The Group's wrap platform will remain branded Ascentric, and the Caledonian Life brand will be utilised in the Irish Republic.
