One 2 One launches brand review

One 2 One is questioning its brand attributes and the agency arrangements on its £35m advertising account as part of a wide-ranging review being conducted by the newly appointed chief sales and marketing officer Clent Richardson.

Richardson, who joined from Apple Computers in the US in April, is reviewing the performance of agencies and how they add “value to the business”. One 2 One uses several agencies including creative agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty (BBH), Starcom Motive which handles the mobile phone network’s media buying and below-the-line agency Claydon Heeley Jones Mason.

Richardson has already indicated that One 2 One is likely to stop advertising on the Internet because he believes it offers little added benefit. The money saved could be ploughed into producing content for the company’s mobile Internet service, T-Motion.

BBH’s latest £15m ad campaign for One 2 One uses a TV execution starring film director and actor Gary Oldman and features key moments that shape people’s lives.

Richardson, who is part of a management team that has been brought in by new owners Deutsche Telekom, wants the advertising to be more “invitational”. He claims he is “happy” with the line “Life is made of One 2 Ones”. He is also setting out a series of brand attributes that are to be reflected in all communications including above-the-line advertising. Key words under consideration include “fun”, “youthful” and “approachable”.

One 2 One is likely to delay the launch of its GPRS services until the first quarter of next year.