BT student ads preferred to Adam and Jane

BT claims its new TV ad series featuring students has achieved more cut-through than its long-running Adam and Jane campaign, despite initial concerns it could alienate older consumers.

BT

The telecoms company says the student ads to promote BT Infinity achieved cut-through rates of 39%, matching the highest recall rates achieved to date with the Adam and Jane wedding campaign – the most popular of the previous series.

BT says the student series has also attracted more than 7 million views across social media, compared to the average of 50,000 it registered for its Adam and Jane spots.

David James, BT’s marketing director, told Marketing Week: “It was a big responsibility to change a six-year-long campaign and we were holding our breath to see how people would react.

“People were very fond of the old campaign but changing our direction has created a new energy in [viewers] and the messages we are putting across are coming through more strongly.”

Although BT initially worried about potential alienation of some of its audiences because the creative is skewed towards a younger generation, it has found the campaign to appeal across demographics.

Feedback from consumers has suggested they feel if the Infinity product is good enough for the high demands of students, it is good enough for their needs, James said.

He confirmed the series is for the long term, saying the next five to six iterations will do a better job of explaining why BT’s products and services are “superior” to its rivals.

BT is also set to further expand the character roles through social media later this year and is currently finalising scripts for its Olympic TV activity, which might also include the student trio.

As part of its sponsorship BT is running a series of events in London’s Hyde Park, Victoria Park and Trafalgar Square that will include music from acts such as Blur, The Specials and Tom Jones, large screens broadcasting the Games live and try-it-yourself sports like Zorbing.

BT reported a 4% revenue drop to £4.88bn in the quarter to 31 March, although profit before tax rose 13% to £690m in the period.

More than half a million of its customers now have the Infinity broadband product it promotes in the student ad series, up by 131,000 additions quarter on quarter.

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