Welsh Water wowed Wales with their first ever TV ad

Key Points

• Welsh Water wanted to drive awareness of their not for profit status
• They opted for a high profile regional TV campaign
• As a result, awareness increased by 20%

The Challenge

Welsh Water is a unique, not-for-profit company that serves three million customers in Wales and The Marches. It is owned by Glas Cymru, a company with no shareholders and is run solely for the benefit of its customers. Any profit it makes is reinvested back in the business, which is a unique setup for the water sector

However, in 2016, they realised that very few people were aware of its not-for-profit status. They knew that awareness of this would translate directly into increased levels of customer trust. So, they challenged their advertising agency, Heavenly, to address this issue. The main objective was to raise awareness by 5%.

In addition, they wanted to demonstrate how crucial water is to our everyday lives and also to encourage people in Wales to have their say about how the company invests money in water and the local environment in the future.

The TV Solution

Heavenly devised a strategy based on the concept: “If Welsh Water is not for profit, then what is it for?” The answer they came up with was: “If not for profit, then for the future, for all of us, for Wales”.

They created a 60 second TV ad that captured the many ways that water is used in Wales – for work, for play, for living. The beautifully shot ad, produced by Orchard Media, starred Welsh Water employees and their families in everyday scenarios featuring water – rural, urban, inside homes and out to show the great diversity in Wales. They made English and Welsh language versions of the ad and they also produced a 40 second and 20 second cut down.

The Plan

There were three bursts of the TV campaign in July, September and October/November. The ad ran in Wales on ITV and also S4C.

From the different scenes within the TV ad, they created a selection of short videos for social media. For example, there was one aimed at dads featuring the dad and his son washing the car. 

In addition, they gave personalised Welsh Water bottles to every Welsh MP and AM at receptions at the Senedd - home of the Welsh Assembly and at Westminster. They also had a presence at the Royal Welsh Show and the National Eisteddfod. 

Results

By the end of the campaign, awareness of Welsh Water’s not-for-profit status had increased by 20%, smashing the target set.

Databank

Sector: Utilities

Brand: Welsh Water

Campaign objectives: To drive awareness of the fact that Welsh Water is a not for profit company

Target Audience: All people living in Wales

Budget:  Undisclosed

Campaign Dates: The campaign ran from 11^th to 31^st July, 1^st to 16^th September and 24^th October to 21^st November 2016

TV Usage: 60 second, 40 second and 20 second spots

Creative Agency: Heavenly

Media Agency: Golley Slater Cardiff