As evidenced by having a second campaign – #merryfixmas – recognised as a finalist, Unity is clearly doing something right with its work on Direct Line’s ‘fixer’ proposition.
The agency identified its latest opportunity in January 2015, when Longford AFC was labelled England’s worst football club by the media, having lost every single game that season, conceding 180 goals. As Unity put it, "something was broken; something could be fixed".
The campaign kicked off two weeks later when Longford struck a ‘deal’ for a new left back. The signing was England legend Stuart Pearce, drafted in to fix Longford’s morale: ‘media gold’.
To launch the fix, Pearce was unveiled in front of the press just before the transfer window closed. He then led a training session before making his much-anticipated debut in front of a record crowd. A mere 1-0 defeat ("still, an improvement") lifted the team’s confidence and morale while generating positive media coverage, social sentiment and inspiring a hero film telling the story of Direct Line’s
‘fixing’ prowess.
Post-campaign analysis revealed a positive shift in attitude towards the brand, and the judges purred over the execution of a "brilliant", "clever", "creative" and "original" idea that "brought the brand to life".
Judges’ comment
Really striking campaign that delivered clearly against objectives and had attention to detail
Highly Commended
52 weeks of Worldpay – Golin for Worldpay
Finalists
Barclays Premier League 2015/16 Trophy Presentation – HSE Cake for Barclays
MasterCard Rugby World Cup 2015 – Synergy PR for MasterCard
#merryfixmas – Unity for Direct Line
