UKTV’s REbrand to U - THE BRIEF
UKTV tasked us with driving mass awareness for their rebrand to U, a free streaming platform with over 8,000 shows. We were asked to join the key launch team and collaborate with Havas and UKTV’s creative department to create a fully integrated campaign. With word of mouth being a key drive in U’s launch strategy, social and influencer content were key.
The insight
As a new brand, U faced a significant challenge: the lack of awareness among potential viewers, resulting in minimal active search for its content. However, we identified a key behavior in our target audience—they frequently turned to social media to discover what to watch. Our goal was to leverage this behaviour to make U's shows a top recommendations.
The iDEA - WE GOT U
With over 8000 shows available to stream for free on their brand new platform U, We Got U was born. A 360 campaign designed to show the audience that U connects people to the content they love. Bringing '#WeGotU' to life through talent-first social content, we transformed how our audience discovered what to watch. By leveraging top TV creators and key search terms, we answered cries for perfect show recommendations and demonstrated the best places to watch them. Our creators stopped the scroll with playful content offering curated suggestions for every craving. From Vox-Pop style street recommendations to reactive show suggestions, we showcased the incredible variety of free shows available on the U platform, proving that '#WeGotU' is more than a tagline—it's U’s commitment to their audience's entertainment satisfaction.
We aimed to position U’s content strategically on social platforms, reaching our audience precisely when they sought entertainment recommendations. Recognising TikTok search as a primary method for discovering new entertainment, we made it the cornerstone of our strategy. Collaborating with top ranking TV creators on TikTok increased visibility and responded to our audience’s searches. To broaden the campaign’s reach, we integrated our TikTok strategy with Instagram, creating content that fused creators from both platforms to maximise our audience’s discovery opportunities.
Part 1 - U on the streets
We took U to the streets of the UK recruiting award-winning TikTok creator Louise Boyce as the knowledgeable U concierge. Shot across three of the UK’s biggest cities the content saw us challenge Louise with 24 hours and as many show recommendations as possible. With the TVC featuring Cher and a remake of ‘I Got You Babe’ the song became a feature thoughout the content, adding another fun element and helping to connect the campaign. The content also included cameo appearances by Instagram creators Andrews Spann, Jane Dowden, and Mason Blake, who posed as members of the public to add intrigue and act as easter eggs within the TikTok content. Within the content they received their own recommendations, which they then shared with their followers, encouraging them to ask for recommendations of their own.
Part 2 - TIKTOK recommendations
Working with top ranking TV TikTokers and tapping into Key search terms such as ‘what to watch’, we strategically filled our content and the captions with all the components needed to place U show recommendations at the top of our audiences’ search results. Leaning into the TikTok search algorithm to bring our audience the TV show recommendations they’ve been longing for, our smart concept put U shows on centre stage, making them impossible to miss.
Part 3 - BRAND recommendations
As part of the 360 integration we worked closely with the brand’s social account managers to recreate the same strategy across the brands new social handles. With paid social behind the Cher TVC the accounts saw heavy traffic and were able to use this opportunity to offer their new followers recommendations of their own.
