THE VERY BRITISH OBSESSIONS
Supporting Jason’s Sourdough with its first-ever TV advert led 361 to define a cultural moment, inspired by the ad slogan – “An Every Day Obsession” – to find “The Very British Obsessions”. We grabbed national, lifestyle and broadcast attention by showing a country mildly obsessed, charmingly particular, and slightly peculiar – all enhanced by an Oxford University anthropologist. With 156 pieces of coverage, a Times DPS on British obsessions, and BBC Radio 4 vox-popping about the revelations, Jason’s retail sales rose in the month that followed.
When you’ve become the UK’s No1 sourdough brand without ever advertising on telly, you could easily believe an on-screen campaign isn’t kneaded.
But Jason’s Sourdough understands that to stay a crust above the rest means retaining your slice of the market. So, to keep the brand abread of the competition, 361 was briefed in May to support Jason’s first TV ATL; our PR plan would lead up to its September launch.
Other bread brands have successfully established their founders in consumers’ minds – and this TV ad was designed to introduce Jason Geary through his quirks. As a fourth-generation baker obsessed with perfecting every loaf, he – and his cherished sourdough starter called Sydney – are the heart of the business.
The ad – “An Every Day Obsession” – would reveal the authentic Jason… a lover of straight pictures, perfectly brewed coffee, and precisely toasted sourdough.
The
CHALLENGE
The 361 team knew that a new TV ad alone would not excite any journalist outside of the B2B food and marketing trade; they would naturally be more receptive as it was a first for the company.
But only readers of national, consumer, lifestyle, and broadcast media would drive Jason’s sales and growth – and this story had to be strong and unique enough to land with those mainstream outlets.
Our plan took inspiration from the advert title, which is also the slogan printed on the memorable blue packaging for Jason’s Sourdough. It would be expanded to speak to a universal human truth, showing how: “we’re all a little bit like Jason”.
Each of us has that one little thing we care about way too much. However, being British means we’re totally fine with it, obviously!
Our “The Very British Obsessions” campaign would be underpinned by research to create a story that was passionate, personal, fun and inclusive.
What
we did
We undertook a comprehensive survey among the British public that would give us national evidence plus plenty of regional and demographic data to mine.
The findings were indeed varied, showing we were a country that was mildly obsessed, charmingly particular, and slightly peculiar.
Among the results were the Top 5 British Obsessions:
1) The Royal Family – 53%
2) The weather – 50%
3) The pub – 49%
4) The correct way to make a cup of tea – 42%
5) The football results – 41%
Others included:
40% of Brits endlessly debate if it’s too hot outside
26% moan about the traffic to whoever will listen
16% love to converse about how many hours sleep they had
15% were obsessed over when the thermostat should be on
Separate data sets showed that on average Brits talk about ‘how much things cost’ 12 times a week, ‘what’s for tea’ 11 times, and ‘what’s on TV’ 10 times. Chats about pets came in at nine times weekly.
These were all perfect elements to tantalise the tastebuds of the nationals and broadcast and start a conversation across the media (if there was time once we’ve talked about soap storylines seven times a week).
And given 48% in our survey agreed “mildly obsessing” over certain things is a quintessentially British trait, we knew we had the perfect pitch – connecting on a human level with readers and viewers.
361 commissioned Oxford University anthropologist Dr Anna Machin to offer a fascinating and scientific spin in a bid to keep the “obsessions” conversations flowing.
Her view was this “isn’t just small talk”. For Brits, it’s a “shared language helping us to bond and find comfort in tradition”.
The
Results
Our Jason’s Sourdough campaign met all our objectives:
Bring the advert to life in a way that relates to humans and their lives:
Having our credible and relevant spokesperson added value and Dr Machin’s contextual quotes for the press release meant more chance of Jason’s Sourdough being mentioned in the coverage.
Define a cultural brand moment, self-raising it beyond sourdough:
A few days after the story’s release, the first question in The Times’ ‘Daily Quiz’ said: “Jason’s Sourdough is a brand of which staple food?”
A specific DPS Times piece focused on “16 Obsessions” Brits can’t get enough of
We inspired a BBC Radio 4 segment quizzing people on their everyday obsessions
Retail sales for Jason’s Sourdough rose 1% in the month after
Capture media outside of trade
156 x media coverage
10x national including Daily Mail, Daily Star, The Times, BBC Radio 4, LBC, GB News, MSN, Yahoo!
158,516,452 reach
2.33m broadcast impressions
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We’re not just excited about what we do; we’re thrilled at the prospect of working with you.
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