Maynards Bassetts has partnered with IX, Immediate's in-house experiential agency, to launch The Juiciest Summer, a live activation which took place in Blackpool, alongside the creation of social-first video content.
The activation built on Maynards Bassetts' established 'Set The Juice Loose' platform, taking it out of the sweet cupboard and into one of the biggest moments in the British summer of sport.
Darts is a quintessentially British, adult-led pastime, and Blackpool draws crowds each year. The pop-up, dressed in Maynards Bassetts' distinctive colours, invited the public to step up to a gamified darts match, going head-to-head with friends for prizes and product.
Legendary Darts commentator and MC John McDonald, known across the sport as ‘The Voice of Darts’, hosted the activation, providing live commentary as holidaymakers and darts fans took their turn at the oche.
Soft-tip darts were used throughout and the activation was designed for adults aged 18 and over.
Blackpool welcomes more than 200,000 visitors a day during the summer holidays, and The Juiciest Summer reached both the seaside crowd and the darts audience. The campaign was developed by Publicis POP 30 and VCCP, alongside IX and Immediate's award-winning content studio, Imagine.
The campaign extended well beyond the live day. Immediate's Imagine Studio filmed the activation, producing two social-first videos amplified across Radio Times and Good Food social channels using Immediate's first-party data to reach both core and new audiences.
Other activity included newsletter features across Good Food and Immediate's Do What You Love events emails, a listing on RadioTimes.com's Going Out page, and a mention in the editor’s letter in Radio Times.
The campaign is projected to deliver a 5.6 million reach and three million video views. The activation was supported by a bespoke DOOH poster, ideated and created by VCCP, which ran across digital out-of-home placements in Blackpool on 24 July to build anticipation ahead of the live day.
IX launched earlier this year as Immediate's dedicated experiential agency, creating live brand experiences backed by the exposure of Immediate's audience of 20 million UK adults each month.
Since LHF advertising restrictions went live in January, experiential has become an increasingly important channel for brands looking to connect with consumers.
Kat Tek, Head of Experiential at IX , said: "Maynards Bassetts is a much-loved British brand and darts is a much-loved British sporting institution, so bringing the two together in Blackpool felt like a natural fit, highlighting exactly what the agency was built for.
"IX offers the ability to turn a queue into entertainment and a live moment into a summer-long story, with guaranteed reach through our Immediate’s channels."
Alexandra Sweeney-Lui, Brand Manager at Maynards Bassetts said: "Nothing captures a British summer quite like the seaside, sport and a sweet treat with friends. IX helped us put Maynards Bassetts right at the heart of those moments, creating genuine surprise and delight for fans in Blackpool, and sharing them with millions more through Radio Times and Good Food.”Ends