Dashly is a revolutionary business with an aim of fundamentally changing the way that people behave within the mortgage category. When it comes to mortgages, the current mentality is “out of sight, out of mind” - with only 11% of mortgage customers planning to switch mortgage providers in the next year, and just under half opting for a fixed rate deal of five or more years.
 
When someone signs up to Dashly (for free) their mortgage deal is tracked by Dashly’s proprietary technology. If a better deal becomes available Dashly will notify the customer directly, or via the existing adviser of the customer, who then facilitates a switch to the better deal.
 

The brief

Dashly had quickly gained traction in the market with its game-changing technology, and had seen success with online advertising. But with their cost per acquisition rising and the demand pool diminishing, they needed to cast their net wider.

Dashly needed to connect with new audiences, and educate them on the benefits of the platform - with a boost in brand awareness ultimately leading to new customers switching. Dashly also wanted to urge borrowers to go directly to their existing mortgage advisers, many of whom will now have access to its dashboard, whilst also reaching new adviser firms and encouraging them to partner.

The ITV AdVentures solution

TV was the perfect channel for fulfilling Dashly’s objectives. Not only is it proven to drive through-the-funnel business outcomes via mass awareness and web traffic uplifts, but crucially for a brand in the finance space, it builds trust. These benefits combined with the ITV AdVentures Ignite programme to match the budget of new-to-TV digitally native brands made ITV the perfect partner to take Dashly to a new audience.
 
ITV’s unique (linear) regional footprint enabled Dashly to execute an effective ‘test and learn’ campaign, with the impact on the brand and performance metrics being closely monitored throughout.
 

The Plan

 ITV Anglia was identified as the perfect region for Dashly to launch in. The combination of high average house values, interest in mortgages, and a naturally high proportion (60%) of ABC1 individuals - made it the ideal environment for Dashly’s proposition. 

Each day started with a broader regional footprint across the South of England at breakfast time - a day part that is proven to be a key time for decision making - before limiting transmission of Dashly’s message to just the Anglia region from 09:30 onwards.

The six-week campaign ran from May to June 2021, at the height of the house-buying frenzy preceding the stamp duty holiday deadline. An unseasonal peak in consumer mortgage interest.

The Target Audience:
ABC1 adults were identified as the optimal target audience for the campaign. This audience are the most likely to have a mortgage and be in the market for a switch. Targeting this demographic also enabled Dashly to access many premium programmes with high relevance to the product.
 
Phasing
The campaign ran for six weeks from May to June.
 
Delivery
The campaign reached 56% of ABC1 adults in ITV Anglia an average of 6 times throughout the campaign
 

• Brand Metrics - a pre and post-campaign brand study was conducted to assess the campaign’s effects on Awareness, consideration, preference, and understanding, amongst other key metrics

• Performance Metrics - Dashly measured the performance of their social media campaigns, website traffic, and of course customer sign-ups.

• The campaign resulted in an increase in both awareness and consideration for Dashly amongst people who saw the campaign vs people who did not.

• Creative was well received, with a significant uplift in viewers understanding the comparison service that Dashly provides.

"We partnered with the ITV AdVentures team to help us to grow awareness of the Dashly proposition in key regions across the South of the country. Our main aim for Dashly's first TV campaign was to attract more brokers to the platform - but of course we were also looking for more consumers to engage, as a secondary benefit. 

ITV worked closely with my team and I to offer support at every stage of the journey, from taking the time to understand how we would be measuring success, to working up detailed, strategy-led campaign plans. 

The result was a launch campaign that generated a significant increase in on site sign ups and new broker partners, alongside a clear boost in brand awareness. We also noticed an uplift in our digital marketing performance whilst we were on air, which was a real bonus..."

Ross Boyd, Founder