Christmas is make or break for supermarkets, and in the context of a pandemic, Tesco knew it had to do something a little different to capture the nation’s attention. And so, the supermarket brand set out to create a humorous campaign that scrapped the dreaded naughty list! By partnering with I’m a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, we helped Tesco create a bold, reactive campaign that got people talking. 

The insight

78% of the nation admitted to minor ‘naughty’ behaviour in 2020. Tesco wanted to encourage people to forgive themselves for their slip-ups in a tough year—ordered too many toilet rolls, anyone? 

The challenge

Typically, at Christmas, Brits visit more supermarkets than at any other time of year. However, in the first wave, supermarket visits decreased, and science rightly predicted a second winter wave was coming.

This campaign needed to encourage the public to make Tesco their supermarket of choice. Tesco wanted to use the power of advertising to encourage 600K shoppers to do one extra shop—this was a challenge in itself given that many people would be having smaller, different Christmases this year. 

The idea

Tesco introduced the ‘No Naughty List’ campaign to finally end the year with some light-hearted fun. To bring the campaign to life, it wanted to collaborate with a TV show that would deliver scale, provide entertainment value, and bring people together. And so, partnering with the firm festive favourite, I’m a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, was the natural choice. 

• Using I’m a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! as the starting point, we helped Tesco create six original ad segments using characters, replica sets, and storylines from the show. The hyper-contextual and reactive TV spots put Tesco right at the centre of the conversation. 

• It was a brave campaign, as no final content even existed before the show began. We joined a creative team comprising Tesco, MediaCom, BBH, and Somethin’ Else to create real-time content that would naturally place Tesco’s messaging within the show. It meant we had just 12 hours to script, record, and add audio to some content!

• As the celebrities taking part were only announced at launch, we also helped Tesco to negotiate contracts for all campmates to take part in future content. Within 48 hours of eviction, edits were scripted, filmed in Tesco’s Confession Chamber, and brought to air. 

• Viewers could watch celebs Ruthie Henshall, Jessica Plummer, and Jordan North, confess to camp misdemeanours across more than 250 ad spots. 

By building a partnership that weaves the wider context of your ad spot into your creative, you can stand out and help to make your brand famous. The reactive nature of this campaign helped to increase its wide-spread appeal, as the ads functioned as ‘extra’ or ‘hidden’ narrative for the show. Tesco well and truly inserted itself into the conversation around one of Britain’s most-loved shows at Christmas and saw sales and talkability soar.  

If you're looking to supercharge your brands growth, or revenue, then TV might be the perfect partnership. Why not partner with the UK's largest commercial broadcaster to kick start your conversation with the nation today. 

Sound like the right opportunity for you? Get in touch with itvcommercial@itv.com for more information.