Sage is a leader in accounting, payroll, and HR software, serving millions of small and medium-sized businesses worldwide. Research showed some believe Sage is a heritage brand, so its challenges were to connect with UK-based Gen-Z/Millennial business decision-makers in an authentic way, to drive brand awareness, fame, and perceptions of Sage as innovative, modern, and human through a narrative focused on “insights.”
Sage leveraged its role as Official Insights Partner of Six Nations Rugby to address these business needs, Sage’s target audience being passionate rugby fans craving data/insights to enhance their fan experience. The synergy between how Sage delivers insights in sport and business was simple; however, Sage wanted to take its additive role to another level by delivering insights in a new and unique way, engaging a mass fan audience in an activation that was innovative and human.
ITV & Sage formed a unique partnership to bring fans closer to the match insights in half- time and pre-match ad breaks during hero Six Nations broadcasts, where ITV pundit Maggie Alphonsi took over 40’ spots – editorially analysing key data points and their potential impact on the live game; continuing what’s normally discussed in the studio into commercial breaks for the audience.
This engaged an audience of millions in key moments around the biggest games, through content that System1 rated in the top 5% of all ads, outperforming category averages, and resulting in feedback from the target audience showing a greater understanding of Sage’s association with insights and innovation.
