By 2019, aided by the successful ‘Commisery’ advertising campaign, Purplebricks had established itself as the ‘no commission’ estate agency brand, with a small but significant share of the market. In a risk-averse category, however, where most home-sellers default to the familiarity of traditional High Street agents, we recognised that mainstream consideration required greater familiarity and stature.
Sponsorship could drive such attributes. Purplebricks needed a partnership that would not only signal scale and stature but also mass-market appeal and accessibility. Team GB delivered on all counts. Furthermore, there was a natural compatibility of the two ‘brands’, each celebrating ‘teams’ and the marriage of national scale and local talent.
The sponsorship was ‘activated’ at many levels – from PR to internal comms – but success was driven by a significant investment in advertising. Recognising that our newly-acquired moniker of ‘The Official Estate Agent of Team GB’ might raise a few eyebrows, our campaign knowingly embraced and enjoyed the apparent incongruity between team and sponsor, delivering a powerful partnership with honesty and humour.
Success has followed. Familiarity and stature have grown, and the brand is increasingly accepted as a mainstream player. Each campaign wave has driven an increase in ‘Top 2 Box’ consideration – a measure which, historically, prefaces subsequent growth in valuations and instructions, the key industry gauge of market share. This is some achievement within a pandemic that has stalled this industry more than most.
2021 sees a rescheduled Olympics and a further, unexpected, opportunity to build on this success.
