William Hill, one of the leading names in the sports betting and online casino industry have launched their first brand-led ad, featuring Anthony Joshua. The ad has adopted a new theme to previous ads, which have come under tough scrutiny from Advertising Standards officials in the past.
First Ad Of It’s Kind
The ad, which first aired over the Easter period is aimed more towards post watershed TV with cinema and outdoors, featuring heavily on safer gambling and responsibility.Anthony Joshua has been a brand ambassador with William Hill since 2018 but has yet been used in any advertising campaign.The campaign itself is somewhat different to past ads, with the creative promoting responsible gambling messages, rather than the traditional odds or promotions offered by operators.The creative displays the slogan, ‘Heavyweights since 1934’, depicting the companies heritage, four different safer gambling slogans will be displayed on Social media and customer comms messages which will include:
- Keep It Fun
- Know where you stand
- Take a break
- Control is everything
The ‘Big’ Fight
The ad will run in a 30 second version of the original 60-second ad (aired over Easter) for the remainder of this week. The campaign is in the run up to Anthony Joshua’s much anticipated title defence fight with Jerell ‘Big Baby’ Miller on 1st June 2019 in Madison Square Garden, however Miller has been banned from the match due to drug test allegations, Joshua will now face another opponent.Global Brand and Marketing for William Hill, Charlotte Emery said, “ Our current brand narrative is ‘enjoy the moment’ and this new creative shows AJ landing a knockout blow before enjoying the moment as everything freezes while he dances around the stadium before returning back to the ring to the adulation of fans. The story emphasises how William Hill want all our customers to enjoy their betting with us and celebrate the moments while staying in control. We opted for black and white and a highly styled creative to really separate this creative in tone and quality from the rest of the sector.”She went on to say “ Joshua is himself growing into a global brand so he is an ideal fit for William Hill as we become more global and his campaign will continue to build all the way up to his first fight in the US on 1st June at Madison Square Garden.” https://youtu.be/074bn3nM4BQ