‘We don’t want to be vanilla’: Currys on its ‘absurd’ advertising
Currys has been on a mission to become more memorable, even at the risk of being “weird”.
As part of this goal, the retailer launched its ‘Beyond Techspectations’ brand platform a year ago to spotlight employee expertise instead of products and prices – the company’s first foray into purely brand-led marketing. “There’s a reason why most ads and marketing are mediocre – it’s safe,” says Currys brand and marketing director Dan Rubel.
“As a team, we’ve wanted to step beyond that. We wanted to step outside our safety zone to create magnificent work and magnificent impact, and we were willing to take the risk to do that. It was hard.”. In the past year, Currys and agency partner AMV BBDO have launched 15 iterations of the Beyond Techspectations brand platform, each showcasing its team of experts going to “absurd” lengths to help customers in-store. Among the 15 iterations, the ads feature colleagues eating instruction manuals for extra product knowledge, growing beards to showcase their wisdom and wearing masks to prevent getting distracted by the Euros.“The biggest challenge, as it is for most marketers and advertisers, is having the bravery to do something that will create some polarisation and negativity, as well as some real positivity,” says Rubel.
Taking that risk has paid off, delivering short-term value and building the brand in a way that “surprises”. Since the platform’s launch, ROI has increased 44%, while year-on-year CRM sales impact has grown by double-digits, organic social engagement has tripled and engagement with online content has doubled. “We pushed the bar on the humour. We pushed the bar on the tonality, which was brave at the time, and it is working,” adds AMV BBDO’s head of strategy Sam Williams.
Rubel highlights the ‘Beard’ campaign, which launched last October, delivered the “highest ROI ever”, impacting both the lower funnel and short-term results. For him, this proves “you can have your cake and eat it too”. “In the short term, it’s a powerful tool. In the long term, it’s driven brand perception growth like we’ve never seen,” Rubel adds. As a retailer, the campaign focused on boosting sales and drawing people into stores. Williams points out the campaign has successfully driven customers to stores, sparking conversations about the ads.
“Advertising that cuts through, drives footfall and gets people talking in real life is rare,” he notes.
ROI focus
Rubel insists that “obsessing” over a single metric is “very important”. For Currys, that metric is ROI.
“I don’t buy into some theories in advertising that advocate for campaigns that somehow have no sales impact in the short term, but some glorious long-term brand building and eventual sales impact. All advertising should have a short-term and a long-term impact,” he says.
Moreover, Rubel believes focusing on too many metrics encourages a “safe play”.
“A myriad of metrics equals mediocrity,” he adds.
Before Beyond Techspectations, Rubel acknowledges that while Currys had “really good” advertising, it struggled with cut-through and memorability. “The ROI was good, the brand metrics were in good shape and we were in a good position, but we didn’t feel world-class,” he recalls.
The challenge was finding a “vehicle” to effectively deliver the brand’s diverse messages – from laptops and TVs to sustainability efforts like the ‘Cash for Trash’ initiative, which encourages Brits to trade in their unwanted tech for a £5 voucher. “The brief behind the brief was about how do we create a flexible vehicle that we can talk about all these different messages, but also is majorly more cut through, majorly more memorable and a bit more polarising,” he adds.
Ultimately, to have the best ROI and customer impact, Rubel explains the brand needed to step out of its comfort zone. “We don’t want to be vanilla. We don’t want to be caught in the middle. We want to do something that a large amount of people absolutely love,” he states.
Williams explains Beyond Techspectations has unlocked new creative potential by allowing Currys to showcase initiatives like its trade-in programme, which would typically be communicated through product and price alone. “It’s raised the bar with the typical rhythm of advertising,” he says.
The brand platform was born from an “observation” of company culture and what Rubel defines as “brand truth”. “It was inspired by the reality of what colleagues are already doing every day,” he explains. Rubel claims that eight out of 10 customers said they’d recommend Currys to friends or family because of the “real human experience”. “Either in-store or on their doorstep – colleagues are always front and centre, and we needed a campaign that focused going above and beyond,” Rubel adds.
The latest ad in the ‘Beyond Techspectations’ series, titled ‘Laptop Rage’, showcases how Currys employees soothe frustrated customers dealing with broken laptops. The campaign is designed to time in with the back-to-school season, a critical period for laptop purchases.
With three executions already live, Rubel notes the campaign has achieved “exceptional” spike ratings on System 1, indicating a strong potential for short-term sales.
“We get great, positive, qualitative reactions as well, and no doubt that’s flowing through into commercial impact,” he adds.
While the “weird” advertising ultimately delivered the desired ROI, Rubel initially had doubts about its effectiveness. “I was close to pulling it…it just felt too weird,” he recalls.
However, after being persuaded by the agency and advertising team to stay the course, the campaign was tested in System 1, where it scored “exceptional” for short-term sales.
The next challenge was securing buy-in from the wider business.
“If you’re doing something brave, thereby a bit risky, it’s important you bring the whole business with you,” he says. Rubel and his fellow marketers dedicated time to outlining the strategy, sharing the testing process and celebrating the results with the wider team, stressing that “everyone’s got a stake in this.” Rubel also highlights the importance of using the right language when communicating with stakeholders.
“Too many times, when marketeers stakeholder manage they use the kind of language that you use in a marketing community,” he says. “When you’re talking to the commercial business, buyers, finance and HR, you can’t talk in the same language as you’re talking to marketing. Therefore, we’re very careful to explain things commercially.”
Social media strategy
Currys has also made a significant impact on social media with its organic content, complementing its above-the-line advertising. The brand has amassed nearly 140,000 social media followers and more than 4 million likes on TikTok.
“We’re now one of the leaders in the retailer category,” Rubel says.
With that social success, the retailer claims to be raising the bar and now views companies outside its category, such as Ryanair, as its competition. “We want to aim higher,” he adds. “Expect us to keep combining entertainment and emotional connection with strong brand messaging. Ads that resonate with what we do.”
The social content follows a similarly “absurd” approach as Beyond Techspectations, which Williams explains gives Currys’ colleagues a “voice.” Looking ahead, Currys has no plans to slow down its strategy, as it hopes to “build momentum” with Beyond Techspectations, while ensuring customers do not “fall out of love” with it.
“We’re going to carry on with the campaign and we’re going to keep pushing ourselves,” says Rubel.
However, both the brand and agency are consistently seeking ways to improve, with a focus on setting new benchmarks, says Williams. “The work we’re doing at the moment is in terms of how we find exactly the right kind of humour or tone, or emotion to tap into future work,” adds Williams.
Aside from Beyond Techspectations, the team will focus on becoming the “voice of explanation” for AI developments in tech and ramping up communication around sustainability efforts like Cash for Trash. “Our mindset is relentless innovations,” Rubel adds.