Open University & C4 partner for brand's most innovative deal to date

15 June 2017

• Campaign kicks off long term content set to blaze a trail in education sector
• New adverts to tell inspirational stories in Channel 4’s unique editorial style
• Channel 4 falling blocks logo integrated into a full campaign for the first time

The Open University (OU) will launch a six-month marketing partnership with Channel 4 on the 16th June with the first in a series of 30 second ads premieres during The Last Leg. The collaboration represents much more than an advertising campaign; it is set to shake up the education sector’s approach to marketing.

Collaborating with Channel 4 is a prime example of how the OU is doing things differently within the sector. For the first time, Channel 4’s iconic falling blocks will be integrated in a jointly branded identity that will appear across all four of its channels. As well as the creation of ad content, a joint panel event will take place later in the year and the campaign will also be supported by Channel 4 and key on-screen talent in social media.

Filmed in a ‘fixed rig style’ typical to Channel 4, three adverts will kick off the deal. Created by content agency, The Outfit, each of the three adverts features an OU student* who will lift the lid on what it’s like to study with the OU through their own inspiring story.

Chosen programming reflects the core values of the OU. The student focused content will be real and authentic. The ads will air across all the broadcaster’s channels until 26th November 2017. A second ad will premiere on the 25th June during the Crystal Maze and a third in July. Sixty second and ten second versions will run online and on social media. The initial campaign will deliver an estimated 100 plus million impacts over a 14 week period.

The brand partnership is a bold new move from the OU and is a real game changer for the education sector. It is also a perfect match in terms of brand alignment, with both organisations sharing the same values and standing for equal opportunity and social mobility. The university’s Head of Acquisition and Brand, Ella Hall, believes Channel 4 is the right platform to drive the OU’s Student First strategy whilst empowering more people to study.

Ella Hall comments: “Our ambition is to amplify the OU’s Student First strategy and to ensure that our commercial targets are met. We believe this partnership will help us to achieve this by using real students to deliver inspirational and genuine content that will resonate with Channel 4’s audience and deepen their understanding of what we offer. It’s about inspiring the right people, in the right place, at the right time.

“We know that Channel 4 is the perfect organisation to support us in achieving this ambition. As brands, we are united in terms of what we stand for, including the OU’s mission to reach out to people from all backgrounds. We’re excited to be breaking the mould within the education sector with this really potent campaign.”

Danny Peace, Agency Principal, Channel 4 commented: “Channel 4 is delighted to be working with the Open University on this campaign. It's the most integrated campaign we have worked on both on and off-screen and a genuine partnership between two brands who share the same goals of inspiring change in people’s lives.”

OU graduate, Lindsay Williams features in one of the adverts. She says, “Studying with the OU has been one of the best decisions of my life. Six years ago, I realised that I wanted to carry on studying languages but didn’t want to live the traditional uni lifestyle. It takes lots of planning each year, but you get to fit the OU around your life. I’m now running my own language tuition business.”

Niall Murdoch, Founding Partner, The Outfit commented: “Working with the Open University and its students has given us a unique opportunity to tell some truly inspiring and genuine stories, stories that demonstrate how the OU can completely transform lives. It's been exciting to work closely with the brand and Channel 4 to create some ground-breaking partnership content, in a tone of voice specifically aimed at Channel 4 viewers.”

Dan Wood, Head of Partnerships at MediaCom, added: “Great partnerships are built on shared values, vision and purpose. Both the OU and Channel 4 passionately believe in championing social mobility and enabling education opportunities for all.  This shared purpose provides a strong foundation for an authentic collaboration to demonstrate the transformative power of education. We hope that the unprecedented integration across brand, talent, social and events will inspire the audience with an understanding of how the OU can help them change their lives for the better.”

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For further information, please contact:

Jordan King: jking@lexisagency.com 07974 161110

Claire Bromley: cbromley@lexisagency.com 07972 772894

 

 

Notes to Editors

*About the graduates:

 

Lindsey Williams, age 27, from Milton Keynes

Previously a Learning Support Assistant, Lindsay studied Modern Language Studies with the OU and the qualifications she gained have enabled her to set up her own language tuition business as well as a language blog.

 

Paul Mahoney, age 47, from Merthyr Tydfil

Paul had zero qualifications and little prospects after leaving school aged 16. He went onto head up the Security department at an independent ATM following completion of a Maths and Statistics degree and gaining a BSc honours in Information Technology.

 

Barry Ryan, age 31, from Dublin

After dropping out of school, Barry turned his life around by completing a Psychology degree with the OU. The qualification has helped him progress in his career as a social care worker whilst also boosting his confidence on a personal level.

 

About The Open University:

• The Open University (OU) is the largest academic institution in the UK and a world leader in flexible distance learning. Since it began in 1969, the OU has taught more than 1.8 million students and has almost 170,000 current students, including more than 15,000 overseas.

 

• Over 70% of students are in full-time or part-time employment, and four out of five FTSE 100 companies have sponsored staff to take OU courses.

 

• In the latest assessment exercise for university research (Research Excellence Framework, 2014), nearly three quarters (72%) of The Open University’s research was assessed as 4 or 3 star – the highest ratings available – and awarded to research that is world-leading or internationally excellent.  The Open University is unique among UK universities having both an access mission and demonstrating research excellence.

 

• The OU has a 42 year partnership with the BBC and has moved from late-night lectures in the 1970s to co-producing around 35 prime-time series a year such as The Hunt, Exodus: Our Journey to Europe, Full Steam Ahead and The Big C and Me on TV, and Inside Science, The Bottom Line and Thinking Allowed on Radio4. Our OU viewing and listening events attracted 250m people in the UK last year which prompted more than 780k visits to the OU’s free learning website, OpenLearn: www.open.edu/openlearn/

 

• Regarded as the UK’s major e-learning institution, the OU is a world leader in developing technology to increase access to education on a global scale. Its vast ‘open content portfolio’ includes free study units, as well as games, videos and academic articles and has reached audiences of up to 9.8 million across a variety of online formats including OpenLearn, YouTube and iTunes U.

 

• For further information please visit: www.open.ac.uk

 

About The Outfit:

 

The Outfit creates and produces entertainment-led content by bringing the worlds of brand building, brand communication and entertainment together to drive consumer behaviour and deliver commercial results.

 

The team are experts in navigating the fast changing communication space and multiple stakeholder relationships to deliver successful brand communications partnerships across multiple media platforms; from live TV events, to campaigns contextual to channels, incorporating talent, programming or multi-screen platforms.

 

By believing people watch content to be entertained not for commercial messaging, The Outfit think like a broadcaster, making them unique in their field. They achieve their success with a blend of people from different backgrounds, some from TV programming and others with experience in broadcasting, advertising and social media, who together produce bold, ground-breaking, award-winning work.