Sponsorship Rocks: fifteen-year study reveals effectiveness of broadcast sponsorship

8 March 2024

Channel 4 press release – for immediate release

Sponsorship Rocks: fifteen-year study reveals effectiveness of broadcast sponsorship

Channel 4 Sales is unveiling the results of its Sponsorship Rocks study, the most comprehensive analysis of broadcast sponsorship effectiveness ever conducted. The study’s dataset, twice the size of the previous iteration of Sponsorship Rocks in 2017, now incorporates streaming data, creative coding, plus Barb reach and frequency data -offering unparalleled insights for brands. 

At a time when the media industry is faced with concerns about brand safety and transparency, the new research finds that broadcast sponsorship is the optimum environment for brands to align themselves with the positive attributes of the shows that audiences actively seek out. 

Rupinder Downie, sponsorship and commercial partnerships leader, Channel 4 Sales, said: “This study highlights how well sponsorships allow brands to draw on broadcasters’ unique mix of content, creativity and innovation. The debate around brand safety continues across all media platforms, therefore it is so encouraging to see research which shows broadcast sponsorship provides a reliable, transparent and effective platform for brands.” 

Channel 4 commissioned independent research agency Consumer Insight to aggregate effectiveness results from almost 240 sponsorships, including 666 of waves of research that involved speaking to over 400,000 viewers over the past fifteen years. Extensive analysis of this database reveals: 
 

• Sponsorship delivers impact across all key performance metrics. Compared to non-viewers of sponsorship, average percentage point uplifts are seen in awareness (+8%), consideration (+8%), brand perceptions (+7%), relevance (+5%) and trust (+6%). On average, over half of viewers will recall a sponsorship ident and almost a quarter will want to find out more about a brand having been exposed to a sponsorship. 
• Long-term sponsorships amplify brands, with consideration of a sponsor that runs for over two years seeing a +20% higher boost in consideration versus a sponsorship that runs for 1-2 years.  
• Frequency is a key virtue of sponsorship. Idents that have been seen more than 60 times see a +57% boost in prompted brand awareness, versus a campaign with an average frequency of under 60. 
• Sponsorships improve with age, rather than wear out. When more than 20% of people agree that they are ‘getting fed up of seeing’ a sponsorship ident, this correlates to increased standout (+5%), but most notably boosts in awareness (+19%) and purchase intent (+30%) in comparison with when wear out is less than 10%. 
• Sponsorship delivers impact at any size. There are no significant differences on the KPI performance of sponsorships with lower reach vs higher reach, this means a higher reach sponsorship will simply have the same impact but across a larger group. This makes sponsorship a valuable option for new to TV brands, or brands with smaller spends.  
• Sponsorship particularly stands out to young audiences: among all audience groups, 16-34’s returned the highest recognition cut through notoriously a difficult to engage audience.  
• Content alignment is key.  81% of respondents agreed that sponsors were appropriate to the content they were sponsoring. By closely aligning a brand’s creative to a sponsorship, brand metrics can be amplified, and key attributes of a programme, can transmit onto the brand.
• Correct branding is a key driver of all other KPIS. There is a clear correlation between being able to correctly brand a sponsorship ident and first choice consideration.  
• Product placement, licencing and sponsorship of clips on social media amplify the performance of sponsorship. Incremental gains across key KPIs can be seen with multiple touchpoints.  

Case study results 

A selection of brand partnership results from previous Channel 4 sponsorships, examined in this extensive study included: 

Bosch Home Appliances & Channel 4 Inspired Living 

• Campaign cut through was exceptional, with an all-time high on all sponsorship recall metrics, particularly top of mind recall at 13% (+225% shift vs pre vs +46% norm). 
• 87% of those who recall the idents are likely to purchase vs a norm of 60%. 

Sensodyne & Made In Chelsea 

• After seeing the sponsorship, 59% of respondents said they were more likely to consider Sensodyne, a +12pp uplift vs. norms (47%). 
• Claimed purchase increased significantly with 21% of non-viewers saying they had bought Sensodyne in the past 3 months, compared with 33% of viewers (+12pp increase). Claimed purchase behaviour of Sensodyne also surpassed a key competitor for the first time. 

Arnold Clark & Channel 4 Drama 

• Arnold Clark has seen exceptional brand growth over the past 3 years of sponsoring Drama on 4, closing the gap on the market leader, for salience and perceptions – notably as a trusted dealership, offering quality customer service alongside a wide range of cars and the best deals on the market. 
• Arnold Clark is growing faster than competitors for first choice dealership, with +50% increase in visits and purchases at Arnold Clark for viewers vs. the start of the sponsorship. 

ENDS

About Channel 4 

Channel 4 exists to create change through entertainment. Publicly owned yet commercially funded, Channel 4 generates significant and sustainable cultural, economic and social impact across the UK – at no cost to the taxpayer.  

The broadcaster’s distinctive remit is set by Parliament, and it has a role to represent unheard voices, challenge with purpose and reinvent entertainment. For over 40 years, it has been a British success story, engaging generation after generation of young people. 

Through a unique publisher-broadcaster model, Channel 4 commissions its content from the UK independent production sector. Working with around 300 creative companies every year, Channel 4 makes a major contribution to the local, regional and national economy, creating and supporting thousands of jobs and businesses across the country.  

In 2020, Channel 4 launched its Future4 strategy to become a digital-first public service media company and to continue to deliver significant impact for UK audiences and investment into the UK creative economy. 

Across its bases in London, Leeds, Manchester, Bristol and Glasgow, Channel 4 is turbocharging its efforts to find, nurture and develop talent across the UK. Through its training and development initiative 4Skills, Channel 4 is opening up opportunities in broadcasting, with a particular focus on disadvantaged young people, and addressing skills gaps across the Nations and Regions. 

Channel 4 has the UK’s biggest free streaming service plus 11 television channels including: Channel 4, E4, E4 Extra, More4, Film4, 4Seven and The Box Plus Network. Through Film4 Productions, Channel 4 also invests in British filmmakers to huge critical acclaim, producing 37 Oscar wins and 88 BAFTA wins in its history.  

https://www.channel4.com/ 

About Consumer Insight (Ci) 

Consumer Insight (Ci) is an independent research agency working with some of the biggest names in the UK to establish, measure and understand the effectiveness of their marketing. Delivering truths with trust and empathy, Ci prides itself on being great to work with and for; underscored by its BCorp certification and sustained client relationships. Working with Channel 4 for almost 15 years, the Sponsorship Team at Ci have developed unparalleled knowledge into the impact of sponsorship on brand, unearthing key actionable insights into how and why sponsorship works. www.consumer-insight.co.uk