Virgin Mobile has hired Liquid Communications as its only below-the-line agency for 2001.
Liquid was one of several agencies placed on Virgin Mobile's roster in June, after HPT Brand Response resigned the account to work on Vodafone in April last year. Edge GMC also worked on a campaign for the brand last summer, urging customers to 'divorce' their current mobile network.
Liquid's brief will include testing the Virgin Mobile proposition and positioning against a range of different audiences. As well as direct marketing campaigns, the agency will work on promotions in Virgin-owned retailers Our Price/Vshop and Virgin Megastores, and with other retailers.
Lucy Atabey, promotions and direct marketing manager at Virgin Mobile, said: 'Having worked on several projects with Liquid during 2000 it was an easy choice to appoint them on a more permanent basis. As an organisation, Liquid shares many characteristics with the Virgin Mobile brand and we have developed a strong understanding.'
Olly Raeburn, managing partner at Liquid, said: 'As a young agency this is a tremendous boost for us. Virgin Mobile is a great brand that is not afraid to push a few boundaries.'
Virgin Mobile launched in November 1999 as a joint venture between the Virgin Group and One 2 One. The launch was backed with a pounds 20m through-the-line campaign by Rainey Kelly Campbell Roalfe/Y&R and HPT Brand Response. Virgin Mobile now has almost 675,000 customers and is set to meet its target of one million subscribers by March 2001.
In December, Virgin Mobile secured pounds 115m of funding from investment bank JP Morgan. It has already expanded into Australia, and has plans to enter the US.
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