Tim Yates is the new kid on the block. One2One’s marketing director
has been on board just six months but has already had the pleasure of
seeing the brand win Best New Entrant at the recent IPA Effectiveness
Awards (Campaign, 20 November).
The famous ’who would you like to have a One2One with?’ campaign will
continue, but Bartle Bogle Hegarty’s brief has been extended to cover
issues crucial to consumer choice. The latest spot, starring Stuart
Hall, focuses on cost - advising customers that ’with more free minutes
for your money, our mobile phone network really gets people
talking’.
’We already have a big famous brand but we wanted to talk about value
and demonstrate that users can now talk for longer,’ Yates explains.
’Hall illustrates the point perfectly in his own flamboyant style.’
In the run-up to Christmas, One2One is hoping to win about
one-and-a-half million customers. ’The mobile phone market penetration
is at about 20 per cent and we are expecting huge growth over the new
few years, but the Christmas quarter is a highly competitive time for
us,’ Yates says.
A new commercial, which will air in early December, involves Chris Evans
(in his first on-screen advertising appearance) telling us he’d like to
have a One2One with John Lennon. The campaign will be backed by press
work, due to break in the next few weeks, and a Christmas ’lunch-time’
promotion where new customers can take advantage of free calls between
12 and 2pm until June 1999.
Yates believes recent advertising from One2One has championed the growth
in personal usage and prepared the brand for ’portability’, where users
can change networks but retain the same phone number.
On a more personal note, Yates has to juggle his busy schedule around
his four-week-old son, Harry, but says that despite the demanding
workload, he is thriving on the challenges of his new role.
’Most days are hectic but I love working in this environment,’ Yates
admits.
