AMPD Studios by Old Mutual, the financial institution’s innovative solution to connecting with young people, has been shortlisted for the WARC Awards for Effectiveness, an achievement HaveYouHeard MD Jason Stewart is billing as ‘a pretty big deal’.
The WARC (World Advertising Research Centre) Awards recognise next-generation marketing effectiveness. Winning a WARC Award shows that you are developing and mastering new techniques to deliver business results for customers.
“This is really a great achievement for the Old Mutual/HaveYouHeard/InBroadcasting partnership, because WARC is very robust in how it measures performance,” Stewart said.
“The team is thrilled with the news, walking on Cloud 9, and I can’t wait to see their reactions should we be called to the winners’ podium next month!”
Old Mutual’s revised sponsorship strategy in 2019 shifted the dial from traditional brand awareness sponsorships to a more personal community-based approach focused on tapping into people’s passions and interests.
This approach enables the brand to engage with a receptive/captive audience meaningfully, bringing relevant and valuable services and mentorship into their lives. It fully supports the Old Mutual brand promise to Champion Mutually Positive Futures.
Old Mutual challenged HaveYouHeard’s strategists to develop a sponsorship mechanism that would meet the objectives of this strategy and drive relevance and action in this market; and so AMPD Studios powered by Old Mutual was born in May 2019. What made this approach work is the powerful link that was created between managing your finances well and managing your musical aspirations successfully. Old Mutual’s primary audience targeted through the AMPD Studios are the ‘Starting Outs’: 18 – 34-year-olds.
This influential and ambitious market includes students, aspiring artists, creatives and professionals who are desperate for knowledge and guidance on how to get ahead. They need solutions, tips and tools that will help them achieve their dreams and activate their finances and their wealth potential as they strive to develop their talents and fulfil their dreams.
In-between the live performances and recording sessions, AMPD Studios hosts discussions, known as Hero conversations and Masterclasses, with music icons and industry heavyweights who share their real-life stories. The key emphasis is on the life truths they learnt from their financial triumphs and failures.
Performers and visitors to AMPD Studios who open an Old Mutual Money Account are rewarded for ‘taking those small steps today that lead to great things tomorrow’, gaining access to the state of the art recording studio that can be booked for sessions with an audio engineer to turn out singles, as well as access to a VIP upstairs area, onsite financial advisers, bookable boardrooms, and open plan work areas.
“AMPD Studios by Old Mutual has been extremely successful,” said InBroadcasting head, Jon Savage, whose team is responsible for much of the content and programming at AMPD Studios by Old Mutual.
“This innovative and ingenious approach – linking music passions with a financial foundation – has proved to be the perfect recipe for success. We are touched and inspired by the levels of engagement and appreciation we are having with our community around this unique and life-changing approach to achieving your dreams.
“It is clear that Jozi’s stars of tomorrow are eager to learn and be inspired, and they welcome guidance and insights that resonate with them. AMPD is there for them.”
In its first year and a half, from May 2019 to December 2020, the AMPD Studios by Old Mutual team achieved the following results:
● Hosted over 10 000 visitors and 600 registered attendees of Masterclasses
● Opened 556 million opportunities to see #AMPDSTUDIOS
● Created 57 million opportunities to see #AMPDIDOLSSA from a single event
● Drew over 5000 members onto our WhatsApp channel
● Achieved PR reach of over 35 million people in just 6 months
● Earned over R4 million in value through a content partnership with MetroFM
● Saw an overall increase in brand sentiment for Old Mutual on social media from 2019 to 2020
● Steadily increased Old Mutual Money Account Sign-ups monthly
● Achieved 17 million in effective reach with our AMPD Studios Live show on MTV
● Achieved 18,6k plays from 11 podcast episodes and was ranked third on the South African Business and Entrepreneurship podcast category
● Recorded over 900k views with 90% view rate with content partners
● Partnered with 947 Radio to reach 1,2 million listeners
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