Virgin Active ‘Live Happily Ever Active’

Virgin Active has unveiled a category-defining brand advertising campaign to coincide with the time of year most people consider joining a health club.

The “Live Happily Ever Active” campaign communicates Virgin Active’s compelling points of difference as a health club rather than simply a gym.  

The campaign, created by newly appointed ad agency Karmarama, encourages the nation to get more active, and as a result have a happier and more positive outlook on life.   It has the tagline “Don’t just live, live happily ever active” as a thread that runs through the entire campaign and calls on the nation to say “yes” to more things, including exercise for a more active and positive life.

Central to the campaign is a cinematic ad that airs for the first time digitally on 1st January and is in cinemas across the UK from the week of the 10 January 2014.   The 40 second film features scenes of a man riding a motorbike in the desert, juxtaposed with shots showing exercise-related activity such as sprinting for the finish line, jumping into a pool or throwing a punch at a punch bag.

 

The campaign spans cinema, VOD, print, outdoor and digital advertising and is supported by a social media campaign that gives people real tips and advice to nudge them into doing new things and becoming more active.  The initial burst will run until March 2014 and also includes radio promotions with Heart FM and Capital Manchester.  The media planning and buying was handled by Manning Gottleib OMD.

It’s the first time any health and fitness operator has invested significantly in a brand building campaign, in a sector most often characterised by seasonal and tactical price promotions.

Brian Waring, Chief Marketing Officer of Virgin Active UK said: ““We have a bold ambition and that’s to become the most-loved health club in the UK.  Virgin Active operates in a sector that traditionally has communicated very rationally to its potential customers with a focus on price or promotion.  We want to shake the market up, appealing to people’s hearts, not just their minds.

“As the UK’s largest health club group, we are well placed to inspire and motivate people to enrich their lives through activeness - whether that’s having a swim, playing tennis or joining a class in one of our clubs or simply being more active everyday through taking the stairs rather than the lift.”

The launch of the new advertising campaign is set to strengthen Virgin Active’s position as the number one health and fitness club in the UK, supporting a three-year long investment into its Club portfolio and a renewed focus on innovation.

Credits

Project Name:  Virgin Active – Don’t Just Live, Live Happily Ever Active
Client Name:  Brian Waring
Job title: Chief Marketing Officer
Creative Agency: Karmarama
Creative Director: Sam Walker & Joe De Souza
Creatives: Rachel Holding & Daniel Leppanen 
TV Producer: Emma Johnston
Planner (Creative Agency): Jorn Ballentin 
Business Director (Creative Agency): Sarah Wood
Senior Project Managers (Creative Agency): Julia Skilton & Emma Conti
Director: Sam Walker 
Production Company: Kream
Production Co Producer: Gwilym Gwilim
DOP: Will Bex
Post Production/Retouching: The Mill
Editor: Joe Guest @ Final Cut
Audio/Sound Design: Ben Leeves @ Grand Central
Exposure:
Stills Photographer: Heather Favell
Senior Designers: Mike Heath & Kris Miklos