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Hughson & Merton debuts with Checkatrade

Checkatrade aims to find you a reputable tradesperson by checking and the like. Now, in its own words, it’s trying to turn “awareness into usage” via new agency Hughson & Merton – refugees from Mother and 101 – and media agency Goodstuff.

So we have a suburban Julius Caesar unimpressed by a recommendation from the “traitorous” Brutus.

Checkatrade chief customer officer Kim Faura says: “Our new ‘recommendations you can rely on’ platform seeks to remind consumers why it’s so important to use a trustworthy source when searching for a trade professional.

“Checkatrade carries out up to 12 checks on every member that joins the site, ensuring homeowners are put in touch with properly insured and checked tradespeople, whose reviews have been verified. We’re proud to launch the first of our new set of adverts which land this important message.”

Does the job although not quite the rib-tickler it might have been. A bigger production budget would have helped, maybe with some in-character slaughtering from JC and the boys.

And the jigging in the garden pack shot overdoes it somewhat.

MAA creative scale: 6.

10 February 2021: Checkatrade has launched its new brand campaign, ‘Recommendations You Can Rely On’, which seeks to educate consumers about the importance of using a trusted source to find a tradesperson.

The UK’s number one website for finding a tradesperson partnered with new creative agency Hughson&Merton to launch the new advert following insight that Britons don’t understand the risks associated with entrusting family or friends to recommend a tradesperson. With Checkatrade carrying out up to 12 checks on every member, and verifying their reviews, the new advert lands the message that it’s better to use a trade directory to find a trusted tradesperson.

The new campaign puts famously betrayed Emperor, Julius Caesar, at the forefront of the creative. The advertising sees Caesar rejecting questionable tradesperson suggestions from his neighbour and former friend, Brutus, leaving Caesar more satisfied and reassured by the checks and recommendations he gets from Checkatrade (sorry, Brutus).

Hughson&Merton is a brand-new creative offering from former Mother and 101 personnel. They won the Checkatrade account following a competitive pitch and bring a new agency model.

Commenting on Checkatrade’s new advertising, creative founder of Hughson&Merton Ryan Delehanty said: “Caesar has some pretty big trust issues – and for good reason – so we knew that the trustworthiness of Checkatrade would be something he’d appreciate. We expected it to be a little harder to get hold of him – but actually, Caesar now lives in a two-bed semi just outside Watford. So that was lucky. The Checkatrade team have been brilliant to work with. Together we’ve landed on a platform with longevity that they and the brand deserve.”

On the agency model, he said: “We’re deliberately set-up to be more flexible. We join up the best creative and strategic people for each job, regardless of where they happen to be in the world. Now, more than ever, that seems like the best way to make to the best possible advertising.”
Planning and buying has been handled by Checkatrade’s media agency Goodstuff. The campaign launched on 10 February during ITV’s crime drama series, The Bay. Other slots booked include George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces and a prime spot in the Six Nations. The campaign will be further supported with Broadcast Video On Demand slots, a first for Checkatrade.
Kim Faura, Chief Consumer Officer at Checkatrade, said: “Our new ‘recommendations you can rely on’ platform seeks to remind consumers why it’s so important to use a trustworthy source when searching for a trade professional. Checkatrade carries out up to 12 checks on every member that joins the site, ensuring homeowners are put in touch with properly insured and checked tradespeople, whose reviews have been verified. We’re proud to launch the first of our new set of adverts which land this important message.’

Harry Moss, Group Planning Director at Goodstuff adds: “Caesar marks a bold and poignant move for Checkatrade. With exceptional awareness levels our focus for this campaign is to turn people towards Checkatrade and bridge the gap between awareness and usage.”

During Spring, Checkatrade will be launching the new creative across its marketing channels – including PR, social and its website.

-ENDS-

For more information:

Bethany Jones, [email protected]

About Checkatrade:
Checkatrade, founded in 1998, is the UK’s number one website for finding a tradesperson. Owned by Homeserve Plc, Checkatrade constantly check their members. The site boasts over 5.6 million real customer reviews, verified by us, making it easy to find the perfect trade or service anywhere in the UK.

About Hughson&Merton
Hughson & Merton, founded in 1892, is an ad agency that does ad agency stuff. They make ads and when they’re not making ads, they’re making commercial

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