Carat
Guinness
Rugby World Cup 2007

Carat was given a Herculean task in associating Guinness with the 2007 Rugby World Cup and still came good, devising a strategy as creative as the stout's seminal TV spots.

The problem was that Heineken was the official beer of the championship. To overcome this, Carat planned a several-stage plan to increase TV and press spot impact.

In the run-up to the competition, ads at other major sporting events, as well as in newspapers and on TV, focused on the anticipation preceding the event.

The intention was to reflect the anticipation a Guinness drinker experiences while waiting for their drink to be poured.

Once the competition began, Guinness revealed the full "Seconds from Greatness" ad. To hammer home the message that Guinness is a "true partner of rugby", the ad is focused on a rugby match, albeit one played by strange, athletic creatures dressed in black. It is fast and furious, and captures the physicality of the game.

To reinforce the association of the brand with the sport, Carat secured 25% more position-in-break TV spots than any other beer, including Heineken, and the Guinness TV ads were seen more than 200 million times.

Running alongside these were inserts in national newspapers positioned next to rugby editorial. In addition, Telegraph TV's rugby coverage bridged the gap between TV and press advertising, reaching an active online audience of 178,000.

Carat's biggest coup was securing the final spot before the start of the second half of the final for a 60-second ad, bringing the different print and TV spots together in a bruising and glorious finale.

Despite working on a lower budget, Carat repeated the success of 2003.

The association boosted sales 4% in September and October 2007, when the beer market fell 8% overall. Public perception was equal to or greater than many of the cup's official sponsors, including Toshiba, Peugeot and Heineken.

Shortlist

Carat
Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
Jungle Book - Jungle Fever

PHD Media
AA
AA Roadside 2006-2007