Ronseal

Ronseal is an iconic British brand, famous for its straight-talking slogan: ‘Does exactly what it says on the tin’. This honesty has infused Ronseal’s creative strategy for years, as the brand acknowledges that most people see DIY as a chore they would rather avoid. To combat this attitude, Ronseal positions itself as the brand that helps people to get their jobs done in a simple, no-fuss way – often challenging people’s sense of DIY procrastination in the process.

However, in 2020 these attitudes shifted due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Suddenly there were no excuses for putting off the DIY, as people used the time in lockdown to get their jobs done in the home and garden. Ronseal’s strategy of challenging DIY reluctance was now less relevant. We needed a new strategy that spoke to the nation’s new-found appetite for DIY.

A Branded Entertainment first

To put Ronseal at the heart of people’s new-found interest in DIY, we saw that we could dial up the helpful and practical side of the brand, showcasing how Ronseal products help them achieve the best results. We began by creating an extensive set of how-to films, hosted on the Ronseal website and amplified through PR and social media. 

Moving into 2021, and with lockdown restrictions still in place, we then identified an opportunity to create Ronseal’s first Branded Entertainment programme. Working with fellow dentsu agency The Story Lab, we partnered with Channel 4 to create a new prime-time gardening TV programme, which was being developed to cater for the new generation of DIYers that had emerged during the pandemic.

Ronseal Presents…The Great Garden Revolution was born, comprising four hour-long episodes hosted by new gardening talent Joel Bird, Poppy Okotcha and Bruce Kenneth. Each episode features a garden makeover, with Ronseal products integrated into the programme to show how easy they make each DIY task. We also created branded bumpers and supported the programme with extensive PR and social media content.

A stake in the new DIY culture

The programme greatly expanded Ronseal’s reach while driving up consideration for the brand, as The Great Garden Revolution enabled Ronseal to bypass the need to ‘interrupt’ and instead be part of the content in an essential way. This is reflected in the positive reactions to the programme, with 77% of viewers rating the series positively – up on the industry average of 67% for Branded Entertainment.

The programme’s impact translated into improved perceptions of Ronseal, with 55% of viewers stating that they felt warmer towards the brand, and 57% more likely to consider a purchase. Ronseal’s content-led approach also resulted in better integration and performance on social media, with adapted content from the show achieving a reach of 9.3 million on social channels and 1.6 million video views.