Sky Broadband uses its 'Common Census'

Client: Sky UK

Sky spotted an opportunity to hero its super-easy 24/7 switching support service to attract switchers when, from September 2024, new regulations meant that all the major ISPs had to make it easier for customers to get the best deal. With limited budget to out-shout Virgin, Vodafone and BT/EE, Sky wanted to focus on the areas where it could offer its fastest FTTP connection (fibre to the premise, basically in-home fibre).

Ordinary data matching of consumer IDs (email, device or IP address) with other providers would have meant only really advertising in in-home media or mobile media, like low-impact display or open web video. Sky wanted to target people outside the home, in the moments where people often experience poor connectivity. And so married UK census data with IPA touchpoints to accurately target consumers in eligible areas via all available media channels. And so the Common Census approach was born.

This delivered highly localised plans for 370 geographic clusters across TV, BVOD, OOH, radio, cinema and all forms of digital. In some places they could reach target with just 2 or 3 channels, vs 7 or 8 in others. In creative 80 different towns’ names were called out in digital channels and over 340 locations in outdoor. This was Sky's most data-driven media plan ever, and whilst at a national level Sky was significantly outshouted, it managed to maintain its UK share of market, and in targeted areas consideration and share of market grew by 12% and 14% respectively.