News: Bouncer invades pitch in ‘aggressive’ campaign

A real-life bouncer will be helping to encourage cricket fans to go to the Brit Oval for the Natwest Pro40 – a more aggressive form of the game.

Agency CMW has created the campaign, with the tagline “Twenty20 with twice the balls” to highlight that a Pro40 game has double the number of overs of a Twenty20 game.

Because of this, the matches are faster than traditional cricket and players have to adopt an aggressive approach to win.

The first burst of the campaign targets cricket fans attending Twenty20 matches at the Brit Oval throughout July, using experiential and ambient techniques.

Fans arriving at the ground are met by a dark and brooding real-life bouncer – Simon Cowell’s bodyguard when he is in the UK – standing behind wickets.

There are also posters featuring the same bouncer in his typically fierce pose, while stencilled artwork around the ground makes it look like walls, seats and the ground have been smashed with a cricket ball.

During the matches, the bouncer and promotional staff are distributing flyers encouraging Twenty20 fans to attend the upcoming Pro40 matches.

The second wave starts at the end of July and incorporates posters, press ads and emails to the Brit Oval ticket database.

Renée Brooks, account director at CMW said: “Surrey County Cricket Club wanted to develop a brave and slightly unusual campaign that would convey the speed and excitement of the Pro40 matches it is holding at the Brit Oval ground.

“By leveraging access to our Twenty20 audience, who are already familiar with and excited about the quicker format game, we are hoping to cross-sell our Pro40 fixtures to them.

“It’s been great to work on a campaign that has taken such an unusual and fun creative approach to a sport that isn’t necessarily perceived as such by the public.”

Suzi Kent, head of marketing and communications at Surrey County Cricket Club, said: “CMW has created an innovative and eye-catching campaign that really reflects the impact of the game. Pro40 is a fun and fast game, and the campaign, particularly with the fantastic stencil illustrations, is sure to be a talking point among our fans.”