HAVAS Red was challenged to create a PR campaign that would meet existing challenges faced by the brand, and leverage the sponsorship of the BetBright Cup during the annual Cheltenham horse racing festival with an activation/stunt that focused around technology.
Working with a leading futurologist, who forecasted by 2025 there would be robot jockeys in horse racing, HAVAS Red created a world first ‘RoboJockey’ -seven years earlier than predicted.
In January, HAVAS Red issued a story around the future of sport alongside a preview of the ‘RoboJockey’. There was a focus on horse racing journalists whilst general sports and consumer news were given credence to ensure client challenges were met.
Working alongside Platform, within three months we had manufactured the robot, created an online video of the ‘RoboJockey’ in action and on the last day of the Cheltenham festival unveiled it to race goers.
During the festival itself, HAVAS Red arranged media interviews for the celebrity captains of the Irish team (Ken Docherty, snooker player) and English team (Phil Tufnell, cricketer) utilising BetBright’s current brand assets to amplify the message of ‘RoboJockey’.
Throughout the period, from the trial to the festival, HAVAS Red led weekly cross functional calls with the client and the Cheltenham events team to ensure all were informed of progress and fully briefed.
Build brand authority and awareness by demonstrating BetBright as forward thinking and innovative: A world’s first robot jockey created and activated seven years ahead of prediction
Generate maximum exposure of BetBright across industry, sport and consumer news, from the Cheltenham trial period in January and during the Cheltenham festival in March: 220 pieces of coverage in total – 65% news and 35% sport/trade, 1 million video views, increase betting amongst current punters and attracted new punters
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HAVAS Red
