Generosity is most powerful when it is shared. When we partnered with Sky Vegas to promote their “Prize Machine, Guaranteed Wins” feature, we knew a standard digital campaign would not cut it.
Bookmakers flood social media during Cheltenham Week, making it exceptionally difficult to capture undivided attention. Instead of adding to the digital noise, we brought the brand promise directly to the streets, transforming a routine product promotion into a highly shareable, real-world experience that audiences actively chose to watch and share.
The Challenge: Winning Attention in a Packed Week
Cheltenham Festive is one of the most competitive weeks in the betting calendar. Bookmakers deploy heavy marketing budgets, and audiences quickly develop ad fatigue. Consumer insights revealed that Sky Vegas had a unique opportunity to reposition how they offered promotions on their social channels, moving away from standard, direct-response-led advertising.
They needed to establish themselves as a brand defined by generosity, trust, and rewarding play. The challenge was to communicate the excitement of a guaranteed win in a way that felt fresh, authentic, and native to social media.
The Solution: The Guaranteed Win Hotline
Our response was a simple but powerful concept: bring the certainty and thrill of winning into the physical world.
In the heart of Spinningfields, Manchester’s bustling financial centre, we installed a custom red phone box. This instantly recognisable, Sky Vegas-branded statement piece served as both the game and the host. Passersby who answered the ringing phone were given playful, interactive challenges by a voice on the line. Crucially, win or lose, every single participant walked away with a prize, mirroring the online “Prize Machine” experience and making the brand’s promise of generosity tangible.
We led this campaign from initial strategy to final execution with:
- Concept Development: Creating the overarching creative platform and interactive gameplay mechanics.
- Spatial Design and Build: Constructing the custom, branded phone box installation in-house.
- On-Site Production: Filming and editing every interaction, structuring the output as high-energy, social-first content.
- Prime Placement: Securing high-footfall city-centre locations to maximise real-world reach and physical engagement.
By aligning our content drops with Cheltenham Festival, we captured heightened audience attention and turned a physical activation into a highly efficient social content engine.
The Impact: Industry-Defying Digital Traction
By connecting real-world experience with social-first storytelling, the campaign smashed performance benchmarks:
- Over 17 million impressions generated, representing a massive 34% above target.
- 30,700 active engagements, exceeding expectations by 136%.
- Over 5 million video views and 1.4 million thruplays, showing sustained audience retention.
- 2,400 direct link clicks to the promotion, driving strong digital intent and action.
Ultimately, we did not just tell audiences they could win: we let them experience it.
"We partnered with THG Studios to bring a digital, onsite experience, to life, in a way that was optimised for social. The activation did not only engage members of the public, but it translated powerfully across our social media channels, entertaining our audiences differently to what they experience via DR-led channels. The period the content was live, we saw an uplift across all our metrics, proving it resonated with those who watched it, and drove association between the brand and Cheltenham Festival. Guaranteed Win Hotline was a very memorable activation, and one that will set the precedent for future activations."
Aaron Sounder, Content and Social Manager (Gaming), Sky Betting & Gaming
.png&format=webp&auto=avif)
