Iconic 80s Sock Puppet 'Sweep' Returns for New Bought By Many Spot

Insurance company Bought By Many has unveiled a series of new TV adverts starring The Sooty Show’s Sweep and a host of animal friends. The ads promote a new line of pet insurance products from the company which offer unique to market policies for dog and cat owners.

Common Industry created the ads as part of a launch strategy that also includes PR, DR and online content. The spots will be aired for a month from the 22nd May. The ads will be deployed via a high volume media strategy created by Squadron Media, enabling maximum exposure to the brand’s audience of pet lovers, particularly women. 

In order to stand out among a daytime TV competitor set of detergent ads, Common Industry developed a creative strategy that celebrates the iconic TV of the 80s. Sweep was the obvious casting choice due to his legendary status with the target audience and his fit to the brand’s ethos of providing fair insurance for everyone - he’s a daredevil dog who is constantly in scrapes thanks to Sooty’s hit-and-miss magic tricks.

Starring alongside Sweep in the TV adverts are Diesel the dancing Staffordshire Bull terrier, Doris the yappy terrier and Oscar the thespian cat. Set in a vet’s waiting room, the ads have a distinct retro 80s look and aim to raise awareness of the better pet insurance options available to frustrated dog and cat owners across the country - a surprising number of whom leave their pet uninsured (2.55 million dog owners and 1.2 million cat owners).

Bought By Many CMO Sam Gilbert says: “We needed an ambassador and a creative strategy that would grab the attention of pet owners - Sweep was the obvious choice. When we started Bought By Many, we wanted to transform the customer experience of insurance, helping people find the right cover for their unique needs. The new films are designed to be as distinctive as the range of pet insurance products that we’re bringing to market.”

Common Industry Partner Liam Fay-Fright says: “Bought By Many are British insurtech superstars. They have an incredibly successful business based on providing fair insurance for a variety of niche needs - not least stage performers, like Sweep. There comes a time in every digital business’ evolution when it can be beneficial to go above the line to increase brand awareness. The launch of the new line of pet insurance products seemed like the perfect moment to launch Bought By Many on TV, with a brave creative to match the business’ bold ambitions.”

The new line of consumer-first pet insurance policies was created in line with 40,000+ pieces of social media feedback from dog and cat owners, who told BBM about their frustrations with the market. These frustrations include premiums that jump after the first year of cover and continue to increase over the life of a pet; receiving no benefit from pet insurance if they do not need to claim; and not being able to switch pet insurers and maintain cover for a pre-existing medical condition.

The unique policies which have been created in response to this consumer demand include:

Fixed For Life - £20,000 of cover over the course of a pet’s life, at a price that is guaranteed never to go up, even if a customer claim.

MoneyBack - Customers will have 20% of their pet insurance premium paid back every year they do not claim

Pre-existing - The only pet insurance policy that includes cover for a pet’s existing medical conditions straight away, enabling switching in a market that has previously trapped consumers with the same insurer

Customers can join Bought By Many to access these products here.