Vodafone wanted to reach a wide audience to highlight the launch of The Big Idea, a national ad funded TV show.  It was clear from the outset that the commercial radio industry would need to combine forces to create a compelling network solution delivering huge numbers. A pioneering radio partnership between Bauer, GCap, Global and UTV Radio, resulted in the first ever weekend long national networked promotion.

Vodafone had three key objectives: - Position Vodafone as the number one choice for small businesses - Associate Vodafone with innovation Increase awareness of the Big Idea TV show on Sky One

Every station joined together 16 times throughout the weekend from a central Big Idea studio counting down 100 invention related questions. The listener that answered question 1 correctly won £100k. This activity pre-promoted the first Sunday night episode of The Big Idea on Sky One. The activity extended over the seven weeks of the TV series, with a combination of advertorials that leveraged the talent within the programme and top 'n' tail business related teasers sitting either side of commercial breaks.

Independent pre and post research demonstrated the campaign's huge effectiveness in aligning people with the Vodafone brand. - 43% of listeners agreed that Vodafone had ideas for small business compared to 26% of non-listeners - 37% of listeners said they felt more positive about Vodafone as a result of their association with small businesses - 85% of people who said they had seen or heard any kind of advertising for the Big Idea had heard it on the radio.

"No other medium could bring to life the various aspects of this brief than radio. At the same time, no other industry could put aside any competitive issues and work together with the sole objective of answering a client's brief and creating innovative radio". John Walker, Head of Radio, OMD