When we first started working with Yorkshire Tea in 2016, they were third in the black tea market, lagging some way behind established market leaders, PG Tips and Tetley Tea. But they were on a mission to clinch the number one spot.
We found that what made the brand special was its philosophy of ‘Doing things proper’. Basically going the extra mile where other companies might cut corners to save money and time. But we knew our audience wouldn’t respond to a lecture about tea making so we decided to have some fun with the notion that at Yorkshire Tea, everything is done proper.
We brought this idea to life in TV by ‘recruiting’ some famous Yorkshire folk at the HQ into menial tasks; Parky did the interviews, the Kaiser Chiefs played the hold music, and Sean Bean gave rousing induction speeches.
So, we had an idea that worked brilliantly in TV and focused on the core product, but what was almost more important is that we now had a single organising idea that every piece of activity could work to, no matter if NPD launches, sponsorship, sustainability comms, sub-brand promotions or reactive social activity. From biscuit domino rallies, social distancing teapots, AR games to celebrate tea planting and many more, it's been a proper good five years of activity.
The results are proper good too: immediately after the 'Where Everything’s Done Proper’ went live, Yorkshire Tea sales began to rise, and they have continued to do so. This growth was in sharp contrast to overall category sales, which continued to decline. Yorkshire Tea became Britain’s favourite brew in 2019 and continues to hold the market leader position.