Mini Babybel is celebrating 10 years as Comic Relief’s supporting partner with special packs featuring exciting dares.

Babybel will also donate 5p to Red Nose Day for every promotional pack sold, and donate a further £1 for every dare shared on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter.

Just demolish your delicious Babybel, do the dare and share using #BabybelDares.

Ranging from ‘walk like a penguin’ to ‘play air guitar’ and ‘talk like a pirate’, cheese fans can get as creative as they like. The donation amount is capped at £10.000, so that’s a lot of dares to share.

Limited edition Red Nose Day Mini Babybel packs are available in all major supermarkets and convenience stores nationwide.

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As we all know, Maltesers love to look on the lighter side of life, and Red Nose Day 2019 is no exception.

This year, they’re asking you to dig out your funniest photos and display them proudly on social media. For every photo shared, lovely Maltesers will donate £10 to Comic Relief up to a total donation of £1m.

We’re talking 90s bowlcuts, awkwardly photographed dance moves, or the time when you opened the front-facing camera and snapped a photo full of chin.

Yes they’re embarrassing, but they are for a good cause.

So help Maltesers raise £1m for Comic Relief by posting your own funny photo on social media, tagging @MaltesersUK, along with #funnyface!

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Supersized selfie red noses are popping up across the UK as Sainsbury’s counts down to Red Nose Day on 15th March. They have launched their official Red Nose merchandise in-store to celebrate 20 years as a Comic Relief partner.

These giant red snifflers are appearing at ‘pick of the bunch’ locations, from Edinburgh’s Greyfriars Bobby to Blackpool’s Seafront to Cornwall’s Mud Man. Even London’s stately St Paul’s gets to wear one.

The aim is for the public to show their support and get busy taking selfies in front of them. Pop on their own Red Nose, and tag @Sainsburys, @ComicRelief and #RedNoseDay.

Sainsbury’s is also launching its first ever ‘Comic Receipt’ campaign, which offers the chance to see Ed Sheeran in Rome later this year. You’ll also get to meet him after the gig, and receive your very own, signed guitar.

To enter, visit the Sainsbury’s website and type in the unique code on your receipt.

It’s also an important anniversary for Sainsbury’s and Comic Relief.

The past two decades have seen Sainsbury’s raise over £120 million for Comic Relief and the retailer is hoping the fundraising efforts of customers and colleagues will make an even bigger difference to help those most in need across the UK and internationally.

Liz Warner, CEO at Comic Relief, said: “Sainsbury’s is a brilliant partner and it is always great to see the stores come to life with merchandise, red noses and more.

We hope that, together with Sainsbury’s and Argos employees, we will raise millions of pounds to help fund projects locally and abroad – saving and changing lives.”

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Chicago Town is celebrating their new partnership with Comic Relief by donating £300,000. And their generosity doesn’t stop there. For every PJ selfie uploaded to their Facebook page using #MyRNDParty, they will donate a further £1 to Comic Relief.

The lovely pizza brand is encouraging all staff and customers to show their support by throwing pyjama parties to fundraise on Red Nose Day, 15th March. They’ve even created a handy PJ party pack so you have everything you need to throw your own party.

The staff at Chicago Town will enter a raffle for the chance to win tickets to the Comic Relief gig on 28th February at The SSE Arena, Wembley. And brave employees will come to work in their PJs on 15th March for a party of their own.

Catherine Cottrell, Fundraising and Partnerships Executive Director at Comic Relief, said: “We’re extremely grateful for Chicago Town’s generous donation to the charity and thrilled to have their support, inviting people to come together for this year’s Red Nose Day.”

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Ahead of Red Nose Day on Friday 15th March, Royal Mail has unveiled a special edition ‘laughing’ postbox with stand-up comedian Hal Cruttenden providing the jokes. The postbox is situated near BBC Headquarters in London and has been created in support of Comic Relief.

The ‘laughing’ postbox – a first for the company – responds to posted mail by delivering a number of jokes back via audio recorded by Hal Cruttenden. Any member of the public posting mail in the special edition postbox will hear a gag.

The special edition postbox is situated close to Broadcasting House at 1-2 Langham Place, London, W1B 3DE (opposite The Langham Hotel). It will be in place from 8th March until 22th March 2019.

There will also be a special Red Nose Day postmark that Royal Mail will be distributing across stamped UK mail, driving awareness in the lead up to the night of TV which will be broadcast live on BBC One on Friday 15th March.

A spokesperson for Royal Mail said “In the process of delivering to around 30 million addresses in the UK, six days a week, we really enjoy adding a little extra fun and laughter to the posting of mail – especially when it is in support for such a great cause”.

Liz Warner, CEO at Comic Relief said “We are extremely grateful for Royal Mail’s support on this year’s campaign. The postmark is a lovely way to drive awareness ahead of Red Nose Day”.

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PG tips is the official Red Nose Day partner for the 2017 charity fundraising initiative, organised by charity Comic Relief.

The brand has launched a #1MillionLaughs campaign to get the public sharing jokes across social media using the hashtag, and has committed to donating £300,000 to this year’s Red Nose Day, which takes place on 24th March 2017. It will be making a donation for every promotional pack sold, plus encouraging PG tips fans to give more.

The #1MillionLaughs campaign will be supported by out-of-home activity and social media support, including sponsored posts on Facebook and Twitter, a new Snapchat filter and a ChatBot.

PG tips has also launched limited edition packs featuring jokes inside to inspire consumers to take part.

The PG tips ChatBot is an online tool which will allow consumers to message the PG tips Monkey brand character directly via @MostFamousMonkey on Facebook Messenger and get jokes back. The ChatBot will also encourage users to donate via the app or ask questions about the charity and what the money is used for.

Fiachra Moloney, PG tips marketing manager at Unilever UK and Ireland, says: “We are thrilled to be supporting Comic Relief through our #1MillionLaughs campaign. We know that UK consumers are passionate about getting behind Red Nose Day and this activity is designed to do just that in a fun and engaging way. The unique ChatBot will give fans the chance to get their own daily dose of Red Nose Day as they receive jokes from Monkey himself.”

Monkey, the brand character who fronts PG Tips’ advertising and marketing, is actually owned by Comic Relief and used by PG Tips under license. Comic Relief has the rights to Monkey as the result of a legal settlement over ownership of the character between the receivers of ITV Digital, the digital pay TV channel which shut in March 2002.

Monkey was created by advertising agency Mother and made by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop (responsible for The Muppets) for ITV Digital’s advertising campaign, which also featured his partner Al (still played today by comedian Johnny Vegas).

Monkey was one of the channel’s few valuable assets, and became the subject of a year-long legal battle which was ended in February 2003 when both parties (Mother and the receivers) agreed to sign over rights to Comic Relief. The character then made a couple of appearances on TV and was the lead character in an as yet un-aired BBC variety show before being reunited with Johnny Vegas in a TV ad for PG Tips in 2007.

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GSK’s Aquafresh oral care brand has linked with Comic Relief 2017 and will be donating 10p from the sale of every specially themed pack from the Little Teeth, My Big Teeth and Complete Care ranges. Promotional packs will also offer consumers the chance to win Snuffles, a “huffing, puffing, burping, singing” Aquafresh Bonkers Red Nose character brush timer.

The dental care brand is the latest to team up with Red Nose Day 2017, which takes place on 24th March.

Katharine Osmond, Aquafresh senior brand manager, says: “With an astounding 46% of eight­ year olds experiencing tooth decay in their primary teeth, it’s more important than ever for brands and retailers to work together to encourage good oral care habits from an early age. Our exciting partnership with Red Nose Day, our eye­catching branded packaging and on­pack promotion will create standout on shelf and in stores, and help to increase the demand of shoppers looking to make brush time more enjoyable for children with the help of ‘Snuffles’.”

There are 20,000 brush timers to be won, with 222 on offer every day. The promotional period runs until 31st March 2017, although there will be a final wrap-up draw for any entries received in April.

To enter the competition, shoppers have to go to www.aquafresh.co.uk/winbonkersbrushtimers, input the 8-digit URN reference number found on the inside of the pack and register their name and email address.

There is a No Entry Necessary route for consumers living in Northern Ireland.

Aquafresh has committed to raising £200,000 for Comic Relief. Additionally, Aquafresh has helped the Comic Relief team create a booster pack of materials for schools, containing fun ideas and materials to help make the most of their Red Nose Day fundraising.

Other consumer brands linking with Red Nose Day this year include PG Tips with its #1MillionLaughs, Bel UK with a limited edition Babybel range and Mars’ confectionery brands with the #bakeamillion promotion.

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Jo Coughlin of Mediator Communications reports back on the IPM’s first ever Partnership Marketing Conference, Creating the Perfect Blend

In an ever-changing marketing landscape, brands are looking at alternative approaches to engage a hard to reach consumer. As a result, we’re seeing the growth of Partnership Marketing, as it earns its place amongst the marketing mix as a more engaging, effective and innovative tool.

This was the subject of the IPM’s recent conference, Creating the Perfect Blend, which took place on Friday 22nd April 2016. Organised in conjunction with the UK Partnership Panel and chaired by Mediator Communications’ Managing Director, Tara Honeywell, speakers from British Gas, Warner Music, Comic Relief, NOW TV, Cinema First, LiveNation and Fusion Festival discussed the pros and cons of Partnership Marketing, talked through case studies and drew on their own experience to talk about trends and best practice.

Everyday, consumers buy into brand propositions; often, those that resonate most are where great brands, retailers and common causes come together to create the perfect match. The conference saw those at the forefront of shaping the future of partnerships share their views on why partnerships has become so important in today’s marketing mix as well as demonstrate the powerful combinations that have grown brands.

There can be some ambiguity around what is meant by ‘Partnership Marketing’ and its scope. Tara Honeywell began the day’s proceedings by outlining the definition that was created by the UK Partnership Panel, whose role is to raise the profile of PM across the industry.

This definition states:

“Partnership Marketing is the discipline of brands working together to co-create ideas that are collectively more effective for their businesses and more compelling to their consumers.”

Matthew Leopold of British Gas then shared how the energy giant’s sponsorship with British Swimming created a ‘new world’ model of marketing partnerships, focusing on the depth of the ‘fanship’ rather than on the more activation-led approach which they had previously applied to the sponsorship.

By engaging people who care about the sport, British Gas was able to help British Swimming grow the fanbase and increase participation in the sport and in turn trigger likability, affinity and consideration of British Gas over the long term.

This deeper engagement and a more meaningful association helped change the way the customer felt about British Gas outside of a standard sponsorship badging exercise. Truly integrating the partnership and sharing objectives created a more credible association.

For Ciara Godley at Comic Relief, having clear objectives and working together has been the secret ingredient in Comic Relief’s hugely successful and long term partnership strategy.

Sainsbury’s has partnered with Red Nose Day for years and is their biggest partner outside of the BBC. Not only does the retailer raise a lot of money for charity, but it has also benefited itself – ‘Red Noses’ have driven footfall into stores and engaged with shoppers on a much deeper level. For Comic Relief, a flexible approach to a partnership and having passion and belief has reaped rewards for the charity and all involved.

Tanya Easterman from Cinema First took us through the journey of how Meerkat Movies changed the game of movie partnerships by applying a full business response to the partnership with significant investment that built the momentum.

For Cinema First, it was important to re-invigorate the ‘Orange Wednesday’ proposition and evolve the partnership. It was important for them when choosing a new partner that this was a genuine partnership that promoted the industry and would drive incremental business for all parties. For the cinema industry, the partnership has opened the offer up to multiple day visits and are looking at a family offering and for Compare the Market they’ve retained customers as well as impacting customer perceptions.

Tara Honeywell closed the day with a round-up of the outtakes, from movie and charity partnerships to sponsorships and music collaborations there were three clear aspects required to create the perfect partnership:

• Strategy first;
• Collaborative approach;
• Clear KPIs and evaluation metrics.

The IPM’s Managing Director, Carey Trevill concluded: ‘We decided that Partnership Marketing as a discipline needed a spotlight – an important part of any marketers tool kit, this first Partnership Conference started to explore the future thinking of the industry. We were delighted to work with the Partnership Panel on this and look forward to a close working relationship in the coming year.”

If you are looking to use partnerships to help your brand grow take a look at the Partnership Panel’s Best Practice Guidelines.

Jo Coughlin is New Business Director of partnership marketing agency Mediator Communications. She can be contacted on jo.coughlin@mediator.co.uk

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