Our task was to grow consideration and build belief that AXA is a “brand I trust”, while driving growth within the SME category.

Small business owners lead hectic lives, tackling everything from big sales pitches to office admin. Arranging insurance is something that lurks on the to-do-list until it becomes urgent. According to the ONS, 80% of UK start-ups don’t last a year – unsurprising given it costs on average £22,746 to fund these first 12 months.

This got us thinking; if we could release small businesses from this financial shackle, could we prove ourselves worthy of their trust?

We created Startup Angels, a celebrity-fuelled campaign where start-ups competed to win expert mentorship, one year of AXA business insurance cover and a £25,000 cash prize to launch their business. We even donated £5,000 of media space and free Starcom expertise to make the most of it!

We recruited business heavyweights Holly Tucker MBE (notonthehighsteet.com founder), Raphael Sofoluke (UK Black Business Show Founder), and Ian Theasby and Henry Firth (BOSH! Founders) as ‘The Angels’ to front the campaign.

We focused our budget into a partner offering strong reach and affinity amongst our small business owner audience – Global. Content showcasing the Startup Angels competition was deployed on Global Radio’s highest-indexing brands across audio, web, and social.

Our Global Radio partnership was amplified by advertising using Global Outdoor. Using proprietary first party data, sites were handpicked in postcode areas with a high propensity for SMEs, ensuring reach was maximised.

The campaign, in partnership with Global, successfully grew AXA’s consideration, with nearly 500 businesses entering our Startup Angels competition, far beyond our expectations.