- UK ad campaign developed as part of the broader 'GE Works' initiative
- Campaign focuses on GE impact in healthcare, energy infrastructure, transportation, manufacturing and jobs
- Features GE UK employees who are working on some of the country's biggest challenges
GE, one of the UK's leading manufacturers, has this week launched its first ever advertising campaign tailored to the UK market. The campaign, developed as part of a broader 'GE Works' initiative, demonstrates GE's deep commitment and contribution to the UK and the work GE employees do to help the UK work more effectively.
The thinking behind 'GE Works' resulted in four brand pillars which all relate to GE's core business areas -- building, powering, moving and curing. They can be summarized as follows:
The UK campaign includes a creative print execution linked to each pillar featuring locations around the UK and using real UK employees with the creative. As well as the print creative, the video content was shot with employees across different locations where they talked about the impact that their work has on them as individuals as well as on those around them. The short 40 second films will appear on the GE UK website and YouTube during the second week in March.
Mark Maguire, Communications Director at GE UK said:
"GE in the UK is not typically a consumer brand, so many would not necessarily realise the significant and deep human impact that our 18,000 employees have on the UK each and every day - and the pride and passion in which they go about this work.
"Our new campaign is designed to demonstrate the important contribution GE makes to help the UK work in key areas - ensuring that millions of consumers have power in their homes when they need it; reliable transportation; cutting edge healthcare technology that helps hospitals save lives, or our significant manufacturing and services footprint."
This campaign is launched as GE begins to activate its TOP sponsorship of the 2012 London Olympic Games. It is part of a wider programme of making the GE brand better known, esteemed, relevant and competitive locally. The print campaign will coincide with a re-design of the UK website www.ge.com/uk, providing a much more localised picture of the business. Further London 2012-related executions are planned for later in the year.
Continues Maguire:
"With over 60 sites across the UK and a dedication to innovation in energy, healthcare, financial services and transportation, we are part of the fabric of the UK society. This first ever UK campaign reflects our commitment to addressing some of the fundamental challenges faced by the UK, highlighting some of the people who work hard to make that happen."
About the creative executions
The print campaign is composed of four executions which depict GE employees in fun and playful scenes linked to different facets of GE's UK businesses:
- Building: With the headline 'Building the UK economy', this execution features GE Energy's Power Conversion Team at GE Energy in Rugby. It reinforces GE's 18,000 strong workforce in the UK which makes us one of the largest manufacturing companies in the UK, and explains how, from building propulsion technology for Britain's naval ships, to supplying advanced signalling systems to the rail network, GE is working hard to help move the UK.
- Moving: With the headline 'Moving millions of people around the world', this execution features some of our engineers at GE Aviation in Cardiff and talks about how a plane powered by GE technology takes off every two seconds somewhere in the world and how GE designs its engines to be at the forefront of technology, improving fuel efficiency, lowering emissions and getting millions of people to their destinations.
- Powering: With the headline 'Delivering power across the UK', this execution features engineers at GE Energy in Livingston. It talks about how GE helps deliver power to more than 55 million people around the UK and how our Utility Operating System helps to ensure they get an uninterrupted supply of energy day in, day out.
- Curing: With the headline 'Helping doctors diagnose, treat and cure the UK', this features employees from GE Healthcare in Hatfield and talks about how GE scanners provide doctors with some of the most advanced imaging technology available and deliver accurate, detailed images with speed and reliability in hospitals across the UK.
Launched on 1st March, the campaign will appear in a range of UK print media including The Economist, The Guardian, and The Financial Times as full pages and spreads.
Later this year, to support GE's Olympic sponsorship, the new campaign will include a series of additional executions around the 'Cure' theme'. These will feature six athletes from a broad range of Olympic sports and will go live during the summer.
Ends
Note to editors
- The campaign was developed by AMV BBDO
- The media buying agency is OMD
- Campaign images available on request
About GE in the UK:
GE has been operating in the UK since the 1930s and works on things that matter. The best people taking on the toughest challenges. Today our 18,000 UK employees work across 60 major locations, including 25 world-class manufacturing and R&D facilities, finding solutions in energy, oil & gas, healthcare, aerospace and financial industries. Our business is about building, powering. moving and curing the world. Not just imagining. Doing. GE works. For more information visit www.ge.com/uk
Mark Maguire
GE
[email protected]
+44 20 7302 6068
+44 7717 517071
Sara Cruz
[email protected]
0207-534-0623