Created by Lida and with media by MediaCom, "What’s stopping you" runs until the end of March across TV, cinema, radio, out of home, print and online, and will deliver an estimated 161 million impacts.
Three 30-second ads feature nine real examples of OU graduates who believed they faced barriers to education, but went on to pursue their dream careers. All three ads will be shown from today across more than 100 channels and will run until the end of March. One will also will be shown in all major cinemas for eight weeks from New Year’s Day.
This will be supported by a two week, UK-wide outdoor campaign from 12 January including digital formats in London, Manchester, Glasgow, Leeds and Birmingham; a regional radio campaign from 9 to 31 January; 27 print insertions in national and regional papers; and paid search and social, display banners, VOD, and partnerships with Monster Education, Reed, Totaljobs, Monster and Zeta.
Ella Hall, head of brand and acquisition marketing at The Open University, said: "This impactful, vibrant and passionate campaign is a real game changer for the education sector.
"We used real students in our adverts, showing their real life success and how their careers have benefited from studying with the OU. We want to inspire and enable others to harness the transformative power of the OU to achieve their career and personal goals."
Tori Winn, executive creative director at Lida, added: "Our bold, modern and authentic campaign certainly shakes up the sector. The graduates’ universal stories of success will hopefully inspire others to take the first steps on their journey towards making a positive change in their lives."