The Brief

Trafalgar was approached by Audio Always, producers of the podcast Help I Sexted My Boss, with the opportunity to broadcast one of the upcoming London Palladium live shows to cinemas.

 

The event marked the first cinema broadcast from a UK podcast. As the podcast duo’s limited live shows had sold out almost instantly, the team was looking to find a way to enable wider access while also bringing their affectionately named ‘G&Divas’ together in a meaningful way.

The Campaign

Using available listener data and social breakdowns, the Trafalgar team mapped out a tailored release strategy based around the optimal live-enabled cinemas for the project. This included leaning into the areas with high listenership and social following to ensure the right footprint of cinemas was arranged to maximise the opportunity, totalling over 400 screens in the UK, plus 13 in Ireland and a handful in top European markets Germany and The Netherlands.

 

The Trafalgar production team collaborated closely with the live show’s producers to ensure a seamless broadcast on the night, aligning across all timings and technical logistics.

 

On the marketing side, the Trafalgar team worked in unison with the Audio Always team to reach and engage the podcast’s listenership, alongside applying our own best practise methods for converting audiences to attend cinema events. Activities included:

 

– Week-by-week plan talking up the cinema broadcast in the regular podcast

– Initiative to engage cinemas to stock the podcast’s signature “G&D” drink at screenings, including on-air shoutouts

– Paid digital media campaign across podcast and individual host social channels, geo-mapped to participating cinemas

– CRM campaign using captured data on event website

– Trade marketing activations with cinemas to access relevant comedy databases

– PR activity using the podcast’s preferred team

The Results

The broadcast opened at Number 2 at the UK box office on the night of release, second only to the saturation release of top blockbuster Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. Help I Sexted My Boss Live also achieved the highest per screen average of any release on event night, £762 overall, with over 110 cinemas achieving a per screen average of £1,000 or higher.

 

Fan reaction to the event was universally positive, tracked using the #sextedlive hashtag.

 

Audio Always were delighted with the experience, and celebrated the cinema event proving a landmark moment for the podcast.