Paddy Power "is planning to increase investment in its brand this year after crediting its marketing strategy with helping it to record profits in 2014," according to MARKETING MAGAZINE.
The seriousness with which the bookmaker treats its "mischief-maker" positioning is evident in its annual results statement, which includes 48 references to either "marketing" or "brand" and reveals that the company’s total marketing expenses rose by almost 25% to €100.9M ($112M) for the year. The extra marketing spend "went partly on increasing Paddy Power’s share" of voice in U.K. TV advertising from 5% to 15%, which it claimed drove its football customer acquisition rate up 86%. The company said that it was pleased with the impact of the increased investment in TV advertising. It said it "maximised the value of our distinctive brand and online marketing and worked well in tandem with new product releases and targeted value for customers." Investors cheered the company’s record €167M ($187M) pre-tax profits, sending its share price up by more than 9% to £72.82 ($112). In summing up its marketing highlights the company managed to avoid mentioning its most "boundary-pushing" campaign of the past year. Its advert of its odds on the outcome of the Oscar Pistorius murder trial, which promised "money back if he walks," was the most complained-about advert of '14 (MARKETING MAGAZINE, 3/3).
