2023 Business Impact of the Year UK: Deep Blue Thinking and Checkatrade

The project focused on Checkatrade wanting to maintain its market-leading position in its industry and reassert its quality credentials, with the idea of a guarantee concept appearing the logical fit.

A MaxDiff design was used to answer three key business questions: which segments most value the offer of a guarantee; which elements are most important; and what impact would the level of cover have.

The team found that the impact of ‘value-added’ features was minimal and that the level of protection was less important than the overarching brand promise. 

With the design set, the research team used a test market to understand whether the real-world impact would match the research, and tracking showed a 12% uplift in quality associations versus the control cell. 

The proposition also needed to land emotionally, and the research showed that positioning on quality resonated strongly with consumers but it was equally important to find a creative vehicle to cut through. Checkatrade therefore looked to build brand fame and launched a campaign.

However, the risk of launching a guarantee was potentially alienating trade members. The research team ran a conjoint survey to demonstrate how powerful the guarantee was in helping trades attract customers, showing that eight in 10 homeowners would prefer a tradesperson listed with Checkatrade. 

The eventual campaign has run since 2021, and results have included top-of-mind awareness among consumers rising from 37% pre-campaign to 53% in June 2023.

In addition, 46% consumers remember the campaign and 78% are positive, consideration stands at 61%, nearly twice that of the leading competitor, and one in four people have heard of the guarantee, rising to 43% among Checkatrade customers.  

The team has also seen impact among tradespeople, with two-thirds of Checkatrade members aware of the guarantee.

Nick Bonney, founder at Deep Blue Thinking, said: “We were delighted to win the UK Business Impact award as it vindicates the importance we place on building long-term client partnerships and on delivering commercial outcomes.

“We’re proud that we were one of a number of micro-businesses to win on the night, demonstrating the current strength of this segment of the research industry.”