07/02/2024

YODEL has taken outdoor advertising to the next level, placing ads in weird and wonderful ‘middle of nowhere’ locations to showcase how its partnership with what3words is improving deliveries for the UK’s most remote and rural homes.

From roadside trailers in remote laybys to horseboxes and the sides of barns, the media buying playfully fits the message, which draws on the ways people describe their hard-to-find homes, from ‘the back of beyond’ to ‘way out in the sticks’.

The campaign also highlights the delivery challenges posed by poorly-addressed rural properties, such as the need for customers to describe exactly where to find the front door ‘through the gate, round the side and down the garden path’ and the painful reality that every delivery van ‘sails right past’ a hard-to-spot driveway.

The trailer shoot took place in the Yorkshire dales at ///overpower.stay.petted in Elslack Moor Car Park and ///oiled.lecturers.florists on Gordale Lane. The Horse Box and Farm shed were filmed on a farm in Hampshire.

what3words is a simple way to communicate precise locations. It has divided the entire world into of 3m x 3m squares and given each square a unique combination of three words: a what3words address. For example, ///gather.cherished.bedding identifies the viewpoint of Pen y Fan in the Brecon Beacons National Park. YODEL customers can discover their what3words address via the free what3words app – available for iOS and Android – or the online map at what3words.com.

All YODEL customers can add their front door’s what3words address to their profile in the YODEL app to help delivery drivers know exactly where to go.

Michaela Simpson, Customer Experience Director, at YODEL said : “Last year we partnered with what3words to integrate its cutting-edge location system into the YODEL customer app. It has allowed our customers to specify their delivery address with pinpoint accuracy, making the delivery process even more efficient and eliminating the challenges with ambiguous or hard-to-find locations. This campaign highlights our mission to make deliveries as seamless as possible for all our customers, no matter where they are located.”

“If you live out in the sticks, parcel deliveries can be a mission. You need a lengthy description at the ready once you get the inevitable call from the courier to describe the epic journey to your front door.” Giles Rhys Jones, CMO of what3words comments. “That’s where our partnership with YODEL makes a difference. Together, we’re making parcel deliveries straightforward just like they should be – even if you live in the arse end of nowhere!”

YODEL’s partnership with what3words illustrates its ongoing commitment to customer convenience and satisfaction by adopting and integrating innovative technologies to enhance its services.