Elizabeth Black / 18 May 2025 / Categories: Advertising, Brand Advertising

Britains Got Talent Tour Bus Has No Takers For Tesco and Alpro

The public may be over expensive marketing campaigns

I was very happy to see a plant based brand Alpro team up with Tesco club card and Britains Got Talent Tour bus to bring an experiential marketing experience to Tesco customers celebrating 30 years of Tesco Club card and offering customers a chance to win tickets to the live semi final and grand final of Britains Got Talent from Tesco car parks around the country throughout May.

The tour around the UK for the ITV hit show staring Simon Cowell is visiting 18 Tesco stores, starting at the Tesco superstore in Windsor for one day only from 11am and will end at the Apollo Theatre London for The Britains Got Talent Live Final.

Normally a big thing like this in the Midlands would draw a crowd but I was struck by the lack of enthusiasm and people to be fair. I only snapped a quick picture, it was unusual to see the big bus parked with staff members doing their very best to engage the public and get something going. I was almost dragged in to spin the wheel with the promise of prizes galore for anyone brave enough to step over the threshold.

I think it is very telling, a sign of the times when even children cannot be encouraged to try and win tickets to the Britains Got Talent Final. I saw staff members approach every passer by and no one was remotely interested. It was a big set up with no energy, no excitement and absolutely no people.

I am not sure what Campaign agency N2O and Campaign Live could have done better to engage the public and market the tour but if the event in this Tesco is anything to go by heads are probably rolling already.

I am always pleased to see a non dairy brand like Alpro being presented as a tasty planet friendly cruelty free option to dairy products so this was good if people participate in other spots along the way. The full list of Tesco stores being visited in the next two weeks is listed in the link below: a local newspaper in Wales.

The only other online marketing the tour attracted was a few repeated articles in local syndicated newspapers but it didn’t make it into a national tabloid paper which I am sure would have been the goal for the shows brand advertising partners.

I think it’s a real reflection on the state of the general public and their state of mind, disillusioned by the power of big brand advertising.

I heard the pitch and even the promise of freebies, prizes and giveaways didn’t work this time.

It’s clear Tesco customers are suffering and it’s going I take more than a visit from the Britains Got Talent tour bus and a few Tesco club card points on offer to get something going.

I am as just glad it wasn’t me trying to pull people in. It was a flop and for the staff hired to be high energy and fun, a little bit embarrassing.

It may be a drop in viewing figures for the variety show hosting more and more acts for overseas than the UK, now in it’s 18th year that prompted the need for the investment from sponsors on this level; a full 3 week schedule to engage the public. In this case I don’t even think if Simon Cowell himself had stepped off the bus, accompanied by show hosts Ant and Dec, it would have made the slightest bit of difference.

It may just be time to come up with a new format ITV and give someone else a chance in the spotlight.