ITV

The objective

Driving broad awareness for a high-stakes premiere

ITV, one of the UK’s leading broadcasters, set out to create strong momentum for the launch of its gripping new thriller, Protection. Known for delivering compelling original content, ITV aimed to generate widespread awareness and viewer interest at the premiere stage.

Set in the intense world of witness protection, Protection is a high-stakes, character-led drama. To support its debut, ITV needed a media strategy that would break through the noise, build anticipation, and deliver measurable impact at launch. TikTok was identified as the ideal platform to deliver on those goals.

The solution

Strategic use of TikTok’s brand solutions and creative best practices

To maximise reach and memorability, ITV launched a full-funnel campaign using a powerful combination of TikTok’s ad formats and audience reach tools.

Key formats included TopView, Pulse Max, In-Feed ads, and Traffic ads, offering a blend of high-impact takeovers and scalable impressions. These formats were deployed across three distinct phases - Pre-Launch, Launch, and Post-Launch - ensuring the campaign maintained relevance and momentum before, during, and after the premiere.

ITV also followed TikTok’s Brand Recipe for Entertainment Launches, alongside the latest Brand Basics best practices, ensuring creative consistency and media efficiency.

The results

Benchmark-beating performance across brand metrics

The campaign delivered exceptional results, with statistically significant lifts across all core brand health indicators. Each measured KPI outperformed TikTok’s UK Entertainment benchmarks, reinforcing the effectiveness of ITV’s strategy:

• +8.8% Ad Recall

• +7.9% Awareness (53% higher than the UK BLS Entertainment norm)

• +6.1% Intent to Watch

• +5.4% Recommendation

Among the formats used, Pulse Max - one of TikTok’s ad formats where ads are placed next to the top 4% of content - achieved the widest reach, delivering an impressive 69% unique user penetration, highlighting its effectiveness in reaching a broad audience at scale.

ITV’s launch of Protection stands as a best-in-class example of how to harness TikTok’s full suite of brand solutions to build awareness, engagement, and intent for high-profile content. By combining a strategic media mix with native creative execution, ITV was able to deliver strong brand impact for one of its most ambitious new titles.