20 January 2020

UKTV has invested in online car repair marketplace Clickmechanic.com using its multi-million pound investment fund, UKTV Ventures. The online start-up has secured £1m worth of commercial airtime across the broadcaster's network of channels.

UKTV reaches over 33 million viewers every month* and ClickMechanic's debut TV campaign will run exclusively on UKTV channels Dave, Gold, W, Drama, Alibi, Eden and Yesterday from today, and for several months throughout 2020. Recent research commissioned by Thinkbox and carried out by Data 2 Decisions, the econometric arm of Dentsu Aegis, found that on average, for a brand with less than £50m brand value, a £1m TV campaign can drive overall sales by circa 20%.

Launched in 2018, the UKTV Ventures fund offers high-growth start-ups an opportunity to advertise on TV for the first time and therefore accelerate their business growth. The fund has already made investments into award-winning preschool learning and entertainment platform Hopster, and pet tech start-up, PitPat.

Sheena Amin, director of UKTV Ventures said:

ClickMechanic is the perfect start-up to benefit from our innovative fund and we're excited to launch its first ever TV ad. This online marketplace is solving a real customer pain point when it comes to finding and booking a car mechanic and there is a compelling and substantial growth opportunity to go after in taking this market online. With all the engaging motoring programmes that Dave has to offer, we see a strong fit with ClickMechanic's target customer base and expect to drive considerable growth and new customer acquisition for the business via the impressive power of TV.

Founded in 2012 by Andrew Jervis and Felix Kenton, ClickMechanic makes car care easy for everyone, everywhere. The online marketplace allows drivers to get quick online quotes and book pre-vetted mechanics. Its real-time, online quoting engine is the first of its kind in Europe and empowers users to get the best deal possible and ensure they pay a fair price.

Andrew Jervis, CEO of ClickMechanic said:

We're excited for this fantastic opportunity to reach millions of new consumers. To be partnering with and having one of the UK's biggest multi-channel broadcasters as an investor will enable us to ramp up our growth efforts and bring our service to a mass market. We've already had success building a product that customers and mechanics love and we hope they enjoy our new ad too.

ClickMechanic's debut ad has been designed and created by Happy Hour. It showcases the convenience of ClickMechanic's services and how their mobile mechanics can get you back on the road quickly and efficiently.

Nicola Tyler, Managing Partner at Happy Hour said:

As a first-time TV advertiser, we knew the creative for ClickMechanic needed to work hard to educate the audience, whilst balance brand memorability & cut-through with response tactics. With this in mind, our approach was to cement in viewers' minds both visually and audibly exactly what ClickMechanic provides; so hopefully the next time you need a mechanic your immediate thought will be to simply 'ClickMechanic'

Credits: Creative Agency and Production: Happy Hour
Creative Director: Tom George
Client Principle: Nicola Tyler & Vivien Hall
Director: Michael Wright
Director of Photography: Robin Horn
Producer: Laura Ruddock
Editor: Dan Johnson
Colourist: Jonny Dane

Notes to editors:
*Monthly average based on individuals 4+.
Thinkbox study "As Seen on TV: supercharging your small business" can be found here.

For more information, please contact:
Ali Laurie, Network Communications Executive

About UKTV

UKTV has been at the forefront of branded television for over 25 years, entertaining the nation with programmes they love. Its leading brands - Dave, Gold, W, Drama, Alibi, Eden and Yesterday - span comedy, entertainment, natural history, factual and drama, and are delivered to audiences through UKTV Play, Freeview, Sky, Virgin Media, BT, TalkTalk, YouView, Freesat and Amazon Fire. The broadcaster is a significant investor in British creativity and is committed to working with new and established writers, directors and programme-makers.

UKTV is part of BBC Studios, the UK's most-awarded production company, a world-class distributor with international branded services, and a commercial subsidiary of the world's leading public service broadcaster, the BBC.

corporate.uktv.co.uk | press.uktv.co.uk | @uktvpress

About Click Mechanic

ClickMechanic is the UK's market leading platform that connects car owners who need repairs, servicing and inspections to the UK's best mechanics. We match thousands of customers every month with trusted professional mechanics in cities across the UK. Our instant quoting functionality, fast booking and secure payment makes us the simplest and most convenient way to book a car mechanic.

ClickMechanic was founded in 2012 as a simple solution to the age-old problem of getting an honest, trustworthy and transparent mechanic for your car. While running a previous car parts aggregator business, Andrew found there was a problem with many customers not trusting their mechanics. After further investigation and a chat with his mechanic brother he realised there was just no easy way to book a trusted mechanic. He then decided to study a research masters in Manchester where he devoted himself to understanding these problems better. After writing an 85,000 word thesis on the space he moved to London to join accelerator EF where he met Felix who had identified these same problems. The pair decided to then team up and develop ClickMechanic with the goal of building the easiest and most transparent way for car owners to book trusted mechanics.