Specsavers is launching an alternative UK tourism campaign as part of its ongoing focus on children’s eye health, directing parents away from pricey attractions and sightseeing tours and towards free, mundane sights kids are actually interested in.
“Tightseeing” forms part of a wider summer programme from Specsavers focused on helping more families prioritise children’s eye health, alongside the return of its “The Wonder of Children Seeing” activity and the launch of its new Bluey children’s eyewear collection.
It comes as research reveals parents are set to spend nearly £400 per child on sightseeing activities this summer, with two-thirds of parents feeling pressure to take kids on expensive days out. Yet three-quarters admit their kids find as much wonder in an algae-covered pond or a pile of old logs.
Tightseeing aims to bump eye tests to the top of parents’ to-do lists, as around one in five young children have a sight condition that could affect their vision. Through a playful and culturally relevant approach, the campaign aims to remind parents that regular eye tests can help ensure children don’t miss the everyday moments they find fascinating. When kids see clearly, they can experience more of the world around them – from big adventures to the small moments of wonder they discover every day.
The campaign features crowdsourced free sights across the UK and is promoting them on a UK map as if they are proper attractions, from “A Quite Tall Pointy Rock” in Bristol to “A Very Mossy Wall” in Yorkshire, proving that a summer full of wonder does not need to cost a thing. The full list of Tightseeing sights has also been added to TripAdvisor.
The multi-channel integrated campaign, created by Golin Ketchum, is running across earned, paid and influencers, with social from Tangerine, paid media from Manning Gottlieb and production by Lowkey Films.
Tightseeing is the latest expression of Specsavers’ multi-year “Wonder” platform developed with Specsavers Creative, which celebrates the way children experience the world around them and the importance of good eyesight in helping them never miss a moment of wonder.
Earlier this week, a Tightseeing tourism kiosk landed in front of the Tower of London, one of the capital’s most expensive attractions, fronted by 11-year-old TV wildlife presenter Aneeshwar Kunchala, urging parents to save their cash on tickets as he handed out a Tightseeing London map. Specsavers optometrists carried out on-site eye screeners and reminded parents that children’s eye tests and glasses are free.
Other attractions such as the London Eye have been hijacked with an ambient OOH stunt with children wearing sandwich boards encouraging parents to save money by visiting Tightseeing.com instead.
A comedic 90″ film written by Golin Ketchum’s creative director Matt Roach and directed by Christopher Poole through Lowkey Films, follows Aneeshwar at the kiosk as he talks up the UK’s most overlooked attractions – no queues, no crowds, and famously, no gift shop to fight your way out of.
Specsavers head of broadcast, consumer PR, social media and brand activation Lisa Hale said: “Tightseeing is Specsavers doing what we do best – taking a serious message and finding a genuinely funny, unexpected way into it. Every summer, parents are searching for things to do with their kids, so it felt like the perfect moment to put children’s eye health on their radar in a way that’s culturally relevant and impossible to ignore.
“Children experience the world with curiosity and imagination, and we want to help ensure they never miss the moments that matter. Alongside the return of The Wonder of Children Seeing and initiatives such as our Bluey eyewear collection, Tightseeing is another way we’re encouraging families to prioritise children’s eye health in an engaging and positive way.”
Golin Ketchum London chief creative officer Alex Wood added: “Parents don’t need more pressure; they need a laugh. Rather than lecturing them about their children’s eye health, we leaned into the truth about how they really feel, allowing us to earn attention through entertainment and take the conversation beyond the expected conventions of a healthcare campaign.”
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