Betfred boss Fred Done is sure he’s hitting the right note with his brand new numbers game – The Nifty Fifty

The TV and radio launch for the exclusive game aimed at Betfred’s fast-growing army of numbers players is this very weekend, commencing Friday, July 24.

And goodness gracious; what a launch for Fred’s brainwave game he’s determined will be simple to play – and memorable for its cheesy name, dreamt up during lockdown, together with a wacky 50s rock ‘n’ roll TV commercial.

“We have got ourselves a winner, building on our reputation as the bookie that always pays big for tiny stakes, “ said Fred, who just can’t get the iconic Jerry Lee Lewis hit Great Balls of Fire out of his mind after watching a preview of the commercial made by Liverpool-based Zut Media.

The ad takes the viewer back to the world of rock ‘n’ roll in the 1950’s, with an adapted Betfred version of the classic track Great Balls of Fire.

Zut set the scene. A glamorous dance hall … and there’s no mistaking the decade, with the cinematic styling of the backdrop, together with a teddy boy-inspired band and glamorous  jiving dancers.

The 30-second commercial revolves around the band’s lead singer, Nifty, who takes centre stage appearing with his eye-catching number ball head. Computer-generated imagery effects were used for this look, requiring 3D tracking markers on the top half of the performers’ faces, leaving the bottom half uncovered to ensure Nifty’s mouth movements stayed realistic.

The Betfred brand has an array of Numbers products available in shops, online, and on the company app.

So what makes Nifty Fifty unique?

Fred explained: “We do have other number games that are growing in popularity, but the big attraction with Nifty Fifty is that if you match three balls from a £1 stake you win £800, four balls and it’s £10,000 – and if your five numbers come out in any of the three draws each day then you’ve hit the jackpot – and my pockets are emptied to the tune of £200,000!”

Gemma Strath, Betfred’s Group Head of Marketing, said: “We are extremely excited about this amazing new product, and the TV commercials inspired by the 50s music scene, are as they said back then, wild!

“The key inspiration for us was of course playing on the name of the new game. We created the song and Zut added lots of value to an internal idea. It’s been a lot of fun developing the Nifty character, lyrics, and music with Zut, who have done an amazing job to help Fred make this happen in record time.”

Matt Thompson, Creative Director at Zut, added: “Reviewing the current Betfred Numbers products we were convinced this new advert needed not only an animation aspect but a live action element too. To give the Nifty character a big screen presence we incorporated CGI techniques to bring him to life.

“Having secured such an iconic world-famous music track we wanted to make sure that the on-screen performances lived up to it. Shooting post-COVID lockdown added an extra layer of complexity, so we are extremely proud of what our team has achieved during the pandemic, with extra precautions  taken to ensure our staff members were safe whist filming.”

Zút are a creative production agency based in Liverpool, with clients including Liverpool FC, Knauf Insulation, Chester Racecourse, The English Football League … and now Betfred.

Zut’s 22-strong team of creatives, animators, producers, designers, photographers, camera operators, producers and editors offer creative strategy, in addition to video production.

Fancy a sing-along?

 

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