Specsavers recruits Groove Armada to get Gen X to check hearing

Specsavers has launched The Testlist, billed as the UK’s first club guestlist series for the over 50s and unlocked entirely by a free online hearing screener.

The campaign taps into research showing nearly three quarters of over 50s still attend live music events, with over a quarter going out as often as they did 20 years ago.

Yet nearly half feel they get little credit for creating British rave culture, and one in five say hearing struggles have already cut down their nights out.

Electronic duo Groove Armada, who have both experienced hearing loss themselves, front the campaign and headline the first Testlist event: a DJ set at London’s Phonox on 15 October, timed to the 25th anniversary of their track Superstylin’.

The campaign was developed by Golin Ketchum with Specsavers’ in-house creative team, MG OMD and Tangerine.

Anyone completing the three-minute screener before 13 September can enter for free tickets, with Specsavers providing hearing protection on the night. More acts are promised to follow.

Tom Findlay of Groove Armada said: “Our generation was the first to rave and they’re still on the dancefloor now. I’ve experienced hearing loss and occasionally wear a hearing aid so I can really relate to this campaign.”

Nick Rainbow, Audiology Marketing Director at Specsavers, said: “Too often in hearing-related marketing campaigns, the over 50s are depicted as ‘old’ but this is the generation that created rave culture and they’re still the ones keeping British & Irish nightlife alive.”

Elliot Riordan, Creative Director at Golin Ketchum, said: “The generation that built rave culture never stopped raving, so why does every health message act like their lives are over? It’s a culture-first health message, about showing a generation that we know the night isn’t over yet.”

The campaign follows February’s Relationship Aid campaign, part of Specsavers’ longer push to destigmatise hearing loss, and lands amid a wave of brands mining music heritage for cultural relevance, including Beefeater’s Jamiroquai anniversary campaign.

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