Kirklees Active Leisure has been reaping the rewards of a marketing campaign designed to encourage students at Huddersfield University to join Huddersfield Sports Centre.

All students attending the university’s fresher’s fayre were given themed postcards, posters and wobblers created by Atom Media designed to appeal directly to the student psyche.

The postcards offered free use of Huddersfield Sports Centre for a weekend and included slogans such as “Drink up and get yourself down t’gym” and “Who’s eaten all the pies?”.

One postcard showed a 1950s couple dancing, with the caption “Oh how Roger laughed as he grabbed Verity’s love handles – what have you got to lose?”

Around 60 students signed up for Lifestyle Plus membership during or just after the free weekend and received a free party/hangover pack including hangover cures, sweets, a nightclub voucher, toiletries and a condom.

“We wanted to appeal to the students’ imagination and even border on the risqué,” said marketing manager Damon Shaw.

“Atom managed to source just the right sort of artwork for us and although the student membership represents fantastic value for money, the campaign must have really appealed to them to encourage them to part with their much-needed cash.”

Kirklees Active Leisure has charitable status and manages 10 sports centres and swimming pools in Kirklees, West Yorkshire.