Be good with money
BNZ
Issue 27 | June 2013
Agency
Colenso BBDO/Proximity New Zealand
Creative Team
Creative Chairman Nick Worthington Executive Creative Director Steve Cochran Art Director James Conner Copywriter Christie Cooper
Production Team
Agency Producer Serena Fountain-Jones Digital Creative Director Terry Williams-Willcock Digital Designer Craig Thompson Digital Developer Matt Visser Agency Producer Serena Fountain-Jones Megan Robertson Jen Storey Designer Kate Slavin Typographer Luca Ionescu Production Company Revolver/Park Pictures Director Gary Freedman Post Production (Vis Effects Co) The Editors Music – Artist/Title Elliott Wheeler
Other Credits
Group Account Director Paul Wilson Senior Account Director Jo Underdown Account Manager Hannah Watson Planning Director Andy McLeish Chief Marketing Officer Craig Herbison Head of Retail Marketing Mark Dunmore Marketing Communications Manager Marcia Marsters Media Agency Mediacom
Date
September 2012
Background
Bank of New Zealand was one of New Zealand’s ‘big’ four banks.
Its problem was that people were not differentiating it from the other banks.
The task, then, was to create a unique position for BNZ which communicated its leadership position in an interesting and arresting way.
While bank advertising was almost universally boring, money itself was fascinating.
The strategy, then, was to start a conversation about money and what it meant and to try to get New Zealanders joining in.
Idea
For three weeks unbranded statements that ‘Money is Good’ and ‘Money is Bad’ appeared around New Zealand in ambient media like street stencils, projections, street posters, static stickers and billboards. Two unbranded pieces of film ran, featuring the same actor walking down the same street delivering the same lines with the same cast. But one was in daylight, highlighting the positive uses of money, the other at night showing money as an evil force.
Finally, BNZ’s involvement was revealed with a 90 second film that cleverly intercut the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ tease films to come to the resolution: ‘Money is neither good nor bad, it’s what you do with it.
Synchronised with this was amplification of the theme through a staff launch, a new website, billboards, online, in store, print and social media.
Results
The campaign became one of the most talked about of 2012, which two other banks and an internet troll tried to highjack.
But best of all, 1 in 4 New Zealanders actively did something about their money as a result of seeing the campaign (TNS Research, Oct 2012).
BNZ established their leadership in the market. Over 60% of New Zealanders agreed that BNZ helped people be good with money.
Overall preference and consideration of BNZ increased by 8%.
Our Thoughts
This is one for the planners, a great strategy which will have led to a great brief.
I am often amazed by the communications of the big banks. You can watch them as they try to position themselves against each other, which is daft. The reality (in the UK, anyway) is the banks are all lumped together in one entity of vileness. It doesn’t matter who you bank with, they are all equally despicable.
It shows (again in the UK) that none of the major banks have a marketer on the main board. The truth is, they don’t really care about communications and they don’t really care about their customers.
It’s plainly a bit different in New Zealand. Taking the high ground and getting people to think about money, not about banks, is smart, authoritative and persuasive.