Nationwide calls on poets to relay the 'Voice of the People' in new campaign
Nationwide Building Society is taking a poetic approach with its latest campaign which aims to portray it as a supportive voice for what matters in society.
The new campaign celebrates the voices and stories of ordinary people with messages written and performed by poets including Hollie McNish.
The first film features Hollie McNish and will air during The X Factor on ITV on Saturday 17 September. It focuses on the experience of being a mum, and aims to show how Nationwide understands the decisions that parents take when it comes to their children while also highlighting Nationwide’s credentials as a trusted children’s savings provider.
The second discusses the theme of loneliness in a connected world – showing how Nationwide understands that, despite the benefits of digital technology, people still want to speak to each other face-to-face – underlining Nationwide’s commitment to continue to invest in branches and its people.
The third focuses on the feeling of owning a place to call to home, supported by Nationwide’s commitment to helping first time buyers.
The campaign was developed by the Society’s lead creative agency VCCP with media planning and buying by Havas Media.
Sara Bennison, Nationwide’s chief marketing officer, said: “Nationwide has one of the best brand stories that has never been told, it is a brand of the people, by the people, for the people. So what better way to bring this to life than through the powerful voices of spoken word poets.
“The voices of ordinary people are rarely heard within financial services advertising today. These ads provide an opportunity for Nationwide to go back to its roots in a powerful, authentic and thought-provoking way while giving people a voice on the things that matter most in their lives. In doing this we demonstrate the deep understanding and deep ethic of care baked into Nationwide as a mutual, while underlining our purpose – building society, nationwide.”
VCCP’s deputy executive creative director, Jim Thornton, added: ““Each of these poets brings a raw honesty to the words they have written, the subjects they’ve chosen and the way in which they are performed. It’s rare and refreshing to see such authenticity in a world of advertising artifice. Sometimes, advertising is at its most effective when the hand of the client and agency can be least detected.”