MyState Bank sets its sights on being Australia's bank of the future
60-year-old Tasmanian bank MyState Bank has plans for becoming the bank of the future in Australia. As part of this ambition, it has launched the brand campaign 'Numbers and Feelings', conceptualized by The Royals. The Drum finds out how does the brand plan to move the needle from a local Tasmanian bank to a future-ready national brand, in an already busy category.
MyState Bank launches its ‘Numbers and Feelings’ campaign
Navigating the category challenge
Banking across the world suffers from some common challenges, chief among them being the complicated nature of banking which makes it seem cold and remote.
Recognizing this key challenge, MyState Bank launched the campaign reinforcing its brand platform ‘The human way to bank’ backed by the idea that “great things are possible when our head and heart work together.”
Moving the needle for a regional bank brand
Having a legacy can be a double-edged sword and the over-60-year-old bank wants to use the right buts of its legacy and put it to good use and adapt for the remaining.
The task at hand for the challenger Aussie bank brand was to cut through the clutter and connect with people, says Heather McGovern, general manager of digital and marketing, MyState Bank.
Sebastian Vizor, executive creative director, The Royals, explains, “The just-launched campaign is part of a new and ambitious focus to dramatically grow the business and build MyState’s brand beyond Tasmania to the mainland, without alienating its large and loyal local customer base.”
Making banking human and real
MyState Bank wants consumers to feel human and in control of their finances with simple and smart products backed by the belief that truly human-friendly banking cuts out the unnecessarily complicated processes and helps people balance their heads (the numbers) with their hearts (their feelings).
Elaborating on the creative approach taken, Vizor says, “MyState is a modern bank with all the smart tech plus good old-fashioned values – the best of both worlds – and to bring that to life, we created a campaign with the introduction of our two heroines, Numbers and Feelings.”
They demonstrate that life is better when the head and heart work together and don’t need to be one or the other, he adds.
“It makes for a good fit because we believe we’re better at being real and human than other banks as it's in MyState’s DNA”, says McGovern, which comes from the friendly and helpful voice in the call center, through to the way it tackles building out the app.
Telling the creative story with a difference
To stand out in a sea of same-looking advertising, the creative team opted to give the ‘Numbers and Feelings’ campaign, a sitcom-style execution. The idea is to draw in the audience while stripping away complexity and jargon from the narrative.
According to Vizor, “this is a distinctly different approach in Australia’s competitive banking category and has helped a challenger brand like MyState Bank to stand out and leap ahead.”
It’s no longer a pitch against the ‘Big Four’ (Australia’s four major traditional banks), with neo banks and fin-techs all looking to muscle into the territory, he adds.