THE ASK AT A GLANCE September 2023 – How we created a Brand Creative Idea for a leading Fintech. “Create a new brand idea & tagline that encapsulates our new brand mission – Unite Everyday…
THE ASK AT A GLANCE
September 2023 – How we created a Brand Creative Idea for a leading Fintech.
“Create a new brand idea & tagline that encapsulates our new brand mission – Unite Everyday People To Unlock Financial Progress. A Brand Creative Idea (BCI) that will serve as the foundation for our brand creative for the next 3+ years.”
[Ask Me About a Different Path: Chime doesn’t make money from you but with you.
Being brutally honest about how their business works.]
CHIME DIFFERENCE
Chime is not a bank but does banking better.
What the banks call progress shouldn’t be called that. Everyday financial progress shouldn’t be so difficult.
INSIGHT
Progress isn’t the end goal destination.
Financial progress is impossible to define as one single destination. Rather, it’s a series of ongoing and evolving improvements that people know when they feel it.
BRAND CREATIVE IDEA
Anthem
Results
The #1 ad in the financial services category (out of 100 spots in Financial services this year)
Viewer Feedback:
“Very inspiring to many who work very hard to better themselves in life. Shows that upward mobility is possible and that is inspirational!”
Client:
“This truly demonstrates the resonance of the spot and that we clearly communicated our mission. Really appreciate the partnership bringing this work to life. Huge congrats team!”
THE ASK AT A GLANCE March 2024 – How we saved the spirit of generosity: Chime needed a social activation they could use to spread understanding of their new brand purpose. CHIME’S PURPOSE Unite Everyday…
THE ASK AT A GLANCE
March 2024 – How we saved the spirit of generosity: Chime needed a social activation they could use to spread understanding of their new brand purpose.
CHIME’S PURPOSE
Unite Everyday People to Unlock Their Financial Progress.
Results
Over 115 million views and 375 million total impressions (and counting), surpassing all over Chime activations to date, and most importantly, ten lives were changed forever.
CREATIVE BRIEF
CULTURAL TRUTH
Generosity is on the decline.
After two record-setting years (2020-2021) for charitable giving, last year (2022) it declined by 10% and is on track to continue declining in 2023. Total charitable giving has fallen only three other times in the last 40 years: in 1987 and back-to-back in 2008 and 2009.
Our Challenge: Can we save the spirit of generosity?
How has generosity shown up in Culture?
Pay-it-Forward Drive Thru Chains: In 2022, they were all about love and sharing what we have to give in hard times.
In 2023, they were, at best, a joke (“I think you should leave with Tim Robinson,” Netflix), at worst, a scam to be caught in (Customer scared over $60 order), and those who break these chains are celebrated anti-heroes.
Even the cashiers plead with people not to start them.
INSIGHT
I want to be generous, but I fear being taken advantage of in the process.
People have less, so they’re concerned about themselves, and that’s understandable. They give when they believe they can control the outcome.
(The anti-hero who broke the Starbucks chain still tipped the cashier generously).
WAY IN
We still believe that Human Nature is more generous than you think.
Can we save the spirit of generosity, not just by giving away money? Can we go further to inspire ‘community generosity’ to unlock progress?
ACTIVATION CONCEPT
The Million Dollar Bet
Chime will empower everyday people to experience how progress feels like through a unique experiment.
The Bet: Will everyone choose to be generous and pass progress forward? Or will one person say no?
(The secret: $1 million for the group is on the line.)
Roughly 65% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. But Chime believes that won’t stop them from helping others.
THE ASK AT A GLANCE November 2023 – How we launched Nike’s first baby shoe at Footlocker. CLIENT CHALLENGE We need a campaign and activation to launch the Swoosh 1 at Footlocker. Nike is a…
THE ASK AT A GLANCE
November 2023 – How we launched Nike’s first baby shoe at Footlocker.
CLIENT CHALLENGE
We need a campaign and activation to launch the Swoosh 1 at Footlocker. Nike is a leader in style but lagging in infant footwear innovation. It’s been over 20 years since we’ve innovated for early walkers. ‘Empowering Adults’ turn to Nike for style, but not as a trusted source for products honed to early walkers and information on child foot development.
AUDIENCE CHALLENGE
When people think of Nike Baby Shoes, they think of a miniaturized version of their Nike. The Footlocker crowd decks out the same Nike for everyone in the family.
“People come in, and they want matching shoes for their kids. They’ll have one for their whole family… All rocking the same kicks. It’s why we’re sold out of the Air Force Ones. They’re on back order.” – Kids Foot Locker Employee (Ekin)
An audience that has sought out style over function.
INSIGHT
Littles (Babies/toddlers) will only wear these shoes for a very limited time (a new shoe every 2-4 months), the shortest time of any Nike shoe they’ll ever wear. However, that limited time is critical for developing gait, posture, and balance.
THE WAY IN
The first made for The Limited Time.
Showcase the minimal shoe use time as the benefit. Starting a lifetime of movement. This is the first Nike shoe specifically designed for only the baby’s first few months of walking, and it is the first Nike to receive the AMPA seal.
CAMPAIGN CONCEPT
It Starts With 1.
Introducing the Nike Swoosh 1, designed for first steps and beyond.
The Disruption
THE ONES
The Most Exclusive Shoe. Only for certain people.
Tease the launch of Swoosh 1 by claiming it’s the only Nike shoe that can only be worn for a few months and by a specific type of people.
The Reality
The Nike Swoosh 1 helps little kids and their little feet move beyond baby steps and into a lifetime love of movement and possibilities. It starts with 1.
THE ACTIVATION
Truth: When babies learn to walk, one thing is sure: They’re also learning to fall. On average, they fall 17 times an hour. That’s more than professional athletes.
A store built for The Ones.
A space that showcases everything that goes into the Swoosh 1. A space designed for littles where they can move beyond the fall.
THE ASK AT A GLANCE
April 2023— Create a complete Brand Strategy for Level Locks.
Brand Book includes:
[Click the slideshow for fullscreen size]
4C’s Positioning
Communications Framework
Brand Purpose (Reversing Simon Sinek)
Messaging Philosophy
Brand Archetype
Personas (Segmentation)
Product Architecture
Research Involved:
THE ASK AT A GLANCE
August 2022 – We need a full-year creative platform that educates consumers about bar-quality canned cocktails, while giving them clear reasons to believe in Cutwater as the superior canned cocktail brand.
CLIENT CHALLENGE
Only 1 in 10 people know you can get a quality cocktail in a can. As the category leader, we must educate consumers that canned cocktails exist while reinforcing our brand superiority.
REAL PROBLEM
There is confusion between hard seltzers and canned cocktails. While the hard seltzer craze slows, it still casts a shadow on canned cocktails. How do we stand out from hard seltzers in the ready-to-drink category?
Sales of hard seltzer declined 5.5% in the last year. White Claw, which remains the top-selling seltzer brand, has experienced a sales decline of 7% this past year. But the market is now saturated with more than 300 hard seltzer brands on shelves.
PRODUCT TRUTH
WE SELL ‘A BARTENDER IN A CAN’
Cutwater Spirits currently has 28 types of canned cocktails available, which is by far the largest selection of canned cocktails on the market. We have canned bartender knowledge. Like a magician giving away the secrets of the trade, Cutwater gives the convenience of bar-quality cocktails with no work involved.
THE WAY IN
Now, the world is your bar.
CREATIVE CONCEPT
OPEN THE BAR
The Ask at a Glance November 2020 – Come up with a T-Mobile Uncarrier Move and a Campaign Wrapper that turns heads and resets how people in Small-Town Rural (STR) communities see us. [We want…
The Ask at a Glance
November 2020 – Come up with a T-Mobile Uncarrier Move and a Campaign Wrapper that turns heads and resets how people in Small-Town Rural (STR) communities see us. [We want to show them they can have it all.]
Challenge:
We’re not considered in Small-Town Rural communities. Our Ambition is to become THE mobile carrier in Small-Town Rural America. We need to become part of their communities and earn their love & loyalty.
BRAND TRUTH: People thrive when we’re all connected.
T-Mobile’s mission and our ambition.
BUSINESS (UGLY) TRUTH: Here has never meant here.
We are an urban brand, not from around here. T-Mobile is not seen as a viable option. They are aware but have tuned us out.
Un-carrier Move needs to feel like something they haven’t seen before from us.
The Myth
The mythic start-up culture of Silicon Valley is NOT where the most entrepreneurial spirit lives.
The more rural the county, the higher its level of entrepreneurship.
Rural entrepreneurship rates are higher than in urban areas, even if we remove farms.
AUDIENCE TRUTH: They are Proud of their adaptations.
They are proud of their work-arounds and ingenuity. This work ethic & resilience is baked into their personal identity and generational roots. This translates into every aspect of their life. They made it work.
Strategy
Make Their Adaptative Spirit Thrive.
Result:
This consultancy work led to the creation of the “Hometown Grant,” “Hometown Heroes,” and “Hometown Experts” initiatives from T-Mobile.
[Please contact sean@boutchard.com for the Consumer Tension/T-Mobile Solutions and Campaign Wrapper.]
THE ASK AT A GLANCE March 2022 – We need to create Summer-focused digital campaign supporting a month-long promotion for both customers and prospects. The promotion itself is a standard discount on Blink products, ranging…
THE ASK AT A GLANCE
March 2022 – We need to create Summer-focused digital campaign supporting a month-long promotion for both customers and prospects. The promotion itself is a standard discount on Blink products, ranging from ~30-39% off depending on the market and the product.
Communication objective: Blink is having a great deal on their already affordable smart security devices that I should take advantage of now so I can best protect my home, loved ones, and pets no matter where I am or what I’m up to.
BLINK BENEFIT
Peace of mind at an affordable price.
For the price of one pro video doorbell from competitors, customers can get five blink devices to cover their whole homes.
REAL CHALLENGE:
We need a creative approach to break through customer fatigue while still highlighting the promotion.
This promotion alone won’t spur people to buy. The length of this promotion, along with the parity of an offline 3P party promo, is going to cause customer fatigue. The discount itself won’t have a WOW factor.
THE AUDIENCE
Our homes have become our fortresses of safety, but with spring approaching, a new season of travel begins.
Travel is back after a false start. Unlike earlier in the crisis, when we thought it would end with a celebratory boom, the reality was more uncertain and filled with fits and starts. Many say that’s given them a sense of urgency to lock in travel during this window of relative (COVID) calm before it possibly disappears again.
But these homeowners have spent the last few years making their homes their sanctuaries. The Home Improvement market size has exploded from 2020-2022.
THE INSIGHT
People want to make up for years of canceled plans, but years of being cautious have lasting effects.
People are making up for lost time and experiences, but the world is still scary. Just as we had time to plan more elaborate vacations, we’re also considering the supplies we might have previously passed over – hand sanitizer and face masks. Years of being cautious have changed our behavior and given us more time to consider precautions to secure peace of mind.
THE WAY IN
Keep home safe while you go on absurd adventures.
This summer, spend on adventures, not peace of mind.’ Blink gives you the peace of mind of whole-home coverage without breaking your travel plans budget. Wherever adventure takes you, Blink is here to help protect your home, from cliff diving adventure travel to camping in the backyard. People are dreaming of wild adventures, but worry about home sanctuaries they’ve invested in.
Do-Nut Fear, Blink Video Doorbell is Here
Life is but a Breeze with Blink Outdoor
Brand Positioning - We were charged with developing a brand idea which gives the wealthy, building their fleet, a reason to make Aston Martin the pinnacle of their collection.
Real Problem
Aston Martin’s brand has not taken a solid stance in the Americas. The brand has strayed too far into exclusivity and gone dormant. The name, Aston Martin alone no longer carries strong meaning. Aston’s only strong recognition is its long history with James Bond, which has become a golden shackle for acquiring new consumers.
Market Forces – Setting the Stage
Category: The luxury vehicle category worships speed, flash, and brash colors. These vehicles represent the rich who throw away their wealth on tasteless pursuits. They are the Soulless.
Culture: The affluent have been criticized for their wealth and, as such, do not connect with cliché displays of luxury.
The Ultra-Rich: Most ultra-wealthy were not born into their riches. They believe that their success is due to their clear sense of purpose in life (Passion). These people believe they have earned their success from personal hard work (Merit) and perseverance (Soul) in the face of failure. They even cite that their happiness is determined by realizing personal potential (Success), but the weak fall prey to the trappings of success. These people chased success for the wrong reasons.
Our Target Audience – The Likable Rich (Mirrors of the brand)
The Likable Rich, who knows that success is only the beginning. We like them for their enduring passion because they continue to share it with us. These people continue to strive past success because they adhere to their core values.
True Success is not found when we reach it but when we share it with others and are recognized for our success.
Audience Insight: People driven by passion who find success can preserve their meaning and purpose after becoming wealthy.
Brand Truth: Imprinted with the values of passion, merit, and perseverance. The car with soul, in a category of the soulless.
Strategic Platform: For whom success is only the beginning
There is an untraditional brief, too. It explores the demise in 2016 of 2013’s slew of Ultimate Men (the most interesting man goes to space / retires). The Parable of an Uncle’s Mistake is an attempt to explain the true insight. But you’ll have to email sean@boutchard.com to read, an Uncle’s Parable on Success – ‘Buying a Porsche.’
ASSIGNMENT
SOLUTION
RESULTS
Final Product:
Subculture Study - A five minute documentary that provides a glimpse into The International Brotherhood of Magicians Richmond chapter.
The International Brotherhood of Magicians – The Horace Bennett Ring 180
Founded in 1922, The International Brotherhood of Magicians is the world’s largest organization for the magical arts, with members in 88 countries.
The local Ring is named after Richmond Native Horace Bennett, a noted magician and author. The members of Ring 180 share a mutual love for the ancient art of magic. They have an extension language of magician terminology, such as:
Patter: describing the words spoken during a performance, whether rehearsed or spontaneous. Patter is sometimes used as misdirection.
The art of magic lies in the presentation and for this group of gentlemen, practicing magic is a way for them to relate to people. It gives them confidence. Some of the members are very shy when they first joined and the club is a way for them to overcome that. The group is very caring and welcoming towards outsiders. Unfortunately, they have a declining membership due to old age.