UBS has launched its first global advertising campaign in six years in an effort to drastically change its detached brand image. Alex Clarke reports
Swiss bank UBS is eager to present itself as a more personable firm while looking to banish the impersonal reputation that global brands often tend to generate.
To spearhead its first ad campaign since 2009, UBS hired Johan Jervoe as its CMO, who previously held senior marketing positions at Intel and McDonalds.
Internal and external preparation
Prior to the multi-million pound launch, UBS conducted a meticulous three-month internal campaign in order to gain a more comprehensive insight into employee interaction with clients. It recorded unparalleled levels of engagement, as workers voiced their concerns, ideas and recommendations.
In conjunction with this, UBS also carried out an exhaustive two-year measurement analysis to gain comprehensive insights into key markets. The research sought to better understand the needs and motivations of its clients across global markets.
When asked how this campaign is standing out from the crowd, Jervoe said: “The campaign idea is about finding answers together with our clients. We want our tone of voice and brand design to be clearer, more accessible and mobile-friendly for our clients and potential clients, and to show our contemporary approach to client relationships.
“We hope it will portray UBS as a team of real people who are genuinely interested in the lives of our clients and can offer the best personalised banking experience.”
Creative for the new UBS global brand campaign featuring photography by Annie Leibovitz ©UBS
Digital re-brand
The research highlighted a relatively obvious strategy – invest in digital. The two-year study revealed that the majority of UBS’ clients were extremely digitally savvy, with 86 per cent of them preferring a digital device as their main source for financial news.
To reflect this, over 70 per cent of the campaign’s media investment was geared towards digital channels and social media. In order to extend the global reach of the campaign, UBS partnered with influencer channels such as LinkedIn, The Financial Times and The Economist.
Cultural partnership
Leading the campaign is a brief, simple and clean advertising video, featuring clients posing a number of text-only questions, all of them carrying some kind of financial implication.
Monetary milestones in people’s lives include ‘Can I open my own bank account?’, ‘Can we get a mortgage’ and ‘Should we start our own business?’ The ad also features some more unconventional questions that, nonetheless, still possess a financial impact. These include ‘Is Santa Claus real?’, ‘Is that a grey hair?’ and ‘Why do I have to sit exams?’
Backed by Family of the Year’s 2012 track ‘Hero’, the advert ends with the message ‘For some of life’s questions, you’re not alone. Together we can find an answer.’
The Leibovitz partnership
Accompanying the campaign is photography from Annie Leibovitz, casting ‘real people asking real questions’, further underlining UBS’ eagerness to connect with its clients on a more intimate level.
In conjunction with the brand campaign, UBS has also commissioned Leibovitz to lead a new series entitled ‘Women’, which will show the faces of women effecting positive change around the world. It will consist of a global tour, launching in London in January 2016 and then navigating around 10 cities over the following year.
Commenting on the UBS and Leibovitz partnership, Jervoe said: “Annie’s photography is a perfect embodiment of UBS’ new direction – bold, visionary, and human. Her portraits are unique, personal and insightful and we bring the same meticulous approach to our work with clients.”
UBS has linked all advertising to a microsite that addresses many of the issues raised in the brand campaign. Over the next 12 months it will feature video interviews with over 40 Nobel Prize-winning economists, along with comment, opinion and research from UBS experts and leading industry professionals.
