Every so often there comes along an ad so magically conceived, so elegantly executed that it seems just about perfect. The main television ad for Bank of America's new electronic and print campaign, the "Bank of Opportunity" series, which launched during the Academy Awards, seems to fit that description.
At the heart of the main ad is a larger, three-dimensional version of BofA's "flagscape" logo, which resembles an abstract American flag. In the ad this flagscape is transformed into a street-level crystal ball, a magic window, for passers-by. As consumers of all stripes wander past, they peek into the flagscape and catch a glimpse of their future and, presumably, how the right financing from the right bank can help them get there. One woman sees herself buying her first home; another sees herself on her dream vacation; one man sees his small business blossom into a public company on the New York Stock Exchange; a young boy sees himself becoming a surgeon.
As a simple piano concerto plays a tune of hope, each consumer backs away from the flagscape with a sense of wonder on their faces, as the voiceover intones: "This is, and always will be, the land of opportunity. Fortunately, it comes with a bank. Bank of America. Bank of opportunity."
This is not the same Bank of America as four and a half years ago, when it launched its last campaign. The bank's businesses have exploded, as it increased the number of households served to 55 million from 24 million; the number of banking centers to 5,700 from 4,200; the number of ATMs to 17,000 from 13,000; and the number of online users to 21 million from seven million. These numbers, say officials, include organic growth as well as that from the acquisitions of FleetBoston Financial and MBNA. In 2005, BofA ratcheted up its marketing game, jumping from Interpublic to Omnicom in a $600 million deal.
Designed by BBDO's David Lubars, the campaign "is meant to be interpretative, so clients see themselves when they look through the flagscape," notes Fiona Carter, evp and integration director for BofA at Omnicom, parent of BBDO. "It creates a much more emotional place that connects directly with consumers." Lubars was unavailable for comment. Companion television and print ads highlight the bank's expanded small-business, corporate and investment banking divisions, and wealth-management and investment-management businesses.
"The flagscape is an integral part of the Bank of America visual brand," says CMO Anne M. Finucane, who notes the campaign is the bank's first in four-plus years and is designed to "reposition the company as a coast-to-coast, universal bank that dominates U.S. retail banking." Finucane declined to reveal the cost of the new campaign.
BofA's slogan in the post-9/11 world was "Higher Standards," but that was before it became the nation's largest commercial and private-banking institution, and had made deeper inroads into asset management and investment-management services, she says.
"'Higher Standards' was a critical positioning for the bank in a post-Enron, post-9/11 world," she says. "We needed to make sure our audiences knew the dedication we would put behind being a trustworthy company with enormous integrity. ...Now, research indicates we have that level of trust-and associates believe this is part of our DNA. But what wasn't clear from a customer perspective was: 'What's in it for me? What can Bank of America offer me?' That's where the 'Bank of Opportunity' developed. We interact with more customers and financial-services businesses than any of our competitors, so we can anticipate customer need and track trends."
Finucane says the bank is aiming to be customers' "destination" brand. "When you are a bank with such a ubiquitous brand, we realize we want to be more than just the first choice," she says. "We want to be the repeated choice. We can't afford to give consumers only one product."
Carter agrees, emphasizing that the ads were designed to make customers feel good about their one and only bank. In fact, she says, the ad has prompted consumers to provide unsolicited testimonials of how it has touched them. "They can see the opportunities they've been able to achieve with this bank," she says. "It's not just a commercial."
