The Standard Life bank has handed its pounds 5 million advertising
business to the Scottish direct marketing agency, Carlina, without a
formal pitch.
The appointment follows the decision of the rival Scottish agency, The
Union, to resign the business last week in order to take on the pounds
15 million Halifax account.
Carlina is already working on a DRTV campaign for the bank. The TV
advertising is expected to break at the beginning of next year and will
be backed by a radio and outdoor campaign.
The Leith Agency in Scotland has handled the Standard Life corporate
account for two years and is responsible for the famous ’talking baby’
advertising. The agency also handles a small amount of business for the
Bank of Scotland, which may have precluded it from picking up this
particular task.
’For the past 18 months, we have handled all of Standard Life’s
below-the-line activity,’ Ian White, account director at Carlina, said.
’We know the product inside out and it was simply a case of waiting
until The Union dropped their bombshell. It will be business as usual
for us, except that we will have lots more to do now.’
The mutual life assurer, Standard Life, set up its telephone banking
operation two years ago to offer high-interest savings and mortgage
accounts.
It now holds more than pounds 4 billion in deposits.
The company recently announced plans to diversify into personal loans
and credit cards to make better use of its deposit base.
