It is the first brand campaign that TBWA has created since relaunching the business as Abbey last September.
Matt Shepherd-Smith, the TBWA chief operating officer, said: "Too many people are confused by or unwilling to deal with finances. These ads demonstrate that Abbey understands what is relevant and important to customers and positions Abbey as friendly and easy to talk to."
The two 60-second spots position Abbey as the company that demystifies finance and offers customers a positive experience. Both the television spots and a series of radio executions feature the voice of the actor Jonathan Pryce.
In the first ad, "manifesto", the bank is shown to be understanding of the fear people feel towards their finances. A series of vignettes highlight that Abbey is for "the confused", "the sceptical" and "the freaked out".
It closes with the message that Abbey is for "openness, clarity" and is "here for you".
The second ad, "life events", recognises that the important things to consumers are not savings or current accounts, but the everyday things that happen in their lives. Another series of vignettes show different important life events, including taboo subjects such as divorce or death, and asks why we never discuss them.
A press and poster campaign supports the above-the-line themes. In one execution, an elderly woman is shown reading The Joy of Sex. The strapline states: "We're for the ones who refuse to be pigeon-holed." A second shows a photograph of a couple where the woman has defaced the picture of her boyfriend. The copy explains the most common cause of arguments in a relationship is money.
The ads were written by Tim Hearn and art directed by Graham Cappi. Direction was by Paul Gay through The Paul Weiland Film Company. Media planning and buying is by MindShare.
