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The Succestory of Aktia Bank

THE HYPE-CARD

The major sponsor of Hype the Musical was Aktia Bank, which sponsorship program was exemplary. Aktia Bank was earlier known as the bank for 'wealthy swedish speaking ladies'. The major objective was to renew the image of the bank, to create interest in the services of the bank among youngsters ( 15-24 years ) and to develop the marketing share within the target group up to 10%.

The aim of Aktia was also to enlarge the amount of Aktia bank-cards and to activate the youngsters to use bank-automats. The bank wanted also to affect the parents and to get the bank personell to see and to understand the value of the youth as customers.

The starting point

1. The market share of Aktia was 7% in the metropolitan area and in Finland. Aktia serves both Finnish and Swedish speaking customers.
   
2. The bank crisis stressed the activities of Aktia, and acting under a large bank-group strained the image of the bank - tough Aktia operated independently.
   
3. The risk of future businesses was also that the youngsters drift apart from the bank. This meant that the business become thinner latest in the next decade.
   
4. The marketing board of Aktia analyzed the situation and decided to renew the youth product starting with a huge marketing campaign.

The problems

1. The reduction of customers in the target group ( 15-25 years ).
   
2. The bank, which seemed colourless and uninteresting did not get new, young customers.
   
3. The bank didn't have a product in the interest of youth.
   
4. Investing in youngsters creates profits very slowly.

Opportunities

1. Because the youth was a stratecig target group, it was possible to ensure sufficient resources for the campaign.
   
2. The researches ( BBDO:n Future Youth ao. ) pointed out that spending money is one way for the youth to express themselves. The youth of today are not afraid of " honest commercialism " or advertising, when it has been actualized with their interests and life-style in mind.

Target Groups

1. Finnish and Swedish speaking young people ( 15-25-years ) in the territory of Aktia.
   
2. Parents ( mainly in the age group 40-50-years )
   
3. The personnel of Aktia

The Strategy

1. The youth product of Aktia, the bank card must be renewed to be competitive
   
2. To communicate the product with a set of values addressed directly to the target group
   
3. To find and to create a new, positive and a youthful way to approach the target group - a way which unequals from traditional bank marketing.
   
4. To find a way to create positive media exposure

The Sponsorship program

1. Aktia signed a contract with the Swedish Theatre as the major sponsor of Hype the Musical.
   
   Hype is the biggest rock-musical in Finland ever, where the youth-culture, commercialism and marketing are connected in an exceptional way. The music of Hype and the story touches both young and older people. The cast of the production consists of the youth ( from the " streets " ) themselves.
   
2. A new 'express bank-card', The Hype Card was launched. Several benefits, in the interest of the target group was combined in the product/service. The common bank services free of charge up to 25-years.
   
3. To get the most out of the sponsorship contract Aktia invested one person in full-time ( two months ) to work with the project and the Hype Card campaign.
   
4. The sponsorship contract included the following;

• Aktia strongly present and visible in the theatre ( own bench rows, PR stand, posters, banderolls ao. )
   
• The TV-commercial/spot was created and filmed in the theatre consisting of the visual world of the stage, cast and the theme song and dance of The Musical Hype
   
• The TV commercial was shown before every show/spectacle on a big screen ( in front of the stage )
   
• The promotional pictures of Hype was utilized in the Hype Card print advertising
   
• A group of teenagers forwarded Hype-Card broschyres to the guests before every performance
   
• Visibilty in theatre tickets, advertisments in programs...
   
• The cast members was present in the events organized in the Aktia bank-offices in Finland
   
• In PR-events of the theatre and in sother special Hype-events, the cast was dressed in Aktia PR-clothes
   
• Aktia got an amount of totally own Hype performances ( for the customers and personell of the bank ) in the theatre, a bunch of theatre tickets, and named bench rows in every performance

Because of the very motivated cooperation, Aktia was very strongly present in press confrences and in the media. Aktia cooperated also with the other Hype sponsors ( 15 companies and media in total ) to increase the marketing effects of the sponsorship investments.

The advertising campaign

Hype the Musical was utilized in an exemplary way via the Hype Card campaign.
It consisted of the following elements:

1. A direct marketing campaign ( young customers of the bank )
    
2. Hype Card TV-campaign in two versions
    
3. Print-ads in HBL, City and Network-magazines ( Hype edition ), in the Hype program...
    
4. Moving ads on the side walls of coaches in the metropolitan area
    
5. Broschyres, posters and stickers in the bank offices of Aktia all over the country
    
6. Advertisment material for the bank offices of Aktia

PR

The PR-program of the production was started in the early training phase to make the manuscript, scriptwriters, the cast members and the leaders of the production familiar with the press and other medias in the earliest phase possible.

The develoment of the production was followed up with monthly press realeases and conferences til the final rehearsal, which was an incredible media success. All the major medias ( TV, press and radio ) and critics published more than positive news stories and articles. Aktia Bank got a huge visibility via the PR-pictures and press releases published in the media.

Event marketing

The event marketing consisted of a Hype-tour of the Hype cast in Finland. In addition, the bank offices utilized the Hype-CD and the Hype-music video in their activities.

Promotions

In the theatre and in the bank offices, the target group could participate in a promotional competition, which aim was to chart the opinions toward bank-services for the product develpoment of the bank. The two winners got a trip to London together with the cast - to become familiar with musical theatres and productions, and to get to know the back-stage life of theatres.

The budget

The total bubget of the sponsorship and the campaign was 120 000 EUR (only!).

The results

1. In the spring season 80 000 Hype tickets was sold. In the summer season, the concert version of Hype in Kaivopuisto park and in Elysee-Arena in Turku reached about 65 000 contacts/spectators. In the Autumn season all the performances was still sold
   
2. 80% of the audience was Finnish speaking Finns ( a Swedish speaking production marketed to Finnish speakin schools and universities )
   
3. The Musical got great positive feedback and a huge amount of media exposure in Finland and internationally ( MTV, CNN... )
   
4. The co-operation with Hype increased the profile of Aktia
   
5. The amount of youth using bank-cards increased with 40% of which 50% is Finnish speaking Finns
   
6. Out of the passive, young customers of Aktia, 30% activated themselves again tio Hype Card customers
   
7. Hype the Musical got many timers as much media exposure as it was estimated - in local radios, TV and the press - in Music-TV and CNN. The impact was very positive to the profile of Aktia and created more interest in the Hype Card product
   
8. The offices of Aktia Bank was actively utilzing the campaign, both in advertising and within event marketing. The project was bearing witness of the Aktias' believe in the future.

The success of the campaign

1. The exact segmentation of the customers and choosing of the youth to one of the strategic target group of the bank
   
2. Choosing sponsorship to the major marketing medium. The bravery to start a cooperation with a new-fashioned and irregular project even before it became a success story.
   
3. The exemplary, and many faceted utilization and the good co-operation with the production and other sponsors
   
4. Fascinating the difficult target group by utrilizing its own "language" and way of life.

  
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