Capitec Bank’s latest through-the-line campaign, currently flighting, is challenging the consumer with a compelling, competitive message, that rides on the back of its unprecedented success arising out of its real value for money, non-nonsense banking proposition.
Rapid growth even in the face of a recession, heralded a new era for this upstart bank that is making banking traditionalists sit up and take notice. For its latest advertising campaign, Capitec has chosen to capitalise on the positive exposure and success of the last year, to position the bank as a serious player among its mainstream peers, while building credibility in the marketplace.
Still shaking off the old perceptions from its mirco-lending days, the message had to be big; bold; and assertive. In response, Agency Net#work BBDO Cape Town has developed a fresh campaign that appeals primarily to the previously unbanked and the LSM B market, while simultaneously attracting higher LSM groups through competitive interest rates and low bank charges.
Using a straight talking quirky campaign that interacts directly with the viewer, the television advert makes the assertive announcement that Capitec is competing in the mainstream banking arena, and works directly off the bank’s strengths – simple; no fuss; no hassle; cost effective; high interest banking. It purposefully positions the bank in stark contrast to the usual banking red tape; frills; and less-than-efficient processes that customers are force fed.
The storyboard shows a contemporary no-nonsense customer talking about the day-to-day issues that people have with common banks in a stark environment. Surreal images around him illustrate the typical red tape and obscene amount of paperwork encountered by customers. The chaotic scene is replaced through clever animation around the character, by the clean simplicity and calm of the new-look Capitec and concludes with the pay-off line, 'Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication'.
The ad, which was shot over a two day period at the Cape Island Studios in Milnerton and at the Capitec warehouse in Stellenbosch, posed a challenge for central character, Luthuli Dlamini, who faced the challenge of interacting with imaginary characters moving around the set. Once the shooting was wrapped, the film was sent to the animation house, Black Ginger, who transformed the one man set into a slick realistic mini-world.
“The work was challenging in that we had to combine live action seamlessly with complex CG elements, but we enjoyed finding ways to make it happen and created some unique tools to enable us to do things like the literal folding and unfolding of the bank into a new entity,” commented Marc Bloch of Black Ginger.
The project was directed by Dean Blumberg and produced by Boris from Bouffant.
“The team has translated our vision very successfully into something that speaks directly to the heart of the consumer and shakes up the way consumers should think about banks,” concludes Ivan Johnson, Creative Director, Net#work BBDO Cape Town.