A blueblood with attitude!

The intention is clear: separate the client from the traditional, self-satisfied schmaltz that accompanies so much financial advertising. But separation from tradition is easier said than done when the client is Stanlib. This, of course, is the company formed from the merger of the asset management arms of Standard Bank and the Liberty Group, both of which have long and distinguished pedigrees.

"The heritage and credentials of the company stand out - but Stanlib wants to emphasize that although we are from blue-blooded stock, we have new energy and can offer a new and fresh approach to our clients. When we briefed JWT Johannesburg, we stressed that we needed to see this fresh approach come through in the advertising," says Dylan Evans, Stanlib's Marketing Director.

The starting point for the creative team was to try and add flesh to this apparent contradiction, explains JWT Business Unit Director, Natalie Keevy.

"The key idea, around which the campaign is built, is that the difference between good and great is how hungry you are to find the right solution. This alone would enable us to place Stanlib as a distinctively customer-focused brand in the financial services arena. But to build the brand - and don't forget that this is Stanlib's first consolidated corporate advertising campaign since the merger - we needed to give the idea a personality. We realised immediately that in fact there was no contradiction at all; it's perfectly possible to combine the strengths of tradition and freshness.

"For example, one of the ideas that took shape flowed from the image of a young aristocrat. Hence the lines, in one of the radio spots, "We believe in smart not stuffy, serious not stiff upper lip, decisive not pushy. We're blue-blooded yet we're the new blood."

"In one of the print executions, we show a lunch box. The caption says simply "We don't do lunch. We do business." Another shows a Feng Shui frog with a gold coin in its mouth. The caption is equally to the point: "There are many philosophies on sound investing. Unfortunately most of them are bull."

"The theme of the campaign is "Change Your Attitude to Money" and it flows from extensive market research, which told us that customers perceived commitment and hunger for solutions as key attributes for Stanlib. The campaign certainly places Stanlib as a confident and driven company, intent on offering its clients the right solution for its investment needs," says Keevy.

At JWT, one of our key strengths is strategic planning, it is the base of our strategy - to build brands and make them famous," she adds.

Says Stanlib's Dylan, "We are delighted with the response we have been getting to the campaign. People have liked the visuals, which are crisp and fresh. That is the image of Stanlib we wanted to portray as well as our customer focus."

The campaign will run for three months (August, September and October, 2004) and will use radio, print and outdoor.