ORLANDO, FL: TD Ameritrade, the brokerage firm, is tapping the power of optimism to stand out from the approximately 9,000 financial-services brands which are battling to effectively reach consumers
Denise Karkos, TD Ameritrade's chief marketing officer, discussed this subject at the Association of National Advertisers' (ANA) 2015 Masters of Marketing Conference in Orlando.
More specifically, she spoke about the development and impact of the "You got this" campaign it launched late last year, and which stands apart from the gloomy tones often adopted by money-management experts.
This positivity tied back to empowering investors and helping them feel more confident in their choices – a positioning supported by the fact TD Ameritrade manufactures no products and does not use commission.
"That level of confidence – something that you don't hear anyone else talking about in the category – was our opportunity to really have that conversation," said Karkos. (For more, including details about how the brand built its strategy, read Warc's exclusive report: TD Ameritrade seeks to be one in 9,000.)
"That was the way for us to talk about something that the category wasn't talking about: positivity; confidence; optimism."
Such a positioning, she continued, had the additional benefit of demarcating a distinctive space for TD Ameritrade in a sea of financial messaging.
"We are in a very crowded category, with an obvious need to break out. The financial-services category is littered with 9,000 brands," Karkos noted.
"We all chose the same research. When we look at the stats, we understand people are living longer [and] people are moving up their retirement.
"And yet, somehow, the financial-services industry makes that into a negative message: 'You're going to outlive your money, because you're living longer.'"
TD Ameritrade's employees were also at the front and centre of many marketing efforts, too, further building trust in the company by showing off its personality and values.
"We want to show our own voices. Otherwise, we're going to be just like every other financial-services brand. So, we didn't let anyone's personality be muted," said Karkos.
Denise Karkos, TD Ameritrade's chief marketing officer, discussed this subject at the Association of National Advertisers' (ANA) 2015 Masters of Marketing Conference in Orlando.
More specifically, she spoke about the development and impact of the "You got this" campaign it launched late last year, and which stands apart from the gloomy tones often adopted by money-management experts.
This positivity tied back to empowering investors and helping them feel more confident in their choices – a positioning supported by the fact TD Ameritrade manufactures no products and does not use commission.
"That level of confidence – something that you don't hear anyone else talking about in the category – was our opportunity to really have that conversation," said Karkos. (For more, including details about how the brand built its strategy, read Warc's exclusive report: TD Ameritrade seeks to be one in 9,000.)
"That was the way for us to talk about something that the category wasn't talking about: positivity; confidence; optimism."
Such a positioning, she continued, had the additional benefit of demarcating a distinctive space for TD Ameritrade in a sea of financial messaging.
"We are in a very crowded category, with an obvious need to break out. The financial-services category is littered with 9,000 brands," Karkos noted.
"We all chose the same research. When we look at the stats, we understand people are living longer [and] people are moving up their retirement.
"And yet, somehow, the financial-services industry makes that into a negative message: 'You're going to outlive your money, because you're living longer.'"
TD Ameritrade's employees were also at the front and centre of many marketing efforts, too, further building trust in the company by showing off its personality and values.
"We want to show our own voices. Otherwise, we're going to be just like every other financial-services brand. So, we didn't let anyone's personality be muted," said Karkos.
Data sourced from Warc
