When Planit Advertising found itself charged with creating a campaign to promote the introduction of Chevy Chase Bank?s automated-teller machines in Metrorail stations throughout the Washington area, it chose a somewhat nontraditional approach ? especially for a banking institution.
Instead of focusing on typical media such as print ads, the agency instead opted to involve nearly every resource it had available ? from advertising to animation to public relations ? for the three-month campaign.
“It was a chance to really leverage all of the disciplines here,” said Matt Doud, the company?s president. “What?s nice about a client like Chevy Chase Bank is they really let us sort of push the envelope. Financial service is by tradition a conservative lot, and Chevy Chase Bank, although their foundation is in tradition and values, they also understand the consumer is different today.”
To promote the introduction of the 36 ATMs in Metro stations, the agency?s animation team created a character, ATM Guy. ATM Guy was then physically brought to life as a costumed character who traveled on Metro the day of the campaign?s launch. ATM Guy?s image was also used on outdoor advertising that consisted of five “wrapped” Metro trains, backlit signs, posters, Metrocar cards and banners. The agency also saturated the Metro Center station with media.
The strategy behind the campaign was to use standard media within the Metro system and then rise above the clutter by adding specialized communications tools like characters and wrapped trains.
“Early-morning and late-night subway riders are either thinking about getting to work or getting home,” Doud said. “To be able to break though the clutter in that environment was a challenge. This rose above the buzz and really captured people?s attention. Getting the attention is a big part of the campaign?s success, but delivering on the promise is key.”
To deliver on the promise, Doud said the campaign and ATM Guy rallied the Chevy Chase team internally.
“To get them excited about this is another way to help us do our job,” Doud said.
