Virgin Money finds everlasting love Sonja Koremans
Virgin Money has diced with advertising standards and rolled out a risqué new campaign for its home loan service aimed at taking share away from the big four banks.
Titled “Everlasting Love”, Virgin’s confronting print, internet, digital and TV ads reveal real elderly couples in compromising positions in the bedroom, garden and bathroom.
The company, which is a relatively minor player in the mortgage sector having entered just 18 months ago, has upped the ante to promote its new rewards program aimed at grabbing a share of the banks’ loan books.
Nik Witcombe, Virgin Money’s marketing manager, said the campaign’s core goal was to pitch the lender against the Commonwealth Bank, National Australia Bank, ANZ and Westpac.
“Virgin Money is always very clear that we are competing against the banks – our promise is to deliver where the big banks are taking advantage of the little guys,” Witcombe said.
He said the BWM-created campaign (with media handled by Starcom), which will be staggered over 18 months, was not a knee-jerk response to the global credit crunch but part of a strategic brand positioning. “This campaign has been done in isolation to what has been happening in the global market. It’s part of an ongoing strategy,” Witcombe said.
With sexual innuendo such as “promise we’ll be gentle”, “a big fat breather” and “our love can help you make a baby” plastered all over the campaign, it is bound to spark controversy when it goes into newspapers next week, followed by the TV execution with PG and M-rated versions.
However, Witcombe did not believe the ads were offensive.
“Do we think it’s controversial? It’s a real-life situation,” Witcombe said.
“It celebrates long-term relationships and how good it would be if you could have a great relationship like that with your lender. The publishers were comfortable with the ads and with the TV execution we have gone through all the appropriatee processes.”
Witcombe said the “Everlasting Love” theme was chosen after Virgin Money conducted an extensive survey of 1300 18 to 60-year-olds. “It ties back to conversations we had with our customers and other Australians about their situation and some key statistics came out of it and one of them was that many home lenders showered them with love in the early days of a mortgage but as soon as they signed with the lender, they never heard from them again.”
Julie Webster, Rams marketing manager, countered that the Virgin Money campaign may lack relevance.
“It’s very true to their positioning stance. But advertising has to have cut through and relevance and without relevance, no one will see it,” she said.
