Westpac NZ has brought ‘Fear-Free Credit’, a horror-inspired campaign to life via Saatchi & Saatchi NZ, Spark Foundry NZ, and Digitas NZ to show young people that credit cards don’t need to be scary.
Saatchi & Saatchi NZ led creative, while media was led by Spark Foundry NZ, and Digitas NZ led the customer experience.
The campaign challenges audiences to ‘face their credit fears’ and introduces Westpac’s guidance and tools to overcome them.
Embracing the dramatic horror genre, ‘Fear-Free Credit’ spotlights common anxieties – from spiralling debt to haunting impulse buys – and offers solutions to help alleviate those worries.
Central to the campaign is the House of Credit Card Fears, a pop-up immersive experience where each unsettling room embodies a different credit-card fear. At the end of the journey, visitors step into the Fear-Free Zone, where Westpac’s six steps to responsible credit help transform fear into confidence – empowering them to build a healthy credit score.
The campaign leverages the insight that Gen Z is highly engaged with the horror genre, utilising this connection to make financial literacy feel more engaging and relevant.
“Insights show young people are significantly more credit card-shy than other generations, often because they lack the confidence to manage debt responsibly or use credit to their advantage. We wanted to address these fears directly and give them the tools to turn credit from a source of worry into an opportunity,” Westpac NZ chief brand and marketing officer Sarah Williams said.
The House of Credit Card Fears also served as a film set, producing immersive, cross-platform content and offering a personalised experience for each participant.
“Fear-Free Credit came from a strong creative idea: reimagining a house of horrors into an immersive financial experience. Each room was designed to let participants physically walk through their credit-related fears. By tracking their heart rates, we identified their biggest anxieties, allowing us to deliver tailored tips and tools in the Westpac Fear-Free Zone. The result was a personalised experience for every individual who chose to face their credit fears,” Lee Sunter, executive creative director at Saatchi & Saatchi NZ said.
Produced, managed, and executed by experiential agency Spur, the activation ran from 19 to 21 September at 9/11 Durham Lane in Auckland.
Pre-activation OOH assets rolled out across urban areas. In addition, they brought the credit card ‘fears’ to life through Mediaworks radio promotions and tailored content for social and digital, delivering over 7.5 million impressions across Meta, TikTok, and YouTube and facilitating a partnership with HOYTS to sponsor their horror genre films from October to December.
Digitas NZ led customer experience, developing a dedicated landing page and revamping the Fee Free Mastercard product page to help 18–29 year olds navigate credit.
A series of short videos will continue to roll out on social channels.
Credits:
Saatchi&Saatchi
CEO: Mark Cochrane
Chief Creative Officer: Steve Cochran
Executive Creative Director: Lee Sunter
Associate Creative Director: Cece Chu
Senior Art Director: Tim Yates
Senior Copywriter: Ryan Price
General Manager: Annabel Rees
Group Business Director: Aaron Hodgson
Business Manager: Jeannie Grace
Strategy Director: Brendan Greenwell
Design Director: Shiv Narandas
Designer: Talia Schofield
Retoucher: Nick Browne
Executive Producer: Jane Mill
Producer: Claudia Duncan
Head of Post Production: Tracy Powell
Senior Editor:Morgan Parish
Westpac
CMO: Sarah Williams
Head of Propositions and Campaigns: Lou Golding
Head of Brand: Nilleema Allerston
Senior Marketing Manager: Allie Buczkowski
Marketing Manager: Georgia Livingstone
Videographer/Photographer: Fraser Clements
Experiential Agency: SPUR
Media Agency: Spark Foundry
Customer Agency: Digitas
