YCN Standard Life - The Talk
Reponse to YCN Student Awards' Standard Life brief. A campaign to get young people engaging the older generation in conversation about their finances - The Talk.
This project was a university brief set by Standard Life for the YCN Student Awards. Standard Life are a global company that help customers to set up pension funds and investment schemes. The brief was looking for an advertising campaign that would encourage young people to engage their parents/elders in conversation about their financial futures, as many adults are neglecting to set up secure plans for themselves.
As the aim of the campaign was to generate dialogue between two generations, I themed my response around awkward conversations young adults have, or have had, with their parents. The potential discussion about pensions and future finances could be an uncomfortable subject for both sides, so I wanted to address the topic with a sense of humour. As a result, the campaign I came up with is called “The Talk”, with the tagline “Do you need to have The Talk?” - a familiar phrase for parent and child alike.
Phase 1 initial poster.
The campaign would be split into four main phases to prolong the “big reveal” of its message. Phase 1 would generate interest with the ambiguous tagline, while Phase 2 posters read as the opening line of a familiar (and probably awkward) conversation started by a parent. The design of the posters themselves would be very basic and inkeeping with Standard Life's existing branding, as the focus would be purely on the copy. These posters would be seen on billboards, at bus shelters and similar locations - places the audiences would see on the go.
Phase 2 poster - suggestive of the Safe Sex kind of conversation.
Phase 2 posters - suggestive of the Moving Out and Keeping Secrets kind of conversations.
Phase 3 changes the previously set up awkward conversation in a three-sentence structure. It twists the first phrase, now making it so that the child is addressing the parent, and confronting them about their finances with the vernacular of past conversations. The overall idea, thus, is that young adults must briefly take on the role of parent and have an awkward conversation with them in order to make sure their parent is being responsible about their future. If not, their parent will become financially dependent on them later.
Phase 3 poster - suggestive of the Safe Sex kind of conversation.
Phase 3 posters - suggestive of the Still Single? and Moving Out kind of conversations.
Phase 3 posters - suggestive of the Keeping Secrets and Grow Up kind of conversations.
These phases would be accompanied by social media support with the hashtag #TheTalk to appeal to the young adult audience. The final phase of the campaign would be a small informational booklet sent out to student/young professionals' houses, giving them the facts about the financial situation, as well as the solutions that Standard Life could provide. This would prepare them to have “The Talk” with their parents.
Phase 4 booklet front and back with sticker.
Phase 4 booklet fold structure.
Phase 4 booklet.