TSB, the7stars and McCann London Win Public Vote for Best Marketing Campaign 2023

The bank’s campaign set out to tackle financial taboos and reassure people concerned about the rising cost of living. To do that, TSB realigned its marketing strategy around the concept of getting people to talk about money and introduced a literal elephant in the room with its first-ever brand mascot: Tiny the Elephant.

Created by McCann and planned by the7stars, ‘Tiny’ demonstrates that the financial elephant in the room needn’t be so scary when you talk to TSB’s Money Confidence Experts. The campaign certainly connected with the voting public, beating stiff competition from brands including Guinness, Barbie, McDonald’s and Heinz, to take home Marketing Week’s grand prize.

The brand refresh by McCann, sought to evolve TSB’s ‘Life Made More,’ it’s multi-year partnership with Friends actor David Schwimmer, in a way that acknowledges the economic situation people find themselves in.

TSB CMO Emma Springham told Marketing Week that the brand was looking to tackle “long-held misperceptions of finance” and elaborated, “We want it to be brave, and we want it to be a bit bolder. We needed something with longevity.”

Tiny hit TV screens in spring with a Channel 4 partnership deal negotiated by the7stars. The new 30” ad takeover featured in three of Channel 4’s biggest peak spots – including Gogglebox and Celeb Bake Off – to piggy-back on fame for TSB’s new mascot.

The broader AV approach introduced Netflix alongside TV, BVOD, Connected TV and Cinema. Tiny also debuted on TikTok with bespoke, tailored creative, as well as creator content to tap into the ever-growing engagement and credibility of 'Fin-Tok'.

Smithfield Agency introduced Tiny to TSB’s Business Banking audience across online environments. A mix of social, online display, and video allowed the campaign to reach the B2B audience at scale, bringing TSB and Tiny closer to commercial banking customers who want to talk about the elephant in the (business) room.

Lauren Fishwick, planning lead at the7stars, said, “This is an exciting win for a clever campaign that has clearly resonated with the audience. It has been a great launch for TSB, reaching incremental audiences with relevant, timely and memorable creative that has really hit home.”