Why This Canadian Bank’s Bold New Look Invited People to Start Their Engines
For users of the Canadian digital bank, Simplii Financial, it might have come as a surprise when the bank transitioned away from its staple red and blue colour scheme, replacing it with bold neon shades of magenta and lime. After all, those are not colours traditionally associated with banking.
That is, however, precisely the point. Created in partnership with agency Broken Heart Love Affair, the new platform and aesthetic signalled the start of a multi-year initiative to build on the bank’s ambition to be a leader in direct banking, and grow its brand in Canada. Supported by a 60-second digital ad – as well as OOH placements – across all formats the creative leans heavily into monochromatic black and white backgrounds to further emphasise the bold nature of these new colours. Specifically, the spot features human moments in near-suspended animation - from being launched in a giant slingshot to slowly kicking someone in the behind - representing the buildup of latent energy, and resolving in the tagline, ‘Start Your Engines’.
LBB’s Josh Neufeldt sat down with Broken Heart Love Affair (BHLA) creative director Jordan Hamer, and Simplii Financial director of marketing Ibad Abbasi, exploring what made this the right time for the brand shift, and what it took to bring all of this to life.
LBB> What was the brief for this campaign, and what immediate ideas came to mind?
Ibad> The brief for BHLA was simple: we wanted to create a brand that stands out from the clutter and speaks about more than just finance. Moreover, through our brand, we wanted to tell a story that our customers could emotionally connect with, and remember us for. We realised if we wanted to grow as a business, product offers and rates wouldn’t be enough. We had to be more relatable (new positioning and tagline) and more modern in our looks (new colours, logo and photography).
Beyond this, we wanted to see Simplii become a brand that promises to make banking and managing finances so simple and rewarding that it encourages customers to do more in the ‘now’. Making things happen in the present or ‘betting on the now’ isn’t something most banks focus on. With seamless digital experience and competitive offers, we wanted to own the space of ‘making now happen’.
To this end, BHLA was the perfect agency for the job. We wanted to work with a team that was excited to revolutionise the financial industry space, culturally aligned with our team, and ready to think differently and take creative risks.
Jordan> Since the strategy required to accomplish this was so different from other banks, it immediately made us lean toward a more conceptual campaign designed to capture that exact headspace.
LBB> Developing a new look for Simplii is no small task. What made now the right time to do this, and what inspired the decision to change from red and blue to bold, vibrant colours?
Ibad> Simplii has been providing exceptional products and service for over five years to its valued customers. However, with awareness levels low, we felt that not enough Canadians were benefiting. With the intention to grow exponentially, and to speak more effectively to audiences like newcomers to Canada and international students, we felt we needed to bring in a fresh perspective.
Our colour exploration primarily focused on our strategy looking different from other financial institutions in the country. We quickly realised colours like red and blue don’t help us differentiate. With so much clutter on our digital platforms, and even on traditional mediums like TV and billboards, we wanted our potential customers to pause when they see our ads, and to surprise them with our vibrant look: neon colours on black and white photography.
The new colours and design completely owned our positioning and tagline, ‘Start Your Engines’; something true for us as well - that big step towards doing something bold and meaningful. We wanted to create an impact, and we knew once our audience saw our new look, the first thing they’d realise was that Simplii is different and confident enough to pick unconventional colours and unusual photography to represent itself.
Jordan> We knew we wanted to use strong, unforgettable colours, but landing on magenta and lime took several rounds of decision making. One of the most important factors was finding colours distinctly different from all other banks. Since Simplii is a digital-only bank, we prioritised colours that reproduce best on screen.
In turn, since we used such bold colours, we wanted to let them shine by keeping the imagery black and white. The monochrome treatment combined with the spontaneous content of the images makes them feel like snapshots of moments you can put yourself into.
LBB> Jodeb directed the spot. What was working with him like, and as a whole, how was your time on set?
Jordan> Jodeb is someone we've wanted to work with for a long time, and when we had the idea of these iconic visual metaphors in black and white, he was our natural first choice. He has such an amazing ability to tell emotional stories with visuals alone!
We shot over three days around Montreal. There was a decent amount of problem solving on set that had to happen on the fly, such as figuring out the bending trees, and the smoke coming from the shoes. But, the production team was incredible, and made everything happen with ease.
LBB> Speaking of slingshots and smoking shoes, how did you accomplish these shots?
Jordan> For the shoes, the props person modified a pair with thick soles to have tubes run into the front of them, with the ends pointed back out of the heels. They were then connected to a smoke machine, and we used fans to keep the smoke swirling around.
As for the slingshot, the actor was actually in a harness, with ropes looped around a sort of small crane, and a team of people pulled him up into the air to get the shot of his feet leaving the ground at the very end.
LBB> The accompanying music and sound effects are a focal point of the spot. How did you work with Berkeley to bring this to the forefront?
Jordan> We've worked with Berkeley many times, and they're really incredible at what they do - particularly the sound design side which adds so much. But, the track also carries the spot so well, feeling almost daunting and thrilling at the same time. A big part of that is driven by the heartbeat-like pulse that elevates your heart rate as you watch.
LBB> The campaign’s OOH is also amazing! What was the design process?
Jordan> A lot of the imagery for the OOH was licensed through Magnum Photo, which was an amazing process. We've always loved them as an organisation - they are an international photographic cooperative owned by its photographer members - and working with them was so easy. The OOH will be an ongoing part of the campaign across big urban markets in English-Canada, with added emphasis on students and new Canadians as well.
LBB> What challenges have you faced during this project? How did you overcome them?
Jordan> Every project has its own set of challenges, but one was finding the perfect images for OOH that really capture the right emotion. Another was using the colour palette in a way that would still adhere to very high accessibility standards online.
Ibad> The biggest challenge was ensuring the new brand story translated to all areas of the business, and not just advertising. From technology to operations to product and business, we wanted to make sure everyone is ‘living in the now’ and ready to help customers start their engines. Communication and transparency at every step of the way helped us create that clarity for all teams, and ensured readiness.
LBB> Building on that, do you have any memorable lessons learned from the making of this new campaign?
Jordan> Not a new lesson, but this was the perfect example of how ideas are nothing without the right people to bring them to life. And in this case, every single team member was exactly the right pick; a collection of some of our favourite people in the industry who really put so much work and passion into the project.
Ibad> A lot! It’s been a learning journey for everyone involved. The highlight was the level of collaboration we saw during the first year and journey of this project. Working closely and communicating with all our agency partners and internal stakeholders proactively helped us execute an entire company-wide rebrand, and an extensive promotional campaign in record time. By considering our agency partners as an extended team, and being transparent with them at every stage, we not only got the support we needed, but also, feedback that ensured the final output was the best it could be.
LBB> What has the initial response been like?
Ibad> It’s been great so far! Everyone is super excited about the change internally, and we seem to be attracting more and more clients every day. Moving forward, we have a number of exciting campaigns planned to showcase our new brand, as well as amazing offers through multiple channels, and we hope that will result in a positive uptick in our brand KPIs and eventually, our business growth goals as well.
Jordan> ‘No one knows what it means, but it's provocative. It gets the people goin'!’ - Chazz Michael Michaels.
