Wunderman Thompson UK Launches Second Phase of HSBC 'We are Not an Island' Campaign

Creative, data and technology agency Wunderman Thompson UK has today an extension of HSBC UK’s multi-award winning ‘We Are Not An Island’ campaign. It covers hyper-localised OOH, print and social and will be supported by the return of the Richard Ayoade-fronted ‘Global Citizen’ spots on TV.

The campaign runs to December and the OOH activation takes in an initial 12 cities across the United Kingdom, as well as selected London boroughs. Focusing in on British culture, the light-hearted ads remind us how our communities are all connected to the wider world through the mutual exchange of ideas, culture and innovation. 

Chris Pitt, head of marketing at HSBC UK, says: “Following on from the ‘We Are Not an Island’ series, we wanted to reinforce the significant part Britain has played in shaping global culture, but also how the wider world has informed our own unique and complex culture.

“We may be a small island, but we’ve shown time and again that we punch above our weight, particularly when it comes to the arts and culture. This time we’ve focused in on our pop cultural heritage. We reference Glam, to Grime to Madchester – and much more to show how we have taken international and multi-cultural influences and made them our own. We feel this encapsulates what puts the ‘Great’ in Britain.

The campaign takes in special outdoor buys in locations across every corner of the country, as well as culturally significant London boroughs including Brixton and Peckham. The OOH element is supported with carefully targeted online placements built around geo-targeting.

Steve Aldridge, executive creative director at Wunderman Thompson, adds: “We achieved great cut-through earlier this year with our headline-grabbing work, doubling HSBC’s UK advertising awareness in 2018/2019.

“It was a winning formula so with this phase we want to extend the campaign in a way that feels fresh, but consistent. What was particularly significant with ‘We Are Not An Island’ was the level of earned engagements on social - and the positive sentiment from our target audience. With ‘Both Sides’ we aim to put HSBC back at the centre of the cultural conversation so the campaign will live on far beyond December.”