DnB Nor is Norway’s largest financial services group. Watching this 2011 TV spot, however, you won’t hear a word about their company until the very last frame. Created by two collaborating ad agencies, TRY/APT, the spot opens on a disheveled woman who wakes up in a luxury hotel room, with no idea how she has come to be there. When she finds some curious Polaroids, a rubber horse head, and a wedding dress in the room, her anxiety reaches new levels. Enter George Clooney, her new husband, who directs her attention to photos on his laptop of the palatial home he is planning to purchase for the two of them.
What does all this have to do with banking? We finally learn the answer in the end frame: “Some people have all the luck. For the rest of us, it would be wise to start saving. DnB Nor.”
Why We Love It
Usually, we would not recommend waiting until the final seconds of a spot to mention the client’s name. But in this ad, titled “Finally Married,” it works beautifully for three reasons: 1) DnB Nor is a large, very well-known bank in Norway, so raising awareness is not an issue for them; 2) The message they want to communicate—start saving—is very simple; and 3) The story is so well told it draws us in. Just like the woman in the hotel room, we want answers.
While the end frame gives us a good laugh, it also hits home with our financial conscience. We all know we should be saving, and we probably aren’t going to win the lottery, inherit millions from a long-forgotten relative…or get married to George Clooney. But DnB wisely doesn’t wag a disapproving finger or give us a lecture. They give us a laugh and a gentle nudge instead.
Granted, not every client can afford to hire George Clooney to be in their ads. However, it’s really the clever story surrounding the two characters that makes the spot work so well, not just star power. No matter what your advertising budget, the power of storytelling (and a good laugh) goes a long way.
This is post #1 in our blog series, Funny Money: Using Humor in Financial Advertising.
