The new campaign has television ads running from 2/14 through 6/25 on Bloomberg, CNBC and Fox Business. Online ads will appear during the same period on Bloomberg.com, LinkedIn.com, Morningstar.com, Nasdaq.com, NYTimes.com, and TheStreet.com. Boston-based Hill, Holliday, Connors, Cosmopulos handles creative. Print is included as well.
The “Who Knew” message says that while John Hancock is widely recognized as a leading provider of life insurance, annuities and long-term care insurance, it is also a mutual fund company that offers four- and five-star funds, as rated by Morningstar.
Creative for the new ads is similar to John Hancock’s award-winning “Cursor” ad campaign, which reflects how prevalent it is today for conversations to take place via IM on a PC or mobile device.
In one print spot, the first message reads: “Mutual Funds from John Hancock? Who knew?’ and the typed comment is: “Well, Morningstar knew.” A second ad begins: “You probably don’t think of mutual funds when you think of John Hancock,” followed by: “See why you should.” And the third ad begins: “You trust your experience, your instincts, and the numbers,” followed by: “And let’s not forget Morningstar.” The print side launched in the current issue of Barron’s, and will continue in print through mid-June in the Wall Street Journal, Financial Planning, Registered Rep, Investment Advisor and PlanSponsor.
Both print and online ads show the messages in colored dialog boxes, while the television depiction of “Who Knew,” like the “Cursor” ads, is hushed, with the only sound being a tapping on a keypad.
A second phase is slated to launch in April, and is expected to include a Webinar event hosted by Morningstar and featuring John Hancock Funds management. Additional online aspects are planned, including customized online investing sections in sites such as NYTimes.com.
