H&R Block: NEVER SETTLE FOR LESS

Credits & Description:

Category: Best Consumer Engagement

Advertiser: H&R BLOCK

Product/Service: TAX SERVICE

Agency: FALLON

Date of First Appearance: Dec 27 2010

Entrant Company: FALLON, Minneapolis, USA

Entry URL: http://www.neversettleforless.com

Chief Creative Officer: Darren Spiller (Fallon)

Copywriter: Ryan Peck (Fallon)

Art Director: Scott O'Leary (Fallon)

Integrated Producer: Ted Knutson/Lauren May (Fallon)

Director: Mark Romanek (Anonymous Content)

Cinematographer: Salvatore Totino (Fallon)

Editor: Michael Heldman (Spotwelders)

Editor: Erik Carlson (VOLT Studios)

Head of Integrated Production: Corey Esse (Fallon)

Writer: David Mackereth (Fallon)

Business Affairs: Brendan Lawrence/Brent Larson (Fallon)

Integrated Producer: Nicole Earley/Matt Lund (Fallon)

Art Director: Noah Carlstrom & Amanda Whitacre (Fallon)

Account Team: Chris Lawrence/Pete Leacock/Evan Brown (The Assembly Line)

Developer: Kla Haeck (Fallon)

UX: Allison Beattie (Fallon)

Producer: Arstides McGarry (Anonymous Content)

Executive Producer: Dave Morrison/SueEllen Clair (Anonymous Content)

Visual Effects: James Allen (Public)

Sound Design: Jeff Payne (Eleven Sound)

Media placement: TV Campaign- 2 :60s, :30s, & :15s - All Major Networks - 12/27/2010

Media placement: Long Form Web Videos - Www.neversettleforless.com, Www.youtube.com/user/hrblock - 1/3/2011

Media placement: Direct Second Looks - Greenback, Nickel Diner - 12/27/2010



Insights, Strategy & the Idea

2010 found America in dire straits. The bad economy, foreclosures, bank defaults and unemployment had the nation in a panic. When the economy is in trouble, H&R Block’s business typically suffers along with it. After two years of business declines, it was time for the brand to take a hard stance on acquisition. H&R Block’s core target audience was the middle class who struggled to support their families. We knew they preferred to let a professional do their taxes because they wanted to delegate to an expert, but mostly because they wanted to minimize the hassle of doing it themselves. Despite the economic situation, they still had a sense of optimism about tomorrow; for them, money represented opportunity. We needed to feed their desire to keep their lives moving forward, but make it an easy ride—all while leveraging their ultra-social nature by giving them something to talk about.



Creative Execution

Rather than telling our target we had the best tax preparers, we opted to prove it. We picked a small town in Tennessee and offered to redo the income taxes of everyone living there. If, after re-examining their taxes, this “Second Look” found them more money, we would have proven we were better than the other tax preparers, and worth the investment. So, we called the mayor, rented the high-school gym, packed up forty-five of our finest tax experts and made the journey to Greenback, Tennessee to provide our target with an opportunity for real-life engagement with our brand. Ten days and over a thousand man-hours later, we brought an extra $14,687 back to the hardworking people there. Then, culling from the 17 hours of footage we shot, we created a web documentary and television spots to bring the experience to life for the rest of our target.



Results and Effectiveness

After our success in Greenback, we packed up and travelled across the country to the Nickel Diner in LA to see what money we could find people there. Between these locations, we brought back close to $25,000—all money that was previously left on the table. The millions of Americans who saw our web documentaries and televisions spots started to see the value of H&R Block. After our launch, appointments at H&R Block offices skyrocketed +350% over last year, online starts jumped +250%, and appointments for first-time H&R Block clients doubled. Needless to say, we far exceeded with client acquisition.