Webank: THE SMAMMAS

Credits & Description:

Advertiser: WEBANK
Agency: BURSON MARSTELLER
Category: Best Acting Performance
Advertising campaign: THE SMAMMAS
Deputy Creative Director : Matteo Airoldi - Federico Bonrisposi
Managing Director: Gianfranco Mazzone (Burson Marsteller)
Consultant : Luca Bolzoni (Burson Marsteller)
Associate: Maja Minino (Burson Marsteller)
Executive Creative Director : Stefano Tumiatti - Giandomenico Puglisi

Campaign Description
In Italy, over 7 million people between the ages of 18 and 34 live at home with their parents. Italian sons are particularly notorious for their reluctance to leave the nest.“ When our client WeBank asked us to promote their banking service targeted to young people, we focused on this critical social issue. We created a band of four mothers fed up with their sons’ refusal to move out, and called them the Smammas (smammare means “get out” in Italian). We launched a video clip and a dedicated website to unveil their single, which became a manifesto for frustrated parents throughout Italy. They became media sensations, and their crusade was broadcast throughout traditional and online media, radio and TV. Finally, the stage was set for a surprise announcement. The public discovered that the Smammas were sponsored by WeBank, a new online bank, in order to target young people and bring them to www.smammas.it, an innovative digital platform featuring free financial services. Key among these was a new bank account, a fundamental tool for independence.We are proud of this unconventional strategy, and found it very effective for a client used to a more conservative and institutional communications approach.

Effectiveness
187 articles published over a 2-month period, for a 2,100,000 Euro AVE; 18’ visibility on the main national televisions; 570,000 views on YouTube and 312,000 visits to the landing page of the financial product. These are the numbers of the Smammas* 2-month PR campaign. Reaching a large and heterogeneous audience across TV (with prime-time testimonial interviews), radio, web, newspaper’s half pages, double spreads on women and men’s magazines, the campaign has exceeded the client’s business goals. In addition, digital PR generated interesting social media results, with 312.000 visits to the product’s landing page in the 2-month period. Such visits met the client’s goal in terms of product subscription (the exact number cannot be disclosed due to the bank’s policy). Beyond meeting business goals, this innovative campaign has changed the market’s perception of the client from cold and institutional to positive and human, during a time of crisis for banks.

Strategy
We based our PR campaign around the Italian stereotype of the bamboccioni (“mama’s boys”), which is so prevalent that it is considered an actual social problem. Due to a unique combination of economic and cultural factors, the number of stay-at-home sons in Italy has reached alarming numbers.In response to this, a group of real mothers, fed up with their sons’ refusal to leave the nest, banded together to create a movement, complete with its own manifesto. They founded a new, unique hip-hop group, called the Smammas (from the Italian term smamma, which means “get out”) and sang about this cause, drawing national attention to this problem. Their song showcased the problems facing young adults today, couched in a form that was fun and compelling for them.The Smammas’ campaign was initially unbranded, but after they gained interest and acclaim from influencers and media outlets, they revealed WeBank’s sponsorship. With this move, the bank captured the public’s attention and showed how their financial services could help young adults today.

Client Brief Or Objective
The primary goal was to find an innovative way to promote a financial product marketed to young adults, while simultaneously enhancing the bank’s public image and reputation. We also had to overcome the dual challenges of the Italian socioeconomic situation, and the limited appeal of finiancial products when presented through traditional media channels. Our target consisted of two segments:-Firstly, young adults between 18 to 24, the intended end users of this new service.-Secondly, parents, especially mothers, who are primarily responsible for opening their children’s first bank account as an essential first step towards independence.

Relevancy
WeBank, an Italian online bank, asked us to create a PR campaign for a new financial service aimed at 18 to 24 year-olds. The project’s goal was to promote the service in a unique, innovative way while enhancing the bank’s general public perception. We evaluated three potential obstacles to the project, created by Italy’s current socio-economic climate:-The global economic, financial and social crisis-A negative public perception of Italian banks, exacerbated by an increasing distrust of their services-A heightened unemployment rate among young Italians, which has increased the number of 'mamas boys' across the nation.

Execution
The campaign began with the launch of teaser videos announcing the Smammas on social media networks, and promoted through a series of unbranded digital PR and press activities. We held a press conference to officially launch the Smammas. The group was presented as a movement created by mothers exasperated by their sons’ refusal to move out and become independent. Four of them even banded together to form a hip-hop group in order to speak to young people on their own terms. The Smammas became a media phenomenon and after further building up anticipation, the four mothers in the band made a surprise announcement, revealing that their project had been created and funded by WeBank in order to launch their new financial service targeted to young adults. They had chosen to address the problems of young Italians today by focusing on the phenomenon of 'mamas boys.