It’s the old definition of lunacy: Doing the same thing over and over while expecting different results.
Changing times call for changing approaches, and our friends over at The Financial Brand pointed us toward Financial Foresight, a new report from image clearinghouse Getty Images that offers some trenchant advice for financial marketers who want out of the lunacy loop.
Getty can speak authoritatively on visual trends because it sells many of the root images to financial marketers—and tracks both searches and sales in real-time. Peruse the free 52-page tome yourself; it’s filled with compelling images and good design ideas. In the meantime, here are some highlights for marketing to young adults:
- Anchorage: Consumers of all ages are looking for balance and security. This is in the same vein as the “nesting” that was so popular after 9/11. Here, however, Getty sees popular searches like “balance,” leading to images of yoga, spas and balancing rocks. “Fun,” the most popular search word five years ago, has given way to “dream,” still aspirational, but slightly more serious.
- Guru Joe: Corporate execs are out; relatable experts are in. Getty sees a move toward personas and faces that are believable, empathetic and “quietly aspirational.” A parallel trend is in raw visuals—essentially well-framed snapshots that connote a company’s authenticity.
- Women: Not just a target but a symbol. Fully 36% of advertising tearsheets surveyed featured single women, while only 5% featured single men. This could be further proof that both women and men enjoy seeing women, but guys don’t catch each others’ eyes. Getty says, “Women are coming to represent in a wider way ideas of collaboration and cooperation. The age of the single white male hero is taking a cultural time out.” That’s not good news for this white male, but I’ll roll with it.
A shout-out to Washington State’s BECU, whose ‘member since’ campaign is featured prominently in the report
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You know what’s great about the BECU campaign? They’ve stuck with it for more than 5 years.
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So maybe the definition of success is trying the same thing over and over and getting good results :)
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