Banking Different
This project was completed while working at Oneupweb.
Founded in 1917 in Honor, Michigan, Honor Bank has grown to support customers with eight locations throughout northern Michigan
Project Description
Honor Bank recognized they needed to break through the noise in northern Michigan's crowded financial market, but weren't sure how to differentiate themselves. I partnered with their sales and executive teams to develop a comprehensive marketing and creative strategy that would set them apart.
The process began with a collaborative workshop where we analyzed competitor positioning and explored opportunities for Honor Bank to evolve their brand identity. From these insights, I developed three distinct campaign approaches—ranging from conservative to bold—allowing the team to choose their comfort level. They confidently chose the boldest option.
I then brought their new brand voice to life across multiple touchpoints: eye-catching billboards, compelling sales materials, targeted direct mail pieces, and digital ads—all designed to attract new customers with their fresh, distinctive message.
The campaign's success led to an ongoing partnership, where I continued developing additional marketing campaigns and even contributed to the interior design strategy for their new branch location.
Challenges
Despite being an enjoyable project to work on, it presented a significant challenge: creating a unified campaign that would resonate with both personal and business banking customers—two very different audiences with distinct needs and motivations.
To solve this, I developed tailored messaging strategies and calls-to-action for each segment while maintaining the campaign's overall brand consistency. This dual approach ensured that personal customers felt the message spoke to their individual financial goals, while business customers saw clear value for their commercial banking needs.
Project Contributions
Creative Strategy, Creative Direction, Environmental Design, Interior Design, Print Design, Billboard Design, Print & Digital Ad Design, Workshop Development & Facilitation, Brand Development, Competitor Research
