Helping a leading financial institution capitalize on new markets with a fresh look and shrewd creative.
As the region’s leading financial institution for commercial banking and the only local organization of its kind providing investment services and specializing in trust and estate planning, Orange County Trust Company was well-known and respected in its current markets. But to expand the bank into new markets, including Westchester County, we needed to elevate and evolve the brand. The goal was two-fold: to align the new brand with the aspirations of the organization both internally and externally, and take ownership of the bank’s unique brand position to capitalize on the affinity its hometown community has for the bank while embarking on new opportunities to secure the bank’s future.
Unfortunately, Orange County Trust Company had minimal to no brand awareness in the new markets it was targeting for growth and had to overcome the perception that it was a small, “sleepy” rural bank with limited resources not capable of the same large and sophisticated business deals as larger banks. To accomplish this, we positioned the bank as a formidable competitor that has the same depth of products and services but outperforms in personal service. We also changed the perception of localized being “less than,” and sold the value of community banking. With an evolved brand identity, including a new logo and tagline of “A bank of a different color,” we launched Orange County Trust in two new markets, underscoring the value of their relationship-based banking with a fresh creative campaign.
The new brand look and campaign were well-received, shedding light on the new bank in town that brought with it the best parts of an old-school way of doing business. Orange County Trust is continuing to grow its customer base in these new markets, while remaining fresh and relevant in its existing markets.