About Client / Project

“Colour Me W”, was a concept developed and implemented by Stratcomm Africa to support Access Bank’s goal to grow a cadre of successful professional, business and family women through tailored skills training, networking and provision of financial solutions suited to their needs.

The successful six -month integrated communications campaign employed the use of Strategic Public Relations, Marketing Communications and Advertising tools to raise awareness and persuade women to patronize Access Bank’s banking products.

The campaign was extremely successful, contributing to the Bank winning “Outstanding Banking Initiative, 2015” at the Women in Finance Magazine Awards, as well as the “Women’s Market Champion, 2015” award from the Global Banking Alliance (GBA) for women in Brazil.

Problem / Opportunity

With financial support for women assuming a high priority status for players in the finance industry, there has been a rise in the development of financial products tailored to meet certain needs of women. Our client identified an opportunity to home in on the women-banking market as part of their bid to be ranked among the top three banks in Ghana within the next 5 years. The campaign sought to address all pertinent issues that women confront in their quest for financial support.

Creative Solution / Strategies Used

The creative concept “Colour Me W”, devised by Stratcomm Africa, focused on using the letter “W” to engage women and make them feel a part of a movement in a participatory and expressive manner. Aimed at empowering women, using the first letter “W” of the word “women” this campaign spoke directly to the “W” initiative. Using different catch phrases such as “Colour me Wise, Colour Me Wonderful” amongst others, we were able to give women a way to express themselves. The concept made the execution open ended and flexible, which kept women engaged throughout the campaign.

In order to position Access Bank in the minds of the target audience as a leader and innovator in tailor-made products and services for the consumer, Stratcomm Africa developed a strategy and communication plan to implement in collaboration with the Bank’s corporate affairs team.

Our communication plan involved a Social Media Plan, Thought Leadership Activities, Radio Interviews, Billboards, Radio Adverts, Newspaper Adverts and a strategic launch event. Our focus was primarily on raising awareness about the Bank’s offerings, educating the target audiences on financial literacy, creating excitement about the products, and building sustainable relations between the brand and target audiences. We advised our client to select strategic brand ambassadors who represented different lifestyles which spoke to various segmented target groups, thus making female finance trendy, empowering, meaningful and fashionable.

Outcome / Impact

Evaluation of the “Colour me W” campaign proved it was extremely successful for our client. Sign-ons as at December 2015 showed an increase from 67,862 to 85,059 representing a 25% growth. Through effective partnerships and strategic alliances, the campaign educated over 5000 women on Self, Career, Family, Business and Financial Development. Month on month percentage growth of 97% in account acquisition and 83% in initial deposits were mobilized in 2015 compared to 2014. The initiative added to brand value and reputation, resulting in increased awareness and visibility. Due the strong impact of the campaign, the Bank received recognitions and awards from the National Women in Finance Awards, Girls Education Initiative Ghana, Ghana National Union of Polytechnic Students (GNUPS), and the 4th National Women Conference.

Stratcomm Africa’s work on the “Colour me W” campaign won the prestigious United Nations Award for Public Relations and Sustainable Development at the 2016 International Public Relations Association’s (IPRA) Golden World Awards. This was the second time an African company had won the award, and the first time for one from West Africa. The numerous awards won by the project, crowned by the IPRA award demonstrated the quality of work put into the project and the organisation was pleased with the recognition received.