Federated Hermes
Vetting for a volatile world
Overview
Putting rigor on the map
Federated Hermes (FHI) has a heritage of being a solid-performing firm. While known for certain investments, particularly money market funds, FHI had low target awareness and a broader offering than they were getting credit for. Big Spaceship was brought in to reposition FHI from being seen as a staid money fund firm to one that's relevant and well-poised to deliver on clients' mandates in the current US environment.
Opportunity
Make FHI's rigorous investment vetting impossible to ignore in a volatile market where the stakes of a bad recommendation have never been higher.
Solution
A universal truth
The target insight pointed toward FHI's ruthless vetting process as the story worth telling. Big Spaceship equated it to the rigorous stress tests that products in other categories must pass to prove their ability to withstand all conditions. Consumers already understand crash tests make cars safer and impact tests make helmets trustworthy. By borrowing that visual and conceptual language, FHI's investment discipline became visceral, credible, and category-breaking. Vetting for a volatile world gave the brand a platform no competitor could own.
Solution
Crashing through the category
The campaign deployed a multi-platform, full-funnel, targeted approach including an array of brand-building and target-specific platforms across a wide spectrum of financial media partners. This ensured coverage against all targets to promote both brand and product (Fixed Income and International Equities) within the new campaign. Dramatic video content placed investment vehicles into the world of crash tests, drop tests, and stress simulations, making FHI's process tangible. DOOH in financial hubs like Wall Street brought the campaign into the physical environments of the target audience, while paid social and display extended the stress test metaphor across formats with wit and craft.