How Empower is trying to become a household financial brand

Financial services company Empower is boosting its marketing spending as it shifts its creative approach under new agency Goodby Silverstein & Partners. Empower, which provides financial tools and investment advice to 19 million people, is attempting to become more of a household brand with aggressive marketing that included a buy in yesterday’s AFC Championship game. The NFL semifinal game, which tends to draw massive ratings, was used to launch a campaign for the privately-held company that focuses on the positives of financial planning, a departure from previous advertising that played into how stressful money management can be, said Stephen Jenks, chief marketing officer. “Money is arguably the most emotional topic for people,” he said. “When you’re dealing with highly emotional topics, humor can be a great way to diffuse the situation a little bit. Two spots show Empower clients indulging in unnecessary purchases thanks to financial wiggle room they’ve earned through wise investments and diligent savings. One depicts a grandfather buying his granddaughter and himself go-karts after rolling his 401k into an Empower IRA account. The other shows a man purchasing an all-white suit after learning his investment account has performed well. The ads use a new tagline, “invest well, live a little.” Empower previously used the line “Empower What’s Next.” Additional ads coming this spring will continue the theme, with spots depicting various ways consumers can splurge on big purchases if they’ve otherwise been financially responsible. “What we’re trying to do with the creative direction of the campaign is break through a lot of the cliches that exist in the financial services category,” Jenks said. “If you look at a lot of the advertising, it’s these fantastical takes on retirement … we really wanted to work with GS&P to develop a much more realistic tone that reflects how people really think about money.” Media plans include print, digital, social media and podcast advertising, in addition to TV. Empower will spend about twice as much as it spent on last year’s advertising, Jenks said, without disclosing exact figures. Empower Financial Services and Empower Retirement products spent $16 million on U.S. measured media in the first three quarters of 2023, per MediaRadar. More news: Tastytrade seeks former big brokerage customers “We’re playing big in terms of the resources we’re putting behind this campaign,” Jenks said. He estimated that the AFC Championship game on CBS “will probably be the third-most watched TV program in 2025—that’s a great opportunity to reach a mass of individuals because even the non-sports fans will be watching.” CBS drew an average of 55.5 million viewers for the 2024 AFC Championship, which was the most-watched non-Super Bowl program on CBS in 30 years, according to the network. GS&P won the account in November. The incumbent was Pereira O’Dell, which had held the account since February 2023. Empower’s campaign acknowledges modern retirement preferences, Jenks said. Research published last January by Principal showed that when it comes to retirement goals, Gen Xers and millennials prefer gradually decreasing work hours instead of suddenly stopping. Focusing on purchases consumers make throughout their lives reflects how workers prefer to live better than depictions of older retirees spending their days on boats and tandem bicycles, Jenks said. Also read: Millennials, Gen X and others—what brands need to know The campaign also differs from category norms by showing Empower clients being relatively carefree. “We’re really focusing on the positives,” Jenks said. “The reason why people try to invest well and are disciplined in their savings is so they can have some of the fun that money can buy. We want to capture that.” Empower’s client base has grown from 9 million to 19 million in the past five years, Jenks said. Still, it has a ways to go to catch up to competitors. For reference, Principal Financial Services reported serving 68 million customers as of October 2024. While Empower has previously used humor, its ads also included some tension. For instance, its “What’s Next” campaign last year included ads depicting clients cooly handling questions about financial stresses before flashing back to how they initially panicked. One ad showed a father throwing a fit because of his daughters’ expensive destination weddings. NextGen Marketing Summit Join us for a crash course on Gen Z, DTC marketing and the creator economy Register today

How Empower is trying to become a household financial brand

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