MasterCard Worldwide : The Heart of Commerce

"MasterCard is taken for granted," says McCann Erickson/New York CD Robert Frost. "People just expect this little piece of plastic to work anywhere in the world 365 days a year, and rightly so. But it's so much more than just a credit card. Our task was to explain to business leaders, financial institutions and merchants around the world how MasterCard Worldwide operates and how its three-tiered business model strategically drives real value for all of MasterCard's partners, putting it at the 'heart of commerce.' " But the creatives took pains to avoid the heart of corporate communications style. "It's a complex message, so we needed to devise an engaging vehicle to communicate the many benefits," says Frost. "The last thing we wanted were ads that looked like the usual corporate wallpaper. You know, the stuff with people of different nationalities wearing hard hats and carrying laptops in front of high-tech buildings all over the world