...are doing exactly what the reviewer suggested: Playing up the stability of the financial institution. A local credit union is running a plain-Jane campaign pointing out how they are stable, didn't get involved in any of the mortgage mess, and pay better rates than banks because they are member-owned. This doesn't have the entertainment value of a fictional environmentalist and her equally make-believe logger boyfriend, but I don't think many people are picking financial institutions right now based on whose commercial is most likely to win at Sundance.

That's me. I go with security.I didn't put my money in a 401K I use a Federal Credit Union and Security Bonds and a Reputable Federal/State Insured Bank for every day business . When it comes to money I learned long ago,to opt for security always over the ever changing Markets.

Long ago Joseph P Kennedy said, when he was getting his shoes shined that he knew it was time to get out of The Stock Market and it was overloaded with rank speculators when his shoe shine boy asked him for tips as to what he should next invest in.

He knew then the Crash on 1929 would not be far off.

This all but happened again where we had far too many everyday Joes and janes speculating in the market with little expereince to do so and far too many loans given to people with no ability ,capital or collateral to make good on them and repay.

History should be a guide..sadly few ever learn but for the 'hard way'.

As the reviewer pointed out, you aren't the target for this ad.

The target audience is the kind of person who lives and/or works in multiple countries. It's summed up in their tag line, "The world's local bank." They're saying to these customers, look at how we understand there are multiple sides to many issues, we get that, and we can tailor our product to your needs in NY, London, Cairo, or Jakarta.

The target audience is financially astute, so they already know HSBC is stable. That's why they're sticking with their original theme. Staying on message is often a greater indicator of stability than anything else. When your bank has to buy ad time to tell you how stable they are, that's the time to pull your money out.

Yes, finkyboy does a very nice job of capturing the bank's thinking. HSBC has the luxury of keeping their cool hand on the tiller and not making major marketing or branding changes; many of their competitors do not. My feeling is that all things being equal, their approach is the right one -- but in this case, the ad they have in-market is one that some viewers are going to find unsettling. But perhaps the more sophisticated investor, who has a sense of HSBC's firm-footing, won't be put off. And certainly the amount of advertising the bank is doing -- including on this Fray page where I'm typing! -- reassures customers, savvy and otherwise, that HSBC still has money in the coffers.

A quick side note related to the article, Portland, Oregon does indeed have an annual short film festival:

http://www.10orlessfest.com/

finkyboy:

The target audience is the kind of person who lives and/or works in multiple countries. It's summed up in their tag line, "The world's local bank." They're saying to these customers, look at how we understand there are multiple sides to many issues, we get that, and we can tailor our product to your needs in NY, London, Cairo, or Jakarta.

Assuming that is true, that's a major problem with the campaign, isn't it? There is a tiny, tiny portion of people who live and work in multiple countries. A mass media campaign is enormously expensive to go after that small a niche.

Now, companies blow money on television all the time chasing tiny segments (drug makers come to mind) but that tends to be when they can't identify any better way to reach them. But there are are plenty of effective avenues to reach well-off people who travel a lot without spending anywhere close to the money this TV campaign cost.

It's a smaller demographic than usual, but it's not negligible, especially in the markets HSBC traditionally operates in in the US (NY primarily). I've lived abroad, and maintain accounts abroad, yet still fall VERY safely within Obama's definition of middle class. It's also very effective toward immigrant communities, especially Asians, where HSBC is like Citigroup here.

I'd also bet that time has been very selectively purchased. Most likely, it's airing on most of the business/finance channels, CNN, etc..., and only regionally broadcast. I'd be shocked if I saw this ad during Monday Night Football in Nebraska.

Re: other effective avenues to reach an internationally inclined clientèle. In the past year, I've been through O'Hare in Chicago, JFK in NY, Heathrow in London, Narita in Tokyo, and Changi in Singapore. HSBC have ads plastered all over each of these airports, especially the jetways connecting plane to gate. They're not putting all their eggs in one basket by a long shot.

Fair enough. Though I'm not sold on this particular campaign, I do believe there is some value in TV campaigns to build name recognition as long as you can do it without breaking the budget. (Problem is, particuarly in tougher times, it's hard to do an ROI on that.) But, TV defintely beats activities like sticking your name on a stadium.

History can be a guide, and should be, far more often that it is. Keep in mind that attempts to arrive at valid historical parallels rests on historical accuracy.

For example, contrary to popular belief, the famous NY stock market crash of 1929 didn't occur in a single day, but took three years for the exchange to crash completely. The fact was the market did not hit rock bottom until 1932. Moreover, consider that several years before, the bottom had fallen out of the wheat market and wholesale commodity prices collapsed, sending many agricultural regions of the country into an economic tailspin.

Now, the question becomes, can the 1929 stock market crash and the rapid devaluation of the highly inflated equity valuations (and its subsequent 3-year tumble) be considered a leading force leading to the Great Depression, or was it the product of some other force, and then became a contributing factor? This is an academic but important distinction to make--especially, if one wishes to draw direct correlations with specific economic events we face today.

I know. Hoover raised taxes on the wealthy right after the 1929 crash with further complicated it and made matters worse. Hope Obama doesn't make the same mistake.Thanks for the reply.

They are investing a fortune in this ad campaign. The commercial is on frequently, on multiple channels.

I agree it's for the traveler. It's our brand is wherever you go but different outlets carry some different products geared to the local audience.

On the cryptic relationship between the two, my thinking is brother/sister. The question has some staying power, but I don't think the lingering thought is connected with HSBC, so in that sense it's a failure.