Inside the Vault: Homestead Bank
WHO WE HELPED:
Homestead Bank is the new name for a group of privately held banks in Cozad, Lexington, St. Paul and Wolbach, Nebraska. Before the name change, each bank operated under a separate and distinct name despite being under the same ownership.
WHAT THEY NEEDED:
A cohesive campaign that effectively informed current and potential Homestead Bank customers of name change and minimize concerns.
HOW WE DID IT:
With the goal of reinventing Homestead Bank's identity, we first designed a new logo. The design pulled aspects from the previous logo to maintain a sense of familiarity. We then created a tagline that would demonstrate Homestead Bank's commitment to helping their clients - "your journey. your bank."
With a logo and tagline in place, we wanted to incorporate their agricultural roots throughout other materials. We accomplished this through intentional use of visuals and color in a series of newspaper ads and into a fresh website; continuing the theme in a radio ad series with ag-related audio and music. The ads, along with press releases, were distributed to local media before and after the transition to properly prepare their customer base. The website was launched to coincide with the timing of the name change.
We created further cohesion by designing a collateral package of business cards, pocket folders and stationary to unify each branch under Homestead Bank.
HOW IT WENT:
Adam Boryca, Executive Vice President of Homestead Bank, said community and customer response to the name change was "overwhelmingly positive." The campaign to introduce the new name and logo was successful in terms of assuring customers that ownership, staff and day-to-day business practices would remain the same.
Since launching their website on October 15, 2009, homesteadbank.com has had over 5,200 visits, representing an over 45 percent increase in traffic. Page views increased over 18 percent and average time spent on the site went up over 43 percent.
