The Challenge
In 2018, Prudential set out to start a new holistic financial wellness conversation among Americans, working to gain a greater understanding of, and to consequently improve, the state of our financial health.
Our independent research had shown us that our increasingly health-conscious society had long underappreciated financial health as a determinant of overall wellness. Indeed, the state of our finances affects our physical health, our stress levels and state of mind, our relationships, even our performance at work.
As such, we sought to destigmatize conversations about money and to direct people to personalized support. Our ultimate goal was to help more people to achieve and sustain financial wellness throughout their lives.
The Strategy
Until recently, “financial wellness” has largely been an industry term in the context of workplace benefits. Through a strategic, multipronged PR campaign, we spoke directly to consumer media, articulating Prudential’s point of view that money affects physical and mental health, and highlighting solutions.
We started with the premise – validated through research – that money is a topic that people stress about and yet do not feel comfortable discussing. People lack the language for speaking about money, leaving too many feeling isolated or even ashamed about their financial struggles, potentially delaying effective action to address these issues head on.
The conversation around wellness was already happening around fitness, yoga and nutrition, but we wanted to introduce how consumers’ financial lives impact overall health. To help prompt this important financial wellness conversation via earned media and social engagement, our team utilized compelling data paired with qualitative storytelling and the expertise of credible influencers. Our goal was to educate, build relationships with consumer press and drive media coverage to gain momentum and broaden the conversation to new audiences.