In 2011, financial products like funds have seen immense damage to their reputation. Furthermore, research has shown that the majority of Germans thinks that funds are only relevant for rich people. To restore the image of funds and to bring them closer to the general public, the major German investment companies came together and launched the 'Funds. Just for everyone.' campaign. A campaign that – thanks to its humorous approach – is unique in German financial communications. And which therefore gained huge attention. As a result, the campaign was one of the top financial media topics in Germany and reached new target groups that haven’t related to funds before.

As a key visual, we designed a hand with its 5 fingers representing various types of savers. The hand runs through the various measures in the campaign. From print advertising to below-the-line, through to a viral investment fund sitcom on YouTube.

The hand’s humorous approach was also transferred to the central point of the campaign: the funniest press work ever realized in German financial communications. Major German media reported on financial products just because of that new spin. Exceptional headlines were generated and stated e.g. that women fancy guys with a profound knowledge of financial matters. These catchy openings were always combined with a serious but understandable message, putting across the advantages of funds. Even media that normally do not report on financial issues were excited. A very important point, because this way the campaign reached people who are normally not interested in matters to do with finance.

The campaign generated over 260m contacts just in print, achieving over 5,000 articles in print and online media. Additionally, broadcasts at more than 80 radio stations reached 1.5m listeners. These results made the campaign one of the most popular financial topics in 2011.Moreover, we attained our goal of reaching new target groups. The majority of contacts was realized through local media being consumed by average citizens – not by finance experts.

Feedback from journalists and the online community was consistently positive. Even leading German green party candidate Omid Nouripour – who is from a side of politics that is not in love with the financial industry – liked the campaign, posting the virals on his Twitter page and spreading the campaign’s message: 'Funds - Just for everyone'.