Domestic abuse is a prevalent, yet hidden crime in the UK. The police receive a domestic abuse-related call every 30 seconds, but less than 24% of cases are ever reported. The problem becomes more sinister when you explore the role finance plays.

Physical and emotional abuse are the weapons abusers use to torment their victims, but finance is the tool that makes it impossible for victims to leave. Economic abuse occurs in 95% of domestic abuse situations but 69% of the UK don’t understand the link between the two.

Our brief was to raise awareness of how finance traps victims in abusive relationships. And to highlight that all 352 HSBC UK branches are now ‘Safe Spaces’ where those experiencing domestic abuse can take their first step to regaining control through specialist advice and support. Even if you don’t bank with HSBC UK.

Without access to money, it can take someone up to seven attempts to leave an abusive relationship. To educate people about how not being in control of your financial independence can jeopardise your safety, we used the analogy of a puppet to shine a light on the hidden strings of economic control. Then we gave people a way to cut these strings.

In partnership with Hestia and UK Says No More, HSBC UK delivered specialist training to over 4,000 employees, turning all its 352 branches into Safe Spaces. Creating anonymous refuges where people could seek help. Even if they don’t bank with HSBC UK.

In branch, people could access financial support and services, including opening a secure bank account with a non-traceable sort code.

We chose to focus on an issue that was relevant to HSBC UK’s core competency in finance, knowing credibility was key in landing HSBC UK’s new brand purpose, ‘Opening up a world of opportunity’. This approach helped us avoid the pitfalls of competitors, whose purpose comms often championed the good but totally unrelated causes they funded.

We brought the campaign to life across a full 360 plan: kickstarting the conversation with a PR driving stunt, building awareness of the problem at scale, educating the public on how to spot the signs of economic abuse, and most importantly, connecting people in need to help through targeted media.

Escaping an abusive relationship isn’t as simple as walking away, especially when an abuser controls all the things money can buy; food, clothing, accommodation, and the way out.

To bring the power domestic abusers hold over their victims to life we created a live billboard in Spitalfields Market, a site with an average daily footfall of 31124, that featured a giant hand controlling a performer via strings.

Despite our performer trying to escape the confines of the billboard, the strings pulled her back every time, dramatising how people experiencing financial abuse can only go so far before they are controlled again. Staff from HSBC UK and Hestia’s UK SAYS NO MORE were on hand at Spitalfields to offer information or support to any passersby who needed it.

The charities, Surviving Economic Abuse and Hestia were consulted throughout the creative process to ensure we showed sensitivity toward, and empathy for victims.

Visits to the ‘Financial Independence’ landing page increased by 1400% during the campaign period, further educating the public and connecting victims to the help they need.

Spice Girl, Melanie B also lent her voice to the campaign, thanking the bank for their support and understanding of abuse, increasing our message’s reach.

The campaign drove an increase in consideration, which grew by 4% at a Nat-Rep level, driven by the younger 18–34-year-old audience, which saw an 8% uplift during the quarter. This was ahead of the category.

Perhaps most impactfully, the campaign created change within the bank, rallying its divisions in support of tackling economic abuse. The bank realised abusers were misusing payment references to send abusive messages to their victims. To combat the issue, HSBC implemented a warning system, which to-date has driven a 40% reduction in the number of abusive messages sent on HSBC’s banking platforms.