With Canadians more interested in things like rewards and saving on account fees than ever before, RBC has launched its first campaign for Vantage, a singular brand aimed at creating a holistic and value-focused offering in the minds of all banking clients.

RBC has typically run different campaigns and separate messaging for individual “everyday banking” products, like different accounts and rewards offers.

But the bank’s latest campaign takes all of its everyday banking offerings and, for the first time, brings them together under the singular RBC Vantage brand. Vantage, first launched in April, gives anyone with an RBC bank account access to digital tools, personalized advice and a rewards program more typically associated with credit cards.

Those benefits are the focus of the new campaign for Vantage, showing how the “little,” “essential” and “usual” purchases – from lottery tickets to gas to drug store trips – can unlock rewards or insights into their spending.

Sonia Whiteson, senior director of marketing at RBC and the lead on RBC Vantage, says that for the last two years, banking has been on a transformational journey in how it goes to market, moving beyond simply selling a bank account to providing and marketing “a fulsome and comprehensive experience and relationship.”

To that end, the strategy behind Vantage, she says, is to show that Vantage is more than just a chequing account that is typically the focus of “everyday banking” marketing.

“We’ve really democratized all of our offerings, making them more accessible to all of our clients, regardless of which bank account they hold, no minimum balance required,” Whiteson says.

She says that through the bank’s vast network, it can offer rewards from a wide range of mass-appeal brands, such as Petro-Canada and Rexall. It has also enhanced its account lineup and focused on much-requested banking features that all Canadians value, including lower fees and options to save on ATM charges, as well as an account geared towards new Canadians and students.

“We’re seeing a shift in consumer behaviour with greater willingness to get more, from more and different providers,” she says, with Vantage being the way it is bringing all of that into a single offering. RBC’s insights also show that the rate of innovation, commoditization and shifts in consumer expectations has, thanks to the pandemic, never been this accelerated.

The campaign is running in TV, radio, print, digital and social, and there is also a strong RBC Vantage brand presence through the bank’s retail branches – making use of a brand identity system created for Vantage, meant to connect all its different elements across the platforms in which it appears. Whiteson says it has invested significantly over the years in developing RBC Vantage through research, technology and product development, new tools and training – and now that it has launched, a significant investment in brand marketing was natural.

“We have a lot of conviction in the potential of RBC Vantage, and we want to ensure that Canadians are aware and understand this new and unique value proposition,” she says.

BBDO handled the creative, while Initiative handled media and Publicis created the visual identity. Dyversity was enlisted for multicultural creative and media, while Hotspex provided research and insights and Paradigm the PR support.