The relentless pursuit of ideas is the key message behind RBC’s new strategic brand platform, set to launch during the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.

“Making ideas happen is central to our business, our clients lives, and the needs of our communities,” says Mary DePaoli, RBC’s EVP and chief marketing officer, a philosophy that includes innovating, introducing new products and doing work that goes beyond banking.

“Ideas Happen Here” reflects the bank’s roster of different initiatives and is built on the belief that the world is now entering an age of ideas as the global community rebuilds, reimagines and reinvents itself. The new platform aims to help RBC show how it foster ideas that will drive its business, through interactions between the brand, its clients and its communities.

The first campaign in the platform, created by agency Dentsu One, will include TV spots and other ads that will feature participants from RBC Training Ground, the bank’s program that finds and funds potential Canadian Olympic athletes. This is the first games where former Training Ground participants will be participating, and the hero spot tracks their progress, framing the upcoming Games as an idea “whose time has come.”

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The broader campaign will also show athletes (like diver Jennifer Abel) using RBC products and offerings including AI financial advice tool Nomi, MyAdvisor and the new RBC Vantage, which will run during CBC’s Olympic broadcasts, as well as social and digital channels, for the duration of the Olympic Games.

DePaoli says the company has chosen the Olympics to start its “Ideas Happen Here” platform to reach the large number of Canadians who will be tuned into the games. But beyond the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, “Ideas Happen Here” will be the strategic platform behind much of the bank’s marketing activity to come – and since the platform speaks to the power and the potential of ideas, it was an ideal time to introduce the message to Canadians, as they are themes that tie in to the competitive pursuits of the athletes.

Despite the fact that the 2020 Olympics was postponed due to the global pandemic, and the Winter Olympics are just a few months away, RBC has maintained its spending towards the Olympics and the campaign. DePaoli says the upcoming Winter Olympics allows the brand to carry forward the message of support for  athletes and carry forward national pride at a time when the country really needs it. 

RBC is entering multiple partnerships and adding additional extensions to draw attention to its campaign. It will begin a video campaign with Buzzfeed Canada that will feature RBC Olympians, a Snapchat series with a number of Olympians. It will also include Team Canada support stickers and GIFs, augmented reality filters on Instagram and Facebook, and an influencer strategy through Twitter.