• by Tanya Gazdik , July 13, 2014

FirstBank’s smartphone banking is so easy, even the Amish could figure it out — if they were allowed.

That’s the premise of a TV and online campaign created by TDA_Boulder for the Lakewood, Colo.-based bank.

The three product-specific 15-second spots break serially. In “Elders,” an Amish spokesman explains how he deposits a check by smartphone (“Mobile Check Capture,” FirstBank calls it): “I enter the amount, position the magic box over the check, then bury it in the ground, so the elders don’t find it.”

In “Rules,” the spokesman talks about how easily some other mobile users can view their account balance using FirstGlance, where there is no need to log in: “Just swipe the screen, then let its sorcery do the rest. I’d show you, but I’m not allowed to touch this thing.”

In “Manure Bill,” the spokesman is shown relaxing in the bathtub, daydreaming aloud about settling his accounts by phone, whether one-time or recurring, all from just a snapshot of a paper invoice (Photo Bill Pay). “You can pay your manure bill, your buggy bill, your blacksmith bills...”

“Most banks have a mobile banking app. We wanted to illustrate that FirstBank’s is very user-friendly and convenient. Customer adoption of the app has been outstanding,” Brian Jensen, SVP Marketing, FirstBank tells Marketing Daily.

All three short spots end with the tagline: “User friendly, no matter who’s using it. The FirstBank mobile app.”

The campaign targets early adopters, ages 18–34. It will run on all broadcast networks, typically with the 15-second spots in a “bookend” buy (first and last in the commercial pod), and weighted towards live sports, such as PGA, Tour de France and MLB. It will also run on 24 cable channels, such as ESPN, Discovery, A&E and MTV, mainly first-run, summer programming (yes, including “Amish Mafia”).

Online will appear as pre-roll on video networks Hulu, YuMe and Tremor Video, and as Facebook promoted videos, in a targeted buy via Kinetic Social, New York.