Crocker National Bank

It started life as the soundtrack in an ad for Crocker National Bank, which was later acquired by Wells Fargo.

The song's path from advertising jingle to radio staple can teach you a lot about how to engage your audience, employees, and customers, no matter what business you're in.

So the story begins when Crocker Bank noticed that its customer base was aging.

The bank hired advertising superstar Hal Reine to come up with a new kind of ad that would appeal to younger folks.

Reine envisioned a wedding and asked the songwriting team of Roger Nichols and Paul Williams to write a song for one.

You've got a long way to go.

We'd like to help you get there.

The Crocker Bank The ad was a big success, and the bank gave it a lot of airplay.

People were mixing them up with other banks that had the word citizens in their title.

And furthermore, the public perception of Crocker Bank was that it was a stodgy, old money institution.

Like strictly for corporate businesses and wealthy trusts.

And that perception was a massive financial liability for them at that moment because the demographics of the United States were undergoing a seismic shift.

It was a goldmine if you could reach them.

Right.

Crocker Bank looked at the data and realized that if they didn't capture this specific young demographic, they were literally going to age themselves out of the market entirely.

So they turned to their advertising agency, McCann Erickson, and this young visionary ad executive named Hal Reine takes the account.