Prudential is ranked 55th in the list of Fortune 500 companies, and boasts a remarkable 98% brand recognition and attributes anchored in "stability" and "security." But this apparent strength came with a crippling downside.

Prudential's legacy as an expert in "risk management" had made it seem less relevant during a decade of reckless growth. “Pru” understood that it would have to reintroduce itself to the world as a preeminent player in the financial space in this new, reality-based, economic climate.

This reintroduction had to occur across multiple audiences, from those who buy (making our offering beyond just insurance salient to consumers), those who sell (enter the consideration set for financial professionals) and those who influence (become part of a cultural conversation).

When we first set out to survey the current consumer landscape, not surprisingly, we learned that 27% of Americans didn't believe they even COULD retire anymore. The idea of long-term financial security, the promise at the heart of everything Prudential did, was simply incredible to a majority of Americans.

So while the category was continuing to feed Americans with “aspirational” imagery like yachts and golf, we set out to experience the real face of retirement in America today. We collected real retirement stories by asking new retirees to send us video diaries of the first day of their retirement.

We soon realized that no artistry, no metaphor, could be applied to this retirement experience: that this ethnographic work should become the work.

We called this Day One.

Day One became a story told across America, from TV, to OOH & Radio. We were able to collect even more stories through DayOneStories.com, a place for retirees to share their own Day One pictures, and share their own experiences with others.

Sharing truthful, human stories had an impact across all audiences. For consumers, Prudential managed to break out of its existing mould and more than double the salience of its retirement mission.

For a company with no retail presence, becoming part of the conversation among financial professionals was key: Day One lifted key consideration metrics by as much as 31%.

And for those who influence, Day One’s human and truthful insight was viewed as an important step for the category, with the Atlantic saying “there are few moments in life that can be exhilarating and unnerving simultaneously … Prudential captures both of these feelings.”