As an 87-year-old brand that is known for integrity, service, and expertise amongst UHNW and institutional clients, Morgan Stanley found itself needing to engage a broader customer base following a number of acquisitions like E*TRADE and position the brand for today and tomorrow.

To align with these shifts, we were asked to 1) collaborate on an enterprise brand strategy that supports the business evolution; 2) translate the brand strategy into a compelling enterprise campaign– something not been done in over four years.

The goals of these efforts were to a) elevate perceptions of Morgan Stanley as a modern and innovative brand; b) attract new audiences, including mass affluent clients and talent; c) drive conversion of lower-touch, platform-based relationships into higher-engagement, higher value relationships over time; d) signal the breadth of our offerings.

Our strategic foundation revealed a compelling contradiction of authentic strengths: Morgan Stanley’s legacy of expertise and their innovative mindset are what clients value most in the firm. These traits represent a clear dichotomy of old vs. new, yet they work together to uniquely communicate Morgan Stanley’s advantage—and Old School Grit. New World Ideas. was born. At the forefront of our execution was the human experience, telling emotional stories that broke the barriers of typical financial services ads. We crafted a story around contradictions, reminding viewers that Morgan Stanley embodies the old and the new, the wisdom and the vision to help put clients on their path to their fullest financial potential. Appealing to a broader audience remained a strategic imperative, so we ensured all types of investors could see themselves in the ad—and we carried this notion through our selection of production partners and VO talent.

Our Anthem is built on a series of human, cinematic, and motion-filled moments, all demonstrating a combination of grit and vision. The film opens on a staccato series of vignettes: a boxer in a high-intensity sparring session, a runner in an open landscape, a young girl experiencing the exhilaration of driving donuts. It then transitions to a broader story about what Morgan Stanley enables for its clients, the industry, and the economy. Scenes include a look into the inner workings of the bank, a grandfather meeting his grandchild, the exuberance of a young family, and employees collaborating with clients such as The North Face and GM. We close the story by circling back to the boxer, the runner, and the rock climber. Through it all, Janelle Monáe's powerful voice conveys how Morgan Stanley puts people on the path to their full potential, no matter where they are in their journey.

We saw immediate, strong results reaching a broader audience than ever before. Day 1 saw record-breaking volume with 127K site visits across morganstanley.com (+64% YoY), 172x more visits compared to the previous campaign’s destination, significant upper funnel exposure with 66M paid impressions, and 245k organic social impressions.

Through February, we saw 185M digital ad impressions (+237% YoY) with a delivery of 5% to our growth target across flat budget. We saw exceptional engagement with our digital ads and quality engagement driven by advertising through February: 831,056 ms.com visits (+46% YoY), 1,381,000 on-site activities (+32% YoY).

Earned media coverage ranged from Adweek to MediaPost to Muse by Clio, delivering an additional 1.3M impressions. Through April 5, we saw 143.8k new social followers (21%+ YoY) and garnered 26% more followers on a weekly basis than average. We also generated a 28% higher engagement rate and 2.5x more engagements per post.