From Potential
About
First Financial is a team of experienced, independent mortgage advisers based in Stanmore, Middlesex who work across the London area. They specialise in securing the right deal for a diverse range of clients, from first-time buyers to landlords, to media and sports professionals and people with jobs and income patterns that may not always make lenders comfortable. Very much a people-first business – there to help clients secure their dream home – they’re driven by their core values of passion, quality, trust and respect.
Brief
Approaching their 25th anniversary in 2021, First Financial wanted to do something special to mark this key milestone. They’ve come a long way since starting as a father and son team in a small office in Highgate back in 1996, so wanted to celebrate their growth and what they’ve achieved over the years. But this was no ordinary tale of a long-standing business on the up. Instead of focusing on numbers and revenue, this success story is all about recognising the clients, employees and professional connections who have been on this journey with them.
To Performance
As an existing client, we had already worked with First Financial to completely refresh their brand, so we were thrilled and more than ready to help them celebrate this landmark. A quarter of a century is a big deal!
Using a variety of channels and activities, we put together a strategy to best illustrate their story and the cast of characters who had helped them get to where they are today. This campaign was set to run over several months to do justice to the occasion and build up momentum to the official anniversary date in November 2021.
At the heart of this campaign was a series of short storytelling videos, featuring the stars of the company’s ongoing legacy – long-term clients and team members – as well as an interview with the father and son founders on the journey up to the present day.
We realised that one of the outstanding things about the business is their commitment to developing their staff from apprentices to fully qualified advisers. This is exemplified by Gavin Pearse who, on joining the company in 2014, managed to gain his industry qualifications in three weeks instead of the usual 12 months! Fast forward six years and he’s one of their Directors. This was a story worth sharing, so we did, and developed similar stories into articles focusing on members of the team.
Another element of this campaign was an eight-part blog under the ’25 years of quality, passion and service’ banner. Again, this wasn’t about the finances and the metrics of success, but everything to do with the people and values behind creating an enduring business.
To house all this new, quality digital content, we created a dedicated section of the First Financial website and designed a special logo to incorporate this achievement into their everyday branding. We also provided a comprehensive social media plan detailing how, when and where we’d post the video and article content for maximum impact.
Overall, we created a comprehensive suite of content that celebrates the past, present and future of an exceptional business. Bring on the next 25 years.