The Insights:
To achieve their goal, GSB needed to build trust across a broader demographic. Our data science and strategy teams explored the psychographics and behaviors driving trust and brand loyalty.
We focused on “familiarity bias,” where people prefer familiar options over unfamiliar ones, even if the latter may be better. This preference is tied to “cognitive ease,” or the comfort of processing familiar information.
Major brands have used familiarity bias to build trust. However, over time, these strategies became oversaturated and often eroded consumer trust. We believed that, if executed correctly, familiarity bias could be key to GSB’s rebranding.
The Solution
In addition to exploring home bias’s impact on GSB’s rebrand, our psycholinguistics analysis showed how language shapes trust and perception, especially for Gen X's logic-driven mindset and Millennials/Gen Z's purpose-driven values.
We also identified key elements of GSB’s historic brand that resonated with long-time customers, preserving them while adding modern traits to reflect their evolution.
These insights led to a comprehensive rebranding, including:
A new name, Ascend, that reflected the promise of an “elevated financial journey”
A refreshed visual identity balancing modernity with heritage
A messaging platform that appealed to emerging audiences' values of transparency, purpose, and community, while retaining the warmth expected by long-time customers
We also identified key elements of GSB’s historic brand that resonated with long-time customers, preserving them while adding modern traits to reflect their evolution.
These insights led to a comprehensive rebranding, including:
A new name, Ascend, that reflected the promise of an “elevated financial journey”
A refreshed visual identity balancing modernity with heritage
A messaging platform that appealed to emerging audiences' values of transparency, purpose, and community, while retaining the warmth expected by long-time customers
The Results:
Through a strategic blend of data science, psycholinguistics, and creative direction, we developed a foundational brand GSB can lean on to transition from a community bank to a forward-thinking regional financial institution. By leveraging familiarity bias, we created a brand that spans a range of demographics, engendered trust before it was even launched, and acts as a springboard for GSB’s vision for growth.
