Company: Intuit’s TurboTax
Campaign: "Con TurboTax Puedes" (With TurboTax You Can)
Agency mix: Havas Formulatin, Grupo Gallegos
Duration: December 2016 - April 2017
There are more than 21 million Latino and Hispanic tax filers in the U.S., yet only 22% are using "do-it-yourself" methods, according to research conducted by TurboTax.
TurboTax recently set-out to change this by introducing more Latino-American consumers to its tax preparation software. The brand pushed the campaign through media and influencer outreach efforts, as well as participation at Latino-centric events.
Strategy
TurboTax, with help from Havas Formulatin, began planning for the campaign in December, several months before tax season kicked off.
The goal of the campaign was to create awareness of TurboTax and engage Latino consumers through multiple touchpoints throughout the tax preparation season. The tagline "Con TurboTax Puedes," or "With TurboTax You Can," was developed to represent the campaign. The hashtag #ConTurboTaxPuedes would be used to connect with fans on social platforms.
An outreach strategy was implemented to gain support and endorsement from Hispanic media outlets, bloggers, and social influencers who targeted Latino subgroups, including millennials and families. The team looked to partner with several influencers, and select a spokesperson who could help the brand connect to its target audience.
Another goal was to help educate Latino consumers on how to take control of their finances starting with their own taxes. This included providing information on who needs to file, why it’s important, documents needed to file, and tax tips to get the maximum refund.
"Hispanic media are constantly looking for advertising support from brands that pitch them," explained Alejandra Molinari, PR communications manager, Latino Strategy, TurboTax. "However, by providing educational tax content and peppering in product features, the Havas Formulatin team positioned the brand as a resource for press and a service to its readers."
Tactics
TurboTax partnered with eight social media influencers across lifestyle, parenting, and financial categories to develop original content for its platforms by showcasing how to use TurboTax and highlighting the support available from tax experts. The influencers included: Gaby Natale, a three-time Daytime Emmy winner; Andrea Minski, a mommy blogger and Telemundo host; and Marines Duarte, a popular lifestyle blogger. Duarte was also selected as a brand spokesperson and participated in media interviews, developed blog posts, and attended events on behalf of the brand.
Eso! #conturbotaxpuedes Become a Tax master:) @turbotax #WeAllGrow pic.twitter.com/SC29DmTQlu
— Gaby Natale (@GabyNatale) March 4, 2016
Con TurboTax puedes cerrar tu trabajo cuando lo requieras,continuar cuando quieras! Inténtalo https://t.co/yzLWirq1dT #ConTurboTaxPuedes #ad pic.twitter.com/uZEeuq2Wfb
— Andrea Minski (@AndreaMinski) March 17, 2017
Havas Formulatin secured earned media coverage throughout the campaign, leveraging translated bylined articles from TurboTax expert Lisa Greene-Lewis which appeared in pieces for Latin Times, MSN.com, and NBC News.
On February 2, to drive social media buzz, TurboTax partnered with DiMe Media to host a Twitter chat "party" leveraging the campaign's influencers, as well as DiMe Media’s blogger network. The social event featured prizes for randomly selected Twitter attendees including TurboTax gift cards, an iPad Air, and an Apple Watch.
In late January and early February, TurboTax and television network Univision partnered to launch Paraiso Financiero (Financial Paradise) events in five markets: New York, Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles, and Houston. The program consisted of a series of financial empowerment events featuring Latino financial advisor Orlando Montiel. The events were executed in partnership with Grupo Gallegos, a Los Angeles-based communications agency.
In early March, TurboTax sponsored the #WeAllGrow Summit, a Latina influencer event held in Long Beach, California. Leading up to the Summit, TurboTax executed a blogger contest to get social fans excited about the brand, giving one winner an all-expenses paid trip to the event. On-site activations included large touch screens featuring product demos, a headshot photo shoot to support professional endeavors of attendees, recharge stations with massage chairs, and a themed cocktail hour.
"While most efforts centered on national media, the regional events provided an opportunity to connect with local press," said Molinari.
Results
By the end of tax season, TurboTax had been included in 249 earned media placements across various Hispanic media outlets, including La Opinion, La Raza, El Diario, El Nuevo Herald, and NY1 Noticias.
On Twitter, campaign efforts generated more than 12,000 posts, making #ConTurboTaxPuedes a trending topic alongside #Scandal and #GreysAnatomy. Total tweets about the campaign garnered 92 million social impressions. In addition, the brand's influencers produced about 400 social media posts across various platforms.
The brand activation at the #WeAllGrow Summit saw attendees make 180 social posts about TurboTax, leading to 2.7 million targeted impressions for the brand. Combined media and social impressions for the brand totaled more than 199 million impressions over the course of the campaign.
