Gemma Collins was the star of the 2024 Pension Attention campaign
The Pay Your Pension Some Attention campaign will return this year after reaching more savers than ever in 2024.
Initially proposed as a three-year commitment from some of the best-known brands in the pensions industry, the initiative aimed to increase awareness and understanding of workplace pensions among the public. Its overwhelming success has seen the initiative's supporters commit to bringing Pension Attention back for a fourth year in 2025.
Boosted by bold creative and an increased focus on social media, the 2024 campaign thrust pensions into the national conversation, achieving widespread coverage from the likes of Sky News, the BBC, OK! Magazine and a swathe of commercial radio stations.
Even more pleasing was the impact it had on savers, with 30% of people surveyed recalling having seen the campaign – that sort of figure is usually the preserve of seven-figure marketing campaigns. Of those who saw it, 87% reported taking some sort of action to engage with their pension, such as checking their balance, speaking with friends or family about retirement saving, or looking up general information about pensions. Extrapolating the data, this suggests we have inspired 3.9 million employees to pay their pension some attention.
Consumers are all too aware of getting older
Our creative was built around the central idea that people often don't engage with pensions because they don't want to think about getting older. But could the continued growth in the UK's £27bn beauty, anti-ageing and personal care industry be evidence that the public was all too aware of the physical aspects of ageing and taking steps to address them? If we could encourage savers to think about the time and resources they put into looking better as they age, then perhaps we could get them to engage just as much with the financial implications of getting older.
The campaign's research found six in 10 (57%) Britons bought anti-ageing products in the last 12 months, such as moisturiser or anti-wrinkle cream, while just one in five (23%) had organised their finances for later life.
Concepts like investment returns, tax relief and projected income figures might be central to the way pensions work but are opaque and nebulous to many. Grounding communications in concepts savers can relate to in the real world can pay off in driving engagement.
Humour pays off
Armed with that vital insight, we explored a fun parallel between pension pots and pots of face cream and leant on humour to create a parody beauty ad we knew would resonate with our target audience of women aged 35 to 55.
But for the campaign to really take off, we needed the right personality to carry the message. TV's Gemma Collins was our first choice from the off; straight-talking yet relatable, and unexpected for a pensions campaign. Her cult following on social media and penchant for saying instantly meme-able things, were also a huge asset.
Gemma's inclusion was met with a little scepticism from some industry voices who believed that to be taken seriously, pensions needed a more serious approach. But we were confident that the GC's plain-speaking style, natural instinct to sensationalise comedically and proven record as a headline machine would help us reach new audiences.
The lesson for pension scheme communicators: if you want to grab attention in a content-saturated digital environment, you sometimes have to be prepared to try things that make you a little uncomfortable.
Last year's Pension Attention campaign included a parody beauty advert - starring Gemma Collins - which urged savers to overlook any concerns about aging, such as wrinkles and fine lines, and instead think about their pensions.
Diversify the method of delivery
Not content with just one brand ambassador, this year we also recruited money expert and television regular Iona Bain to act as a foil to Gemma and deliver the detailed, practical tips to help savers on their pensions journey.
We also produced a broad toolkit for campaign supporters to cherry pick the types of content and assets that would resonate best with their audiences or fit within their existing comms strategies.
Finally, we gave a great deal of thought to how we reached savers with our out-of-home advertising. We selected digital billboards within shopping centres so that our parody beauty ad appeared in a contextual environment where shoppers would encounter those sorts of products.
It's worth thinking about whether a variety of voices and methods of delivery can help your own comms cater for the range of ways that people take on and retain information.
Your chance to join the campaign
The Pay Your Pension Some Attention campaign is modest in size compared to other integrated campaigns run by global giants. We are proud to have delivered such high levels of engagement for the level of funding, but we also have ambitions to reach even more savers in 2025. If you are interested in supporting the campaign and being part of the steering group that determines the strategy, then get in touch with the ABI or PLSA to find out how you can get involved.
Keep an eye out for updates through the year on what we have planned next for the iconic megaphone.
Mark Smith is head of media relations and saver engagement at the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association
Previous stars that have fronted the Pension Attention campaign include Timmy Mallett (2023) and Big Zuu (2022)
