JPMorganChase has added a new pro to its ongoing “Cashback Like a Pro” campaign.
In the latest ad from the financial services company, reigning WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson joins yearslong Chase partners Stephen Curry and Kevin Hart on the court, completing a “trifecta of representation” to promote the Chase Freedom Unlimited card to a broad audience, according to General Manager of Chase Freedom Wittney Rachlin.
“I don’t think the involvement with basketball would be complete without rounding it out with the women involved, and A’ja certainly creates that balance between them,” Rachlin told Marketing Brew. “I want to make sure that we are being inclusive across basketball and making sure that our customers are really seeing what represents them across the board.”
Wilson’s appearance also serves to flex the brand’s growing women’s sports muscles, including its founding sponsorship of the Golden State Valkyries, a multiyear partnership that kicked off ahead of the expansion team’s first season in the W.
Grab a coat
The latest spot under Chase’s “Cashback Like a Pro” platform starts with Curry and Hart setting out to settle “the COAT debate” to determine what Hart deems is “the greatest cashbacker of all time.” Curry proceeds to score on Hart while the two simultaneously drop some of their cashback perks—until Wilson shows them up on both fronts.
Given her MVP status and entrepreneurship, Wilson was a natural fit for the campaign—and plus, “she’s a good person,” Rachlin said.
“We want to bring that humanity back to our advertising, and we thought she was just really the perfect person,” she told us.
Chase started working with Wilson earlier this year during NBA All-Star Weekend in February, when she made an appearance at Chase Center. The partnership was officially announced during the NCAA Women’s Final Four weekend in April, and the ad went live late last month.
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Rachlin said it’s not the end of the brand’s work with Wilson. Kate Schoff, managing director of sports and entertainment marketing for JPMorganChase, said the relationship could go on to include support of the A’ja Wilson Foundation, which aims to help children facing dyslexia and bullying.
Spread your wings
In addition to emphasizing the perks of the Chase Freedom Unlimited card, the campaign serves to help Chase connect with its customers through fandom, a common goal of the company’s sports marketing, like its longtime partnership with the US Open.
“The intention around all of our partnerships is really meeting our customers where they are passionate about things, and finding ways for our brand to come into those moments and enhance the experience for them,” Schoff said.
That goal extends to the JPMorganChase’s founding partnership with the Valkyries, which, like Curry and the Golden State Warriors, play at Chase Center in San Francisco. An association with the NBA gives the brand access to loyal fans and frequent opportunities to activate on a regional level, she said, and working with WNBA teams and players stretched that access to an entirely new audience.
“The fans are different,” Schoff said. “There’s only a 5% crossover of Valkyries and Warriors season-ticket members, so it really opens up a door for us to reach a net new audience, but an audience that is equally as passionate and equally as engaged as the NBA counterparts.”
Running the latest “Cashback Like a Pro” ad during peak basketball season, when the NBA Finals overlap with the early days of the WNBA season, serves to capitalize on the excitement of both audiences, Rachlin said.