HSBC UK pushing new boundaries with TikTok activation

Following the launch of the 2021 Student Account offer on 5th July, which provided students with details of the account package available to them, the period just after A-Level results day is when the finer detail of uni life is considered in earnest, and potentially the most important for Student Account providers.

HSBC UK has embarked on a first, by working directly with successful TikTok creators. The aim is to talk to our first year student audience in a tone of voice and style that connects directly to them. Working with fashion, food, education and financial TikTok Creators has meant HSBC is able to show the benefits of a student bank account in a much more authentic way to our target market.

Some of the top TikTok creators that HSBC has chosen to work with for this campaign include Daisy Breakell aka @Dishesbydaisy who has 478k followers, Timothy Paul aka @tempahtime, with 413k followers, plus TikTok creator known only by the handle @Psychologee, who has over 650k followers.

TikTok launched in 2017 and has seen a massive surge in growth over the last year and has a huge penetration of under 25s. It is now a staple of their consumed social media content. It is rivalling Instagram and Snapchat in terms of daily usage, downloads and impressions, and gaining creators, followers and influence by the day.

Becky Moffat, HSBC UK’s Head of Marketing, said: “We want to support students at this very formative time in their life, which is probably the first time they will have full financial independence. We want to be there for them as they grow, and grow with them. But first we have to reach them, engage with them and highlight what we can provide, whether that is our welcome offer, our student guides, or digital banking capability. “

Becky Moffat added: “With freshers being at the core of our Student Account marketing campaign and A-Level results day kicking off ‘student season’ in earnest, this is the right time and right audience for us to take our first step as bank into TikTok.

“However, we knew that we couldn’t just simply advertise on the platform, as TikTok says ‘Don’t make ads. Make TikToks’. So we embraced what makes the platform what it is and partnered with student TikTok creators to make some great content that was right for the platform and engaging for their peers.

“We are embracing the platform and natively integrating with it. It gives us a new angle to communicate with an important customer category. It has been an exciting new project with a steep learning curve, but I have high hopes that it will prove to be a truly insightful and successful campaign.”

The account offer being TikTok’d, will help students prepare for uni life by enabling them to get essential items beforehand and help them settle in when they get there, as well as providing them with important tools to get to grips with what is likely to be financial independence.

HSBC UK is offering students:

• £80 in cash, to be transferred directly into the opened account;
• a choice of either a £20 Uber Eats voucher, or a year of unlimited next-day delivery with ASOS Premier; and
• A guaranteed £1,000 interest-free overdraft buffer in the first year, which could increase to £2,000 in year 2 and £3,000 in year 3.

HSBC UK has also developed a series of student guides that are available on its website to help newbies navigate their way around student life, budgeting at university, where money can be saved and also the ins and outs, and the potential costs of borrowing money.

Media enquiries to:

Steve Gracey, HSBC UK Media Relations | steve.gracey@hsbc.com | 020 7991 4118

Email: UKPressOffice@hsbc.co.uk