× Three Indianapolis-Area Humane Societies
Community-Driven Consumer Acquisition Through Cause Marketing. A Position and Demand play that reframed a nonprofit sponsorship as a warm, trusted customer-acquisition channel.
Section 01
Regional banks compete in a commoditized market where every competitor promises the same three things: better rates, more convenience, and a personal relationship. Huntington wanted meaningful branch traffic and new deposit relationships, but rate offers and product incentives would not differentiate anyone.
The opening was to align with something customers actually cared about, earn community trust, and let a banking conversation happen naturally. Pets were the bridge, a passion that crosses every demographic, attached to an organization the community already trusted.
Section 02
A commoditized category, a sponsorship generating goodwill but no acquisition, and a branch network used only as transaction points. The gaps mapped cleanly to the RYI5™ vital signs.
Section 03
The organizing idea was a platform statement: Stop sponsoring. Start partnering. Position Demand
Combine the two organizations’ marketing assets into one acquisition engine. Huntington brought a branch network, customer database, direct mail, advertising budget, banking promotions, and branch staff. Three Indianapolis-area humane societies, IndyHumane, the Humane Society of Johnson County, and the Humane Society for Hamilton County, brought member communications, an email list, a volunteer network, adoption events, deep community credibility, and a pet-owner audience no bank could buy.
Together they reached far more of the right households than either could alone, at a fraction of the paid-media cost. The unifying promise: a bank invested in people, and the pets they love.
Section 04
RYI5 starts and ends with the desired outcome. Each work stream below is tagged with the RYI5™ vital sign it served. This campaign is almost entirely a Position and Demand play.
Section 05
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Radio
Petacular Celebration, radio spot (0:54)
Ran on local radio and live event remotes across Noblesville, Fishers, and the surrounding communities.
Section 06
These figures are modeled, not reported. Actual Huntington internal performance data is unavailable, so the values below were developed from documented campaign materials, known event participation, historical retail banking benchmarks, FDIC branch economics, and period-appropriate consumer banking assumptions, to illustrate the probable business impact of the documented campaign.
Section 07
This campaign was almost entirely a Durability Layer play. Position and Demand were the primary levers, engineered to feed the Financial Core (Efficiency and Utilization).
A cause-marketing platform, a unified “A Bank Invested in People” identity, and integrated media.
Earned community differentiation no rate offer could buy; sponsorship reframed from charity into a brand-purpose asset; reach expanded through shared audiences.
The humane society partnerships as a warm acquisition channel, signature events, and targeted direct mail.
Qualified, trusted branch traffic and relationship-based acquisition designed to compound rather than spike.
A natural transition from event participation to banking conversations.
New checking and deposit relationship opportunities opened at the point of experience.
Branch open houses and an experiential environment.
Banking centers activated as community destinations.
Section 08
Community partnerships become measurable growth platforms when marketing leadership treats them as acquisition strategy, not charity. Line up the bank’s acquisition goals with the nonprofit’s mission and the sponsorship becomes a scalable ecosystem. That is the lens I bring to every brand I lead: not just running the campaign, but designing the system that makes it pay.
Paul Burkhart · RYI5™ Revenue Yield Index · Indianapolis, Indiana
