For Stacy Johnson, it was a routine stop at the bank until the manager asked if she would like to appear in a commercial.
Johnson, owner of boutique Stacia Clothing in Santa Monica, said yes. After a few phone interviews and a one-day film shoot in May, she’s now featured in a campaign for Bank of America that will run through December. The campaign includes TV, online and on in-branch video throughout Southern California.
“They thought of me because they were looking for a local small business that had been with the bank a long time,” Johnson said.
The campaign also features two other local businesses, San Antonio Winery in downtown Los Angeles and 9 to 5 Seating in Hawthorne.
Steve Riboli, vice president at San Antonio, said he approached the bank last year and offered to appear in an ad about long-term relationships: The winery opened its account in 1917 when BofA was called Bank of Italy. The TV commercial shows how the bank has helped the company grow for nearly a century.
San Antonio received no money for its TV appearance – Riboli called it “an exchange of goodwill” – but the downtown winery and restaurant has definitely benefited from the publicity.
“It’s great, the exposure you get alongside a corporate giant,” he said.
This isn’t the first time national corporations have included L.A.-based clients in commercials. Last year, Montrose Pet Hospital was featured in an AT&T spot and West Hollywood-based yogurt chain Pinkberry had a store appear in a Microsoft ad. In an earlier campaign, Bank of America showcased Pink’s hot-dog stand.
Meredith Verdone, a marketing executive at Bank of America in New York, said bankers in Los Angeles selected the companies for the ads. Similar ads showing local companies are running in other cities across the country.
Johnson said a lot of customers have seen the ad.
“I’m just starting to see the business because the ad has started to run,” she said.
“And my relationship with Bank of America has improved. They have assigned me a dedicated banker, so that’s a nice bonus.”
– Joel Russell
