Freedom by Design: FAIRWINDS
Behavior-Driven Financial Rebrand
Empowering financial freedom through behavior-driven design.
The Challenge & Opportunity
FAIRWINDS Credit Union embarked on a transformative rebrand centered on one ambitious promise: helping members achieve true financial freedom. As the creative director leading this initiative (with 30+ years in behavior-change marketing and design leadership), I was tasked with evolving FAIRWINDS from a traditional financial institution into a purpose-driven partner in members’ lives. The challenge was multifaceted – we needed to redefine messaging, visual identity, customer experience, and even internal culture around a shared vision of financial well-being. This meant shifting the credit union’s focus from simply offering products to actively encouraging behaviors like saving, debt reduction, and generosity. The rebrand wasn’t just a marketing facelift; it was a behavior-change campaign at an organizational scale, designed to empower members and differentiate FAIRWINDS in a crowded market.
Key Insight: We recognized that lasting financial health for members would come not from any single product, but from changing habits and mindsets. This insight drove every aspect of the rebrand – if we could inspire members to save more, pay down debt, invest in their futures, and give back, we’d not only improve lives but also build deeper loyalty. Our strategy would therefore align FAIRWINDS’ success with the success of its members, creating a win-win scenario grounded in trust and positive change.
Strategy & Positioning,
“Financial Freedom” as a Movement
Positioning the Brand: Working closely with FAIRWINDS’ executive team, I helped craft a new brand positioning that made Financial Freedom the credit union’s North Star. This positioning was distilled into a clear member-centric mission statement and messaging matrix that guided all communications. We anchored the rebrand on four key member behaviors – the core pillars of financial freedom:
- Save More: Encourage consistent saving habits to build security and resilience.
- Eliminate Debt: Shift away from living on credit; make debt payoff a celebrated milestone, not just a personal goal.
- Build Wealth: Guide members to invest in their future and grow assets responsibly, however small the first step.
- Live Generously: Inspire a mindset where financial well-being enables giving back to family and community, reinforcing purpose beyond self.
These pillars became a mantra across FAIRWINDS’ marketing, products, and services. They weren’t just slogans; they formed a behavior-change roadmap for members. For example, every new initiative had to answer: Does this help someone save, cut debt, build wealth, or give back? If not, it didn’t align. This disciplined focus ensured that “Financial Freedom” was more than a tagline – it was a movement that permeated the organization’s DNA.
Brand Personality
& Voice Development
To humanize this new positioning, I led the development of a robust brand personality and messaging guidelines. We needed every touchpoint – from a billboard to a branch visit – to consistently express the same character and values, so members feel the difference. Working in creative workshops with stakeholders, we defined FAIRWINDS’ personality as a set of traits that embodied financial freedom:
- Relatable and Approachable: Finance can be intimidating, so our tone had to be down-to-earth and jargon-free. We speak as a friendly guide, sharing common-sense advice, not as a stuffy bank.
- Optimistic and Empowering: We instill hope. Even if someone is deep in debt, our messaging focuses on attainable steps forward – the light at the end of the tunnel. Every message carries a positive, you-can-do-this spirit.
- Trusted and Knowledgeable: We position FAIRWINDS as the expert ally. The brand voice balances warmth with authority – we give honest, sometimes tough advice that people need to hear for their own good. Being truthful and transparent (even about topics like curbing spending) builds credibility.
Passionate and Purpose-Driven: Above all, we let our passion for member success shine through. Internally, this meant infusing communications with why we do what we do – because we genuinely care about members’ goals. This passion had to be evident “behind the numbers,” showing we’re more than a typical bank.
Using these traits, I helped craft a messaging matrix that gave guidance for different channels and scenarios. For instance, an email about a savings account rate would use straightforward, optimistic language focusing on how it helps “put financial freedom in your future”, whereas an in-branch poster might proudly celebrate a member’s debt payoff story in a relatable way. We also established a clear tone-of-voice rule: all communications should blend a careful balance of “sales and promise” – that is, highlight our great products and the better future they enable. This prevented us from ever sounding purely transactional or, on the flip side, overly sentimental without substance. It kept the brand voice genuine and focused.
Visually, I collaborated with our design team to update the identity in line with the new personality. We refined the color palette and design elements to be bold yet welcoming – for example, incorporating vibrant blues and optimistic hues that conveyed trust and energy. Typography and layouts were simplified to feel clean and modern, reflecting our promise to make finances “clutter-free and actionable” for members. Overall, the design system became more consistent and recognizable, ensuring that whether someone saw a social media post or walked into a branch, the look and feel reinforced who FAIRWINDS is at its core (approachable, optimistic, and member-focused).
Campaign Ideas & Creative
Story-Driven Campaigns &
Humanizing Financial Freedom
I led a persona-driven creative approach that made “Financial Freedom” feel personal. Rather than generic banking ads, we spotlighted real journeys—young families tackling credit-card debt, recent grads starting to save, retirees paying off mortgages—so that members could see themselves in each story.
Our flagship “That’s My FAIRWINDS Story” campaign invited members to share milestones. Videos and print vignettes traced arcs like “maxed-out cards to debt-free living” and closed with the rallying cry, “What will your story be? Together, we can help you tell it.”
With “Go Further. Give Back.”, we underscored that true freedom combines personal progress and generosity—juxtaposing home-buying scenes with volunteering to show how saving empowers giving.
Finally, “FAIRWINDS is for You” celebrated every member’s unique path: “NOT your average credit union. Because you’re not average either.” Each campaign framed FAIRWINDS as a partner in both financial goals and community impact, transforming abstract concepts into relatable, inspiring calls to action.
Community & Environmental Structures
Story-Driven Campaigns &
Humanizing Financial Freedom
Central to the rebrand was transforming traditional branches into immersive “Freedom Centers,” where members would tangibly experience our financial freedom promise. As creative director, I led the vision to replace teller lines with open, welcoming spaces—signaling a shift from transaction hubs to learning environments. We even rebranded staff as “Freedom Advisors,” underscoring our commitment to side-by-side coaching rather than mere service.
Working hand in hand with retail operations and interior design teams, we reimagined every detail. Casual seating nooks and “advice bars” invited members to sit with advisors over iPads loaded with budgeting tools, while flexible floorplans accommodated workshops on topics like emergency savings and debt reduction. The goal was to make each visit feel less like a bank appointment and more like a personalized financial checkup.
To keep the narrative front and center, we wove visual storytelling throughout the space. A bold “Freedom Journey” mural traced key Money Milestones—from building an emergency fund to investing for retirement—while a Victory Bell celebrated every paid-off loan or achieved savings goal. Digital screens showcased real member success stories, turning abstract milestones into inspiring, shared triumphs and ensuring that every element of the Freedom Center reinforced the journey to true financial freedom.
Freedom Centers &
Member Experience
To make our promise of financial freedom tangible, we transformed traditional branches into “Freedom Centers”—spaces for learning, coaching, and celebrating milestones instead of mere transactions. Working alongside retail operations and interior designers, I reimagined layouts to replace teller lines with open seating and “advice bars,” where members and Freedom Advisors collaborate over iPads loaded with budgeting tools. This modern learning-center approach invites workshops on savings or debt reduction, turning each visit into a personalized financial checkup.
Visual storytelling reinforces the journey at every turn: a striking “Freedom Journey” mural maps out Money Milestones from emergency funds to retirement investing, while a Victory Bell rings out to celebrate paid-off loans or savings goals. Digital screens spotlight real member success stories, making abstract achievements feel shared and inspiring.
Our prototype at Waterford Lakes brought these elements to life. I worked closely with senior leadership on design, messaging, and staff training to ensure the branch delivered genuine guidance—not sales pitches. Even small touches, like renaming the coffee station “Fuel for Freedom,” embody our narrative. In these Freedom Centers, every detail—from scripts for advisors to in-branch signage—aligns to show members that FAIRWINDS truly invests in their success.
Internal Culture Shift &
Leadership Buy-In
Delivering on “financial freedom” meant more than new ads—it required every employee to live the brand values. I kicked off collaborative vision workshops (our “house” metaphor and look-and-feel boards) that translated abstract ideals—safety, openness, consistency—into shared cultural principles. Partnering with HR, we infused these values into onboarding and training, turning staff into certified financial coaches and launching the “Freedom Champions” program to celebrate employees’ own debt-payoff and saving milestones. By co-creating the brand ethos, we secured executive buy-in for tough operational changes—like eliminating counter-productive fees—and reframed the rebrand as a strategic growth imperative rather than just a marketing exercise.
Product Innovation & Nomenclature Alignment
To reinforce the behavior-change mission, we renamed and redesigned products so every account and service nudged members toward freedom. “Basic Checking” became the “Freedom Spending Account,” “Standard Savings” the “Freedom Savings Account,” and new options like the “Freedom Builder Account” and low-interest “Freedom Loan” put payoff and wealth-building front and center. We also launched a “Freedom Investment Series” for easy entry into investing and a “Freedom to Give” rewards program that donates to charity with each swipe. Each name and feature acted as a miniature mission statement—reminding members that every interaction with FAIRWINDS is a step toward saving more, eliminating debt, building wealth, and living generously.
Outcomes & Impact
By embedding “Financial Freedom” throughout FAIRWINDS, members across demographics paid off debt, increased their savings, and shared inspiring success stories that fueled deeper loyalty. The rebrand drove record membership growth, top customer‐satisfaction rankings, best‐place‐to‐work recognition, and high-profile partnerships like our Dave Ramsey endorsement. Internally, staff shifted from sales to coaching mindsets, engagement scores climbed, and “Freedom” language became everyday vernacular. Externally, our “Live Generously” pillar launched the FAIRWINDS Foundation, free financial-literacy seminars, and year-over-year increases in community grants. Industry awards and heartfelt member feedback—“I’ve banked here 20 years, but now I truly feel they want me to succeed”—affirm that behavior-focused design can transform a financial brand into a genuine movement.
Creative Credit Notice: All featured work was created by Christopher Coppola during his tenure at Evok Advertising. Full rights remain with Evok Advertising and their respective clients. This site serves as a personal showcase of professional contributions only.