April 23, 2008

Illinois State Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias’ office has launched a new advertising campaign designed to increase awareness about the state’s 529 Bright Start College Savings Program and ultimately boost the number of accounts.

The new campaign puts real families in the spotlight by utilizing home videos and snapshots in a series of television spots, newspaper and magazine ads, radio commercials, and Internet advertising.

No taxpayer dollars were used to produce or place the ads. Bright Start’s new program manager – OppenheimerFunds, Inc. – paid to create and air the advertising.

“With a simple and clear message, we want parents to know that Bright Start works like a 401k for their child’s college education, and that it’s easy to get started,” said Giannoulias, noting that the ads will begin running statewide starting this week. “When you know more about the plan, investing in Bright Start is a no-brainer, especially for Illinois residents.”

Two By Four, a full-service advertising agency based in Chicago, partnered with the Treasurer’s Office to create the ad campaign. It was selected during a competitive bidding process that the Treasurer’s Office initiated late last year.

The advertising takes a fresh, positive approach to the issue of college savings. “No more scare tactics, parents are sufficiently freaked out by skyrocketing college costs by now,” said Dan Consiglio, a creative director at Two By Four. “We needed to connect with parents and their hectic lives, and offer a real plan of action.”

The advertising revolves around a simple truth: compared to the everyday responsibilities of parenthood, setting up and contributing to a Bright Start 529 fund is pretty simple.

“Hard is getting three kids out the door to school on a winter day,” Consiglio said. “Having a little money direct-deposited into a Bright Start account each month may be the easiest thing you’ll do as a parent.”

Giannoulias noted that every state has a college savings program but many have failed in convincing parents to get started because they feel it’s confusing and difficult to enroll.

“From the very start, our goal in launching an ad campaign was to do something different and empower parents to take action and get started in saving for their child’s future,” Giannoulias added.

A survey released earlier this year that was commissioned by OppenheimerFunds and conducted by Cogent Research showed that only 22 percent of Illinoisans are confident that they will achieve their savings goals to enable a child to attend college.

When Giannoulias took office last year, one of his main goals was to revamp the Bright Start program, an Illinois-sponsored 529 savings plan with $2.3 billion in assets and nearly 150,000 accounts. Bright Start account holders earn tax-free money on their investments if they use the money for college-related expenses at accredited schools, colleges and universities. Illinois residents receive a tax deduction of up to $10,000 per individual or $20,000 per individuals filing jointly.

The Treasurer’s Office has since selected OppenheimerFunds as the plan’s new program manager, which significantly improved Bright Start’s performance and made the plan even more appealing to concerned parents by adding more highly rated funds and significantly reducing fees.

You can view the ads or enroll in Bright Start by visiting www.brightstartsavings.com.