Trying to enroll more children as customers, TCF Financial Corp. of Wayzata, Minn., went straight to Bikini Bottom in the Ocean.
That, of course, is the home of SpongeBob Square Pants, the popular cartoon character who is now pulling double duty as TCF's mascot. Under a promotion that began Dec. 1, people opening an account at a TCF branch in Illinois, Wisconsin, or Northwest Indiana receive either a SpongeBob coin bank or a five-episode SpongeBob video. Those who sign up for direct deposit or a TCF check card also get a Make-a-Bob toy.
David R. Creel, the senior vice president for marketing in TCF's Lakeshore division, said a SpongeBob tie-in emerged during a brainstorming session in September.
"The thing started as an opportunity to attract kids and their parents to the bank, following the philosophy of cereal companies," Mr. Creel said.
After a TCF marketing executives floated the idea, the $12 billion-asset company contacted Nickelodeon, a division of Viacom International Inc., which owns the character. Once Nickelodeon gave its approval, TCF ordered the toys and videos and had them airlifted from Asia.
Mr. Creel said account openings have exceeded expectations by 12%, so the promotion, scheduled to end Dec. 31, has been extended until Jan. 12. TCF typically opens about 20,000 accounts a month.
This is TCF's first promotion aimed at kids, but its success has the bank mulling similar campaigns, Mr. Creel said - possibly featuring SpongeBob if he remains popular with customers, Mr. Creel said. He was noncommittal about whether TCF would open a Bikini Bottom branch.
"We'll have to do some site demographics on it to see if it makes sense," he said.
