This category is sponsored by Sky.
Best B2C Marketing Campaign
Best Use of Content Marketing Campaign
Westpac leans into fear
Gen Z actively avoids credit cards, afraid of racking up debt. Most banks would try to relieve their terrors, but Westpac embraced them.
Westpac New Zealand faced a fundamental growth challenge. A generation was afraid of one of its most important products: the credit card.
Data showed Gen Z were actively avoiding credit cards, with 61% expressing fear of using them. The view was that credit cards are a
Westpac also knew if it failed to engage customers at the start of their financial journey, it risked losing relevance and value in the long term.
The bank had already developed a fee-free credit card specifically for this audience, but the usual rational education tactics weren’t cutting through. They didn’t lack understanding, they lacked emotional confidence.
Gen Z actually enjoys horror
But after some digging, the bank realised that Gen Z actually enjoy engaging with fear. Globally, 91% consume horror content. It’s a way of processing uncertainty in a controlled, shareable environment.
The insight that fear is a gateway to engagement, not a barrier, informed what Westpac did next.
Instead of explaining credit cards (again), the bank created an experience that allowed audiences to experience and process their fears and ultimately, build confidence.
“Banks were trying to remove fear, while Gen Z was using fear as a way to navigate the world. Instead of fighting this behaviour, we embraced it,” says Westpac.
The bank set clear objectives:
- Shift brand perception (love, trust, differentiation).
- Drive credit card enquiries and conversion.
- Re-engage Gen Z at the start of their financial journey.
This led to the creation of the House of Credit Card Fears, an immersive haunted house experience in Auckland that also acted as a live content studio.
The house had six rooms, each visualising a different financial fear, including overspending, debt spirals and loss of control. It was staffed with 40 professional actors from horror theme park Spookers. More than 1,000 people came through over four days to explore the space. They then helped create and share content.
“The experience turned fear into participation, participation into understanding and understanding into confidence,” says Westpac.
The campaign was built as a content and media system from the beginning. Social and digital content was createdre-cam format was designed for social-native storytelling and a central host character acted as a recurring narrative device
Earned media extends reach
The unconventional campaign generated significant media attention which extended reach beyond paid channels. Westpac ensured that seamless pathways connected the experience to its fee-free credit card so that people could turn their emotional engagement into action.
The content was amplified across social, digital and broadcast channels, extending the physical experience to a national audience.
The campaign exceeded all targets, increasing brand love, trust and differentiation. Credit card enquiries increased by 45%, while card drawdowns among 18 to 29-year-olds rose 73%. Conversion rates increased 64%.
“This indicates not only increased interest but a meaningful change in behaviour,” says Westpac.
The campaign also had a halo effect, with credit card drawdowns among 30 to 39-year-olds reaching an all-time high.
This story comes from NZ Marketing magazine issue 88, Sept-Nov 2026. Why not subscribe? Get four issues a year for just $50 (including delivery) if you autorenew.
Essential marketing intelligence. Don’t miss it.
Read more stories from issue 88 here.
