Market chaos, value loss, and frenzied selling followed the attacks on September 11^th leading to the largest losses in the New York Stock Exchange History (Davis). The United States had the sympathy of most nations giving it the opportunity to set an example and possibly create social change. Instead, President George W. Bush chose the route of revenge with the War on Terror. To support the costly war and fix the devastated economy he urged citizens to “go shopping” (Pellegrini). The numbers of job losses were among the thousands and many individuals had to work more years than they anticipated to meet their personal financial needs and desires (Siedle). So although a brief wave of patriotism swept through the nation, the focus and worry of the public ultimately returned to personal financial issues. The War on Terror was a looming economic risk, and to calm the fears of financial difficulties and terrorism in general, citizens bought away their troubles as they had been taught to do in America for almost a decade. Consuming was the therapy of the nation, and there was especially an emphasis on buying goods that were made in America. This showed everyone’s dedication to America when they bought United States grown coffee from Starbucks. Supporting the troops and supporting the country meant continually buying in ways that did not seem overwhelming but added up to an overall massive consumption, and this notion still sticks. Those that were working towards early retirement were devastated by the potential threat the troubled economy would have on their chances of early retirement or retirement in general. Even after things started to look up the recession in 2007 reintroduced the devastating reality that the life of United States citizens would be an endless cycle of working and consuming.

This post 9/11 economic meltdown led to approximately 40 billion dollars lost in insurance, which was again wounded by the following recession (Makinen). The advertising trend among insurance companies falsely promised stability in an unpredictable economy, but less people were preparing for retirement on average (Siedle). However, in May 2011 Prudential Financial Incorporated launched a 360 degree campaign that invented a new approach to long term financial planning. The campaign was titled “Bring Your Challenges” and it started with print ads that debuted in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, USA Today, The Star-Ledger, Barron’s and the Financial Times. It targeted a category of men and women over 50, referred to as the Fab over Fifty audience. This encompasses the generation of baby boomers, which consists of 74 million people who are currently nearing their time of anticipated retirement. A survey showed that 2/3rds of Americans feel they are not financially ready to retire, and will be working an average of four years later than they planned if not more (“DAY ONE STORIES CAMPAIGN”).

The Prudential Advertising Team, Droga5, took an approach of rebirth with their campaign. The focus of their print advertisements was the idea that the life expectancy of Americans is later than ever. The main statistic in their print advertisements is “1 in 3 babies will live to be 100 years old.” Their ads claim that a child in the United States is more likely to live to 100 years old than to have naturally blonde hair or blue eyes. Since there is all of this time to be retired, it is essential that one considers their future plans, because retirement is just the beginning of another chapter in life rather than the end to a life already lived. This is exactly what consumers wanted to hear after the 9/11 attacks. They ideally wanted the rebirth of their nation on the foundations of freedom, liberty, and power, while in reality more practically this meant the reestablishment of a good stable economy so that people would have time to enjoy America’s (economic) freedom after they worked for it. Eventual freedom from work was threatened again after the later recession, which is still affecting workers and consumers alike today.

The campaign raised questions about longevity and ignited conversations about long-term futures, in a society of consumers accustomed to instant gratification. The campaign placated the fears of the post 9/11 and post-recession crowds by saying we know you have a lot to worry about already in the present, so “bring your challenges” to us and let us take one burden off your shoulders so you can live in the present again worry-free. While the print ads sparked interest in individuals about their own life span, there was a site created, titled Day One, which featured retirees that talked about all of their hopes and fears concerning future financial plans, creating a community to share and understand the same concerns. Prudential Inc. also created a website called challenge lab which conducted case studies to understand basic behaviors of Americans and relate it to why they put off retirement planning even though it benefits them. It would present information such as “4 out of 5 people have a gym membership but not so great abs.” Just like going to the gym or planning for your future, when people think about big tasks they tend to procrastinate more (Droga5). The campaign emphasized that lack of planning was an individual behavioral problem rather than an economic issue. The website called the platform a place “where people who may not know anything about finance can understand something even more important: themselves” (Allen). The still successful campaign managed to promise people that they will live longer and that these last years will be the best years if only they care enough about themselves to accept Prudential’s guidance and caring about the self is something modern consumers love to do.

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Allen, Lucas. "Prudential: Bring Your Challenges." Lucas Allen Designs. N.p., May 2013. Web. 7 Sep. 2013. <http://lucasallendesigns.com/Prudential-Bring-Your-Challenges>.

Davis, Marc. "How September 11 Affected the U.S. Stock Market." Investopedia. (2011): n. page. Print. <www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0911>.

"DAY ONE STORIES CAMPAIGN." DAY ONE. Droga5, n.d. Web. 7 Sep 2013. <http://www.droga5.com/dayone/>.

Droga5. 2011. Photograph. Prudential Financial Inc.Web. 7 Sep 2013. <http://www.bringyourchallenges.com/ill-do-it-later>.

Makinen, Gail. United States. Congress. Economic Effects of 9/11: A Retrospective Assessment. Congressional Research Service, 2002. Print. <Makinen, G. 7 Sep 2013. .>.

Pellegrini, Frank. "The Bush Speech: How to Rally a Nation." 21 Sep 2001: n. page. Print. <www.time.com/nation/article/0,8599,175757,00>.

Siedle, Edward. "The Greatest Retirement Crisis in American History." Forbes. 20 Mar 2013: n. page. Print. <http://www.forbes.com/sites/edwardsiedle/2013/03/20/the-greatest-retirement-crisis-in-american-history/>.