Case Study 03
To Everyone
Taking Their Time
Hengxin Bank Gen Z Emotional Engagement PR Campaign
Amid a cultural mood defined by “involution” and “lying flat,” we helped a financial institution shed its cold image and become an understanding companion to Gen Z.
Project overview
Project overview
Client
Hengxin Bank
Retail Banking &
Wealth Management
Item
Anti-Anxiety Communication
Gen Z Emotional
Connection PR Campaign
Approach
Reverse PR
Championing “take your time”
over “speed up”
Core PR Objectives
Image Reinvention
Breaking the traditional image of financial institutions as cold, profit-driven and aloof
Emotional Connection
Becoming an understanding companion to Gen Z amid the prevailing social mood
Trust Building
Building brand trust and affinity through in-depth content-led PR
Challenge
Challenges & Insights
A Crisis of Trust
Traditional financial institutions face a crisis of trust with Gen Z.
Tired of preachy ads promising “financial freedom,” they see banks as out to fleece them. Hengxin Bank’s wealth products needed a way into the conversation that wasn’t transactional.
Generational Insight
For Gen Z, “lying flat” isn’t giving up. It’s a way of making peace with themselves in the face of relentless competition.
They want success more than any generation before them, and they are more anxious than any generation before them.
The Strategic Breakthrough
They don’t need a financial mentor. What they need isa safe space for their feelingsThe PR breakthrough: acknowledge the anxiety and offer emotional value.
Communications strategy
Communications strategy
Anti-Anxiety Agenda & Content Assets
We adopted a“reverse PR” strategyWhile every competitor preached “speed” and “compound returns,” we championed taking your time.
Qingmei Future created an anti-anxiety content IP for Hengxin Bank, shifting the campaign’s focus from pushing products to producing emotional content that resonates across society.
This was more than a marketing campaign. It was a way of shaping a social conversation and a deep expression of the brand’s values.
Why Qingmei Future
Narrative Aesthetics
Narrative Aesthetics & Emotional Visualization
Story Direction
Not just a design studio, but a director of stories
Emotional Precision
Striking an emotional chord with Gen Z
design concept
The key visuals and short films we created for the campaign used highly saturated, soothing colors and cinematic camera language, ensuring every visual element struck an emotional chord with Gen Z.
EXECUTION
Execution highlights
Core Content
Emotional Short Films
Life in Slow Motion: A Trilogy
The films follow three young people striving in the big city, including an illustrator working late into the night and a content creator torn between dreams and reality, in the moments they choose to slow down and make peace with themselves.
No product information appears in the films; only the logo and the line “To Everyone Taking Their Time” at the end. This is content-led PR that is genuinely non-commercial.
Shaping the Conversation
Social Dialog
Weibo hashtag #LetEverythingTakeTime#
Psychology KOLs and sociologists were invited to discuss young people’s mental exhaustion.
Elevating the conversation from “Should I manage my money?” to“How do we face the anxieties of our time?”as a societal question, placing the brand at the heart of the public conversation.
Communications Mix
Deep Engagement
In-depth content:In-depth articles and videos on Zhihu, Douban and Bilibili sparked genuine discussion about “lying flat” and attitudes toward money
Media relations:Social affairs and youth culture media were invited to cover Hengxin Bank’s non-commercial PR initiative
Content strategy:Emphasizing social responsibility over product features, building emotional affinity rather than functional awareness
Results
Measurable outcomes
80M
Short Film Views
Platform-wide reach, sparking broad emotional resonance
250M
Hashtag Views
#LetEverythingTakeTime# sparked widespread public discussion
Brand Perception
200%
Period-on-period increase in “favorability” and “human touch” ratings among young audiences
User Growth
45%
Period-on-period growth in Gen Z app registrations during the campaign
Engagement Shift
A Qualitative Shift
User comments shifted from product inquiries to thanks for being understood
Key Outcome
From Profit Seeker to Companion
The campaign transformed Hengxin Bank from a cold financial institution into a companion that understands Gen Z’s anxieties and offers emotional value. The brand no longer talks only about products; it talks about life, feelings and understanding.
Key Insight
Methodology Insight
The Reverse PR Principle
1. No talk of product features:While everyone else was selling, we chose to listen and understand
2. Acknowledge negative emotions:Rather than sidestepping "lying flat" and "anxiety", we embraced these real emotions head-on
3. Offer emotional value:The brand's value lies not in product returns, but in emotional resonance
Rules for Engaging Gen Z
Sincerity first:Gen Z can spot insincerity instantly; any trace of marketing backfires
Issue-driven:Don't advertise. Spark public conversation on social issues
Content is king:Invest in genuinely valuable content, not bought traffic
