Branded Content | Financial Services Marketing

SYMETRA FINANCIAL

Plan Well, Play Well

Redefining Retirement with Sue Bird

CREATIVE
Digital Video
Social
Digital

CHALLENGE / Traditional retirement messaging felt outdated, especially for younger and female audiences who are planning their futures earlier than ever.

‍INSIGHT / Retirement today isn’t about slowing down, it’s about unlocking new possibilities through smart planning.

‍SOLUTION / We partnered with Sue Bird and a Real Housewives producer to launch “Plan Well, Play Well,” a reality content series that redefined retirement as an active, purpose-driven next chapter.

When Life Post-Career Becomes the Adventure

In season one, Sue learned hip-hop tap with celebrity choreographer Chloe Arnold, baked edible art, and faced her fear of bees. Season two took her to the LA Ninja Academy with real-life warrior Jessie Graff and mom Ginny, and to The Gentle Barn for a day of animal rescue TLC. The result? A show that makes retirement planning not just accessible, but aspirational.

The social-first series for Symetra delivered standout results—over one-third of viewers watched the full 3–4 minute episodes, smashing typical completion rates for social video. The campaign also earned three Shorty Award nominations, validating both its impact and creativity.

Trinity Parker
Chief Marketing Officer
Symetra

Our goal was to make financial products more accessible to consumers in a fun, fresh way by showing a real modern retiree on a journey to find her next adventure.

Results

33%

Completion rate on YouTube pre-roll videos that are more than 3 minutes long

1,300%

Increase of YouTube subscribers

Plan Well, Play Well

We’ve got a team stacked with talent, ready to help.