American Express ‘Docu-Ad’ Spotlights Lack of Finance Options for Poor

In an unusual cause-marketing campaign, American Express has released a documentary-style advertisement highlighting the high costs for low-income people living outside the traditional financial system, writes The New York Times.

The nearly 40-minute film, titled “Spent: Looking for Change” and freely available online, focuses on the so-called unbanked or under-banked who lack access to traditional financial tools such as credit cards and instead rely on expensive alternatives like check-cashing services and payday lenders. The film does not mention American Express until the closing minutes and features no branded content.

Daniel H. Schulman, group president for enterprise growth at American Express, said the issue is “one we believe in pretty passionately” and the company did not “want this to be about our products or our services … if someone is turned off by what they think of as advertising, and they do not watch the documentary, something is lost.”