GREENWOOD VILLAGE, Colo., Oct. 2, 2012—Thanks to Great-West’s new single brand identity, Great-West FinancialSM, financial advisors have a clearer and more effective way to communicate who Great-West Financial is and the benefits Great-West Financial can offer their clients.
A few weeks ago, Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company and its business segment Great-West Retirement Services® told advisors and customers that it would market under the Great-West Financial brand. While most advisors are generally familiar with the Great-West name, research showed the company had less name recognition among customers and end users.
“We’ve adopted a ‘branded house’ so everything builds on the strength of our Great-West Financial master brand,” said Joe Greene, senior vice president and chief marketing officer for Great-West Financial. “The clarity of having one brand and one voice with a focused and well positioned message will help build name recognition and lessen potential confusion among customers.”
“We intend to remain a leader in our lines of business,” said Mitchell Graye, president and CEO of Great-West Financial. “We’re in the second year of an aggressive five-year plan to grow our business. Our new, single brand identity is a key factor in our growth strategy.”
Graye said that as part of its business plan, the company already had hired 12 additional 401(k) sales directors and rolled out the first two phases of a sophisticated customer relationship management system. It also has introduced two new retail retirement income solutions to help bank financial advisors, independent broker dealers, and registered investment advisors meet this growing customer need.
“By year-end, we’ll launch a retirement income calculator, equip our 401(k) sales team with additional tools to assist advisors, and continue to expand our retail retirement income distribution partnerships,” he said.
The growth plan is working. Sales were $4.4 billion for the six months ended June 30, 2012, compared with $3.7 billion for the same period in 2011. The company also has added almost 160 new full-time positions since August 2011 and plans to fill up to 100 additional new positions during the next 12 months. Of the new hires, 113 were at its U.S. headquarters in Greenwood Village, Colo.
More information on Great-West Financial’s new brand identity can be found here.
About Great-West Financial
Great-West FinancialSM is the service mark for Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company. Headquartered in metro Denver, Great-West Financial serves its 5 million customers through a range of retirement savings products and services, life insurance and annuities.
Great-West Financial is the nation’s largest underwriter of life insurance sold through banks (BISRA Life Report, Second Quarter 2012, based on total premiums at June 30, 2012) and fourth-largest retirement plan record keeper (Pensions & Investments, April 2012, based on total participant accounts at year-end 2011). It is an indirect, wholly owned subsidiary of Great-West Lifeco Inc. and “A Member of the Power Financial Corporation Group of Companies”®.
Great-West FinancialSM refers to products and services provided by Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company; Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company of New York, White Plains, New York; their subsidiaries and affiliates. Recordkeeping information and rankings reflect all recordkeeping customers of Great-West Retirement Services®. Great-West Retirement Services refers to products and services provided by Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company, its wholly owned subsidiary FASCore, LLC, and other subsidiaries. The trademarks, logos, and service marks used are owned by Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company. “A Member of the Power Financial Corporation Group of Companies” is the registered mark of Power Corporation of Canada.
Contact:
Amy Hawkinson
Fleishman-Hillard
O: (312) 729-3634
C: (773) 301-6437
Lisa Gigax
Director, Corporate Communications
Great-West Financial
O: (303) 737-6290