In his opening sentence to A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens famously writes “it was the best of times, it was the worst of times”, and he goes on to introduce us to a series of opposites that represent the opportunity for change and the reality of cruelty during the French Revolution. Clearly, for financial services firms, it is the best and worst of times, and the temptation is to assume these trying times are but a passing moment in history, rather than a true revolution.

We know why it seems the worst of times – the worst since the Great Depression, by many measures. And for financial services there is increased skeptical scrutiny from regulators and consumers. Yet how might it be the best of times for financial services firms?

Because the fundamental assumptions have changed, this is a great time for a creative marketer in financial services. Old rules are being broken; new rules are being discovered!

According to Nielsen, while consumers tighten their belts, advertisers are opening their wallets. For the first half of 2011, advertisers spent 5% more than the same period in 2010, except for investment services, banks and auto insurance. They increased ad spending an average of 23%, an increase of $770 million annually!

Why are these financial institutions increasing their level of communication? Several reasons: regulatory changes, changes in consumer spending and needs (have you noticed the emphasis on “cash back” rewards and simplicity, rather than those exotic vacation promises?) and bruised images of these institutions. Our financial institutions have an ongoing and immediate need to repair their image and reputation in the market place.

If you are in a financial services firm, you need to say what you need to say in the right way. You need to assure consumers that you’re there for them and not just interested in filling up the corporate coffers. You’re spending growing amounts of money on advertising, and to deliver value on that ad spending you need to make sure you are investing more in ad testing and message optimization as well. You have to make sure that you are saying the right thing to the right people and make sure your services and products are structured appropriately.

Truly this is the best of times when it comes to new opportunities. But make sure you test and optimize, otherwise you’ll be victim of the less quoted part of Dickens’ opening sentence: “it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness”.

Sarita is an SVP of Client Services at Affinnova.