New York—Financial services, insurance and annuities company Lincoln Financial Group was recognized Thursday by the Business Marketing Association of New York as its Communicator of the Year in recognition of its ongoing “You're in Charge” brand positioning and its “Chief Life Officer” campaign.

The campaign grew out of the recession that “rocked people's faith in financial institutions,” said Charlie Armstrong, VP and head-corporate brand management, corporate marketing, for Lincoln Financial, based in Radnor, Pa.

“We asked customers what drove them to do business with a financial services company, and more than half felt their financial institutions didn't care about them at all,” Armstrong said. “They said they wanted a company with a distinctive identity and one that gave them confidence about taking charge of their own money rather than telling them what to do with it.”

The campaign, budgeted at $14 million and developed by gyro, New York, debuted last November, focusing on end-user control in their new capacity as “Chief Life Officer.” “Congratulations: You've been promoted” was the headline on print ads in The Wall Street Journal and local newspapers in key Lincoln Financial markets, with calls to action driving users to a content-rich microsite.