Rock Financial Launches $20 Million Marketing Blitz

Direct mortgage lender Rock Financial Corp., which last week announced a Net move that involves closing most of its real world locations, launched a $20 million advertising campaign.

The print and broadcast campaign for RockLoans.com will span the next 12 months, the company said.

Ads will appear on national television stations including CNN, CNBC and TNT. RockLoans.com will also sponsor radio advertising on CBS Radio and others, and buy national print publications and other traditional media.

Internet marketing alliances are in the works, too. RockLoans.com recently announced an agreement with broadcast.com to become the only home mortgage services provider to sponsor areas on the site that feature live game coverage of the National Hockey League, Major League Baseball and NCAA basketball. Rock has also signed an agreement with iClick.

The ad campaign emphasizes how easy, convenient, and cost effective it is to secure a home loan online at RockLoans.com. Because it processes, underwrites and closes the loans itself — bypassing the middleman generally associated with online home mortgages — Rock says it is unlike most mortgage companies on the Web today.

“The rollout of this new national direct marketing and brand building effort increases the exposure for RockLoans.com, and it furthers our commitment to be a premiere destination on the Web for people to finance their homes,” said Daniel Gilbert, CEO and chairman of Rock Financial. Agency details were not disclosed.

Rock announced July 9 it would take a third quarter charge of $3.5 million to $4.5 million to close 12 of its remaining 15 branch offices and focus its business on online direct mortgages.