TurboTax Goes After Gen Z As It Gears Up for Its 12th Super Bowl

By design, filing taxes is painful. So much so that 56% of Americans dread doing it and 26% say they hate it, per Pew Research.

TurboTax has built its business around this collective grumble, making it easier for people to submit to the IRS in a few clicks. Now, before the April 2025 tax filing deadline, it’s reframing its brand with the launch of a media blitz that has Gen Z firmly in its sights.

The Intuit-owned brand has launched “Now This Is Taxes,” a new campaign developed by agency of record R/GA.

The push debuts with six hero spots that highlight the company’s mobile AI-powered tech. TurboTax says these tools let tax filers access a qualified expert and complete the ordeal in as little as two hours.

The films focus on elements including ease of use, speed, user experience, business customers, and the fixed price of its full-service product.

“Storytelling through product can be difficult,” Trevor Kelley, Intuit’s, vp of consumer marketing told ADWEEK. But he believes the result, inspired by R/GA’s work with Apple in the product space, is a campaign that balances functionality with purpose.

Courting Gen Z

TurboTax is in its second tax season working R/GA.  The agency has helped it take a fresh approach to what can be a dry subject, launching campaigns including an R&B spot with Workaholics star Adam DeVine and its 2024 Super Bowl campaign, “Make Your Moves Count.”

As it faces increased competition from rivals including H&R Block and TaxSlayer, such lighter creative endeavors precede a 2025 plan for TubroTax to plant itself deeper into pop-culture moments. The aim? To engage younger consumers and capture what Kelley describes as “low complexity” filers.

With 25% of Gen Zers saying filing taxes makes them want to consult with a therapist, Kelley has the demographic firmly in his sights.

“Positive metrics around Gen Z would be a great outcome” of the campaign, Kelly said, pointing to an opportunity to build loyalty among young people setting up their filing habits for life.

A diversified media mix will support this goal. The brand already launched one of the hero spots for the campaign during Netflix’s NFL Christmas games.

The campaign will see the brand through 2025, showing up at tentpole events including the Oscars, the Grammy’s, and Netflix’s WWE Raw premiere. TikTok and Snapchat will also play a key role in the media mix, while budget will also go into audio and podcasts, as well as local search.

“Mass media will continue to be a part of what we do and how we reach consumers,” said Kelley. “But we’re also looking at different ways of marketing, so we’ve begun to hone in a bit on how customers make their decisions on [picking] a filing solution. Many are doing so through more direct channels.”

TurboTax’s Superbowl Swagger

One of the brand’s largest commitments to mass media will come in February when it debuts its 12^th consecutive Big Game spot in the second half of Super Bowl LIX.

Kelley is tight-lipped about what the big Big Game spot will hone in on, but confirms it will be part of the “Now This Is Taxes” platform. “We want some of that bold advertising swagger that comes with the Super Bowl, so this is a great opportunity for this campaign,” he said.

“Timing-wise, it’s a very pivotal point in the tax year,” he continued.

With brands including Microsoft using last year’s Super Bowl to amplify their gen-AI features, Kelley declines to elaborate on whether TurboTax will use the Big Game to spotlight tools including the AI-powered Intuit Assist.

However, amid backlash from consumers over how brands such as Spotify, Google, and Apple promote and use gen-AI in their ads, Kelley believes that showcasing the advantages of the tech—such as speed and lower pricing—rather than shouting about its use is key.

“How these things get to a customer is not as important as the actual benefits,” he said.

In November, Intuit reported 10% year-over-year revenue growth to $3.3 billion for the most recent quarter. Changes at the top of the business, which also owns QuickBooks, MailChimp, and Credit Karma, will come in 2025.

In November, longtime CMO Lara Hood Balazs departed for Adobe. She will be replaced by Google veteran and former Chobani CMO Thomas Ranese.

Under Hood Balazs, Intuit began experimenting with a “branded house strategy,” designed to push the Intuit name into consumer consciousness, alongside its roster of individual brands.

The “Now This is Taxes” campaign, which will include a tie-up with Credit Karma, will continue to push the Intuit brand overall.