• by Larissa Faw , January 2, 2018

LendingTree has appointed R2C Group as its new media shop following a formal review. Oxford Road was the incumbent agency. 

LendingTree spent $126.56 million on advertising in 2016, according to Kantar Media. During the first six months of 2017, the company's ad budget was $60.63 million, down from $74.33 million year-over-year, per Kantar. 

Under the partnership, R2C will handle media planning, buying and analytics for TV and radio for the Charlotte-based online loan platform. While best known for mortgages, the financial company has expanded its portfolio into personal and student loan services. 

LendingTree intends to make TV a larger piece of its overall marketing mix as the lender aims to reach new audiences. The current creative was developed in-house by LendingTree and features the company’s loans and credit-card offerings, highlighting the use of its mobile application as well as its positioning statement: “When banks compete, you win.”

"When you see our TV ads running, you know that the business is healthy," said J.D. Moriarty, CFO, LendingTree, during a recent call with investors. "Because I know if TV is working, then everything else is working and lender demand is up." 

"The more money we can spend in marketing, the better," added Moriarty. "I want to be spending a lot more money than we are because for us, marketing dollars are fuel to the business. It's showing that lenders actually have demand."