A spirited call for timely action

PNB MetLife’s new campaign gives a fun twist to a serious subject

Financial services advertising in India is typically characterised by companies portraying a picture of hardships for the family of those left behind. The idea is to shock and remind people to plan in advance to ensure the family of the departed is taken care of. With a view to break through the clutter, PNB MetLife has launched a digital campaign that is high on humour to create awareness around the need to take insurance before it is too late.

The digital campaign, MakeTime, opens with a man holding a prayer meet for his late musician father Shri Kavinarayan Sharma. Even as family, relatives and neighbours are seen praying for the departed soul, the ghost of the musician is seen disrupting the meet. Next we see the ghost following his son, daughter-in-law and grandson around the home. It appears suspicious and is seen meddling with even small activities being undertaken by the family members. He is seen keeping an eye on what the family eats and drinks. The family finds itself helpless with the overprotective soul keeping a watch on them at all times. The campaign ends with a message that it pays to take timely action during one’s lifetime to protect one’s family from the uncertainties ahead rather than leaving things for the last minute.

The digital campaign is an extension of a communication theme that PNB MetLife adopted last year — “Protect yourself to protect your loved ones”.

“The campaign is a reflection of the modern fast-paced world that we live in, where people tend to ignore the most basic todos in life and are too busy to give priority to the right things at the right time,” says Pooja Garg Khan, head, corporate affairs and communications, PNB MetLife.

The company’s research shows that consumers view insurance as an investment tool rather than a safety net in case of any untoward incident. Also, with the modern lifestyle, people don’t pay attention to the importance of finding time to safeguard a family’s future.

The campaign is a call to act and purchase the MetLife Mera Term Plan.

With today’s consumer increasingly present online, the company has also taken the social media route to maximise engagement and reach. According to the company, the quirky and light-hearted tone in the campaign seems to work well in breaking the clutter amongst a plethora of emotional or fear-inducing campaigns trying to establish the need for insurance.

Rohan Mehta, chief executive officer at Social Kinnect, says the key challenge before the team was to break the monotony of communication and concepts in the life insurance space. The starting point of the campaign was coming up with an idea of portraying a ghost with a sense of guilt. From there on, the focus was on getting the casting and visual effects right to ensure the story appeared believable.

According to India Brand Equity Foundation, as of April 2017, the Indian insurance market is pegged at $79.14 billion (~5,072.49 billion). PNB MetLife claims the company has been growing at a compound annual growth rate of 21 per cent over the last three years and commands a market share of 3.5 per cent.

The campaign is an extension of a communication theme that PNB MetLife adopted last year — ‘Protect yourself to protect your loved ones’