HDFC Life: The click that protects

HDFC Life Insurance's campaign is based on the thought 'I love my family'; it creates awareness about the online term plan 'Click 2 Protect' and the easy way to purchase it.

To promote its newly-launched insurance policy, HDFC Life Click 2 Protect, HDFC Life Insurance has launched a new campaign to raise awareness about online term insurance plans and the easy way to buy insurance to protect one's family.

Conceptualised by Leo Burnett, the campaign comprises five television commercials titled
Baby
,
Neighbours
,
Ring
,
Shopping
, and
Silver Jubilee
. The TVCs are centred around a protagonist and the ways he chooses to secure his family including parents, wife, and children, at different stages in life. All the ads trigger the conversation that to really ensure complete financial security of loved ones forever, one needs to plan ahead, a thought articulated as 'Ab mein bhi sar utha ke kah sakta hoon... I Love my Family'.

"Following the launch of HDFC Life Click 2 Protect, our new online term insurance plan, we have embarked on this new marketing campaign to spread awareness about the importance of online term plans, the needs they cater to, and how they are relevant to a consumer's life," says Sanjay Tripathy, executive vice-president and head, marketing and direct channels, HDFC Life Insurance.

"The expression 'I love my family, do you?' is derived from the insight that for Indians, family comes first and they want to secure their family's current lifestyle, dreams and goals even when they are not around. The entire campaign comprises five films addressing the most important needs of the bread winner at different stages in his life," adds Tripathy.

K V Sridhar, national creative director, Leo Burnett, explains, "The campaign stems from a simple truth -- if we love someone, then we will ensure that he or she will never have to suffer, even after we are gone. Since 'term insurance' as a product is designed to protect the family from any financial downfall in case of untimely demise of the policy holder, the above-mentioned truth lends itself meaningfully to the creative idea. Therefore, if one really loves his family, he will sign up for term insurance, which translates into a man proudly wearing the badge of 'I love my family'."

The television campaign will be followed by digital, and later, social media campaigns. The company will also launch print and out of home campaigns.

Love thy neighbour?

Advertising professionals feel that the campaign fails to create an impact as it lacks in freshness in terms of concept.

Gautam Pandit, partner and senior creative director, R K Swamy BBDO, calls it a clean and honest attempt. "The 'Sar utha ke jiyo!' tagline makes the premise very strong, but I feel the insight itself is not very unique for the category. Most insurance companies have said the same. The tagline 'I love my family' is warm, but not clutter-breaking. The style or the execution could have been more engaging, and not driven by the testimonial format. Also, because of the short duration, and similarity in style, colour palette, and the cast in all the TVCs, there is a chance to miss the point in each one," says Pandit.

He adds, "To an extent, the 'heart' reminds one of the Saffola campaign. Also, the protagonist holding the placard takes away the warmth of the plot. The films could have ended in a surprising manner to add some 'memorability'."

Narayan Devanathan, senior vice-president and national planning head, Dentsu Marcom India, says, "Here's a great example of a quandary for Indian advertising - you have a product that needs a consumer to go online to buy it. You have a product or category that offers the opportunity to create a truly outstanding, digital-led engagement platform. You have a ready prospect base that is already online (if not, this product is not relevant to them anyway). And yet, what do we have here? We have a brand that's built a formidable equity with a great cultural insight that no matter what, Indians are fiercely proud about living with self-respect."

According to Devanathan, what works in these ads is that they are simple, and consistent in styling and branding. However, the possibilities offered by this product and for this brand make it seem as though it's a missed opportunity. The brand seems to be diluting (if not abandoning subtly) that same equity with a message about loving your family with your head held high.

"Since when do we need self-respect (or an insurance plan) to profess love, especially to our own family? And, what does that have to do with an online plan? More pertinently, why does the brand need five different TVCs to announce this, when it could have beautifully engaged through an eco-system of interactive ideas (including on TV)? After all, the final destination for prospects and consumers is on the internet," he notes.