Paperboat: Floating Hopes

The beverage brand's new campaign rides on the nostalgia factor yet again, this time to encourage people to contribute towards a social cause.

'Do you still remember how to make a paper boat?', asks the ethnic beverages brand Paperboat, as a part of its monsoon campaign called 'Hope Floats'. The digitally driven campaign aims to contribute towards children's education by asking people to revisit their childhood and make paper boats. Hector Beverages, Paperboat's parent company, claims to contribute Rs. 20 for each boat made and posted online with the hashtag #FloatABoat. Karishma Lintas, a Lintas group agency, has worked on the campaign.

The company has also partnered with Amazon and PayTM for the campaign. Customers making purchases on these platforms will also receive a letter, which would inform them about the cause, giving them a reason to make a paper boat and participate.

Neeraj Kakkar, founder and CEO, Hector Beverages, says, "We wanted people to reconnect with the feeling of timelessness. And, with such a simple gesture, help a child enjoy the same things we did as school-goers. That's essentially what has motivated us to launch Hope Floats." He adds, "We firmly believe that there is always plenty of opportunity for simple pleasures - and as a brand, we want to be enablers of joy."

This, Kakkar says, is the company's initiative to gift a bit of childhood to kids who really need it. The contributions will be directed to West Bengal-based NGO Parivaar that works for child development and education.

The ad shows a class full of parents who are asked to make paper boats, while the children play in the rain outside. As most adults are unable to complete the boat, children are invited in to teach them the craft. There's another ad called 'How to make a paper boat'.

"We were asked to get people to take a trip down memory lane and bring back the joyous feeling of making a paper boat. The fact that it would be done for a good cause was the little push they needed," says Rajesh Ramaswamy, ECD, Karishma Lintas Bengaluru. The brand's previous campaign was also handled by the same agency.

In this ad, the brand has decided to introduce a new background score, instead of sticking to the 'Malgudi days' theme from its previous campaign. The video has been shot by Picture Brigade Studio and was shot with non-actors in a Mumbai school.

Ramaswamy says, getting kids to behave was a challenge. "They were just so inquisitive about what is happening in their classroom. For the first time ever, all of them were dying to get inside," he adds.

All aboard?

Nagessh Pannaswami, founder and business head, Curry Nation, opines that the execution is top notch and the interplay between characters is well communicated. "It's a charming story. This ad tells you to retain child-like qualities. At another level, it also says that you need to unlearn & learn from today's generation. That's the sticky factor of the TVC," he says.

However, he wishes for a stronger connect with the product. "The connect is too generic currently. It could have moved beyond the most linear connect of paper boats & the company name," he adds.

Brand consultant Jagdeep Kapoor believes that the ad will reinforce the brand name. "It is a heart-warming video and will connect the kids with the two important influencers - parents and teachers," he shares.