HDFC conveys benefits of mutual funds, with engaging slices of life

HDFC Mutual Fund has launched an investor education campaign extolling the benefits of investing in the category. The five-film campaign has been conceptualised by Publicis Worldwide South Asia.

 

Each of the films highlights a key aspect of mutual funds. 

 

One of the TVCs (above) features a young girl confidently wading in a swimming pool, while an older woman who is trying to learn swimming embarrassedly learns the ropes. The message is that one should start early, also when it comes to investing in mutual funds.

Another commercial to deliver the same message involves a grumpy old man whom the young girl protagonist relentlessly wishes, even when he does not respond. One day when kids playing cricket hit the ball into his house, they run off, scared of him. He looks at the girl and returns the ball with a smile.

A young girl trying to drape a saree realises that it’s all messed up only when she looks at the mirror. The brand conveys that some things are best left to the experts – in this case, her mother.

 

 

Two other films of the campaign are running on digital channels. In one of them, a young girl ‘invests’ in a parrot near home every day. She teaches the parrot to say ‘Minu is a rock star’. One day, when she walks home with her friends, the parrot repeats her words. This makes her day, as her schoolmates look up to her in admiration. Small investments can pay off, says the brand.

 

Kulfi: 

 

That it makes sense to stay invested in mutual funds for long is the message of another film. The young girl this time is impatient for her kulfi to freeze. She keeps checking it often. When it is finally ready, she gorges on it as the brand conveys that the fruits of waiting are sweeter.

 

Bobby Pawar, managing director, CCO, Publicis South Asia, said, “Most people are scared of thinking about investments, because they feel it is way too complicated for them to understand. So the problem was how do you get them to listen and more importantly learn? We turned to a technique that great teachers employ i.e. make the lesson interesting and fun. From here, we drew parallels between the things life teaches us as we are growing up and the principles of investing in mutual funds. To underscore that these lessons are simple, we told stories through the experiences of a little girl.”

 

Jigar Fernandes, ECD, Publicis Ambience, added, "It was all about finding those situations that could fit the briefs and yet make for interesting films. They had to be simple everyday observations and not stories created for advertising."

 

Credits

 

Client: HDFC Mutual Fund

Creative agency: Publicis Communications

 

Creative team

CCO and MD, South Asia, Publicis Worldwide: Bobby Pawar

ECD, Publicis Ambience: Jigar Fernandes

Creatives: Gururaj Rao, Rohan D’souza, Nupur Pai, Aditya Dutta

 

Account management

COO: Paritosh

VP: Chandan Jha

Client services director: Darrell Fernandes

Associate account director: Tejal Turakhia

Account executive: Jiten Painter

 

Agency production team

Films head: Jignesh Maru

Sr. films manager: Sagar Bhanushali

 

Production house: REDARROW Productions

Director (films): Parikshit Vaidya

Producer: Sanjeev Singh