Life Insurance Marketing in India (A): The Changing Advertising and Promotion Norms

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Max New York also resorted to depicting positive emotions such as trust and protection in its print advertisements. The company released two print advertisements. While one of them carried an image of the revered deity Goddess Durga, the other projected three teenagers standing together, with their faces painted green, white and saffron - like the Indian national flag. Reportedly, Max New York wanted to convey the message that 'insurance is your partner for your life.' Suhel Seth of Equus Advertising the ad agency, which created the advertisements for Max New York - said, "We had to break the clutter, as insurance as a category has largely communicated doom and fear. Therefore, the campaign lent itself better to an emotional route." Max New York Life also carried out an extensive outdoor media campaign across the country, focusing on 'India-specific' images such as traditional wrestlers and village people. In addition to such TV commercials, the private insurance companies were trying to make their presence felt by organizing blood donation camps, contests and sponsoring various events. ING Vysya tied up with leading US-based Columbia Picture's Indian arm to carry out promotional activities using the blockbuster English movie 'Spiderman.'

In the metros, ING Vysya distributed free movie tickets to its customers. A similar exercise was carried out for another English movie 'Mitr' (Friend). Reportedly, Columbia Pictures and ING Vysya had planned to join hands on a long-term basis. The latter also organized the Green Mumbai Drive and several blood donation camps in association with the Red Cross, besides sponsoring the action replay of the India-West Indies cricket match series in May 2002 and also in November 2002. Om Kotak and Birla Sun Life took to sponsoring events in a major way, to attract prospective customers. In 2001, Birla Sun Life sponsored a play to which a few Citibank credit card customers were invited. A company official said, "Sponsoring plays and events like these give us good mileage. They may not directly give us leads to sales, but certainly give us better visibility." According to company sources, Birla Sun life was considering the sponsorship of premier shows and offering tickets to corporate agents like Citibank and employees of Deutsche Bank, who helped in the sale of policies. A senior company official said, "It is all about building relationships with our corporate agents." Om Kotak initially highlighted in its advertisements the credibility and trustworthiness of individual partners (Old Mutual & Kotak Mahindra) through its generic campaigns. The TV commercials featured men and women 'meeting' themselves in the future - happy, healthy and secure, thanks to insurance. In early 2002, company also launched product - specific campaigns. Om Kotak was also considering sub-branding of products.

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3] The red vermilion powder used by married Hindu women in India as a symbol of their married status. Considered extremely auspicious, it is an integral part of the country's culture and is associated with concepts such as luck, protection and togetherness.

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