Of insurance claims and settlements

Addendum is a fortnightly column that takes a sometimes hard, sometimes casual, sometimes irreverent, yet never malicious look at some of the new or recent advertisements and comments on them. Write in with either advertisements you wish reviewed or with your comments at >addendum.brandline@gmail.com

So what’s the single thing about any insurance policy that you are scared about? Think about it. Signing up for a policy is a piece of cake. Remembering to pay your premium is simple, because if not the agent, the company reminds you. Almost anyone can actually afford a basic health policy. But when it comes to settlement of the claims … Aha! That’s where the shoe could pinch. And that’s what Tata AIG Health Insurance has wisely concentrated on. You have this cool guy jogging and this typical eager beaver comes running up and beginning a sales pitch about the insurance policy he has just signed up for. As he waxes eloquently about the coverage and other salient features he intersperses each point with an anxious offer to share his agent’s number with our cool dude who is all the while jogging quietly. Just as you begin to think this eager neighbour is either an agent himself or is getting a good share of the commission from another agent, our cool customer asks him whether his much-touted policy would offer to approve cashless claims in four hours. As the neighbour looks at him in stunned silence, you are trying to grasp the import of this fantastic statement and are bound to miss the super that is a nice disclaimer about you having to submit all relevant documents and words to that effect, the cool dude offers to share Tata AIG’s number with the poor deflated friend. Nice TVC, good casting, a little over-acting maybe, but probably that was dictated by the script. And if that disclaimer wasn’t slipped in at a particularly interesting moment, I would have said I loved the ad. Now, I like it.

Go be crazy

If making someone happy means I am crazy, yes, I am crazy. And that just about sums up the new TVC from Coke. Prasoon Joshi and his team have come out with a gem of an idea, and it makes it all the more appealing because it is based on the real life stories of extraordinary people like Palak Muchhal who practises singing therapy and saves lives, and Abhishek Bhowmick who devotes a large part of his time and money to caring for dogs and other four-legged friends. Add a catchy tune, and hey, you have an absolute winner on your hands. Or you should have one, at least. Sorry, the execution of the film falls short of the idea and the sentiment it is based on. I was a little confused by its meandering way, but I’m not complaining. The idea and the thought need to be saluted, and so that’s what I doing. And I am bowing low to salute Palak and Abhishek. And I will follow them on Facebook, and so should you. People like them and their stories inspire us to a do a little good somewhere, sometime. Yes, I’d like to be called crazy too. And I’ll raise a bottle of Coke and cheer that idea.

Shows it all

Buying and selling (or renting) property online would appear to be a daunting proposition. But then, so would job hunting have been, a few years ago, or matrimony for that matter. Well, if you are looking for a crisp and effective film that shows it all without having to say it all, look no further. The TVC for 99Acres.com by Draftfcb + Ulka does just that, and no more. It’s one of those scripts that is better seen and enjoyed rather than described. (Hats off to the client servicing team who must have had to describe it to the client before we got to see it!) Suffice it to say the message that 99 Acres.com could help you buy, sell or rent property at the mere click of a button is effectively brought across, and that’s what the TVC is aiming to do. My problem is I when I see the name 99 acres.com I am immediately teleported to its earlier Taj Mahal TVC with an antique Shah Jahan and a wonderful Mumtaz Mahal with her delightfully toothy smile. That was vintage creativity. And could be seen again and again. And then I wonder why the client wanted a new film. But then who has been able to plumb the depths of a client’s mind? And who knows, someone might decide to run the old film again. I can’t wait for that.

Thus spake God …

As if anyone needed more incentives to buy the Vento or the Polo! Well evidently they do, so Volkswagen has decided to lavish them on its cars in the form of new features, and DDB Mudra has created a rather effective film to convey these new add-ons.

There’s this young mother (the pretty Maria Goretti) talking via Bluetooth to her husband as she waits for her tiny tot outside the school.

When the kid hops in she announces that she is going out for dinner with dad and the little one should complete his homework alone otherwise God would punish him.

The tot wisely comments that God would scarcely have the time to punish him, when the voice of God (from the Bluetooth speaker) booms out saying that he would find the time to do so.

The look of awe on the face of the little one makes the film. And the innovative way of conveying the message about the new feature-laden Polo works rather well.

I did see another film that talks about the same thing, but highlights the GPRS feature in the Vento. Well, you have films, and you have films …

(Ramesh Narayan is a communication consultant. >Addendum.brandline@gmail.com )