In its latest campaign, London Life uses a frightening and all-too-common reality for many Canadians – losing one’s job – to emphasize the need for financial security.
The London, Ont.-based insurance company’s 60-sec. spot, from Toronto agency Goodgoll Curtis, features a middle-aged man cleaning out his desk on his last day of work and going home to explain that he’s been ‘downsized.’ The family eventually recovers from the shock and launches its own antique car business.
The spot is quite a change from the happily-retired-on-the-beach spots of the early ’80s, says Craig Postons, the firm’s vice-president of corporate communications.
A few years ago the company recognized a shift in the dreams and aspirations of typical Canadians. People just wanted the luxury of spending more time with their families, says Postons.
To reflect that change, London Life launched its family-oriented ‘Hugs’ campaign, which showed a young couple starting a family, sending a child to college and so on.
To reinforce the new direction of London Life’s insurance planning services, the tag line then, as now, was ‘The freedom to choose. The power to get there.’
Postons says the company planned on continuing that campaign this time around, perhaps showcasing another family going through life – but the pervasive fear of job loss couldn’t be ignored.
‘We didn’t expect to run this current campaign,’ he says, adding that the issue of job loss and downsizing kept coming up in focus groups.
Postons says that London Life is also running a French print campaign in Quebec, until now an undistinguished market for the company.
‘We’re still not known as well as we’d like in Quebec,’ he says, adding that the French-language ads take a grassroots approach, discussing the number of Quebecers employed by London Life and the amount of money the company has invested in the province.
To help boost awareness in Quebec, Postons says London Life is also planning to look for sponsorship opportunities in the market.
An English-only radio campaign is also running nationally.
Media was handled by Media Buying Services.
