CorpComms Magazine

Insurance is rarely sexy. It is only when claims are made that most customers have any connection with their insurance companies.

Customer service at these difficult times will play a role in creating a relationship, but most people hope they never have to speak to their insurance companies. While those who claim, hope not to go through the process again.

One year after bringing together more than 40 businesses under one global brand Aviva, the world's sixth largest insurance company and the biggest in the UK, took the opportunity to try something different. It recognised that, for every claim, there was a story.

Customers were at the heart of everything it did. So it made a promise. Each customer should feel that 'no one recognises me like Aviva'. The insurance group then brought the brand promise to life with the unique marketing campaign 'You are the big picture' which invited people to post their images through Facebook and a dedicated website and, hopefully, participate in a week long initiative projecting these images on landmark buildings in six major cities across the globe.

The judges were united in their praise of this campaign, describing it as 'ballsy' and 'truly excellent in every way'. More than that, they were impressed by a campaign that embraced five countries. 'This was a lovely idea,' said one. 'And it was also impressive to implement this strategy on a global basis, with all the logistical difficulties that encompasses.'

Having won two CorpComms Awards, the judges were united that 'You are the big picture' was the stand out winner for the Grand Prix.

The campaign had a clear brief, they said, and measurable outcomes. Aviva now has a 57,000 strong Facebook community - significantly higher than any other insurance company - and an average engagement rate on its Facebook page of 3.54 interactions per 1,000 fans, again a rate that is higher than the average for the sector.

The week long campaign generated almost 300 pieces of positive coverage, of which 96 per cent mentioned projections and 82 per cent mentioned youarethebigpicture.com or facebook.com/aviva. Such was the campaign's popularity that when women's magazine Closer tweeted about it, 20 times more followers clicked than average.

But the campaign also achieved its stated objectives. Brand perception statements increased by 17 per cent and resulted in an average +14 percentage point shift in brand consideration. And Aviva's market share grew.

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