Content Marketing Case Study: How TVF created Yeh Meri Family to educate 90s kids about Mutual Funds Investment

Category Introduction

A large percentage of the AMFI’s TG (first time / early investors) are in the 25-40 age group. People think about investments largely in the context of their families.

Brand Introduction

Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) launched their mutual funds “sahi hai” campaign as part of their investor awareness outreach program

In 2018, Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) launched the next phase of their mutual funds “sahi hai” campaign taking the narrative forward.

Objective

• Educating audiences about goal-based investing in mutual funds.
• Highlighting that not all mutual funds are impacted by market volatility.
• Explaining that for longer-term investing, mutual funds are the right choice.
• Bringing mutual funds into the consideration set for prospective investors.

Summary

Created & directed by TVF’s Sameer Saxena, the heart-warming web-series Yeh Meri Family is set in Jaipur over the events of the summer vacation of 1998. The show explores the sensibilities of a quintessential Indian family as seen from the eyes of a 12-year old boy. The protagonist - street-smart Harshu explores his relationships with the rest of the family – elder brother & adarsh beta Dabbu, younger sister, 5-year old Chitti who is the apple of the family’s eye, the quintessential 90s mom, Mummy, played by TV legend Mona Singh and the engine of the family, the father, Gupta.

Problem Statement/Objective

The #MutualFundsSahiHai campaign raised the levels of awareness & interest in mutual funds as an investment vehicle across the urban markets. AMFI worked with The Viral Fever’s millennial entertainment brand The Timeliners to drive this message through the web-series, The Aam Aadmi Family, busting myths and answering mutual fund category queries such as “When is the right time to invest?” & “What is the minimum investment amount?”

The objective was to engage them early in their financial journey & bring mutual funds into the consideration set of this young, investment-friendly audience.

Brief

Building on the success of the launch campaign, AMFI wanted to drive the education of the 25-35 demographic in urban areas.

With most of this audience migrating to digital entertainment, a strong content strategy was needed to influence the financial decisions. AMFI’s research also indicated a strong correlation between this demographic’s concern for their families, while making financial decisions. AMFI briefed The Viral Fever with this complex business problem.

Also Read: Case Study: How Marriott India took center stage on digital with #AXNMarriottChallenge

Creative Idea

TVF identified the core audience of AMFI’s marketing message as the “90s kids” – educated middle-class Indians with uniquely shared experiences growing up in the 1990s. These hyper-connected audiences living the fast life in the 21st century were the ones who related strongest to the nostalgia of a simpler time.

TVF’s research suggested that rebooting references from 90s pop-culture was a strong social content trend among these audiences, who also consumed most of their entertainment online.

A family-oriented web-series that took the core audience on a trip down nostalgia lane was the perfect ground to deliver AMFI’s key message to the 25-35 urban audience.

Challenges

• Talking about a contemporary offering - 'staying invested in mutual funds' - while staying true to the universe of a 90s show.
• Solution - Showed it as a "way of thinking" which is as true today as it was then - and will always be!
• Nuances of investing like - goal-based investing, SIPs and market volatility etc. - may seem too technical
• Solution - Using easy everyday analogies to explain some of these technical aspects (e.g. doodh kitni der ubaalna chahiye is used to explain goal-based investing)

Execution

To drive AMFI’s objectives, the locus of the brand integration was the affable father & investment advisor, who always has the right advice to give – whether it’s to Harshu about growing up or falling in love or to his clients or friends about their when, where & how much they should invest. The much-loved character played by popular actor-writer-director Akarsh Khurana dispenses complex financial advice using simple parables and anecdotes – advising clients on goal-based investing, staying in the market for long-term gains and about market volatility.

-Social Media: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, any other social media platforms

-Digital – SEO, ad words, ad placements, etc

The web-series was released on TVFPlay. Viewers were exposed to a Mutual Funds Sahi Hai pre-roll, before watching episodes of Yeh Meri Family creating the perfect atmosphere for a great branded content experience on TVFPlay. The integration was supported by a mini-series released on social media – that focused on Gupta’s investment advice delivered in inimitable style.

Results

With strong brand integrations, Yeh Meri Family delivered on all of AMFI’s campaign goals: driving a 47% lift in likelihood to invest, and a 43% lift in awareness about mutual funds, as discovered by an independently conducted Nielsen research.

The content campaign was also key creating new information structures around mutual funds – a 38% decrease in belief that mutual funds only invest in equity, and a 51% lift in the understanding that mutual fund durations are directly linked to the size of investment. Overall, 64% of people who saw the web-series claimed to learn something new about mutual funds through Yeh Meri Family.

Alongside powerful storytelling, TVF’s distribution strategy for the web-series helped generate over 0.4bn impressions across digital channels, garnering over 35mn views. The show has since found its way into the global Netflix library, and features in the IMDB top 250 list of shows around the world.

TVF & AMFI’s second collaboration brought back nostalgic memories for millions, allowing them to relive their childhoods in their parent’s homes, even as it taught them something new about securing their family’s future through mutual fund investments. Everyone who watched, couldn’t help but say – Yeh Hai Meri Family!

Quotes

Vyom Charaya, Director Brand Solution, TVF: “Yeh Meri Family is a show really close to our hearts. Both TVF and AMFI’s aim with this show was to create a nostalgia value for the 90’s kids while at the same time helping them understand the value and importance of mutual fund investments. The affable father, played by Akarsh Khurana, was shown as a strong advocate of long-term investment in mutual funds making the story a great fit for AMFI. We’re glad that the show was so well received by our audience and also helped AMFI drive awareness and consideration for mutual funds."