Social Media Campaign Review: Kotak Mahindra Save with Subbu

Background

Subbu, the jack of all trades and master adviser, expertly played by actor Vinay Pathak, has been Kotak Mahindra's mascot since December 2011.

The 'Subbu sab janta hai' launched with a series of TVCs conceptualised by Cartwheel Communications and have gone a long way in spreading awareness about Kotak Mahindra Bank's savings schemes.

Objective

The objective of this contest is to get people thinking and talking about ways to save smart and reward the outstanding savers with badges and T-shirts.

Execution

You can submit tips for saving money through Facebook or Twitter and they are displayed on the app's landing page on Facebook.

You can give as many tips as you want but they have to be approved by the brand before they are published. As a result, the tips on the page are genuinely do-able and often really smart. You can also re-tip or like other people's tips to earn more points.

The app is excellently designed with tabs for rules, winners, adding new tips and terms and conditions. The tips are categorised under various sections like shopping and lifestyle and are fun to read. Subbu has also shared his own tips under various categories.

Positives

One of the best and most vital functions that any brand associated with money can perform is to improve financial awareness. Indians have traditionally been risk-averse when it comes to investments and even trying out new savings schemes.

So, Kotak Mahindra's initiative may go a long way in breaking that mindset. The contest is clean and the prize is nothing too big in terms of monetary value but the fun is in earning budgets that prove you're financially smart.

The best part is that the filtering by the brand ensures the quality of content on the app. The response appears to be really good from what I could see.

Scope for Improvement

The concept behind this campaign is effective and can be easily converted into something bigger. The scale of the campaign could be enlarged by maybe conceptualising an online TV show with advice and tips from users or perhaps a contest for the Biggest Saver where people submit their financial plans and the best one is rewarded with a prize.

There is much that can be done here though the campaign works in its current avatar as well.