How This Canadian Bank Explored the Emotional Side of Global Money Transfers
Canada is one of the most diverse countries in the world. According to the 2021 census, there were 8,361,505 immigrants - making up 23% of the country’s population - a number which has undoubtedly grown since.
However, immigration is not an easy process. Uprooting one’s life to move to another country is never simple, and frankly, it’s not a feasible option for whole families. Whether it’s work, local ties, or the cost of doing so, sometimes, the best compromise is to send part of a family with the hope that they make a new and successful living in the process.
In turn, this leads to the need for money transfers. While Canadians are notorious for making fun of their currency’s value, the truth of the matter is that when compared to many international markets around the globe, the Canadian dollar is still worth a great deal. And, when it gets sent to family back home, any amount can go a long way… especially when the transfer doesn’t get hit with banking fees.
Sure, a 3-6% fee isn’t the largest amount of money to lose, but ultimately, it’s still money lost - funds which could have been spent on food, or living, or any manner of things other than lining the pockets of the financial institution responsible. With this in mind, Canadian bank CIBC saw a great creative opportunity to highlight its lack of transfer fees. Working with creative agency Courage and Spy Films director Omri Cohen, the team created two spots showcasing real stories of Canadians sending money back home to their loved ones. Featuring footage of the families in Manila and Mumbai, the work is emotional - capturing the heartfelt moments that come with financial support, and emphasising the value of money not lost to transfer fees.
LBB’s Josh Neufeldt sat down with Courage’s creative director team, Domenique Raso and Cindy Marie Navarro, to learn how this came to life.
LBB> What was the brief for this campaign, and what immediate ideas came to mind?
Domenique> We needed to tell people that CIBC has a zero dollar global money transfer fee. There were a lot of ideas on the table, but what we loved about this one specifically was how it made something that can be transactional feel very emotional and real. It creates a genuine human connection with the people on the other side of the money transfer.
LBB> The decision to showcase these real families is a beautiful decision. As such, what made you decide to shoot in Mumbai and Manila specifically?
Cindy> We really wanted to bring to life just how far the money typically lost to transfer fees could go back home. A 3-6% transfer fee may not seem like a lot on paper, until you realise everything it could buy your family, as one Canadian dollar can go such a long way in many other countries. Manila and Mumbai were the two cities we chose because that is where the majority of Canadian Global Money Transfer users send money.
I also happen to be from Manila, and Dhaval, the CCO on this, is from Mumbai, and we both have families living in those cities. So, we really had a deep understanding of those cultures and the reason people are typically sending money back to their families there.
LBB> This campaign was directed by Spy Films’ Omri Cohen. Why was he the perfect person to bring this spot to life?
Domenique> Omri directed our Nescafe ‘How the World Says Coffee’ spot that Courage shot last fall. It captured the nuances of different countries’ cultures, and it looked absolutely beautiful. While this was a much different shoot, we knew that he had the ability to be super nimble and capture a lot of beautiful content that would help elevate our story. He also has this way of making people feel incredibly comfortable and at ease in front of the camera - which is very important when filming real people who aren’t actors - so he was the clear choice for this. And honestly, Omri is some kind of grandma whisperer, because grandmas all over the world seem to love him!
LBB> Showcasing the daily lives of these families would not be a small task. How did you find the people you showcased, and how did you approach capturing them and their routines in a natural, authentic way?
Domenique> We wanted everything to be authentic. We did a casting call for real CIBC customers who actually send money back home. From here, they all went through an interview process where we got to know them and their families back home on a more personal level, and the reasons they send money. We tried to stay true to those reasons when we shot our videos, by actually capturing things that the families would do back home - showcasing purchases they needed to make, and even the experiences they would enjoy, so all the reactions were genuine.
LBB> Do you have any anecdotes from on set or across your travels? As a whole, how did shooting go?
Cindy> In Manila, the FaceTime scene between Racha and her family happened in real time while we filmed it. The love they have for each other was so real and undeniable, we all felt it. There wasn’t a dry eye in the room.
Aside from that, it was just so amazing to watch the families’ reactions to the experiences we shot. The shoot days were long and exhausting, but very fun. In the end, we developed such a great relationship with the two families. They were so welcoming and grateful, and those of us who could be there felt very lucky to have that experience.
LBB> In both spots there are scenes of celebration, which are super memorable. Was this a case of the stars just aligning at the perfect time? Or were you specifically looking to capture happy moments when going into the shooting process?
Cindy> It honestly was a mix of both! It was something we knew we wanted to get, in order to help build that emotion, so we incorporated it into the interview process and asked questions like ‘What’s something you would love to do with your family, if you could be with them?’ and ‘If money wasn’t a factor, where would you like to send them?’. The answers we received led us to gather family members for a surprise birthday celebration in Mumbai, and a family trip to the beach to eat kamayan [by hand] in Manila. When we got there and started filming the families living these experiences, it was a case of being at the right place at the right time and just witnessing an overwhelming amount of genuine joy and happiness among the family members. It was amazing to see!
LBB> The accompanying music also sets the tone perfectly. Who did you work with on this aspect, and how did you settle on the soundtracks you did?
Domenique> We worked with Ted Rosnick from Vapor to create the track. It was original music, and the brief was to create an emotional track that enhanced what we’re seeing on screen, without detracting from the beauty and emotion of the family’s experiences. We love how it drives the story along, without feeling too heavy-handed.
LBB> What was the post process like? How did you approach telling these stories in an authentic way, while also ensuring that they were cut down into the various lengths?
Cindy> Racha and Alisha were sending so much more than just money - they were sending love. So, we wanted to make sure that emotion was felt throughout all of our videos. We started by creating a longer form spot to get the story and that emotion right. Once we established this general storyline, it was a matter of nipping and tucking to fit the shorter format media buys, keeping only what was essential for people to understand what we did. Luckily, the feeling still came through in the 15-second version, because you could feel the genuine emotions of the families sending and receiving the money. We were really happy about that!
LBB> What challenges have you faced during this project? How did you overcome them?
Domenique> The main challenge revolved around how we could capture all of this content on a pretty tight budget, and in not a lot of time. Partnering with Omri and Spy Films really helped because they didn’t approach this like a typical TV shoot. It was a super sparse and nimble production, which allowed us to move quickly in these cities and capture as much content as possible in little time. All of our other partners, from Nimiopere for the edit, to Vapor for the music, to Alter Ego for the online and transfer, really stepped up and helped us get what we needed because they also believed in the project. We were very lucky to have them on board.
LBB> What lessons have you learned from the making of this campaign?
Domenique & Cindy> Sometimes when crafting ads, the inclination is to do more. More cuts, more music, more graphics. But in this case, stripping away all of the extraneous and letting the beautiful images and reactions speak for themselves created the exact emotion we needed. It’s cliché, but less really is more a lot of the time.
LBB> Since launch, how have people reacted to this campaign?
Cindy> The reactions have been very positive, and it especially resonated well with people from the Filipino and Indian communities. They’re not typically used to seeing this level of representation in ads, so it’s amazing that we could authentically represent their respective cultures while also driving home our message. Even people who aren’t from those countries can’t help but get a little choked up when they watch the ads, because there’s such a universality to the emotions we captured. It wasn’t necessarily our original intention to make people cry, but you can really feel the love and appreciation the family members have for each other, and what the money sent back home can enable. There’s a certain amount of magic there that you can’t necessarily script, but we’re so happy it came through in the end.
