Income's New Campaign by BBH Triggers New Debate for Singaporean Parents

NTUC Income (Income), one of Singapore’s largest insurers, has rolled out a new thought-provoking campaign to encourage Singaporean parents to plan for their retirement. 

Using the tagline “The Best Gift for your Child”, the campaign seeks to address the tension that exists for Singaporean parents between spending on their children and saving for their retirement.

Targeted at parents between 30 to 50 years old, the creative idea employs an interesting twist to communicate a common financial dilemma these parents face - risk being perceived as the ‘worst parents’ if they cut back on spending indulgently on their kids in their growing years, whilst ultimately doing so to save enough for their own retirement. In effect, that is the “best gift” they can give their children – financial independence when they reach adulthood, and peace of mind when it comes to their parents’ financial well-being.

The ad film, developed in short and long format versions, starts off with a groom making a shocking announcement at his wedding that his parents are the worst parents in the world. He goes on to give instances where he perceives himself worse off than his peers in his younger days, only to thank his parents later for giving him the best gift by sorting out their own retirement. 

The campaign rides on the back of a recent study commissioned by Income and conducted by Nielsen with over 400 parents (aged 30 to 55 years old) and some 200 youths (aged 19 to 25 years old) in Singapore. 

The study revealed youths have low confidence that their parents can rely on savings for retirement, and as a result, they foresee making personal sacrifices to support their parents financially. Only 20% of youths surveyed indicated that their parents can rely on personal savings to finance their retirement, while 66% of parents surveyed were most concerned about having insufficient funds and inability to afford health care and medical expenses. Parents surveyed fell short of retirement funds, yet would still rather sacrifice their retirement planning in order to spend on their children today. 

Commenting on the campaign, Marcus Chew, Chief Marketing Officer of Income, said: “We believe that it’s extremely important for parents to invest in their children and help them build a secure future, and one of the best gifts they can give their children is saving for their own retirement. The campaign aims to drive home this message through story-telling via an engaging film set in the backdrop of a wedding. We hope that this initiative will encourage Singaporeans to think more deeply about their retirement plans and, in so doing, take a step towards securing their own financial future so that their children can be future ready.”

Thomas Wagner, Planning Director of BBH Singapore, said: “Parents spend a lot of money on their children so they can enjoy the best possible life now and in the future. However, in doing so, they sometimes forget about themselves and the impact their own financial future has on the life they want their kids to have. This is the tension Income wants to start a conversation about and help solve.”

The Income campaign will be rolled out on 30th August and will be active until 30th November this year. In addition to digital and social components, the media mix includes cinema, TV and outdoor.