#MARKiesAwards MY 2021 highlight: RHB Bank sheds light in the darkness of the pandemic

Many Malaysians were distraught and in disarray when the pandemic hit, and the enforcement of lockdowns and other safety manners meant that they could not gather as a family during festivities. RHB Bank wanted to shed some light and portray a message of hope for Malaysians during one of the last festivities of the year – Deepavali. Working closely with their award-winning agency, FCB Malaysia, they decided to run a video campaign of a heart-warming story featuring a magician who became a durian seller to make ends meet. RHB’s desire to remind Malaysians of the good times and to find positivity during trying times won the hearts of the judges and secured them two Gold awards for Most Creative – COVID-19 Response and Most Creative – Video at A+M’s MARKies Awards Malaysia 2021.

Challenge 

When the pandemic hit Malaysia in March last year, millions of lives were affected overnight. The entire nation was thrown into complete disarray as people struggled to make sense of the new normal. To make matters worse, hundreds and thousands of Malaysians lost their livelihoods. Malaysians were forced to step out of their comfort zones, get creative and venture into uncharted territories to earn a living - the fear of change became very real.

Since 2018, RHB’s “Awakening The Challenger Within” platform, where the bank shines the spotlight on inspirational stories of real-life Malaysian challengers, has been an incredible success in helping the bank connect with Malaysians during the festive seasons. For Deepavali 2020, RHB knew it had to work even harder to bring hope to Malaysians during these troubled times.

Awakening the Challenger Within was born from RHB’s brand purpose – Together We Progress – which is not only a commitment to progressing lives during the good times but also its promise to be a partner who will light the way towards a brighter future, even in the darkest days.

Hence, in a year where lives were wrought by the pandemic, RHB wanted to become the beacon of hope for Malaysians – reminding them that even in times of hopelessness, progress could still happen if they were strong and persistent enough to defy their own doubts.

With the nation still embroiled in a long-drawn battle to recover from the effects of COVID-19, RHB looked to its brand purpose for inspiration, and from there, its creative idea of bringing light to Malaysians during their darkest hours was born.

RHB had planned to launch the campaign on 20 October 2020; targeting the mass market to strengthen its brand value as a challenger bank during Deepavali. It wanted to garner positive engagement and top-of-mind recall during the Deepavali period.

Strategy

With Deepavali generally being Malaysia’s last major festive celebration annually, there wasn’t much about that particular year that Malaysians could look back on fondly. With the rising number of unemployment, the looming threat of an economic downturn, and no end to the pandemic in sight, RHB knew it had to tell a story that would not only uplift the spirit of Malaysians but also serve as a real-life testimony of the challenger ethos that it had been championing, in order to give Malaysians a new lease of hope and positivity to welcome the Festival of Lights; and the new year ahead.

With the strategy in place, RHB’s Deepavali spot had to deliver a positive and uplifting message in a light-hearted manner; and showcase a real-life story of a person who demonstrated the strength and resilience to overturn a dire situation that the pandemic had put them in and bounce back with newfound success.

RHB knew it had found the perfect material when it came across the story of Vikey. He had been doing well as a magician in Malaysia but lost his audience overnight when the pandemic hit. Instead of throwing in the towel, Vikey pulled off the greatest trick ever - finding success as a durian seller just so that he could continue to provide for his family. It was a story of life imitating magic and one that Malaysians needed more than ever.

Execution 

In relaying Vikey’s story as a magician-turned-durian-seller, RHB reimagined the story into a magic show. In addition to building a set from scratch for the dramatic and magical introduction of Vikey’s character, RHB also had the real Vikey on the set to teach the actor who played him some tricks of the magic trade. The “Light In A Time Of Darkness” Deepavali film was the heart of the campaign, and it was shared on RHB’s Facebook page and YouTube channel.

Results 

RHB’s film was featured in numerous “Best Of” lists, including A+M’s Global Top 5. The film had also garnered over 14 million views, 35,000 likes, and 3,500 shares.