There’s a lot of debate both for and against undercoating when it comes to buying a new car, but why doesn’t anybody ever talk about “uddercoating”?
That’s kind of the premise of a—hmm, what’s the right term here?—oh yeah… CREEPY AF campaign from Zulu Alpha Kilo developed for insurance comparison website Rates.ca (styled RATESDOTCA) entitled “Don’t get milked.”
A series of TV and online videos all take place inside an auto repair shop, where a woman’s car up on a hoist has an udder protruding from its undercarriage.
In the main 30-second spot, a mechanic holding a bowl of cereal (Greasy-O’s perhaps?) points to the car and says “There’s your problem.” That’s immediately followed by a cut to the udder in all of its pink-hued, four-teated glory, before the mechanic informs her: “You’re getting milked on your car insurance.”
After the mechanic informs her of the solution to her problem (Rates.ca, naturally) director Francois Lallier (Untitled Films) further revs up the squeamish factor by having him squirt milk from the udder into his cereal bowl before casually spooning more Greasy-O’s into his mouth.
According to a survey conducted for Rates.ca by Leger, more than three-quarters (77%) of Ontario’s insurance policyholders didn’t compare rates in the past 12 months, meaning there’s a chance some of them are getting, wait for it… milked by their insurance company.
Rates.ca says that Ontario car-owners who obtained a quote on its service and then completed a purchase via its contact centre saved an average of $676 on their premiums.
Aside from the :30, the campaign’s TV component also includes a series of 15s using the same creative concept, introducing a new mechanic character who’s similarly fond of car milk. The campaign also includes digital and static OOH boards, while social and digital executions highlight the regions where consumers are the “most milked” on their insurance. There is also a radio ad entitled “Fresh Jeff,” which features a character dubbed “Freshly milked Jeff”—who failed to shop around for the best rate using Rates.ca.
The main campaign runs through June 30, with the digital and social assets running until the end of the year. Media for the campaign was handled by OMD Canada.
Half the battle in advertising is getting noticed, and it seems a safe assumption that “Don’t get milked” will garner more than a few “WTF did I just watch?” reactions.
“We know insurance can be a dry subject and that most Canadians can be complacent about their automobile insurance renewal,” said Zulu Alpha Kilo founder and chief creative officer Zak Mroueh. “We knew we had to do something that would breakthrough and get the attention we were looking for. We landed on a very clear, but extremely memorable way of getting Canadians to think about their car insurance and realize that they might be overpaying.”
Just call it bovine inspiration.
