Interac’s picture-imperfect holiday campaign

Who: Interac Corp., with Zulu Alpha Kilo for strategy and creative, The French Shop, Skin and Bones for production (directed by Mike Andrews), Zulubot for post, with Alter Ego, Vapor Music and Proof for experiential. H&K for PR and Media Experts for media.

What: “HolidayLife,” an integrated holiday campaign for the payment services company under the “Interac InLife” brand platform launched earlier this year.

When & Where: The campaign launched this week, running through Dec. 31 across TV and online video, social and display. There is also a picture frame Snap lens, Spotify ads and a content series with Narcity, as well as activations at holiday markets in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal.

Why: It’s promoting Interac during the season to shop, with a goal of reassuring Canadians that while things can be stressful at this time of year, Interac ensures they are always in control of their money. “We wanted to build on the personal storytelling we launched this spring, while adding a bit of humour to get Canadians thinking about the role Interac can play in enabling them to stay in control of their money as they pay for holiday purchases and experiences,” said Wain Choi, executive creative director at Zulu Alpha Kilo.

How: The TV and online videos show a woman using Interac e-Transfer to pay a professional photographer to capture a family portrait for the holidays. Paying turns out to be the easy part, as getting the extended family to strike a picture-perfect pose comes with the usual set of challenges.

Interac is also doing on-site activations at the Vancouver Christmas Market, Noël Montréal and the Distillery Winter Village in Toronto, providing free rides on the HolidayLife Carousel in Vancouver, gift-wrapping at the Distillery and holiday treats at the HolidayLife Fire Pit and Ho Ho Ho Airstream in Montreal.

Each holiday market activation features a charitable component, with Interac encouraging attendees to make donations to the Salvation Army and SickKids Foundation in Toronto, the Make-A-Wish Foundation in Vancouver and Montreal and Project10 (which provides support for LGBTQ+ youth). Interac is matching donations up to $75,000 nationally.

And we quote: “In our holiday campaign, it was important for us to show Canadians in control of their money and choosing to support a small business—in this case, paying a photographer,” said Interac’s chief commercial officer William Keliehor. “As communities reconnect this holiday season, we each have the power to support more localized economic recovery through our purchases. With this in mind, we’re proud to sponsor holiday markets in Montréal, Vancouver and Toronto, all featuring small retailers.”

Chris Powell