Apart from creating stronger brand liking, which is an objective in all communication activities carried out by If (liking is the strongest sales driver in insurances in Sweden), this specific campaign brief revolved around increasing the usage of reflectors among young adults living in cities, and raise awareness about the importance of staying visible in the dark.

In Sweden, the number of pedestrians involved in car accidents increase dramatically during the dark winter season. The problem is visibility, something many Swedes solve by wearing a reflector, which halves the risk of being hit by a car. But not everyone does and lowest is the usage among young adults living in cities. The main reason is vanity. Unfortunately, wearing a reflector is perceived as a bit corny among young adults. The reason is that all reflectors on the market either are designed for kids (cartoon characters) or just as plain functional items (straps and badges).

In order to achieve an attitude change towards reflectors, we decided it was time to challenge the perception. Our insight was that a reflector doesn’t necessarily have to be ugly or uncool to do its job. Therefore, to get the message through to the target group, we teamed up with renowned Swedish fashion designer BACK and launched a clothing line of outerwear and accessories that function as reflectors in the dark. The line ‘Watch Your Back’ was distributed and sold in fashion stores across the country as well as online.

Once we had the idea of turning fashion garments into reflectors, we scanned the market for potential partners. We went with BACK – a fashion design label known for their innovative and progressive ideas. A number of different designs and fabrics were tested and evaluated by focus group, and issues such as reasonable retail price as well as comfort and design were discussed. The clothing line ‘Watch Your Back’, with garments made of a reflective fabric, was distributed and sold in fashion stores across the country as well as online.

– The garments sold out and had to be reissued after only a couple of days.

– Generated € 268,105 in estimated PR value in Sweden.

– Peoples’ lives became vastly safer.

– Praised by Sweden’s most influential fashion magazines (Elle, Damernas Värld, StyleBy).

Looking at the brand tracking, three of the most important drivers for considering and buying insurance were very positively affected:

– “A company I like” +46%

– “Creates calm for their customers” +54%

– “A modern and innovative company” +41%