Connecting With Real Stories

Uber is the latest app-based company to join the TV advertising bandwagon with its first brand campaign in India. The cab-hailing app completed three years in India and is looking to widen its customer reach with its ad film ‘Move Forward’.

Conceptualised by BBH India, the campaign is designed to create a brand image that is beyond the traditional approach of highlighting promotional offers and prices. Looking to establish a ‘human’ connect with both riders and drivers, the first film ‘The Test’ tells the story of a driver who goes out of his way to make sure the schoolgirl he is dropping off reaches in time for her test. It is revealed later that the girl is the daughter of the Uber driver who is using the platform to ‘move forward’ in life.

The campaign is inspired by stories posted by riders through Facebook and various other digital platforms.

Russell Barrett, managing partner and chief creative officer at BBH India, says, “Working on a brand like Uber has been an amazing experience. Given how ubiquitous the service has become, we had hundreds of ideas, but we decided to go with this concept because people will be able to relate this to their own Uber experiences. It’s a simple yet powerful idea.”

Explaining the thought process behind the campaign, Ashwin Dias, general manager at Uber, says, “After various interesting conversations, we arrived at the conclusion of centering this campaign on authenticity. Telling real stories of real people with as much sincerity as we could — which was when we arrived at ‘Move Forward’. Through this campaign, we hope to showcase how Uber has been a vehicle for people to move forward in their daily lives.”

The films have been produced by Black Sheep Live, BBH’s production arm.

There are a total of four films that will go live on the digital and social platforms along with print, out of home, and on-ground activities in the coming months. The print and out-of-home campaigns are to be executed in the local languages as well, across the 28 cities, and the creative execution is hyper local with city specific anecdotal references that will strike a chord with the local audience.

“The key takeaway for viewers would be relatability. By means of this campaign, we want the viewers to identify with the stories and say — that’s my Uber experience,” concludes Dias.