We want to help budget-conscious customers in Bharat with smaller wallets: Arvind Iyer

Piramal Finance is making significant strides in enhancing financial inclusion across Bharat with the launch of Phase Two of their ‘Hum Kagaz Se Zyada Neeyat Dekhte Hain’ campaign. This new phase continues to focus on empowering micro-entrepreneurs and individuals from Tier 2 and 3 cities, reinforcing the brand's commitment to serving those who often face challenges in accessing formal financial services. By addressing the need for minimal documentation and focusing on real-life customer stories, the campaign resonates with the challenges faced by small business owners and daily wage earners, making finance more accessible to them.

In conversation with AdGully, Arvind Iyer, Head of Marketing, Piramal Finance, speaks at length about the inspiration behind the enhanced campaign. He explains how Phase Two builds upon the success of the first phase by bringing real entrepreneurial stories to the forefront, showcasing how Piramal Finance is making a difference in the lives of underserved customers. The campaign is designed to break down barriers and invite individuals who may feel excluded from the traditional banking system to approach Piramal Finance for their financial needs, all while highlighting the company’s core values of empathy and customer-centric solutions.

Phase Two builds on the success of the original campaign, ‘Hum Kagaz Se Zyada Neeyat Dekhte Hain’. Could you share the inspiration behind this enhanced version and the key messaging you aim to convey through these new stories?

Sure. Let me quickly give you some background. In the first phase of the campaign, we were launching the Piramal Finance brand after acquiring DHFL. The campaign centered around our promise as a brand – we don’t just underwrite paperwork, we underwrite people. We serve small business owners and those employed with smaller firms who may not have the traditional financial documentation that many institutions require. Our focus is on helping the underserved customers of Bharat, those who are making livelihoods but may not have the necessary paperwork to showcase their financial health. We wanted to communicate this with empathy, which led to the birth of our first campaign.

In the second phase, we wanted to build on this by portraying real customer stories. We've doubled our customer base, and after meeting them, we found stories that truly personified our mission. We selected two stories to bring to life, highlighting real situations of our customers, like a gannewali (sugarcane vendor) and a rickshaw driver. These characters reflect the challenges faced by individuals who believe they might not be eligible for loans. We want to invite them to talk to us, to show them that we’re here to help, regardless of their doubts or paperwork. This campaign is all about starting that conversation and breaking down the stigma.

Phase two introduces the idea of ‘minimal documentation’ to make loans more accessible. How has Piramal Finance incorporated this approach into its lending processes, and what impact do you foresee on potential borrowers?

At Piramal Finance, we treat each customer as unique, understanding their individual needs and creating tailored solutions for them. We know that a hardware store in Sinnar, Maharashtra, may operate differently than one in Karimnagar, Andhra Pradesh, so we adapt our creditworthiness criteria accordingly. While we offer the same products, like home loans or MSME loans, the way we evaluate and engage with customers varies to ensure that we meet their specific financial needs.

By incorporating minimal documentation into our processes, we're removing barriers for those who might otherwise not qualify for loans, giving them greater access to the capital they need to grow their businesses or buy homes. This tailored, empathetic approach ensures that more potential borrowers are reached.

Storytelling plays a significant role in the Phase two campaign. What role do these real-life entrepreneurial stories play in building trust and engagement with your audience?

Storytelling allows us to connect with our audience on a deeper, more personal level. Customers don’t just interact with brands through advertising, they experience us through multiple touchpoints, from branches and call centers to interactions with relationship managers. By using real-life stories in our campaign, we ensure that the empathy and fairness that we practice daily in these interactions are reflected in our messaging.

These stories, inspired by real conversations between our staff and customers, help potential borrowers see themselves in the campaign. It’s not just an ad; it’s a portrayal of genuine experiences. This authenticity builds trust and encourages people to approach us for loans, knowing we understand their needs.

How do you see Piramal Finance contributing to the growth of micro-entrepreneurs and small businesses through this campaign?

Our advertising is targeted at small business owners and entrepreneurs – whether they run a kirana shop or a small manufacturing unit. We aim to serve the MSME segment with a variety of financial products, such as home loans, MSME loans, personal loans, and loan against property, all tailored to their needs. We help them grow by providing access to capital that fuels their working capital requirements, enabling them to expand their businesses or buy their first homes.

We focus on the underserved, so whether it’s a hardware store in a Tier 2 city or a small-scale industry in a rural area, we’re committed to helping these entrepreneurs thrive.

Who is the primary target audience for the Phase two campaign, and how does the messaging and storytelling in the campaign cater specifically to their needs and challenges?

The primary target audience includes small business owners and individuals working in smaller firms across Tier 2 and 3 cities. We’ve shown diverse characters, like a sugarcane vendor and a rickshaw driver, to reflect this variety. By portraying their challenges, we hope to make our audience realize that we understand their needs and that Piramal Finance is for them.

The idea is to encourage more people to reach out to us for loans, even if they think they don’t qualify. The campaign is designed to make them feel seen and understood, breaking down any hesitations they might have.

What were the key challenges in crafting a campaign that connects emotionally while also delivering a strong financial message?

One of the biggest challenges was balancing the emotional storytelling with a clear financial message. We wanted the scenarios to feel real, like everyday situations you could encounter, and not like a scripted advertisement. We aimed to deliver our message of minimal documentation and empathy, while keeping the storytelling authentic.

We hope the final product achieves this, making people feel that Piramal Finance isn’t just another financial institution, but one that understands their unique situations and is ready to help.

What was the thought process behind featuring real-life entrepreneurial stories in the campaign, and how do they reflect Piramal Finance’s core values?

Our core value is centered around people, not just paperwork. Whether someone is buying their first home or looking for working capital, we want to be supportive of their dreams and aspirations. The real-life entrepreneurial stories in this campaign reflect our commitment to understanding and helping our customers, even when they might not have all the traditional documentation.

We celebrate the momentous occasions in our customers’ lives – buying their first home or expanding their business – and we want them to see Piramal Finance as a partner in those achievements. By telling these stories, we show our customers that we care about their journeys, not just their paperwork.

Phase two seems to focus on a more humanized portrayal of borrowers. How does this approach differentiate Piramal Finance from other players in the financial sector?

We focus on what we want to do – serve people, not just paperwork. Our approach is deeply empathetic, and we aim to help customers who might otherwise be overlooked by traditional financial institutions. Instead of focusing solely on documentation, we look at the person, their needs, and how we can help them achieve their goals. This sets us apart, as we prioritize relationships and understanding over rigid criteria.

What sets Piramal Finance apart from other players in the financial sector?

As I mentioned earlier, we want to help budget-conscious customers in Bharat with smaller wallet sizes, and we aim to do this at scale. While there are other financial institutions that may provide loans to these customers, our goal is to be one of the few institutions that can cater to all of their financial needs. Everything we do, from structuring our brand to our operational strategies, is aligned with this vision. This focus is also reflected in the way we’ve expanded our network of branches, particularly in Tier 2 and 3 markets, where we are seeing increased interest. We are also tailoring more products and solutions specifically for this customer segment. So, essentially, our commitment to serving Bharat at scale is what sets us apart.

As the financial services industry evolves, what key trends in the BFSI sector have influenced your marketing and execution strategy for this campaign?

We’ve drawn significant inspiration from both BFSI and non-BFSI sectors, particularly from brands that are going direct-to-customer (D2C). However, our starting point has always been the customer. We are deeply focused on understanding our customers, and our in-depth customer research plays a vital role in everything we do, be it marketing, product development, or customer experience design. Our approach is entirely customer-driven. While we also look at other innovative D2C and BFSI brands for inspiration, we always marry these insights with our own customer interactions to come up with ideas that are relevant to us and, more importantly, to our customers.

What’s next for Piramal Finance after Phase two? Are there any future campaigns or initiatives aimed at expanding financial inclusion for underserved communities?

Absolutely. After every campaign, we always go back to our customers, keeping our ears to the ground to understand how we’re doing and how customers are perceiving us. From there, we derive insights to plan our next steps. Our approach to the next phase will follow this same pattern of constant testing and customer interactions will shape our future campaigns. We are excited about this process because our customers will help us craft the next wave of initiatives.

How did you strategise for the festive season this year?

The festive season is incredibly important for us and our customers, and we always do something special every year. For example, last year during Diwali, our employees visited 10,000 customers who were celebrating their first Diwali in the homes they had purchased with the help of our loans. It was a moment of joy for them, and for us too, as we celebrated this milestone together. These kinds of initiatives, sometimes regional and sometimes on a larger scale, are part of our effort to make our customers' celebrations even more meaningful. Rather than limiting ourselves to traditional campaigns, we strive to create deeper, more personal interactions with our customers.

How was Phase one of the year for Piramal Finance, and what are your expectations for Phase two?

Phase 1 has been great for us, we’ve managed to grow our customer base significantly. The campaigns we’ve rolled out, both television commercials and our digital and below-the-line efforts, have been well-received across the country. We consistently gather feedback to understand what’s working and where we can improve. We’re now very excited about Phase 2 of the year, as we’ve taken valuable lessons from the first half and are using them to shape the future. We’re optimistic about our new campaign and the rest of the year.

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