Ralf Hesen – Independer

Independer.nl is a leading Dutch platform established in 1999, aimed at enhancing comparison and transparency in consumer financial services such as insurances, energy contracts, mortgages, and loans etc. In this interview we sit down with Ralf Hesen, Marketing Team Lead at Independer, to talk about creative development and the crucial role of creativity in the communication of financial services and insurance.

Most important KPIs

Ralf identifies several critical KPIs central to Independer’s brand growth strategy. The foremost among these are top-of-mind awareness and brand preference. These are essential for maintaining a strong presence in consumers’ minds. Ralf emphasises that ensuring Independer is the first name that comes to mind when considering insurance or financial products is vital for capturing and retaining market share.

“As a marketer, the most important thing for me is top-of-mind awareness and brand preference. Those are number one and have of course a lot to do with Mental Availability”, he says. Mental availability refers to having the brand ‘available’ in your head as a consumer. For our brand’s Physical Availability, it is crucial we’re easy to find online – think SEO and SEA – but we also need to ensure a seamless and user-friendly experience that encourages engagement and conversion.

Likeability of the brand, or the emotional connection consumers feel with Independer, is also a significant KPI. Building a positive emotional connection with customers fosters trust and loyalty, making them more likely to choose and recommend Independer. “Emotion lasts longer; and leaves a deeper imprint in the memory structures of the brain. If those memory structures store Independer then our brand is still ‘available’ at moments when we are not visible. For example: if a consumer considers purchasing an insurance for their bike, Independer should spring to mind.” This emotional bond is cultivated through consistent and relatable brand messaging that resonates with consumers on a personal level.

“As a marketer, the most important thing for me is top-of-mind awareness and brand preference.”

Short- and Long-Term Perspective

Ralf underscores the importance of balancing short-term and long-term perspectives in marketing to drive brand growth effectively. Independer employs a dual-layered approach, integrating both performance marketing and branding efforts. The short-term perspective, or performance marketing layer, focuses on immediate sales results through tactics like search engine advertising and display ads that prompt direct responses. This is complemented by the long-term perspective, where branding efforts aim to build sustained emotional connections with consumers; “I always talk about the short-term and long-term sales layers, and I think it would be smart for many marketers to do so too to avoid other stakeholders from thinking branding is just a hobby. The long-term sales layer also contributes to the short-term sales but not the other way around. Only the long-term sales layer leaves that long lasting imprint in the memory structures of the brain.”

Creative Communication: The Heart of Brand Growth

To create consistent and relatable brand messaging, creativity lies at the core of Independer’s communication strategy. However, maintaining consistent brand cues across campaigns is the first step. Elements like the company’s colour scheme, logo, and soundtrack create a cohesive brand identity that is easily recognisable. This consistency ensures that even as the campaign formats evolve, the core brand message remains clear and strong.

One important part of Independer’s brand cues is humour, which plays a significant role in Independer’s advertising strategy. Research has shown that humorous ads are more effective in capturing attention and creating positive associations with the brand. Independer’s campaigns incorporate humour to engage consumers and differentiate the brand in a crowded market. Ralf implies that “When it comes to creativity, humour just works. You should not underestimate that.”

An example that Ralf brings up is Independer’s new campaigns focusing on activating inactive customers by addressing their latent needs. By visualising the “little voice” in consumers’ heads in a humorous way and relatable setting, the campaigns encourage proactive management of fixed costs, such as energy contracts and insurance policies. This approach not only highlights the practical benefits of Independer’s services but also reinforces the emotional connection by addressing common consumer concerns in a relatable way.

“When it comes to creativity, humour just works. You should not underestimate that.”

However, the voice should not be annoying, and this can sometimes be a difficult balance in creating the ads; “The balance between irritation and being a ‘helpful coach’ can be quite difficult to find. It also comes down to the type of product you have. For car insurances or health insurances it is easy to find a situation that clearly relates to the product, but for energy contracts it’s more difficult. We also have to keep a good eye on that we don’t go over the edge,” Ralf stresses.

Future of Creative Development

For the future of content creation and creativity, Ralf highlights the increasing importance of standing out in a crowded digital landscape. With the rise of AI-generated content and the proliferation of personalised media, consumers are inundated with an unprecedented volume of information. “The competition will become much fiercer because we not only compete with the commercial of a direct competitor, we compete with all content. Content that becomes much easier to make with the help of AI.”

This heightened competition means that brands must strive even harder to capture and retain attention, making creativity even more crucial, as brands need to develop innovative and emotionally engaging content that resonates deeply with their audience. “The emphasis will be on creating distinctive, high-quality content that not only attracts immediate attention but also fosters long-term brand preference,” Ralf says. He names TikTok as an example platform. TikTok’s environment necessitates a strong focus on the initial moments of engagement, making those first few seconds of a commercial or piece of content vital for grabbing consumer interest. As the digital landscape continues to evolve, the ability to craft compelling, memorable creative content will be a key differentiator for successful brands.

“The emphasis will be on creating distinctive, high-quality content that not only attracts immediate attention but also fosters long-term brand preference.”