Manulife SG diagnosed Greek statues' ancient injuries in a protection-insurance push

Broach total permanent disability protection 'without fear-mongering or being too cliché', on a tight budget with high KPIs, to reposition the insurer as a protection player.

Replicate four famous broken statues and imagine them as Manulife customers: their ancient injuries become diagnosable cases for disability cover.

A partnership with a sculptor replicated the statues of Apollo, Venus de Milo, Euripides and Bathsheba; the campaign ran across taxis, bus stop canopies and an animated film (near 800,000 YouTube views in two weeks), plus a travelling AR exhibition to September 1 where visitors scanned each statue to see its condition mapped against Manulife's plans, with influencer support and lead generation.

The animated content film drew nearly 800,000 YouTube views in two weeks. The stated aim was debunking the misconception that Manulife was only a wealth player; the material reports no policy figures.

Manulife Singapore launched 'Reimagining Ancient Tragedies', an integrated campaign by TBWA Singapore to promote its protection offerings by bridging art with insurance. Working with a sculptor, the campaign replicated the statues of Greek gods and figures Apollo, Venus de Milo, Euripides and Bathsheba, revisiting the injuries each has become famous for.

The device let the brand discuss severe injury without fear tactics: the public was invited to imagine the icons living today — and what would have happened had they been covered by Manulife's protection plans, as VP and head of brand, communications and sponsorships Cheryl Lim put it. The creative group heads said playing on the drama and tragedy of the ancient icons would 'get the right attention the campaign message deserves'.

The rollout covered creative outdoor on taxis and bus stop canopies, an animated content film that drew nearly 800,000 YouTube views in two weeks, and a travelling interactive AR exhibition running to September 1, where visitors scanned each statue to see the severity of its condition mapped against Manulife's protection and critical illness plans. Lim revealed the strategy behind a series of small, spaced 2019 campaigns — #adulting, Stop the Drama, Mrs Fortune Teller — built to counter the perception that the insurer was strong only in retirement and wealth.

Statues with famous missing limbs are a pre-built metaphor for disability cover — the campaign never has to show human suffering.

AR scanning turns the statues into interactive claims assessments, making a product demonstration out of an art exhibit.

The research insight (wrongly seen as wealth-only) gave the campaign a specific misperception to attack rather than generic awareness.

The hardest insurance topics sell through distance: ancient statues make disability discussable, and their famous missing parts are a ready-made claims chart.

The AR exhibition ran until September 1, 2019, supported by influencers and lead generation across Singapore. The material records no longer-term brand-tracking or sales data.