The bizarre humour that lights up Asian advertising includes Income Insurance’s Max the Stress Ball, conjured up by BBH Singapore in 2023. He’s back, and he’s on a stress-fuelled rampage. BBH Singapore first introduced Max the Stress Ball, to represents the trauma of financial insecurity in the debut campaign for Gro Cash Sure, one of Income Insurance’s most successful product launches to date.
In BBH Singapore’s new commercial, produced by Freeflow Productions, the human stress ball rages against the capital guarantee promised by Income Insurance’s Savings products, Gro Cash Plus and Gro Cash Sure, which means less financial stress for customers and, evidently, less need for stress balls. The 90-second spot is a hugely entertaining disaster scenario, including Max chasing his owner, David, while he destroys an office.
The campaign targets middle-aged Singaporeans, those unwilling to take risks that could jeopardise their hard-earned savings but still looking to grow their wealth. It shows how Gro Cash Plus and Gro Cash Sure flip the script on financial anxiety, allowing customers to save with a confidence that renders Max the Stress Ball, obsolete.
Dhiren Amin, chief customer officer at Income Insurance, stated, “Max the Stress Ball struck a chord when BBH Singapore first introduced him: a stress ball who is no longer needed because his owner faces less financial stress. We’re thrilled to bring him back to remind people that when you are financially secured, peace of mind isn’t just possible, it’s expected.”
Nico Tangara, Associate Creative Director, BBH Singapore, added, “We were shocked and saddened to see the totally 100% real footage of Max the Stress Ball rampaging through his workplace. But this is the harsh reality of Income Insurance’s capital guarantee. Gro Cash Plus and Gro Cash Sure are putting stress balls everywhere out of work.”
The film will run on StarHub TV+, digital, in Golden Village cinemas, branches and OOH, with Max’s misadventures continuing across digital and social platforms as he navigates his next steps.
Max is also rebranding, pivoting and social posting his way into relevance now that he’s out of a job and finding a new purpose. He’s exploring various gigs, including a corporate job. What role will Max take on eventually? BBH Singapore is keeping audiences glued to social platforms for the fun of watching Max’s journey unfold.
