Hong Kong is potentially a difficult market for AXA. It's a relatively new brand there, making its debut as recently as the late 1990s, after the company took over local player National Mutual. It operates in a fiercely competitive sector; the huge range of insurance products makes brand differentiation very tough. So, as it considered its communication goals for 2001, what AXA really needed was a way to stand out from the crowd.Hong Kong boasts a wealthy population, and one which is among the world's most financially savvy. AXA wanted to build a strong bond with this naturally adventurous group of people. It wanted to be the financial provider that supports and encourages anyone who dares to fulfill their dreams, using the slogan: "Go for it! What've you got to lose?" Zenith found a unique way to present this proposition to the Hong Kong public, and to raise AXA's brand recognition exponentially. The strategy was to align AXA with one of the world's most popular TV programmes: Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? When Hong Kong broadcaster ATV showed an interest in acquiring the programme, the Zenith team spotted a golden opportunity. Because Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? and AXA has a lot in common: they're about taking risks and going for the maximum rewarad.The result was that AXA Insured Zone - the safe haven that contestants reach when they answer a certain number of questions correctly, and can no longer lose all their money if they get a question wrong. The deal, which initially lasted two months, saw the zone AXA-branded on-screen, and saw the host read out the rules of the AXA Insured Zone at least twice during each programme. It meant that AXA was seen as encouraging contestants to go on and win the top prize of HK$1,000,000, but without being intrusive - having a safety zone after answering a certain number of questions is an element of the show that already existed. AXA was able to stress the element of risk-taking, while also emphasising the investors' money is safe with AXA, just as contestants' money is safe in the zone.Following the initial two-month deal, the sponsorship was extended to two subsequent series, with contestants receiving AXA products as prizes for reaching the zone. The sponsorship has also been supported with TV commercials during the breaks; with joint PR events with the broadcaster; and with an AXA/Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? Sales promotion. This was an entirely media-driven idea. It was the Zenith team who spotted early on that Who Wants To Be A Millionaire would be a big hit in Hong Kong, despite being shown by the smaller and weaker of its domestic broadcasters, and who convinced the client of that fact. It was the Zenith team who secured this unique sponsorship, which got AXA a massive amount of exposure and became a talking point in Hong Kong. And it was the Zenith team who fine-tuned the idea six months ahead of the programme being produced, and negotiated with the station to get AXA a massive discount - a quarter the price of the broadcaster's standard sponsorship packages. In a word: results. Independent research found that 46 per cent of consumers were able to correctly recall AXA's sponsorship of the programme - five times as many as were able to recall a rival insurance company's sponsorship of The Weakest Link on Hong Kong's larger TV channel. And this in a sector where even the top players have trouble making themselves out from their competitors.It was an innovative use of media that allowed AXA to dramatically increase brand preference in a tough market. Rather than just advertising, or even sponsoring the show, Zenith's solution allowed AXA to become an integral part of one of TV's most popular programmes, with the media environment becoming part of the insurer's message. It was an example of true media-driven communications, and one which delivered impressive results.

This was an entirely media-driven idea. It was the Zenith team who spotted early on that Who Wants To Be A Millionaire would be a big hit in Hong Kong, despite being shown by the smaller and weaker of its domestic broadcasters, and who convinced the client of that fact. It was the Zenith team who secured this unique sponsorship, which got AXA a massive amount of exposure and became a talking point in Hong Kong. And it was the Zenith team who fine-tuned the idea six months ahead of the programme being produced, and negotiated with the station to get AXA a massive discount - a quarter the price of the broadcaster's standard sponsorship packages.