Belairdirect is traveling back to medieval times for its new campaign.
On Tuesday, the brand released a video spot that drops its knight brand character into the Middle Ages. The spot, by Sid Lee, contrasts the dark ages of pre-internet insurance with the relative ease of Belairdirect’s online products.
The ad is a departure from the concept Belairdirect has had in market for the past two years. The brand had previously paired the knight with well-known Canadians such as chef Lynn Crawford. Martine Bouthillier, marketing manager for Belairdirect, said after several iterations of the campaign, it was still performing well, but the brand decided to move on to a new concept to avoid fatigue.
“We want to avoid any wear-out signs,” Bouthillier said. “We’ve done what we could have with the previous campaign. It was working super well…but it’s like [being] a rockstar – you better retire when you’re at the top of your game, before you see signs of decline.”
The company carried over the bones of the prior concept to the new campaign, including the jingle, the red branding and, most importantly, the actor playing the knight. Since his debut more than five years ago, the knight character has become a major asset for Belairdirect. (The character is played by Jason Bryden in English Canada and François Maranda in Quebec.)
According to, Bouthillier the character has helped the company differentiate itself from competitors, and internal research has shown the character is now strongly linked with the brand.
With the new campaign, Bouthiellier said it was important to remain light-hearted and funny; a tactic that’s proven potent for the brand. Bouthieller said the approach the brand takes with its knight humour has helped it break through and gain consumers’ attention.
The campaign will run in Quebec through mid-July and across Canada until August 7, with a media buy by PHD Montréal. A 30-second spot is currently running on SRC, TVA, Canal D in Quebec and in English Canada on CTV, City, TSN and Comedy.
A 15-second version is running as digital pre-roll. The campaign also includes digital display and a social media spend.
