Can your creative magnifier hijack your ad?

Cred’s new ad clearly belongs in the ‘break the internet’ league. The idea of a rude Dravid is interesting & the film is brilliant on all fronts. Understandably, social media is abuzz.

It’s the point it made about the brand #Cred that left me wondering.

Cred’s previous campaign said – just a damn good service, no unnecessary song & dance. A tried and tested message in advertising over the years. What made it powerful was the use of (ex)superstars in an ad making fun of them (and symbolically, of the outdated advertising hyperbole).

This one is saying – Cred’s offer is as unbelievable as a rude Dravid.
Is it? Am not a user of Cred, but I feel this does not ring true really. Therein lies the disconnect for me.

So you remember Dravid… and you forget Cred’s message. Maybe even the brand.

By contrast, SBI’s campaign – Surprisingly SBI. You could argue it wasn’t ‘on-brand’, but the magnifiers never took the focus away from the message or brand.

Will the salience of this ad drive salience for Cred (even a poor percentage on a huge base would be good), but what brand challenges will this campaign help overcome?

Maybe, salience at any cost is what advertising should focus on.

Your take?