In August this year, Waves Singer Pakistan launched a digital campaign aimed at spreading awareness about water conservation under the umbrella of Farz Say Azadi Nahi Milay Gi.

Water scarcity affects over 40% of the world’s population. Scientists suggest that by 2025, 1.8 billion people will be living in water-deficient countries and two thirds of the world’s population will be facing water stress. If this doesn’t sound alarming enough, 85% of the population is settled in the driest half of the planet and the number is rising. Closer to home, the situation is even worse. Although Pakistan is projected to run dry by 2025 (according to an IMF Report from 2015) the country’s rate of water use is the fourth highest in the world.

According to Muhammad Shahid, Director Marketing Waves: “Raising awareness about water conservation is more important than ever. This particular campaign is part of a larger campaign called Farz Se Azaadi Nahi Miley Gi, we launched to coincide with the August 14 Independence Day celebrations. The campaign highlights the fact that none of us are exempt from our responsibilities towards society and one of the most important responsibilities is to understand that water is a very precious resource and it is our duty to save it.”

Farz Se Azaadi Nahi Miley Gi highlighted several negative practices in our society. So far, four videos have been released based on issues such as forced marriages, sexual harassment by taxi drivers, forgetting the essence of Eid-ul-Adha and water conservation.

Although Farz Se Azaadi Nahi Miley Gi makes no reference to Waves’ product line, in Shahid’s opinion an issue does not have to be related to a brand to be talked about, and, furthermore, the campaign helped build a positive image of the brand. According to a poll conducted by Pakistan Advertiser’s Society (PAS), the campaign was ranked as the one with the most impact among all the Independence Day marketing related activities this year.

“People don’t like to be preached at, which is why we adopted a colloquial tone,” says Arslan Idrees, Creative Director, Golden Circle Advertising (Waves’ creative agency).

However, the brand’s decision to use Hassan Niazi, an actor known for his role as a corrupt politician in the film Maalik, to deliver the message did raise eyebrows. Nevertheless, both Shahid and Idrees believe using Hassan was an excellent decision. “Playing a role in a film does not make you that person. People know Hassan for his work in the TV drama Azar Ki Aay Gi Baraat; he is one of our finest actors and he has been featured in several roles.”

The campaign is a departure from Waves’ previous communication, which focused on product features, especially the reliability factor – a strategy that helped the brand achieve a 40% share in Pakistan’s freezer market. The new approach is attributed to Singer Pakistan, which bought Cool Industries Pvt Limited (Waves’ parent company) in 2017 and introduced changes in the brand’s management culture and hired a new marketing team.

According to Shahid, “Waves was previously considered as a second- or third-tier brand and the advertising was targeted at a particular customer segment. Singer gave us the freedom to start building a personality for the brand and making it mainstream. I am proud to say that we are ranked among the top 10 companies in Pakistan in our category.”