Hollard’s creative agency, VMLY&R, came up with an audacious idea to unleash the power of active citizenry to make real change, by creating a way for South Africans to pay for their insurance premiums through volunteering.
In what is believed to be a world first, Hollard today launched this unique initiative, Hollard ChangeMaker, that calls on all South Africans to volunteer their time and effort in service of better communities and better futures, while allowing policyholders to effectively earn back a portion of their insurance premium by doing so.
A pilot group of Hollard policyholders stand to earn back up to 20% of their life insurance premiums through the programme, this is a call from the insurer to everyone who cares about South Africa.
According to an article published by the Stanford Center for Longevity, research reveals that one in four people do not volunteer because they have never been asked.
“The turmoil that South Africans have been through over the past two years really got us thinking about how we could go beyond our core business,” says Hollard chief marketing officer, Heidi Brauer. “We had a sense that we needed to do more to fulfil our organisational purpose – which is to enable more people to create and secure a better future.
Their efforts will be recorded and, in the case of a pilot group of Hollard policyholders, rewarded – in the form of a percentage of their policy premiums being earned.
“What if we could find a way to create thousands of small acts that would generate big change? What if we could get South Africans to take an active role in improving the future, not only for themselves but for the most vulnerable in our society?” says Brauer.
The potential of volunteering as a means to improve South Africa’s trajectory is not a new one, but the tragic floods in KwaZulu-Natal have exacerbated the need for ordinary citizens to lend a hand. The much-lauded actions of Gift of the Givers, a South African disaster relief and aid organisation, have demonstrated the power of private citizens to make a significant impact.
To make the dream a reality Hollard has partnered with South African volunteering platform, Forgood, to offer would-be volunteers a large selection of causes to sign up for via Hollard’s website. Their efforts will be recorded and, in the case of a pilot group of Hollard policyholders, rewarded – in the form of a percentage of their policy premiums being earned back.
“We’re optimistic that by showing everyone just how easy it is to make a difference, we’ll unleash the power of volunteering at a mass scale, at a time when South Africa, and the world, needs everyone to be a change-maker,” says Saks Ntombela, Hollard Group CEO.
