The Insign team at the Effie Awards, Monday, December 4, 2023. 

Insign wins the Gold Effie for the "Your taxes adapt to your life" campaign for the Ministry of the Economy, Finance, and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty.

On Monday, December 4, 2023, the Effie Awards—a ceremony celebrating effective communications—took place at the Théâtre du Rond-Point. On this occasion, Insign took home the Gold trophy for its campaign "Your taxes adapt to your life" on behalf of the Ministry of the Economy, Finance, and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty.

A major challenge: triggering a real shift in taxpayer behavior. 

Outside of the annual tax filing rush, French citizens didn't yet have the reflex to report life changes to the tax office on the go. That is exactly what this campaign set out to achieve: to shift taxpayer habits by encouraging them to report life events as they happen, rather than waiting for the annual filing season.

↳ The core insight: you can't just decree a habit 

Knowing that you can't build a habit through repetition alone, Insign "hijacked" the natural reflex people already have when they have big news: telling all their loved ones first. Now, the tax department is just one more recipient to add to that list.

Over 12% more updates on life changes 

Using a positive, non-judgmental tone that highlighted the real benefits of keeping the tax office in the loop, the campaign drove a 12% increase in status update declarations across the four targeted areas (births, marriages/civil partnerships, retirement, promotions) compared to the previous year. What's more, during key media pushes, we tracked peaks of over 40% (1), clearly proving the campaign's impact on public behavior. 

Entrusted to production studio Seize-Dix-Huit Images, the campaign was creative directed by Franck Luminier and directed by Rémy Fournigault. Original music by Poumtchak.

↳ A campaign built around the rhythm of everyday life

The campaign ran from June 2022 to March 2023 across four commercial spots on TV, radio, web, and social media, as well as billboard advertising. It revolved around key milestones that require tax updates, launching strategically when those events are most likely to occur (June: marriage / September: birth & civil union / December: retirement / March: promotion).  

"We intentionally designed this upbeat, creative campaign around utility, helping taxpayers understand their steps and making the process second nature."

Frédéric Genre, Associate Director at Insign

 The view from Bercy (The Ministry):

"In a tough and uncertain economic climate, being able to adjust your tax withholding rate and monthly payments in real time to match your situation is a huge financial planning benefit for households. We needed to get the word out again, so taxpayers could fully make this new feature—introduced by the withholding tax reform—their own. That is the goal of this campaign."