Singapore – Amid a cemented social distancing practice among communities, insurance company AXA has just launched a virtual hug creator that enables people to craft the perfect virtual hug – from the design of the hug to the sweet, touching message that people want to send to their loved ones.
Dubbed as the #AXAHugsForGood challenge, the initiative is with longstanding corporate responsibility partners Singapore Cancer Society (SCS) and SportCares, where for every virtual hug sent, S$5 will be donated to the said partners.
Up until 31 December 2020, individuals in Singapore are invited to join the challenge via AXAHugsForGood.com.
On the website, users need to hit the ‘Create your hug now’ button to get started. From a wide selection of ‘hug’ GIFs, users have the option to choose which they want to send, whether a GIF showing a hug between two or three people, or GIFs of hugging animal characters, with designs also available in sporty, festive, and fun themes.
Once a ‘hug’ is selected, AXA assists with crafting the perfect message you want to say to your loved ones. On the website, users can choose from ready-made ‘messages,’ and ‘reminders.’ AXA has prepared messages such as “It’s been a while, hope you’re doing alright,” “Just wanted to say ‘You’re awesome!’” and “Thanks for working late on the project!” Senders can also put additional ‘reminders,’ choosing from caring phrases such as “Take care and stay safe!” and “Have a good night’s sleep!”
Before finally sharing to social media, users can review their hug, with the new hug now bearing their chosen messages. The hug can be shared to numerous social media channels such as on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, among others, with an option as well to send to Zoom and Microsoft teams.
This is the fourth edition of the AXA ‘For Good’ challenge with SCS and SportCares, which is designed to engage the community in doing good together and to foster a spirit of solidarity in Singapore. Challenges in the previous years involved doing burpees and bounce exercises with a message to engage in a healthy lifestyle and to “bounce” back from adversity.
CEO Jean Drouffe said that through such social media engagement, AXA wants to show that its support for customers remains steadfast during this challenging time.
“We recognize that the implications of the pandemic across our society are far-reaching, affecting the livelihoods and physical and mental well-being of many,” Drouffe said.
He added, “Through #AXAHugsForGood, we hope to spread care and words of encouragement across Singapore with every virtual hug sent. Social distancing is likely to remain in place for some time, but there are ways we can connect with one another even from afar. The simple act of a hug, even a virtual one, can bring comfort and brighten someone’s day.”
