How Simpl gave B2B marketing a B'wood makeover at 10% of ad agency costs

B2B marketing is typically characterised by data-driven insights and analytical tools aimed at solving problems and improving targeting. However, Simpl, a buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) company, has taken a different approach by using Bollywood themes to communicate its message.

The nine-year-old company recreates iconic scenes from cult films such as Gangs of Wasseypur and Sholay, blending marketing and business jargon to engage its audience.

Bollywood meets B2B marketing

One of its recent campaigns, 'The Brands of Wasseypur', reimagines a classic scene where Ramadhir Singh chastises his son, JP Singh, for wasting money on ads that fail to convert. He advises him to conduct proper market research and understand customer needs instead.

When Ramadhir questions JP’s absence from a meeting, JP explains that he was brainstorming a campaign for Valentine’s Day discounts. This prompts Ramadhir’s iconic response: “Tumse na ho payega.”

The campaign ends with a message: If you want to grow your topline without burning money on discounts, the answer is Simpl.

Another ad film, 'Gabbar Belts & Co.', puts a marketing spin on an iconic Sholay scene.

Gabbar Singh, in his signature style, asks: “Kitne visitors the?” (How many visitors were there?). One of his men replies, “Sardar, 2 million.” Gabbar then asks, “How many conversions?” to which Kaalia hesitantly responds, “Sir, just 2.” Furious, Gabbar delivers a comical, SEO-friendly expletive, expressing his frustration.

Turning to Samba, Gabbar asks how many conversions their competitor achieved using Simpl. Samba responds, “A full 50,000.” Gabbar then twists his famous dialogue:

“Yeh conversions isliye, kyunki 50-50 kos door jab consumer confuse hota hai ki yeh product kharido ya nahi, toh Simpl kehta hai—beta, kharid le, kyunki abhi sirf one-third dena hai.”

The campaign titled 'Answer is Simpl' highlights Simpl’s Pay in 3 feature, a budgeting tool that allows consumers to split payments into three equal, interest-free installments.

An in-house experiment in B2B marketing

The campaign was developed entirely in-house to educate merchants on the benefits of Pay in 3, how it differs from EMI, and how it can drive conversions without the need for discounts.

Shivam Kumar Dang, head of startup ecosystem & B2B/product marketing at Simpl, explains the insight behind the campaign, saying that most B2B marketing is heavily data-focused and often lacks emotional appeal.

“To bridge this gap, we leveraged Bollywood—a cultural touchstone that cuts across demographics—to evoke nostalgia and relatability among merchants. Our goal was to foster emotional engagement while addressing their everyday business challenges,” he adds.

Cost-effective, high-impact content

Simpl has produced six ad films in total, with three already released. The remaining films will be rolled out weekly.

After three weeks of preparation, all six videos were filmed in a single day. Most of the actors featured in the ads are company employees, with only two professional actors hired for roles requiring strong emotional delivery.

Discussing the media strategy, Dang shares that the campaign was primarily promoted on LinkedIn. To maximise reach among merchants and brand leaders, Simpl also collaborated with LinkedIn influencers.

Initially, the company approached creative agencies but found their costs prohibitively high. Wanting to test the concept without making a significant financial commitment, Simpl opted to produce the campaign in-house.

“The entire campaign was executed at just 1/10th to 1/8th of the cost quoted by agencies,” Dang highlights.

Real business impact

While not revealing specific figures, Dang notes that the campaign had an immediate impact. A brand with a million-dollar monthly revenue, which had been in discussions with Simpl for months, agreed to integrate immediately after watching the video.

Additionally, a major e-commerce player reached out to the founder after their team saw the campaign.

The ads have also gained traction on LinkedIn, accumulating approximately 300,000 impressions so far.

Navigating intellectual property concerns

Given the Bollywood-inspired nature of the content, Simpl ensured compliance by conducting thorough research. The team avoided using exact dialogues and credited the original creators in all promotional materials.

The challenge of effective B2B storytelling

One of the biggest hurdles in B2B marketing is effectively conveying how a product works in a way that resonates with businesses, Dang points out.

“While data-driven approaches are essential, emotional engagement plays a crucial role in helping brands see how our product addresses their daily challenges,” he explains.

A growing merchant network

Simpl has partnered with 26,000 merchants, including major platforms such as Zomato, Swiggy, Blinkit, MakeMyTrip, and ixigo.

By infusing humour and cultural relevance into B2B marketing, Simpl has demonstrated that even the most data-driven industries can benefit from creative storytelling.