Chapter 1 What is ADVERTISING?
Advertising is a form of communication intended to persuade an audience (viewers, readers or listeners) to purchase or take some action upon products, ideas, or services. It includes the name of a product or service and how that product or service could benefit the consumer, to persuade a target market to purchase or to consume that particular brand. These messages are usually paid for by sponsors and viewed via various media. Advertising can also serve to communicate an idea to a large number of people in an attempt to convince them to take a certain action. Commercial advertisers often seek to generate increased consumption of their products or services through branding, which involves the repetition of an image or product name in an effort to associate related qualities with the brand in the minds of consumers. Non-commercial advertisers who spend money to advertise items other than a consumer product or service include political parties, interest groups, religious organizations and governmental agencies. Nonprofit organizations may rely on free modes of persuasion, such as a public service announcement. Modern advertising developed with the rise of mass production in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Mass media can be defined as any media meant to reach a mass amount of people. Different types of media can be used to deliver these messages, including traditional media such as newspapers, magazines, television, radio, outdoor or direct mail; or new media such as websites and text messages. In 2010, spending on advertising was estimated at more than $500 billion worldwide. Internationally, the largest advertising conglomerates are Interpublic, Omnicom, Publicis, and WPP.
IMPORTANCE OF ADVERTISING STRATEGIES
Advertising is one of the most important things present in or society today, like an old slogan puts 'Advertising, your right to choose'. Advertising helps to keep the consumers informed about whatever new products or services are available in the market at their disposal. It helps to spread awareness about products or services that are of some use to consumer and potential buyers.
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Commercial advertisers often seek to generate increased consumption of their products or services through branding, which involves the repetition of an image or product name in an effort to associate related qualities with the brand in the minds of consumers. Different types of media can be used to deliver these messages, including traditional media such as newspapers, magazines, television, radio, billboards or direct mail. Advertising may be placed by an advertising agency on behalf of a company or other organization. The main aim of advertising, many believe is to sell. These are the kind of people who vehemently oppose anything that make advertising seem unethical. Advertising on the whole helps business as well as the economy to prosper and makes the consumer aware of the various choices that are available to him. Moreover, it is a good way of entertaining people and of increasing people‘s creativity, as the more creative and appealing ads are, the more people‘s minds are stimulated. Organizations that spend money on advertising promoting items other than a consumer product or service include political parties, interest groups, religious organizations and governmental agencies. Non-profit organizations may rely on free modes of persuasion, such as a public service announcement. Today entrepreneurs are ready to shell out the extra bit, but they want their products to be promoted in the best possible way. So it is very important to uniquely advertise the brand, product, website, design, services to make it noticeable in this mad horse race.
Making an advertisement look attractive is no easy task. Ad guru Prahlad Kakkar observes that every now and then, one sees a campaign that is different and manages to linger on i n people‘s minds longer. ?The current spates of ads are original, not boring and all have interesting stories to tell. If there‘s no story, there‘s nothing to remember. Technology is only as good as the previous one. But with ads, each has to be better than the one before.?
Main Objectives Of Advertising:
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Advantages Of Advertising:
Apart from promoting commercial goods, advertising can also be used to educate and motivate the public about non-commercial issues such as AIDS, deforestation, family planning, etc. It is a powerful media which is capable of reaching to the far out masses. Now a day we find many ads on the internet also. These ads in most cases have been successfully in connecting the user with the information he requires. To prevent complete commercialization of electronic media, some countries have made it mandatory for broadcasters to air some advertisements related to consumer interest. These public advertisements educate people of that country on a number of social and moral issues.
Disadvatages Of Advertising:
The impact that advertisements cause depends on the state of mind of an individual and his past experiences. For instances, young kids will be easily attracted by the false claims made in advertisements. People are also arguing about the increase in consumption of substances like alcohol and cigarettes after viewing the ads. Excessive advertising has become a nuisance in most cities of the world. Manufacturers easily make false claims about any product and influence the minds of the people. To confront this problem, companies are being asked to withdraw any false and negative claims made in their ads and also being made to pay a fine for these false claims
Types Of Advertising:
Virtually any medium can be used for advertising. Commercial advertising media can include wall paintings, billboards, street furniture components, printed flyers and rack cards, radio, cinema and television adverts, web banners, mobile telephone screens, shopping carts, web popups, skywriting, bus stop benches, human billboards, magazines, newspapers, town criers, sides of buses, banners attached to or sides of airplanes ("logojets"), in-flight advertisements on seatback tray tables or overhead storage bins, taxicab doors, roof mounts and passenger screens, musical stage shows, subway platforms and trains, elastic bands on disposable diapers, doors of bathroom stalls, stickers on apples in supermarkets, shopping cart handles (grabertising), the opening section of streaming audio and video, posters, and the backs of event tickets and supermarket receipts. Any place an "identified" sponsor pays to deliver their message through a medium is advertising.
Digital Advertising
? Television advertising / Music in advertising ? Radio advertising ? Online advertising
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? Product placements Physical Advertising ? Press advertising ? Mobile billboard advertising ? In-store advertising ? Celebrity branding ? Sales Promotions
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COMPANY PROFILE
Idea Cellular
IDEA Cellular is a publicly listed company, having listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in March 2007. IDEA Cellular is a leading GSM mobile services operator in India with over 72 million subscribers, under brand IDEA. It is a PAN India integrated GSM operator covering the entire telephony landscape of the country, and has NLD and ILD operations. A frontrunner in introducing revolutionary tariff plans, IDEA Cellular has the distinction of offering the most customer friendly and competitive Pre Paid offerings, for the first time in India, in an increasingly segmented market. From basic voice & Short Message Service (SMS) services to high-end value added & GPRS services such as Blackberry, Datacard, Mobile TV, Games etc IDEA is seen as an innovative, customer focused brand.
IDEA offers affordable and world-class mobile services to varied segments of mobile users. Be it high end users, or low-end, price sensitive consumers - IDEA's tariff plans are designed to suit every pocket.
With a vision of delighting its customers while meeting their individual communication needs anytime, anywhere, IDEA offers seamless coverage to roaming customers traveling to any part of the country, as well as to international traveling customers across over 200 countries. IDEA Cellular has partnership with over 400 operators to ensure that customers are always connected while on the move, within the country or other parts of the world.
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IDEA is the winner of 'The Emerging Company of the Year Award' at The Economic Times Corporate Excellence Awards 2008-09. The company has received several other national and international recognitions for its path-breaking innovations in mobile telephony products & services. It won the GSM Association Award for "Best Billing and Customer Care Solution? for 2 consecutive years. It was awarded "Mobile Operator of the Year Award - India? for 2007 and 2008 at the Annual Asian Mobile News Awards IDEA Cellular is an Aditya Birla Group Company, India's first truly multinational corporation. The group operates in 25 countries, and is anchored by over 1,30,000 employees belonging to 30 nationalities. The Group has been adjudged the '6th Top Company for Leaders in Asia Pacific Region' in 2009, in a survey conducted by Hewitt Associates, in partnership with The RBL Group, and Fortune. The Group has also been rated 'The Best Employer in India and among the Top 20 in Asia' by the Hewitt-Economic Times and Wall Street Journal Study 2007.
Service Areas
The Indian telecommunications market for mobile services is divided into 22 "Service Areas" classified into "Metro", Category "A", Category "B" and Category "C" service areas by the Government of India. These classifications are based principally on a Service Area's revenue generating potential. IDEA is a pan-India operator with services being made available in all parts of the country. The telecom service areas have been divided into Established Service Areas and New Service Areas.
Established Service Areas
The established service areas are Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Haryana, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh (West). Licenses for the Maharashtra and Gujarat Service Areas were awarded in December 1995, with network rollout and commercial launch achieved in 1997. In January 2001 the mobile operations in Andhra Pradesh Service Area were integrated with IDEA through a merger with Tata Cellular Limited.
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In June 2001, the mobile operations in Madhya Pradesh Service Area were fully integrated with IDEA through an acquisition of RPG Cellcom Limited. In October 2001, the license for Delhi Service Area was acquired during the fourth mobile license auction, with network rollout and commercial launch in November 2002. In January 2004, Escotel Mobile Communications Private Limited ("Escotel"), was acquired with its original licenses in the Service Areas of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh (West) and Kerala. All these Service Areas were re-branded and integrated with IDEA in June 2004.
New Service Areas The New Service Areas are Uttar Pradesh (East), Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, Mumbai, Karnataka, Punjab, Orissa, Chennai & Tamil Nadu, Jammu & Kashmir, Kolkata & West Bengal, and Assam & North East. Licenses for Uttar Pradesh (East), Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh were acquired through the acquisition of Escotel (Escorts Telecommunications Limited). Idea launched its services in Mumbai and Bihar in 2008. The Mumbai launch was the largest Metro City launch in India. In Bihar, Idea acquired 500,000 subscribers in just over 100 days. Brand Idea was launched in Karnataka and Punjab, through the acquisition of Spice Communications.
The company has expanded its pan-India presence through service launches in Orissa, Chennai & Tamil Nadu, Jammu & Kashmir, Kolkata & West Bengal, and the North East states in FY10.
Inception & Growth
In 2000, Tata Cellular was a company providing mobile services in AP. When Birla-AT&T brought Maharashtra and Gujarat to the table, the merger of these two entities was a reality. Thus Birla-TataAT&T, popularly known as Batata, was born and was later branded as !dea. Then Idea set sights on RPG‘s operations in Madhya Pradesh which was successfully acquired, helping Batata have a million subscribers, and the licence to be the fourth operator in Delhi was clinched.
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In 2004, Idea (the company had by then been rechristened) bought over the Escorts group‘s Escotel gaining Haryana, Uttar Pradesh (West) and Kerala — and licences for three more — UP (East), Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh. By the end of that year, four million Indians were on the company‘s network. In 2005, AT&T sold its investment in Idea, and the year after Tatas also bid good bye to pursue an independent telecom business. And Idea was left only with one promoter, the AV Birla group. When the company‘s stock listed on the bourses in March 2007, its subscriber base was 13 million with presence in 11 circles. In less than three years, the subscriber numbers have more than quadrupled. The public issue was oversubscribed 50 times and raised Rs 2,450 crore.In June 2008, Idea Cellular bought out BK Modi‘s stake in Spice Communications for Rs 2,700 crore adding Punjab and Karnataka circles. Modi‘s joint venture partner, Telekom Malaysia, invested Rs 7,000 crore for a 14.99% stake in Idea. Just around then, Idea‘s subsidiary, Aditya Birla Telecom sold a 20% stake to US-based Providence Equity Partners for over Rs 2,000 crore.
Customer service
The company has its retail outlets under the "My Idea" banner. The company has also been the first to offer flexible tariff plans for prepaid customers. It also offers GPRS services in urban areas. Idea Cellular won the GSM Association Award for "Best Billing and Customer Care Solution" for 2 consecutive years. IDEA Cellular has been recognized as the 'Most Customer Responsive Company' in the Telecom sector, at the prestigious Avaya GlobalConnect Customer Responsiveness Awards 2010
Holding
Initially the Birlas, the Tatas and AT&T Wireless each held one-third equity in the company. But following AT&T Wireless' merger with Cingular Wireless in 2004, Cingular decided to sell its 32.9% stake in Idea. This stake was bought by both the Tatas and Birlas at 16.45% each. Tata's foray into the cellular market with its own subsidiary, Tata Indicom, a CDMA-based mobile provider, cropped differences between the Tatas and the Birlas. This dual holding by the Tatas also became a major reason for the delay in Idea being granted a license to operate in Mumbai. This was because as per Department of Telecommunications (DOT) license norms, one promoter could not have more than 10% stake in two companies operating in the same circle and Tata Indicom was already operating in Mumbai when Idea filed for its licence.
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The Birlas thus approached the DOT and sought its intervention, and the Tatas replied by saying that they would exit Idea but only for a good price. On 10 April 2006, the Aditya Birla Group announced its acquisition of the 48.18% stake held by the Tatas at Rs. 40.51 a share amounting to Rs. 44.06 billion. While 15% of the 48.14% stake was acquired by Aditya Birla Nuvo, a company in-charge of the Birlas' new business initiatives, the remaining stake was acquired by Birla TMT holdings Private Ltd., an AV Birla family-owned company. Currently, Aditya Birla Group holds 49.1% of the total shares of the company. Malaysia based Axiata controls a 14.99% stake in the company. Subscriber Base Idea's subscriber base as at the end of September 2010 according to the Cellular Operations Association India (COAI) is as follows:
? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
Maharashtra and Goa - 10,551,511 Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh - 8,401,422 Andhra Pradesh - 7,075,631 Kerala - 6,002,217 Kolkata - 771,790 Gujarat - 6,000,166 Uttar Pradesh (West) & Uttarakhand - 6,613,009 Delhi - 3,035,326 Haryana - 2,471,611 Uttar Pradesh (East) - 4,423,834 Rajasthan - 2,519,682 Himachal Pradesh - 344,923 Mumbai - 1,803,591 Bihar & Jharkhand - 3,738,930 Tamil Nadu & Chennai - 1,201,183 Orissa - 810,952 Punjab (Spice) - 3,759,869 Karnataka (Spice) - 3,121,463 West Bengal - 1,232,607 Jammu & Kashmir - 71,833 North East India except Assam - 86,595
Totalling to 74,213,507 or 15.02% (Approx.) of the total 494,036,000 mobile connections in India. 9
Chapter 2
RESEARCH METHOD
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1. Formulating The Research Problem
A.Unit Of Analysis: Idea Cellular
IDEA Cellular is a leading GSM mobile services operator in India with over 72 million subscribers, under brand IDEA. It is a pan India integrated GSM operator covering the entire telephony landscape of the country, and has NLD and ILD operations. IDEA Cellular is a publicly listed company, having listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in March 2007.
B.Characteristic Of Interest: Advertising Strategies of Idea Cellular
The advertising & marketing of Idea Cellular has single-handedly managed to establish the company as a leading brand in the telecom sector. The creative & innovative advertisements of Idea have created a huge uproar among the population of the country. Hence this report aims at understanding the success of the company based on its advertising strategies.
C. Time & space Boundary: 2 Months
D. Environmental Conditions: Changes in the telecom sector if any. Introduction of any
rules/regulations by the government or regulatory bodies.
2. Objectives Of the Research
? ? ? ? To use the impact of social causes as a tool for marketing To use the impact of celebrity marketing on consumer buying behaviour To keep up with the changing trends in marketing strategies To understand consumer acceptance of the product based on its Marketing & Promotion
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3. Research Design
Descriptive research attempts to describe and explain conditions of the present by using many subjects and questionnaires to fully describe a phenomenon. Descriptive research is thus based on the various measures as to when, what, why & how a consumer purchases a product and also helps to understand why a consumer is loyal to that product. Hence, as my research is based on the topic ? Understanding the advertising strategies of Idea Cellular‘, the research is descriptive in nature.
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4. Sources Of Data
5. Sample Design
Sampling Frame: People of all age-groups using Mobile Phones
Sample size: 100 Customers
Location: Western Suburbs of Mumbai
6. Analysis Of Data
After the exhaustive task of collecting the data, now I was required to analyze the data from every angle and present it in a precise manner. It was essential to present the data in the correct form. Hence the usage of pie charts and pictures is done in the project to make it easier and appropriate to understand.
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7. Project Report
After collecting and analyzing all the facts and aspects, final report with all relevant points was prepared. The project is divided into 7 sections for convenience and better understanding of the project.
? Limitations:
The sample size may not adequately represent the national market. Study is concentrated more on advertising & marketing & not on the services provided by the company This study has not been conducted over an extended period of time, it do not consider any changes due to changes in the sudden needs of the customer because of the market fluctuations
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Chapter 3
MARKETING MIX
Major marketing management decisions are classified into four categories. These are known as ‘Marketing Mix’ or the 4 P’s Of Marketing. The 4 P‘s of marketing are: ? ? ? ? Product Place Price Promotion
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MARKETING MIX of IDEA CELLULAR
Product: It includes the different services provided by IDEA to customers with opportunities to talk, chat, play games, send and receive messages & pictures, changing ring tones and caller tunes, other various value added services, receiving information about travel and cricket events, obtaining billing information, view videos clips and send them & so on.
Price: IDEA wants to make its services accessible to as many people as possible of all age groups from the poor to rich. Thus they have developed various pricing structures to suit the needs of different customer segments.
Place: The various service centers of IDEA cellular under the tag, ‘My Idea‘ at convenient locations all across the country. In Mumbai there are about 15,000 retail outlets & over 60 "My Idea" service centers
Promotion: Advertisements on TV is the most important channel of promotion for IDEA. Others are radio ads, newspaper ads, bill boards, posters & so on. Of the 4 P‘s, Promotion is considered to be the most influential factor in the success story of IDEA cellular
In this report, I have carried out an extensive & detailed study of the advertising strategies of IDEA Cellular.
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Chapter 4
ADVERTISEMENTS OF IDEA CELLULAR
Television Advertising
The TV commercial is generally considered the most effective mass-market advertising format, as is reflected by the high prices TV networks charge for commercial airtime during popular TV events. The annual Super Bowl football game in the United States is known as the most prominent advertising event on television. The average cost of a single thirty-second TV spot during this game has reached US$3 million (as of 2009). The majority of television commercials features a song or jingle that listeners soon relate to the product. Virtual advertisements may be inserted into regular television programming through computer graphics. It is typically inserted into otherwise blank backdrops or used to replace local billboards that are not relevant to the remote broadcast audience. More controversially, virtual billboards may be inserted into the background where none exist in real-life. This technique is especially used in televised sporting events. Infomercials: An infomercial is a long-format television commercial, typically five minutes or longer. The word "infomercial" combining the words "information" & "commercial". The main objective in an infomercial is to create an impulse purchase, so that the consumer sees the presentation and then immediately buys the product through the advertised toll-free telephone number or website. Infomercials describe, display, and often demonstrate products and their features, and commonly have testimonials from consumers and industry professionals.
Idea Advertisements:
Idea cellular advertisements have created a widespread roar among the population of India. The unique concepts of advertising and innovative ideas portrayed have been well appreciated by the audience. The advertisements are generally based on the objectives of advertising e.g. Social causes supported / encouraged by the company; Use of a socially renowned & respected personality to promote the product. 1. STAY CONNECTED The first IDEA Cellular advertisement ?STAY CONNECTED? campaign which started a revolution is the one with the very famous Idea cellular music & caught on with the youth.
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"Stay Connected" is a brand promise that looks at the key purpose of mobile telephony. It converges with the tangible requirement of 'network depth' & at the same time, reflects the eternal human need for bonding, kinsman ship, and relationship forming. This new brand campaign enables Idea to own the biggest category benefit of "keeping people connected", through a simple, unique and likeable expression of connectivity. And it makes consumers aware that "no one connects better than Idea".
Slated to run through 2004, the campaign utilizes all relevant mainline media to propagate the message to its audiences with 60-second commercial and its various edits, print campaign & outdoor publicity. Apart from it, various innovative media / events has been used to further strengthen the message. 2. Walk & Talk,
IDEA has planned a range of on-ground and digital activities around the theme of Walk &
Talk, to mobilize people across different walks of life, age-groups and societies and get them to walk for
fitness. IDEA plans to initiate a countrywide movement on Walking & Talking, and expects that ?Ek Idea pe chal padega India? . 18
IDEA released its new TVC which shows its Brand Ambassador Abhishek Bachchan playing a Doctor this time, who discovers how people can get fit by simply ?Walking while Talking‘ and advocates this idea to the general public. While responding to a journalist‘s query on whether technology was making people lazy and unfit; the Doctor responds by saying that people can be fit by just ?Walking & Talking‘. Soon, this message sweeps the country through TV, making it a mass movement. According to Pradeep Shrivastava, Chief Marketing Officer, IDEA Cellular ?IDEA brand campaigns have always celebrated Champion Ideas which have the power to change the society and the way we live. This time, the Champion Idea is around ?Walking & Talking‘ for staying fit. The communication has been designed to appeal to the masses and classes, on a critical subject such as Health & Fitness. We expect the new theme campaign to initiate a wave of awareness on fitness, across the country.? The advertisements refer to Abhishek Bachchan as the provider of a brilliant idea for the well-being of mankind. Thus came into existence. . ”What an Idea Sirjee!” campaign. IDEA campaigns have been fresh and imaginative and carry a touch of social relevance while exploring the power of category. ?IDEA released its new TVC is fifth in the series of IDEA‘s brand campaigns with its Brand Ambassador, Abhishek Bachchan. The other campaigns around ?Participative Governance?; ?Education for All?; ?Championing a world in which no one suffers from the disability to communicate‘ & ?Championing a world without Caste‘ have been huge hits amongst the audiences, making its tagline ?What an Idea, Sirji!‘ a popular metaphor.
3. IDEA Launches 'What an Idea Sirji' Campaign
Idea Cellular has launched a 'Education For All' ad campaign featuring its brand ambassador, Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan.The creative agency for the campaign is Lowe India. The ad was shot by Chrome Films. The new campaign was launched in two phases. R Balakrishnan, chairman and national creative director, Lowe India, says, "The Idea campaigns have been specifically tailored to bring mobile telephony closer to the Indian consumers. By integrating a social message into the new campaign, we are not only reinforcing the difference that can be made through the use of modern technology but also the power of a new idea." Sanjeev Aga, managing director, Idea Cellular, says, "We believe that new ideas can change our lives, a thought that has been central to our brand promise from the beginning." 19
"The new campaign addresses a very relevant social theme education for all, especially the girl-child. I am pleased to be playing a part in this campaign and contribute to making a difference through the power of the idea," Abhishek Bachchan said. Education for all, especially the girl child, is what the team wanted to portray through this ad. To promote this thought, they have also tied up with an NGO Nanhi Kali.
4. PARTICIPATIVE MANAGEMENT
People of the world‘s largest democracy, India, witnessed a new dimension of the proverbial „Government Of the People, For the People, and By the People? while watching the newly launched media campaign of IDEA Cellular, a leading telecom services provider. The new campaign gives the idea of ?Participative Management‘ for Governance where two-way communication is encouraged between government and public.
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The brand tagline ?What an Idea Sirji!? is the message given by Brand Ambassador, Abhishek Ba chchan, which is echoed by the public at large in the story, and even viewers of the new imaginative ad. The ad explores the idea of Government(s) using mobile service as an efficient tool to gather public opinion and support, while taking vital decisions impacting people‘s lives. According to Pradeep Shrivastava, Chief Marketing Officer, IDEA Cellular ?IDEA‘s brand campaign celebrates Champion Ideas which have the power to Change. The ad is aimed at conveying a socially relevant message in an easy-to-understand form to our target audience, which mainly comprises of mobile users and intenders in rural India, and the youth. Through our new campaign, we wish to highlight the need for Governance through active public involvement, while promoting the usage of mobile phone?. The new campaign has been developed by Idea‘s creative agency, Lowe. Speaking about the concept behind the new ad, R. Balki, Chairman, Lowe said, ?The theme is relevant to the current times where political campaigns across the world are relying on reaching the voters through mobile and internet. Through this ad, we are highlighting citizen‘s empowerment by making the individual‘s opinion count.? The new ad, based on the theme of ?Democracy‘ is the fourth in the series of IDEA‘s campaign wit h its brand ambassador. The new campaign is a milestone in the journey of IDEA‘s brand building as it demonstrates the power of an ?Idea‘ by looking at mobile telephony and its benefits in a fresh, imaginative and elevating way. IDEA intends to create brand equity by continuously achieving excellence through individual insights that connect with the end consumer thus nurturing a culture of positive discussion and empathy.
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IDEA connects with consumers beyond transactional offers by looking at mobile telephony as more than a mere communication device. IDEA aims to convey the message that ?Mobile is a life-transforming tool for millions. It changes lives!‘ 5. Language Barrier. Another new ad campaign by Idea, aims to break the Language Barrier. With a land where a billion people with 850 mother tongues and 22,000 dialects live together, this campaign comes as fresh air in helping people overcome the language problem in a easy yet unique way. Actor Abhishek Bachchan, brand ambassador of Idea, will be seen in yet another ?Sirji? series of ads, the wildly popular character that had taken the telecom advertising industry by storm. The latest ad campaign will feature him in a completely new avatar as he uses his witty comments and breakthrough ideas to address this very real concern of our society. The new ad campaign will be targeted at Indians across the length and breadth of the country and aim at increasing the customer base in every circle If You are following Idea advertisements right from the launch, You could notice the fact that Idea always targets people with a general, powerful, social message OR social work. With the popularity of ?What an Idea Sirji!? tagline.. Abhishek Bhacchan being the Sirji, Now appears in the role of a Dumb Tea Shop worker.
The Ad Starts with 4 Friends visiting Tea Shop for the Last time before they leave for their respective new work places. Abhishek Observes the Sadness reflecting on their faces and comes to know that all were facing the Language problem as these 4 friends were posted on 4 different locations where they have no clue on how to communicate with people out there!! Sirji gets a Brilliant IDEA solution for this. Abhishek Suggests How IDEA mobile could be good Filler for their Communication deficiency in their so called Unknown Places.
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Think about This, A Marathi guy going to Kolkata, Malayalee going to Haryana, Bengali going to Kerala and Haryani going to Mumbai…The Challenge is one and Only ?Language? and here is How Sirji?s Idea of having Mobile with these friends could make the Difference.
The Ad has been executed well, with friends helping each other teaching them language (atleast some Basics!) and How Mobile plays a role in Uniting them as well as exploring things. The Haryaani who has been stuck up in a Strike-hit Train in Mumbai, finds a way to escape by asking an Excuse for Toilet.. seeks the Help of his Marathi friend for Translation… The Bengali Girl‘s Challenge to find a place for living solved by his Keralite friend who Teaches her to Say ?Boorne and Broot Up in kolktaaaaaa? with a typical Malyalam accent. Marathi Guy managing to get a Seat in Bengali Bus by Singing A Bengali song aloud.. and how a Malayalee manages to Grab a Cup of Lassi in Haryana!!! Absolute fun to Watch!! The Best Part of the Ad is Simplicity the Tea Shop Guy ( Sirji ) shows and says No Language is Necessary to Communicate.. ! The Advertisement is a winner as it brings India together and brings a Kind of Spark in Us spreading How Rich our Culture Is and How Language and Culture is Exchanged and diversified and how we Manage to Live in this Beautiful Country! A Nice Blend of Friendship Values, Culture and the Mobile Technology!
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6. A NEW INDIA WITHOUT CAST
The ad describes the story of two people of different castes running a shop which sells the same goods & end up fighting. This issue is taken up at the village panchayat where Junior B plays the sarpanch. The Sarpanch realizes that the hatred is not between two shop keepers, it arises from the difference of castes. Hence, he comes up with the idea, that no one in the village will be referred to by their surnames. Instead they will be referred to by their Mobile numbers. Thus the people are now more concerned about numbers than caste & religion. Hence the sarpanch comes up with a simple solution with an outrageous idea!
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7. Paperless Age. The cellular phone company owned by the Aditya Birla group, has also unveiled another of its latest television commercial envisaging a Paperless Age.
As the planet faces hazards of global warming, and the world leaders debate the role of developed and developing countries to save the Earth - there is one simple solution that our very prudent and popular Sirji! Proposes this time. He advocates the message 'Use Mobile, Save Paper', thus have a green planet. Is it really Possible?? Can you imagine a life without hard copy newspapers and magazines which you can touch and feel? No pamphlets? No leaflets? No Letters? Can you get all your news and views, pictures, maps and cartoons from a cellphone? Developed by IDEA‘s creative agency, Lowe, this new ad campaign promotes the idea of mobile VAS usage for vast number of day to day activities, to save paper and save Earth. This is IDEA Cellular latest campaign, after a successful series of What an Idea, Sirji! Campaigns with Brand Ambassador, Abhishek Bachchan, which now goes on air.
Speaking about the campaign, Mr. Pradeep Shrivastava, Chief Marketing Officer, IDEA Cellular said, "Environment‘ as a subject touches all, but gets attention only at strategic forums. The common man gets to contribute little towards the cause, due to lack of direction and ideas. Hence, IDEA Cellular has taken up the responsibility of educating the 500 million mobile phone users in the country. If they start using the mobile phone more judiciously, together we can make a significant contribution of saving paper, and therefore, the green cover necessary for the health of the planet."
As per the press release, "World over, millions of tonnes of trees get cut every day to produce paper, 25
leading to alarming rates of deforestation. The new IDEA TVC showcases how the mobile phone can be used as an efficient tool to read daily newspapers, generate e-bills, make payments and transactions, issue e-tickets and boarding passes; thereby saving tonnes of papereveryday."
Abhishek Bachchan can be seen portraying the role of an agonized ?Tree‘ this time. He advocates the idea of using mobile phone to save paper, and therefore, the greenery around him through this campaign.
8. Idea?s „Telephone Exchange? – Ek doosre ko samajhne ke liye!
Conceptualised by Lowe Lintas, the latest campaign aptly brings alive the core insight with an easily relatable marital situation
Idea Cellular has always highlighted the role of simple telephony answers in solving large social problems. ?An Idea can change your life‘ has been the fundamental plank on which the brand has been built. However, in its latest campaign, the brand addresses not so much a societal issue but an endearingly ?closer to my life? story that impacts a very large part of society. The latest campaign is based on the insight of ?Ek doosre ko samajhne ke liye telephone exchange, what an Idea!? The widely appreciated commercial has been conceptualised by Lowe Lintas & Partners. So far the brand championed socio-cultural anxieties like caste war, democracy, language barrier, saving paper from afar, from imaginary worlds rather than worlds that consumers regularly encounter in their daily lives. The brand viewed people holistically, seeking to understand every single time what gives their life meaning, rather than customers of category benefits. The new story is about a husband and wife in a normal household having a heated argument in a typical busy-morning situation, and sarcastically poking each other to put themselves in the other person‘s shoes to know how stressed their lives are. Their young son who is witnessing this argument gets an idea to exchange his parent‘s mobile phones, so that unknowingly his mom and dad get ?to put themselves in the other person‘s shoes?. What follows next is that both the husband and the wife receive a string of calls during the course of the day which were actually meant for the other person. Husband receives wife‘s calls and vice-versa! Be it the wife receiving the boss‘s call meant for her husband to convey the news of sales dropping or the maid calling up the husband to report that she won‘t be coming for the next 2-3 days, it‘s all stress-filled news built through the day for both of them. By end of the day both the husband and wife acknowledge and appreciate the fact that ?her husband / his wife? has an equally stressful daily routine and empathise with one another. 26
Commenting on the concept, Arun Iyer, National Creative Director, Lowe Lintas, said, ?If we look around, we all are leading extremely stressful lives that impact and strain our personal and professional relationships. It is becoming increasingly difficult to appreciate, empathise and respond to relationship demands that seem to snap at the smallest provocation. In today‘s context, our mobile phone is a true reflection of us and what‘s going on in our life. The next story plays off the age-old pearl of wisdom, that the best way to appreciate/understand other‘s life is to live it yourself. This leads to empathy. Empathy is always created out of the tension between the sound of the voice and an intended silence. And empathy by nature is a feeling which gets best demonstrated/heightened in a personal relationship.? Iyer further informed that the commercial would be promoted mainly through television supported by outdoor, print and digital. When asked what he thought of the campaign, Prathap Suthan, Co-Founder, Bang in The Middle, commented, ?The TVC has been conceptualised extremely well and comes with a great idea which happens in every home. Couples will know exactly how this happens and the concept is something people can relate to. It is a bang on commercial as it is not an artificial situation but a real scenario of situations in every household. Additionally, they have shown the child caught up between the fight and used him as an instrument when the exchange happens, which is very interesting to watch.? The TVC: Credits: Creative: R Balki, Arun Iyer, Ashwin Varkey, Subodh Menon, Jaywant Dabholkar, Shishir Kapre, Viraj Swaroop, Sarfaraz Siddiqui, Varun Panjwani , Amol Sutar, Deepak Nare, Pratik Mhatre Client Servicing: Raj Gupta, Satish Ramanathan, Sachin Pandirkar, Shrenika Ajeet, Tanvi Pawaskar Planning: S Subramanyeswar
9. Idea?s telephone exchange connects mother and son
Storyboard:
Idea has tried to emotionally connect with increasing cellular services subscribers in India with its new "Telephone Exchange" ad. Eyes getting moist with Idea‘s current commercial campaign? Why not after all its stirring the soul of families across India. This ad begins wth a conversation between an Indian mother and her grown up busily employed son. While the mother looks forward to spending time with her son in her old age and expects a a call as he leaves for the offce. Son being the busy man, tends to ignore her request by being indifferent and saying he has too much of work to even attend or make calls on 27
personal front. The father does the trick and swaps their phones. This results in mom getting all calls all day on her son's mobile & she realizes that her son is actually too occupied. At the same time, son feels disconnected as his phone has no calls (it also shows how mobile has become integral part of our life and that we miss it when our phone does not rings). Soon he realizes that he is carrying his mom's phone and feels how it must be affecting her as she does not even get a sngle call from her son, thats him. He calls his mom instantly and with all his emotions he promises to give a call to her every day. The commercial ends on a happy note father saying ?Ek dusre ko samajhne ke liye telephone exchange?
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Idea Cellular moots a public-police bond this Raksha Bandhan
Idea Cellular has released an ad film around the upcoming Raksha Bandhan festival. The TVC created by Lowe Lintas and Partners went on air on 7 August. A young woman on a bike stops by a policeman to ask for directions. He addresses her as sister (behenji) and guides her. On hearing ?sister‘, she checks his wrist to see that he isn‘t wearing a ?rakhi‘ and asks him why. He replies that he has been on duty since morning. She takes a rakhi, ties it on his wrist and wishes him ?Happy Raksha Bandhan.‘ He gets emotional and says that he has nothing to gift her. He insists that she take his number and reach out if she ever has a problem. A voice over signs off saying, ?Public aur police ka beech bandhan - ek accha Idea? (A bond between public and the police, is a good idea). On the campaign, Arun Iyer, national creative director, Lowe lintas and Partners, said, ?Idea Cellular releases a TVC for every festival. Previously, we have had TVCs for Diwali, Eid, Christmas, Valentine‘s Day and Holi. So we thought we should take the property forward and create a TVC for the upcoming festival of Raksh Bandhan which is a big celebration for Indians.? ?Normally one associates the festival with a sister tying a rakhi on her brother‘s wrist and he makes a promise to protect her. So we decided to give the idea a spin. The police work very hard for safeguarding the society and citizens. So we developed a story where we have a young girl located in city and she is lost. She approaches the policeman for help. She then decides to tie a rakhi on his wrist as a gesture of thanking him for the service provided. The idea was to bring a lot more trust in the equation between the citizens and the police,? Iyer added. 28
11.
Get the idea, honey bunny?
From the weighty to the cutesy, Idea Cellular‘s advertising has cut a wide arc, going from ?What an Idea, Sirji!‘ to ?You‘re my pumpkin pumpkin, hello honey bunny?. This jingle is on everyone‘s lips, having become quite a rage across the country, just as the earlier campaign became a big success. On December 1, the Aditya Birla group company launched its new ad campaign – ?Idea Rings All India‘ – after running a high-intensity teaser campaign for three days. The jingle caught on much faster than expected, with many humming it and some making it their Facebook and e-mail status. In February this year, the Supreme Court cancelled Idea Cellular‘s 13 licences, of which seven were operational. During the spectrum auction in November, the company won spectrum in eight circles, which included seven circles where its licences were cancelled. Idea Cellular, the country‘s fourth largest operator by subscriber base, now has operations across all the 22 telecom circles. The GSM operator had a user base of about 116 million and 17.22 per cent market share as of October 30, 2012. ?Now we are a pan-India operator, compared with operations across 13 circles earlier. Now it‘s a completely different situation. We needed much more visibility. Now we want to re-establish and project ourselves as a pan-India player,? explains Sashi Shankar, Chief Marketing Officer, Idea Cellular. The ?Honey Bunny‘ page on the company‘s Web site recorded more than one million visits during the first nine days of the campaign‘s launch. The YouTube page got about 1.9 lakh views, while the Facebook page received more than 2,000 likes. ?Music is something which is universal, something which blends with every culture. It‘s a hummable, likeable song, and that was exactly the thought behind creating the jingle,? says Shankar. For the record, the popular hit Kolaveri Di had triggered 2.10 lakh downloads within 18 days last year, according to a survey by Airtel Mobitude, an annual customer preferences and behaviour survey done by Airtel, based on what its own customers liked/used/downloaded. ?Our brief was to roll out a campaign on Idea‘s strong network and we tried to do it in our own way. If the phone rings that means there is a network, and the campaign is about network and connectivity,? Ashwin Varkey, executive creative director at Lowe Lintas, said. Lowe Lintas is the creative agency for the campaign, while Amit Trivedi of Dev D, Wake Up Sid andEnglish Vinglish fame scored the music. The lyrics were penned by Amitabh Bhattacharya, who shot to fame with the song ?Emosanal Attyachar‘ from the film Dev D. 29
The campaign, ?Idea Rings All India‘, involves radio, TV, digital (social networking sites such as YouTube, Twitter and Facebook), cinema theatres and outdoors. However, print is the one medium missing from the campaign. ?This being an audio-visual representation, print was excluded as it would be difficult to bring out the message through print advertisements,? Rajat Mukarji, Idea Cellular Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, said. According to Jagdeep Kapoor, managing director with Samsika Marketing Consultants, the campaign is an attempt to connect to the youth through music. ?We are likeable, we are lovable and we are popular, that‘s the message. This jingle has some memorability,? Kapoor said, adding that more than half of India‘s population of about 1.2 billion people is below the age of 25 years.
12.
IDEAS 121 CAMPAIGN
AGENCY/IGNITOR Lowe Lintas & Partners STORY LINE/CAMPAIGN HIGHLIGHTS TVC opens up at a road on a rainy day where a boy is shown asking man directions to the Idea Showroom. TVC shows the man responds to him with a dance move- he jumps once to the count of one, moves a step aside to right and limb again and says ?2‘ and then again takes the step to his left and limb one more time and says ?1‘ again. TVC shows, the man exclaiming ?aa gaya Idea ka showroom‘. TVC follows with a series of instances like one women is shown doing the same move in her house, one guy doing this gesture near beach, one women doing the same at bridge, restaurant, railway platform, tennis court, tunnels and many more. TVC then proceeds showing a big mobile screen on which this dance move is shown. Film then proceeds with a big 121 frame which shows different shops and showrooms inside it with features that are available over the phone. Another instance is shown where a guy tries to do the same gesture when the other man stops him and exclaims that his wife is actually waiting at the real showroom. TVC concludes with showing a guy holding Idea banner and doing this move followed by Aditya Birla group logo. Concept used by Lowe Lintas and Partners is very innovative and fresh. Idea took a break from their flagship social causes advertisement and came out with an interesting advertisement to break the ice and to make consumers aware that they can actually have all the services over the phone and there is no need 30
to go to the showroom. Segmentation is perfect as always in Idea advertisements. Viewers will definitely love this film as it is a perfect blend of humor, information and creativity and will be forced to stick to their couches till the end. Advertisement is completely relevant as it has perfectly marketed the product they were bound to.
13. IDEA KILL THE RAVAN IN YOU
AGENCY/IGNITOR Lowe Lintas & Partners STORYLINE/ CAMPAIGN HIGHLIGHTS TVC opens up featuring a taxi driver who finds a mobile phone left behind by a passenger in the taxi. TVC shows that the phone rings and driver disconnects the call. TVC shows him switching off the handset and when he was about to pull out the sim card out, headlights of another taxi passing by astound him. TVC shows driver undergoing a change of heart and putting the phone back. TVC moves on showing phone ringing again where driver picks it up and tells the caller to take the phone from near Paradise Hotel. Film moves on showing the driver walking towards his home amid Diwali festivities and a VO says, ?Apne andar ke Ravan ko Jalan, Ek acha Idea?. TVC concludes showing driver‘s lit-up home where he is welcomed by his wife and son and a frame showing Idea logo. Concept is old but timing to bring out this concept is very good. Theme around which the whole film revolves is to kill the demon inside you on the auspicious festival and is very well presented in it. Segmentation is nicely done. There was more room to evolve some more things out of the film but was underutilized. Viewers would like the TVC but I doubt it would be loved as other commercials of Idea Cellular. Still the theme involves social causes and thus is warmly accepted. The film has every spice to connect on with some of the viewers as it‘s a common phenomenon to see people losing their mobiles in cabs and there are increasing stories of some honest cabbies returning it to them.
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SPONCERSHIPS 1. IDEA sponsors KBC!!!
IDEA Cellular, struck a deal to sponsor the most popular TV Game show ever on Indian Television, ?Kaun Banega Crorepati‘ (KBC) in2010! Idea obtained the ?Telecom partner‘ rights of phone and SMS lines of The popular show hosted by Superstar Amitabh Bachchan ?powered by? Idea.The first 7 Questions of KBC were be open for public response till August 9th 20:59:59 Hrs.
Additionally Idea subscribers across the country could access ?Idea Pass‘ to register for the show. An exclusive offer for Idea subscribers, ?Idea Pass‘ would enable users to register for 5 days more, between 21:00:00 Hrs on August 11th, 2010 till 20:59:59 Hrs on August 16th, 2010, in addition to the general dates of registration. While accessing through Idea Pass, Idea subscribers need to respond to 5 exclusive Questions of KBC on the specially designed IVR by dialing ?55456‘ (Add ?01-04‘ for the answer Options A-D. For eg. ?5545601‘ for ?A‘). Idea subscribers could also SMS their response to the short code 55456. According to Ms. Anupama Ahluwalia, Vice President – Marketing, IDEA Cellular Ltd., ?Idea‘s association with Kaun Banega Crorepati is a major milestone in our brand building and customer engagement initiatives this year. The tie-up will provide over 68 million Idea subscribers an additional gateway of opportunity to be a ?Crorepati‘, by simply using the Idea network while responding to the Questions of Kaun Banega Crorepati. We have created special lines to accommodate millions of callers and give them an opportunity to realize their dreams through this unique show?. Idea also struck a deal with KBC to ensure unique brand visibility during the show. ?Idea‘ si gnature tune would be heard everytime the contestant on the Hot-Seat calls a friend through the lifeline – ?Phone-afriend‘. KBC Host and Quiz Master Amitabh Bachchan‘s voice would be heard on Idea IVR and would also be available for download as Dialer Tones. 32
IDEA Cellular also planned the launch a range of special KBC VAS packs and KBC Game exclusively for Idea subscribers. The new initiatives were rolled out in a phased manner throughout the build-up period and after the show went On-Air in October 2010.
2. IDEA teams up with MUMBAI INDIANS!!
Telecom players are increasingly cashing in on the popularity of the Indian Premier League. Idea Cellular is no different & it joined the bandwagon by partnering with one of the IPL teams. The cellular company struck a deal with Mukesh Ambani‘s Mumbai Indians for sporting its logo on the players‘ shirt. Idea Cellular is also taking the partnership forward by allowing mobile users to leave messages for their favourite Mumbai Indian player.
Mr Pradeep Srivastava, Vice-President (Marketing), Idea Cellular, said the objective was to take the partnership beyond just a logo to more interactive offerings wherein select subscribers would be able to talk to the Mumbai Indian players. Some of the subscribers were also be sent to South Africa to watch the matches. Idea Cellular also launched a media campaign to create awareness of this initiative.
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IDEA Cellular even launched an innovative campaign based on the theme of ‘Conn ecting Fans with their Cricket superheroes’ following a tie up with Mumbai Indians in the second season of the Indian Premier League.
Under this campaign, IDEA advertised the mobile numbers of Mumbai Indians skipper Sachin Tendulkar, pace bowler Zaheer Khan, spinner Harbhajan Singh, and batsman Sanath Jayasuriya, and encouraged people to call and SMS their favourite stars.
Idea received an overwhelming response with over two million calls and messages (till April 30). Sachin received a record 9.5 lakh calls and messages on his ten digit Idea Cellular number of Mumbai.
Followed by Bhajji at 7.05 lakh calls and Zaheer 1.3 calls. Similar calls and messages were also received on the ten digit numbers of other Mumbai Indian players including Sri Lankan Sanath Jayasuriya, West Indian Dwayne Bravo and hard hitting Mumbai batsman Abhishek Nayar.
3. Idea readies India to play „Oongli Cricket?
After Test Cricket, One-Day Cricket and T-20 Cricket, there is a new format of Cricket born in India – it is 'Idea Oongli Cricket'! With the new campaign this summer, Idea Cellular has brought Cricket at fingertips for the experts of the game as well as novice, men & women, old and the young, and everybody else who uses a mobile phone. 34
The new teaser campaigns ran on Television urging people to keep their fingers in good shape as 'Idea Oongli Cricket' is coming. The new format of the Game allows millions of mobile users in India to participate in this unique campaign. Idea Brand Ambassador Abhishek Bachchan along with other celebrities and cricketers will appear on TV, in this campaign.
Viewers are asked a question based on the events and happenings of the ongoing match of the day. The campaign has been designed to enable everybody to participate as it does not require detailed knowledge of the game. Each question will be unique and promises to be fun. Viewers just need to exercise their fingers to SMS the right answer after the question is asked. 'Idea Oongli Cricket' can be played by all mobile phone users by SMSing their answer to '9594939291'. The number is toll free for Idea subscribers, and standard messaging rates apply for other mobile subscribers. All Idea customers who send in the correct answer will get Idea VAS Packs for three days.
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Talking about the new campaign Mr. Pradeep Shrivastava, Chief Marketing Officer, Idea Cellular said, "All Indians are connected with Cricket, in some way or the other. However, only a few get a chance to play the sport while millions just remain spectators of the match. 'Idea Oongli Cricket' will enable every Indian to participate in this match of cricketing intelligence. Like all Idea campaigns, the concept is fun and entertaining, and will engage a cross section of consumers through the power of telephony". Idea Cellular has planned a complete 360 degree campaign with TV, print, radio, digital and outdoor media. Last year, Idea Cellular connected fans to their favourite cricketers; this time it will be the entire nation playing 'Idea Oongli' Cricket."
4. Idea Cellular To Be The Main Sponsor For 56th Filmfare Awards YET again!!!
IDEA Cellular has partnered with Worldwide Media to become the title sponsor for the 56th Filmfare Awards for the 3rd time in a row. The 56th Idea Filmfare Awards 2010 wil held on the 29th January 2011, at Yashraj Studios, Mumbai and as always, it promises to be the biggest celebration of Indian Cinemas. Over the last 5 decades, the Filmfare Awards had been testament to the grandeur and excellence of Indian cinema, and even today, the Filmfare Awards continue to be the most awaited celebration of our Hindi film industry. The awards was presented by leading telecom brand, Idea Cellular, third time in a
row. Announcing the most anticipated and honored award ceremony of the New Year, Bollywood‘s current reigning queen, the ethereal beauty Katrina Kaif, along with Jitesh Pillaai – Editor, Filmfare and Mr. Rajat Mukarji, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Idea Cellular, lit the lamp marking the start to yet another magical journey of honoring Bollywood‘s best. Having a legacy of its own, the Filmfare awards are the most prestigious film awards in Asia and the Filmfare Black Lady remains the Pièce de résistance on every Bollywood actor , director and producer‘s 36
mantle – an unabashed symbol of success and achievement recognized by the industry. From its inception in the early 1950‘s to its evolution of unmatched glamour, glitz and flamboyant persona, the Filmfare Awards is regarded as the most esteemed award and entertainment show within the fraternity.
Sponsoring such an esteemed institution & an event of such grandeur acts as a brilliant PR acticity for Idea cellular. The name of the company being tagged along with the greatest award ceremony in the history of bollywood automatically gets widespread media coverage of magnanimous stature at practically negligent expense. It also adds to the reputation & goodwill of the company. A reputation of an organization is made by various groups of its stakeholders, such as investors, media men, employees, customers, etc. Thus, we may conclude that there is no such a thing as the reputation of a company. Every company has a number of reputations, as it is perceived very differently by different groups of its stakeholders. Sponsoring an event like the Filmare Awards sky-rockets the reputation of the company which is in the best interest of everyone reated to the company. Rest assured, the future of this Aditya Birla Group Company is secure & healthy!
5. Idea Rocks India!
Aspiring Rock Stars of the country can now look forward to a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, as IDEA Cellular has flagged off a unique Musical hunt - 'Idea Rocks India' telecasted on the popular TV channel, Colors. Idea Rocks India ' gives an opportunity to all Indians aged 18 years and above, who are already a 'Band' or 'Member of a Band' or simply want to become a 'part of a Band', to participate in the first-of-its-kind music talent hunt show which will encompass all genres of music including Western, Indian and others. Young musical sensations from across the country aspiring to become 'The Baap of all 37
Bands' can participate in 'Idea Rocks India' by appearing in the auditions to be held in 10 Indian cities Bangalore, Chandigarh, Delhi, Goa, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai and Pune.
Flagging off 'Idea Rocks India 4', Mr. Pradeep Shrivastava, Chief Marketing Officer, IDEA Cellular said, "IDEA has always had a close association with music and its promotion amongst the Indian audience. 'Idea Rocks India 4' is yet another initiative in this direction. India has a rich and vibrant musical talent that is waiting to be explored and tapped. This show is designed to provide a platform to every individual or group that has a unique talent in music and the ability to entertain the entire nation. This year, we are happy to bring the show to millions of TV viewers across the country with the help of our partners - Colors, Encompass, Radio Mirchi and In.com." IDEA Cellular launched 'Idea Rocks India' in 2006 to bring the country's musical sensations closer to its subscribers, and other music lovers. For the last three consecutive years 'Idea Rocks India' has been entertaining the fans with its successful concert tours in Indian cities, packed with performances by the likes of Salman Khan, Lara Dutta, Bipash Basu, Kareena Kapoor, Shaan, Sunidhi Chauhan, and Sonu Nigam. This year 'Idea Rocks India' will traverse the length and breadth of the country to discover the best musicians. According to Mr. Rajesh Kamat, CEO, COLORS, "Our relationship with IDEA goes a long way as they have partnered with us earlier for our show Fear Factor Khatron Ke Khiladi for two innings. We are happy to partner with them again for 'Idea Rocks India' as it fits with the COLORS programming philosophy. It is an energetic and innovative concept that is in line with our channel's core values of differentiated and disruptive programming where for the first time ever one will be able to witness a band hunt on a GEC. We are sure that this show will find favour with our viewers for its novel concept and great musical talent." 38
Daredevilry: As Honey Bunny fever dies, Idea back to social service
As a part of its latest campaign Idea Cellular in the fourth year of its association with the Delhi Daredevils has launched a social theme based activation campaign targeted at audience in Delhi, UP West, Haryana, MP and Chhattisgarh. What is being called the ?Idea Daredevilry Awards‘ the brand will be recognising acts of daredevilry by citizens who have done exemplary work in fighting various ills in the society, on a day-to-day basis. The ?Idea Daredevils‘ award will be given away by the Delhi Daredevils team members in May. The brand claims that in the last three years of its association, the brand and the game have gained momentum and the scores have gone up with the association. This year, the brand wanted to up the ante and engage with consumers directly. The contest ?Share Your Daredevil Moment‘ is also open for nonIdea users in these circles. Idea Cellular has also taken Ernst & Young on board to validate the entries and select the Top 11 case studies for the awards. According to Idea, E&Y will be a part of the jury along with officials from the brand.
Sashi Shankar, CMO, Idea Cellular
Sashi Shankar, Chief Marketing Officer, Idea Cellular says that Delhi Daredevils is the marquee that the brand is associated with and Idea wanted to do something bigger this year as well as connect with it as a story. ?The brand philosophy is in sync with the campaign, ?an idea can change your life‘, people who have acted in a daredevilry moment have either changed their life or somebody else‘s. We are looking forward to a lot of mileage with the campaign as well as the Delhi Daredevils team,? he adds. According to the brand, this campaign will give Idea Cellular an opportunity to reach out to the audience in neighbouring markets through various on-ground activation programs, radio, and digital media. Idea Claims to have a 360 degree approach entailing FM channels like Fever 104 FM, Radio Mirchi, BIG FM and Radio City. In the first leg of the campaign the radio teaser was on air and from today the brand plans to have a full scale launch with on ground activations, opening its IVR for callers, tapping social 39
networking and brand websites as well as OOH banners. Idea also claims that through IPL it is trying to engage with the youth, which is a major chunk of the audience of the sport event. There have been a lot of young people who have been standing up and changing the way what the society has been doing, hence Idea wants to capture that. The sport the team the concept of Idea and the youth is all that the brand is trying to capture in a single campaign. Idea cellular has also launched a range of products and offerings for its customers in Delhi & Haryana circles, during the IPL season, including new recharges, T20 games and data pack centred around the sport and the team bringing in the aspect of ?daredevilry‘. Shankar also states that in the last two years the brand has grown double the industry rate in Delhi, citing an example he says that if the industry has grown around eight or nine per cent then Idea has grown around 16 per cent. ? Last two IPL seasons we saw a 2-3 point increase, but it isn‘t that that 2-3 point dropped after the cricket season was over, we have been able to sustain it throughout,? he says.
Hemant Dua, Marketing Head, GMR Sports
Hemant Dua, Head Marketing & Commercial, GMR Sports, says, ?We questioned ourselves, how can we take the association and engagement from one IPL to the other? We create content to engage the audience throughout the season and off season.? Dua claims that on the website the brand has launched a ?predictor game‘ which is under no legal implications with giveaways such as signed T-shirts if and when consumers win by predicting the progress of the game. ?With this campaign we want to take the story outside the realm of cricket,? he adds. According to the brand, the best estimates for an association with an IPL team were somewhere between Rs 55 and 60 crore last year. Previous year, the IPL was the number one expenditure in terms of sponsorship for the brand. ?We wanted to put forth our products such as 3G, data packs, handsets, therefore, it was necessary for us to be at that level. This year we did not want to be a sponsor, we wanted to be an advertiser only, as we don‘t see the necessity,? adds Shankar. Idea has had the ?social‘ angle to its campaigns for quite long, and this time too it seems to be in coordination with the brand philosophy. Rest assured, viewers will be hooked to the matches and a lucky 11 will be narrating their moment of daredevilry to the Delhi Daredevils.
6. OTHER SPONCERSHIPS
Apart from sponsoring several television shows, Idea is also associating itself with on-ground events in smaller towns. Do we smell a change in Idea Cellular‘s media strategy? Take the Idea Vraj Mela in Gujarat or Idea presents Jalsa, a 12 city classical music concert in association with the IMA (Indian Music Academy), for instance. In addition to these, annual Idea Rocks India music concerts have been organised for the past three years, featuring performances by prominent names in the Indian music industry. Are all these harbingers of a change in Idea‘s media strategy? ?Yes, with a fast growing pan-India presence, we are becoming 40
more and more national. This makes television rather cost effective for us, giving us wider reach,? Pradeep Srivastava, chief marketing officer, Idea Cellular, tells afaqs! ?Having said that, gone are the days when a marketer launched a TVC and the world sat up and took notice. The new, intensely competitive environment demands that we do something big in addition to the usual mass media advertisements.? Srivastava adds that there are many more modes of consumer engagement that a brand can leverage. Title sponsorships, particularly for anything to do with Indian music, films or cricket, while giving an edge to the brand with respect to eyeballs, brand recall and brand engagement, also serve a bigger purpose. ?They help us associate with a ?religion‘ bigger than the brand can ever hope to be and, in turn, the spirit of the event rubs off on the brand at a subliminal level,? says Srivastava. The Idea Cup, for instance, helps reach across to sports lovers and the rub-off on the brand is huge. Even Idea‘s association with Khatron Ke Khiladi helped the brand associate itself with a different genre (adventure sports), lending the brand a sporty, cool personality. Idea IIFA Awards, on the other hand, helped the brand gain a global imagery and connect. Association with music based events or reality shows is more strategic than that for Idea. According to the brand executives, music is already a buzzing mantra in the mobile world, what with caller tunes, ringtones and full song downloads doing the rounds. Soon, music will be also available in a superior digital manner on mobile phones. ?So, a music association is very relevant to our category,? explains Srivastava. With video clippings of shows on mobile phones slated to become the next big thing, telecom operators will benefit by associating with ?spicy‘ reality shows, which will induce subscribers to download clips onto their phones for repeat viewing. Idea is also set to launch technologies that help in live streaming of various celebrations to the mobile, including Siddhivinayak ?darshan‘ during the Ganeshotsav in Mumbai. Therefore, such ground level activity associations are, in a sense, groundwork for Idea‘s upcoming plans. ?Direct engagement is always better than a monologue,? concludes Srivastava, ?especially in our case, when we have such a diverse audience set… from industrialists to the poor tea vendor.? In these cases, there is a need to associate the brand with mass level activities that help in building a certain kind of image and recall. Idea‘s media agency is Lintas Media Group, which looks after the mass media work in addition to other activities. Some on-ground initiatives, however, are driven inhouse at Idea. In the past, some other telecom operators have also tried to leverage the arena of sponsorships. One may recall Airtel Bol Baby Bol, which featured music composer and singer Adnan Sami as its host. Airtel Presents Bigg Boss is another 'big' property for the GEC, Colors. Tata Indicom, too had flagged off a show, Tata Indicom Ek Se Badhkar Ek: Jalwe Sitaron Ke, some time ago. Sponsoring so many events and shows at the same time may perhaps leave Idea spreading itself too thin. Whether the gamble pays off in the long run is for time to tell.
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Radio Advertising
Radio advertising is a form of advertising via the medium of radio. Radio advertisements are broadcast as radio waves to the air from a transmitter to an antenna and a thus to a receiving device. Airtime is purchased from a station or network in exchange for airing the commercials. While radio has the obvious limitation of being restricted to sound, proponents of radio advertising often cite this as an advantage.
IDEA partners-up with Radio City
Radio City 91.1 FM, India‘s leading FM brand, partners with IDEA Cellular for their innovative environment campaign, ?Use Mobile, Save Paper‘. In a joint endeavor between IDEA Cellular and Radio City, the FM station will convey to its listeners the effective usage of different mobile phone applications which can help in saving paper.
Radio City has designed listener engagement programmes which will promote IDEA‘s ?Use Mobile, Save Paper‘ campaign, through a national initiative on air, and also through on ground activities over a period of 3 weeks. The Radio City RJ‘s will encourage citizens to use mobiles effectively to save paper in office and in the corporate environment, as well as in other day-to-day activities. They will give out information like stock and sports update, movie reviews and city happenings through the ?M newspaper‘ i.e. through their mobiles and educate listeners on how one can save paper. As a culmination of the activity, Radio City RJ‘s will also visit homes of listener‘s and gift them saplings as a crucial step in making the planet green. Commenting on this initiative, Apurva Purohit, CEO Radio City says, ?The planet is losing its green at a very fast pace. Going green is the basic solution to combat hazards of Global Warming. Partnering with IDEA Cellular‘s ‘Use Mobile, Save Paper’ campaign, we will convey the message to our listeners on 42
how one can save paper and thereby save trees. Through this Radio City strongly withholds the seriousness of environment conservation, encouraging citizens to unite to make our planet a better place.? Mr. Pradeep Shrivastava, Chief Marketing Officer, IDEA Cellular, says ?The new initiative on Radio, is an extension of our 360 degree campaign to promote the message of ?Use Mobile, Save Paper‘. It is designed to connect us with a large base of mobile users, especially the youth, and get them to use mobile phone applications more judiciously in their day-to-day activities, to save paper.? World over, millions of trees get cut everyday to produce paper, leading to an alarming rate of deforestation. One simple idea to save paper is to efficiently use the mobile phone for a larger number of day to day communication. The IDEA campaign showcases how mobile phones can be used as an efficient tool to read daily newspapers, generate e-bills, make payments and transactions, issue e-tickets and boarding passes; thereby saving tonnes of paper everyday.
Online Advertising
Online advertising is a form of promotion that uses the Internet and World Wide Web for the expressed purpose of delivering marketing messages to attract customers. Examples of online advertising include contextual ads that appear on search engine results pages, banner ads, in text ads, Rich Media Ads, Social network advertising, online classified advertising, advertising networks and e-mail marketing, including e-mail spam. Idea has launched WWW.WalkWhenYouTalk.co.in as a part of its „Walk When You Talk? campaign where the company encourages mobile phone users to walk while they talk on their mobile phone. The website invites visitors to enter their friends‘ mobile phone numbers and triggers a reminder call on those numbers asking the receivers to walk as they talk.
WalkWhenYouTalk.co.in also hosts a walk-n-talk meter, which helps the user to calculate the amount of calories he or she might lose by walking while talking for a particular amount of time on mobile phone. Users can also upload or check out interesting 'walking while talking' videos on the site.
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?We also plan to introduce a special character who can be identified with any teenager of this generation. We will launch games and contests around the concept of health and fitness, with this character, and give away exciting prizes to winners. The campaign will be linked with Facebook to increase the participation,? Rachana Dharia, head, digital solutions, Tribal DDB India, the company which designed the website, has told AlooTechie.
According to Rachana Dharia, WalkWhenYouTalk.co.in has already recorded over 1,50,000 visits and more than 65,000 calls have been made so far through the website. Over 10,000 ringtones have also been downloaded from the website. Idea Cellular, in association with MTV, had launched an online contest, titled „Idea Mobile Roadie Challenge 2.0? @ www.Ideastrikeback.com Powered by Tribal DDB India, the website offers Idea Cellular subscribers an opportunity to become an MTV Roadie, through an online audition.
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To participate in the contest, one first needs to visit IdeaStrikeBack.com where Cyrus Broacha will greet the contestant and conduct the online audition. To proceed, the contestant will be required to dial an Idea Cellular number (09990177777) for further instructions.
After the call gets connected, the contestant would be asked questions by Cyrus Broacha. To answer, the contestant will need to dial either 1 or 2 on his mobile handset. According to Tribal DDB, what is unique about IdeaStrikeBack.com is its ability to integrate the user‘s dialled response with the questions and reactions of Cyrus Broacha on the website, on a real-time basis.
?The ?Idea Mobile Roadie Challenge 2.0‘ is a melange of mobile and digital platforms coming together to provide users with a virtual experience by auditioning online,? Pradeep Shrivastava, chief marketing officer, Idea Cellular, has said. ?We are glad to partner with Tribal DDB India for this unique initiative.? Max Hegerman, president, Tribal DDB India, has said, ?The direct and instantaneous connection between web and mobile is dramatic and powerful - and a great model for building brand engagement.? Dinesh Swamy, associate creative director, Tribal DDB India, has added, ?The objective was for Idea to actually embed itself into MTV Roadies, rather than being just a sponsor.?
For „breaking the language barrier? campaign , Idea Cellular had launched an online reality show „Idea Language Champion?.The show comprises of a range of online tasks and quizzes in different languages which participants would need to solve at every step of the game. Idea Cellular Director (Operations) Himanshu Kapania says “Idea Language Champion” offers a unique opportunity to the net-savvy Indian youth to network with friends and exhibit their social networking prowess in their quest to bridge the language barrier often faced by people in a multilingual country like India.”
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Press Advertising
Press advertising describes advertising in a printed medium such as a newspaper, magazine, or trade journal.Another form of press advertising is the Display Ad, which is a larger ad (can include art) that typically run in an article section of a newspaper.
Some of the IDEA advertisements in newspapers:
This piece of comic strip was published by Idea Cellular in newspapers across the city as soon as the advertisement hit television screens.Such Comic strips are quite an hit with ardent newspaper readers as it describes the entire televised advertisement in a short time & makes for quick reading at the same time.
This Dislpay Advertisement is another example of a relevant press-advertising.It was published just days before the innaugration of Bandra-Worli Sealink in Mumbai connecting both the BWSL & Idea cellular as entites which are ?for the people,by the people? thus establishing an indirect realtion between the landmark monument & the company.This piece of brilliant advertising acts as a great PR activity for Idea.
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Billboard Advertising
Billboards are large structures located in public places which display advertisements to passing pedestrians and motorists.Most often, they are located on main roads with a large amount of passing motor and pedestrian traffic; however, they can be placed in any location with large amounts of viewers, such as on mass transit vehicles and in stations, in shopping malls or office buildings, and in stadiums.
Some of the famous IDEA banners & Billboards:
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Celebrity Branding
This type of advertising focuses upon using celebrity power, fame, money, popularity to gain recognition for their products and promote specific stores or products. Advertisers often advertise their products, for example, when celebrities share their favorite products or wear clothes by specific brands or designers. Celebrities are often involved in advertising campaigns such as television or print adverts to advertise specific or general products. The use of celebrities to endorse a brand can have its downsides, however. One mistake by a celebrity can be detrimental to the public relations of a brand. For example, following his performance of eight gold medals at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China, swimmer Michael Phelps' contract with Kellogg's was terminated, as Kellogg's did not want to associate with him after he was photographed smoking marijuana. IDEA Cellular‘s campaign with brand ambassador Abhishek Bachchan has been adjudged the „Best
Celebrity Endorsement of the Year? at the first edition of NDTV Tech Life Awards.The trophy was
jointly received by Bachchan and IDEA Cellular chief marketing officer Pradeep Shrivastava.IDEA‘s tagline ?What an idea, Sirji!‘ has generated tremendous recall value for the brand, amongst the masses.
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Bachchan said, ?I am happy to associate with a brand which is young, humane and is a Champion in its category. IDEA‘s communication is simple, effective and appealing to the masses and classes. It has given me an opportunity to connect with my countrymen and offer simple solutions to complex issues prevalent in our society.It is encouraging to see that my role in this communication has inspired people, and is recognized by the industry.? Shrivastava added, ?We are delighted to receive the NDTV Tech Life Awards in its very first year of inception. This recognition reflects the success of our campaign with our Brand Ambassador, which is aimed at demonstrating the power of an idea by looking at mobile telephony and what it can do, in a way that‘s fresh, imaginative and elevating?.
In all the IDEA campaigns Bachchan plays the spokesperson who gives an idea to solve a complex problem with surprisingly simple solution, through the power of mobile telephony. IDEA‘s ad campaigns based on the theme of ?Democracy‘; ?Championing a world without caste‘; ?Championing a world in which no one suffers from the disability to communicate‘; and ?Education for All‘, have been a huge success amongst all categories of audience. In all these campaigns, the Brand Ambassador has played a protagonist who connects with both the masses, and the classes. Be it the ?close aide‘ of the political leader in our Democracy campaign; or the ?Sarpanch‘ trying to get rid of caste wars; or the ?Tourist Guide‘ with a foreigner at Taj; or even the ?Priest‘ who has the vision of Educating One and All—each time the character has sprung up with an innovative ?Idea‘ which provides a simple yet effective solution to a problem, by using the mobile phone. The testimony of the success of the campaign is reflected from the rapid growth of IDEA‘s subscriber base in the country. The Aditya Birla Group company has grown to become the 3rd largest private GSM operator with over 43 million subscribers across 16 service areas, nationally.
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Sales Promotions
Sales promotions are another way to advertise.Sales promotions are double purposed because they are used to gather information about what type of customers you draw in and where they are, and to jumpstart sales.Sales promotions include things like contests and games, sweepstakes, product giveaways, samples coupons, loyalty programs, and discounts. The ultimate goal of sales promotions is to stimulate potential customers to action. A huge part of sales promotion for IDEA cellular takes place through games & contests.Most of these happen through online advertising or television advertising.
Examples:
1] Online Contests: ? www.WalkWhenYouTalk.co.in encourages mobile phone users to walk while they talk on their mobile phone. The website invites visitors to enter their friends‘ mobile phone numbers and triggers a reminder call on those numbers asking the receivers to walk as they talk ? „Idea Mobile Roadie Challenge 2.0‘ at www.Ideastrikeback.com the website offers Idea Cellular subscribers an opportunity to become an MTV Roadie, through an online audition. 2] Other Contests: ? Idea subscribers across the country could access ?Idea Pass‘ to register for Kaun Banega Crorepati.An exclusive only offer for Idea subscribers,the ?Idea Pass‘ would enable users to register for 5 days more than the regular period allowed for registration. ? ?Connecting Fans with their Cricket superheroes? Under this campaign, IDEA advertised the mobile numbers of Mumbai Indians skipper Sachin Tendulkar, pace bowler Zaheer Khan, spinner Harbhajan Singh, and batsman Sanath Jayasuriya, and encouraged people to call and SMS their favourite stars.
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OBJECTIVES Of the MARKETING STRATEGIES Of IDEA CELLULAR
This extensive research of the various modes of Advertising used by Idea Cellular to promote their product have enabled me to draw a specific set objectives they define for themselves in order to gain a competitive adavantage in the market. The objectives I have chalked out are:
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To use the impact of social causes as a tool for marketing
Most of the advertisements of ?what an Idea Sirjee‘ campaign realte to the betterment of the society giving away audaciously simple solutions to some of the most difficult problems face by the polupation of India. ?Walk when you talk” ads promote good health ; Education for all promotes education In rural areas especially the girls. ; “Participative Governance” magnifies the scope of a democratic government ; “Use Mobile Save Paper” provides a smart solution to save trees ; ?Breaking the language barrier” philosophically simplifies the fact that communication does not necessarily need a language
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To use the impact of celebrity marketing on consumer buying behaviour
Abhishek Babchchan ,the Brand Ambassador of Idea Cellular has played a protagonist in almost all of the Idea commercials & successfully connects with both the masses, and the classes. Be it the ?close aide‘ of the political leader in our Democracy campaign; or the ?Sarpanch‘ trying to get rid of caste wars; or the ?Tourist Guide‘ with a foreigner at Taj; or even the ?Priest‘ who has the vision of Educating One and All—each time the character has sprung up with an innovative ?Idea‘ which provides a simple yet effective solution to a problem, by using the mobile phone. The testimony of the success of AB Junior in the campaign is reflected from the rapid growth of Idea‘s subscriber base in the country.
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To understand consumer acceptance of the product based on its Marketing & Promotion
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Does the consumer really get influenced by the advertisements??Do the advertisements really affect the consumers buying behavior???Convincing a population of 100 million to buy a product is not everyone‘s cup of tea & In case of Idea cellular the answer to all the above questions is probably a YES!
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To keep up with the changing trends in marketing strategies
People don‘t have the time today to sit back and watch long ads.Short,smart and clever ads are the in thing in modern day advertising.The innovative scripts written for every Idea advertisement shows the changing mentality of the companies.They make it a point that the commercials have a certain degree of smartness to them.
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SURVEY
Questionnaire:
1] Do you enjoy watching the Idea Cellular Advertisements? o Yes o No o Sometimes
2] How would you rate the Idea Cellular advertisements? o Average o Good o Excellent
3] Do you think the ideas suggested in ?What an Idea Sirjee? ads are realistic? o Yes o No o Maybe
4] Do you think Idea Cellular is marketed in a better way as compared to its competitors? o Yes o No
5] Do you think about the social factor, when buying the product? o o Yes No 53
6] Does celebrity marketing affect your buying behaviour? o o Yes No
7] Do the advertisements appeal to you ? o o Yes No
8] Do the advertisements influence you to buy the product? o o Yes No
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Result Of the Survey:
1] Do you enjoy watching the Idea Cellular Advertisements?
The survey revealed that Out of 100 Respondents,41 people answered ?Yes‘, that they enjoy watching Idea Ads,19 said ?No‘, they don‘t enjoy the Idea Ads & 40 Said ?sometimes‘, that they enjoy watching the ads only sometimes
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2] How would you rate the Idea Cellular advertisements?
The survey revealed that, 19 people found the Idea advertisements to be ?Average‘, 52 people found the Idea advertisements to be ?Good‘ & 27 people found the Idea advertisements to be ?Excellent‘
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3] Do you think the ideas suggested in ?What an Idea Sirjee? ads are realistic?
The survey revealed that,21 people said ?Yes‘,that the ideas suggested in ?What an Idea Sirjee? ads are realistic,44 people said ?Nos‘,that the ideas suggested are not realistic & 35 said ?Maybe‘ the ideas suggested are realistic
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4] Do you think Idea Cellular is marketed in a better way as compared to its competitors?
The survey revealed that,57 out of 100 people believe it is not as well marketed as the other providers,while 43 are of the opinion it is better marketed than the others.
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5] Do you think about the social factor, when buying the product?
The survey revealed that,77 out of 100 people do not consider the social factor when buying the product while 23 people do consider the social factor when buying the product
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6] Does celebrity marketing affect your buying behaviour?
The survey revealed that Celebrity Marketing does influence the buying behavior of 25 people out of 100 while it does not influence the buying behavior of 75 people out of 100 .
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7] Do the advertisements appeal to you ?
The survey revealed that,the ads do appeal to 79 out of 100 people while it does not appeal to the rest of the 21 people.
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8] Do the advertisements influence you to buy the product?
The survey revealed that the advertisements influence 32 out of the 100 people, while 68 art not influenced by it
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Conclusion
We can conclude that –
? ?
People certainly do enjoy watching the Idea Cellular Ads
Most of the response is positive. i.e. only 19 people found the ads average, remaining 81 found it either Good or Excellent.Hence the short , smart & witty storyline has worked its magic
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44 people believe that the ideas suggested in ?What an Idea Sirjee? Campaign are Unrealistic, Rest 56 believe they are or maybe realistic.Thus,Idea Cellular has all the positive signals to push on with the social cause campaign & bring about a change.
?
Idea has been successful in its brand building thereby building a long lasting brand image of a smart & a socially responsible brand.
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Idea believes in dealing with the best.Be it sponsoring KBC or the Mumbai Indians Team or the 56th Filmfare Awards.Thus Idea Cellular believes in & strives for excellence.
?
The changing trends in advertising define the changing nature of the market & Idea cellular are right up there when it comes to keeping pace with the modern-day changes.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
The books referred for this project are-.
ICFAI university journal Confessions of an Advertising Man by David Ogilvy
The websites referred for this project are –
www.Ideacellular.com www.coai.com www.wikipedia.com www.businessstandard.com www.infomercialreview.com www.googleimages.com
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Annexure
Questionnaire:
1] Do you enjoy watching the Idea Cellular Advertisements? o Yes o No o Sometimes
2] How would you rate the Idea Cellular advertisements? o Average o Good o Excellent
3] Do you think the ideas suggested in ?What an Idea Sirjee? ads are realistic? o Yes o No o Maybe
4] Do you think Idea Cellular is marketed in a better way as compared to its competitors? o Yes o No
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5] Do you think about the social factor, when buying the product? o o Yes No
6] Does celebrity marketing affect your buying behaviour? o o Yes No
7] Do the advertisements appeal to you ? o o Yes No
8] Do the advertisements influence you to buy the product? o o Yes No
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doc_164486342.docx
Advertising is a form of communication intended to persuade an audience (viewers, readers or listeners) to purchase or take some action upon products, ideas, or services. It includes the name of a product or service and how that product or service could benefit the consumer, to persuade a target market to purchase or to consume that particular brand. These messages are usually paid for by sponsors and viewed via various media. Advertising can also serve to communicate an idea to a large number of people in an attempt to convince them to take a certain action. Commercial advertisers often seek to generate increased consumption of their products or services through branding, which involves the repetition of an image or product name in an effort to associate related qualities with the brand in the minds of consumers. Non-commercial advertisers who spend money to advertise items other than a consumer product or service include political parties, interest groups, religious organizations and governmental agencies. Nonprofit organizations may rely on free modes of persuasion, such as a public service announcement. Modern advertising developed with the rise of mass production in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Mass media can be defined as any media meant to reach a mass amount of people. Different types of media can be used to deliver these messages, including traditional media such as newspapers, magazines, television, radio, outdoor or direct mail; or new media such as websites and text messages. In 2010, spending on advertising was estimated at more than $500 billion worldwide. Internationally, the largest advertising conglomerates are Interpublic, Omnicom, Publicis, and WPP.
IMPORTANCE OF ADVERTISING STRATEGIES
Advertising is one of the most important things present in or society today, like an old slogan puts 'Advertising, your right to choose'. Advertising helps to keep the consumers informed about whatever new products or services are available in the market at their disposal. It helps to spread awareness about products or services that are of some use to consumer and potential buyers.
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Commercial advertisers often seek to generate increased consumption of their products or services through branding, which involves the repetition of an image or product name in an effort to associate related qualities with the brand in the minds of consumers. Different types of media can be used to deliver these messages, including traditional media such as newspapers, magazines, television, radio, billboards or direct mail. Advertising may be placed by an advertising agency on behalf of a company or other organization. The main aim of advertising, many believe is to sell. These are the kind of people who vehemently oppose anything that make advertising seem unethical. Advertising on the whole helps business as well as the economy to prosper and makes the consumer aware of the various choices that are available to him. Moreover, it is a good way of entertaining people and of increasing people‘s creativity, as the more creative and appealing ads are, the more people‘s minds are stimulated. Organizations that spend money on advertising promoting items other than a consumer product or service include political parties, interest groups, religious organizations and governmental agencies. Non-profit organizations may rely on free modes of persuasion, such as a public service announcement. Today entrepreneurs are ready to shell out the extra bit, but they want their products to be promoted in the best possible way. So it is very important to uniquely advertise the brand, product, website, design, services to make it noticeable in this mad horse race.
Making an advertisement look attractive is no easy task. Ad guru Prahlad Kakkar observes that every now and then, one sees a campaign that is different and manages to linger on i n people‘s minds longer. ?The current spates of ads are original, not boring and all have interesting stories to tell. If there‘s no story, there‘s nothing to remember. Technology is only as good as the previous one. But with ads, each has to be better than the one before.?
Main Objectives Of Advertising:
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Advantages Of Advertising:
Apart from promoting commercial goods, advertising can also be used to educate and motivate the public about non-commercial issues such as AIDS, deforestation, family planning, etc. It is a powerful media which is capable of reaching to the far out masses. Now a day we find many ads on the internet also. These ads in most cases have been successfully in connecting the user with the information he requires. To prevent complete commercialization of electronic media, some countries have made it mandatory for broadcasters to air some advertisements related to consumer interest. These public advertisements educate people of that country on a number of social and moral issues.
Disadvatages Of Advertising:
The impact that advertisements cause depends on the state of mind of an individual and his past experiences. For instances, young kids will be easily attracted by the false claims made in advertisements. People are also arguing about the increase in consumption of substances like alcohol and cigarettes after viewing the ads. Excessive advertising has become a nuisance in most cities of the world. Manufacturers easily make false claims about any product and influence the minds of the people. To confront this problem, companies are being asked to withdraw any false and negative claims made in their ads and also being made to pay a fine for these false claims
Types Of Advertising:
Virtually any medium can be used for advertising. Commercial advertising media can include wall paintings, billboards, street furniture components, printed flyers and rack cards, radio, cinema and television adverts, web banners, mobile telephone screens, shopping carts, web popups, skywriting, bus stop benches, human billboards, magazines, newspapers, town criers, sides of buses, banners attached to or sides of airplanes ("logojets"), in-flight advertisements on seatback tray tables or overhead storage bins, taxicab doors, roof mounts and passenger screens, musical stage shows, subway platforms and trains, elastic bands on disposable diapers, doors of bathroom stalls, stickers on apples in supermarkets, shopping cart handles (grabertising), the opening section of streaming audio and video, posters, and the backs of event tickets and supermarket receipts. Any place an "identified" sponsor pays to deliver their message through a medium is advertising.
Digital Advertising
? Television advertising / Music in advertising ? Radio advertising ? Online advertising
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? Product placements Physical Advertising ? Press advertising ? Mobile billboard advertising ? In-store advertising ? Celebrity branding ? Sales Promotions
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COMPANY PROFILE
Idea Cellular
IDEA Cellular is a publicly listed company, having listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in March 2007. IDEA Cellular is a leading GSM mobile services operator in India with over 72 million subscribers, under brand IDEA. It is a PAN India integrated GSM operator covering the entire telephony landscape of the country, and has NLD and ILD operations. A frontrunner in introducing revolutionary tariff plans, IDEA Cellular has the distinction of offering the most customer friendly and competitive Pre Paid offerings, for the first time in India, in an increasingly segmented market. From basic voice & Short Message Service (SMS) services to high-end value added & GPRS services such as Blackberry, Datacard, Mobile TV, Games etc IDEA is seen as an innovative, customer focused brand.
IDEA offers affordable and world-class mobile services to varied segments of mobile users. Be it high end users, or low-end, price sensitive consumers - IDEA's tariff plans are designed to suit every pocket.
With a vision of delighting its customers while meeting their individual communication needs anytime, anywhere, IDEA offers seamless coverage to roaming customers traveling to any part of the country, as well as to international traveling customers across over 200 countries. IDEA Cellular has partnership with over 400 operators to ensure that customers are always connected while on the move, within the country or other parts of the world.
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IDEA is the winner of 'The Emerging Company of the Year Award' at The Economic Times Corporate Excellence Awards 2008-09. The company has received several other national and international recognitions for its path-breaking innovations in mobile telephony products & services. It won the GSM Association Award for "Best Billing and Customer Care Solution? for 2 consecutive years. It was awarded "Mobile Operator of the Year Award - India? for 2007 and 2008 at the Annual Asian Mobile News Awards IDEA Cellular is an Aditya Birla Group Company, India's first truly multinational corporation. The group operates in 25 countries, and is anchored by over 1,30,000 employees belonging to 30 nationalities. The Group has been adjudged the '6th Top Company for Leaders in Asia Pacific Region' in 2009, in a survey conducted by Hewitt Associates, in partnership with The RBL Group, and Fortune. The Group has also been rated 'The Best Employer in India and among the Top 20 in Asia' by the Hewitt-Economic Times and Wall Street Journal Study 2007.
Service Areas
The Indian telecommunications market for mobile services is divided into 22 "Service Areas" classified into "Metro", Category "A", Category "B" and Category "C" service areas by the Government of India. These classifications are based principally on a Service Area's revenue generating potential. IDEA is a pan-India operator with services being made available in all parts of the country. The telecom service areas have been divided into Established Service Areas and New Service Areas.
Established Service Areas
The established service areas are Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Haryana, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh (West). Licenses for the Maharashtra and Gujarat Service Areas were awarded in December 1995, with network rollout and commercial launch achieved in 1997. In January 2001 the mobile operations in Andhra Pradesh Service Area were integrated with IDEA through a merger with Tata Cellular Limited.
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In June 2001, the mobile operations in Madhya Pradesh Service Area were fully integrated with IDEA through an acquisition of RPG Cellcom Limited. In October 2001, the license for Delhi Service Area was acquired during the fourth mobile license auction, with network rollout and commercial launch in November 2002. In January 2004, Escotel Mobile Communications Private Limited ("Escotel"), was acquired with its original licenses in the Service Areas of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh (West) and Kerala. All these Service Areas were re-branded and integrated with IDEA in June 2004.
New Service Areas The New Service Areas are Uttar Pradesh (East), Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, Mumbai, Karnataka, Punjab, Orissa, Chennai & Tamil Nadu, Jammu & Kashmir, Kolkata & West Bengal, and Assam & North East. Licenses for Uttar Pradesh (East), Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh were acquired through the acquisition of Escotel (Escorts Telecommunications Limited). Idea launched its services in Mumbai and Bihar in 2008. The Mumbai launch was the largest Metro City launch in India. In Bihar, Idea acquired 500,000 subscribers in just over 100 days. Brand Idea was launched in Karnataka and Punjab, through the acquisition of Spice Communications.
The company has expanded its pan-India presence through service launches in Orissa, Chennai & Tamil Nadu, Jammu & Kashmir, Kolkata & West Bengal, and the North East states in FY10.
Inception & Growth
In 2000, Tata Cellular was a company providing mobile services in AP. When Birla-AT&T brought Maharashtra and Gujarat to the table, the merger of these two entities was a reality. Thus Birla-TataAT&T, popularly known as Batata, was born and was later branded as !dea. Then Idea set sights on RPG‘s operations in Madhya Pradesh which was successfully acquired, helping Batata have a million subscribers, and the licence to be the fourth operator in Delhi was clinched.
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In 2004, Idea (the company had by then been rechristened) bought over the Escorts group‘s Escotel gaining Haryana, Uttar Pradesh (West) and Kerala — and licences for three more — UP (East), Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh. By the end of that year, four million Indians were on the company‘s network. In 2005, AT&T sold its investment in Idea, and the year after Tatas also bid good bye to pursue an independent telecom business. And Idea was left only with one promoter, the AV Birla group. When the company‘s stock listed on the bourses in March 2007, its subscriber base was 13 million with presence in 11 circles. In less than three years, the subscriber numbers have more than quadrupled. The public issue was oversubscribed 50 times and raised Rs 2,450 crore.In June 2008, Idea Cellular bought out BK Modi‘s stake in Spice Communications for Rs 2,700 crore adding Punjab and Karnataka circles. Modi‘s joint venture partner, Telekom Malaysia, invested Rs 7,000 crore for a 14.99% stake in Idea. Just around then, Idea‘s subsidiary, Aditya Birla Telecom sold a 20% stake to US-based Providence Equity Partners for over Rs 2,000 crore.
Customer service
The company has its retail outlets under the "My Idea" banner. The company has also been the first to offer flexible tariff plans for prepaid customers. It also offers GPRS services in urban areas. Idea Cellular won the GSM Association Award for "Best Billing and Customer Care Solution" for 2 consecutive years. IDEA Cellular has been recognized as the 'Most Customer Responsive Company' in the Telecom sector, at the prestigious Avaya GlobalConnect Customer Responsiveness Awards 2010
Holding
Initially the Birlas, the Tatas and AT&T Wireless each held one-third equity in the company. But following AT&T Wireless' merger with Cingular Wireless in 2004, Cingular decided to sell its 32.9% stake in Idea. This stake was bought by both the Tatas and Birlas at 16.45% each. Tata's foray into the cellular market with its own subsidiary, Tata Indicom, a CDMA-based mobile provider, cropped differences between the Tatas and the Birlas. This dual holding by the Tatas also became a major reason for the delay in Idea being granted a license to operate in Mumbai. This was because as per Department of Telecommunications (DOT) license norms, one promoter could not have more than 10% stake in two companies operating in the same circle and Tata Indicom was already operating in Mumbai when Idea filed for its licence.
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The Birlas thus approached the DOT and sought its intervention, and the Tatas replied by saying that they would exit Idea but only for a good price. On 10 April 2006, the Aditya Birla Group announced its acquisition of the 48.18% stake held by the Tatas at Rs. 40.51 a share amounting to Rs. 44.06 billion. While 15% of the 48.14% stake was acquired by Aditya Birla Nuvo, a company in-charge of the Birlas' new business initiatives, the remaining stake was acquired by Birla TMT holdings Private Ltd., an AV Birla family-owned company. Currently, Aditya Birla Group holds 49.1% of the total shares of the company. Malaysia based Axiata controls a 14.99% stake in the company. Subscriber Base Idea's subscriber base as at the end of September 2010 according to the Cellular Operations Association India (COAI) is as follows:
? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
Maharashtra and Goa - 10,551,511 Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh - 8,401,422 Andhra Pradesh - 7,075,631 Kerala - 6,002,217 Kolkata - 771,790 Gujarat - 6,000,166 Uttar Pradesh (West) & Uttarakhand - 6,613,009 Delhi - 3,035,326 Haryana - 2,471,611 Uttar Pradesh (East) - 4,423,834 Rajasthan - 2,519,682 Himachal Pradesh - 344,923 Mumbai - 1,803,591 Bihar & Jharkhand - 3,738,930 Tamil Nadu & Chennai - 1,201,183 Orissa - 810,952 Punjab (Spice) - 3,759,869 Karnataka (Spice) - 3,121,463 West Bengal - 1,232,607 Jammu & Kashmir - 71,833 North East India except Assam - 86,595
Totalling to 74,213,507 or 15.02% (Approx.) of the total 494,036,000 mobile connections in India. 9
Chapter 2
RESEARCH METHOD
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1. Formulating The Research Problem
A.Unit Of Analysis: Idea Cellular
IDEA Cellular is a leading GSM mobile services operator in India with over 72 million subscribers, under brand IDEA. It is a pan India integrated GSM operator covering the entire telephony landscape of the country, and has NLD and ILD operations. IDEA Cellular is a publicly listed company, having listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in March 2007.
B.Characteristic Of Interest: Advertising Strategies of Idea Cellular
The advertising & marketing of Idea Cellular has single-handedly managed to establish the company as a leading brand in the telecom sector. The creative & innovative advertisements of Idea have created a huge uproar among the population of the country. Hence this report aims at understanding the success of the company based on its advertising strategies.
C. Time & space Boundary: 2 Months
D. Environmental Conditions: Changes in the telecom sector if any. Introduction of any
rules/regulations by the government or regulatory bodies.
2. Objectives Of the Research
? ? ? ? To use the impact of social causes as a tool for marketing To use the impact of celebrity marketing on consumer buying behaviour To keep up with the changing trends in marketing strategies To understand consumer acceptance of the product based on its Marketing & Promotion
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3. Research Design
Descriptive research attempts to describe and explain conditions of the present by using many subjects and questionnaires to fully describe a phenomenon. Descriptive research is thus based on the various measures as to when, what, why & how a consumer purchases a product and also helps to understand why a consumer is loyal to that product. Hence, as my research is based on the topic ? Understanding the advertising strategies of Idea Cellular‘, the research is descriptive in nature.
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4. Sources Of Data
5. Sample Design
Sampling Frame: People of all age-groups using Mobile Phones
Sample size: 100 Customers
Location: Western Suburbs of Mumbai
6. Analysis Of Data
After the exhaustive task of collecting the data, now I was required to analyze the data from every angle and present it in a precise manner. It was essential to present the data in the correct form. Hence the usage of pie charts and pictures is done in the project to make it easier and appropriate to understand.
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7. Project Report
After collecting and analyzing all the facts and aspects, final report with all relevant points was prepared. The project is divided into 7 sections for convenience and better understanding of the project.
? Limitations:
The sample size may not adequately represent the national market. Study is concentrated more on advertising & marketing & not on the services provided by the company This study has not been conducted over an extended period of time, it do not consider any changes due to changes in the sudden needs of the customer because of the market fluctuations
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Chapter 3
MARKETING MIX
Major marketing management decisions are classified into four categories. These are known as ‘Marketing Mix’ or the 4 P’s Of Marketing. The 4 P‘s of marketing are: ? ? ? ? Product Place Price Promotion
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MARKETING MIX of IDEA CELLULAR
Product: It includes the different services provided by IDEA to customers with opportunities to talk, chat, play games, send and receive messages & pictures, changing ring tones and caller tunes, other various value added services, receiving information about travel and cricket events, obtaining billing information, view videos clips and send them & so on.
Price: IDEA wants to make its services accessible to as many people as possible of all age groups from the poor to rich. Thus they have developed various pricing structures to suit the needs of different customer segments.
Place: The various service centers of IDEA cellular under the tag, ‘My Idea‘ at convenient locations all across the country. In Mumbai there are about 15,000 retail outlets & over 60 "My Idea" service centers
Promotion: Advertisements on TV is the most important channel of promotion for IDEA. Others are radio ads, newspaper ads, bill boards, posters & so on. Of the 4 P‘s, Promotion is considered to be the most influential factor in the success story of IDEA cellular
In this report, I have carried out an extensive & detailed study of the advertising strategies of IDEA Cellular.
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Chapter 4
ADVERTISEMENTS OF IDEA CELLULAR
Television Advertising
The TV commercial is generally considered the most effective mass-market advertising format, as is reflected by the high prices TV networks charge for commercial airtime during popular TV events. The annual Super Bowl football game in the United States is known as the most prominent advertising event on television. The average cost of a single thirty-second TV spot during this game has reached US$3 million (as of 2009). The majority of television commercials features a song or jingle that listeners soon relate to the product. Virtual advertisements may be inserted into regular television programming through computer graphics. It is typically inserted into otherwise blank backdrops or used to replace local billboards that are not relevant to the remote broadcast audience. More controversially, virtual billboards may be inserted into the background where none exist in real-life. This technique is especially used in televised sporting events. Infomercials: An infomercial is a long-format television commercial, typically five minutes or longer. The word "infomercial" combining the words "information" & "commercial". The main objective in an infomercial is to create an impulse purchase, so that the consumer sees the presentation and then immediately buys the product through the advertised toll-free telephone number or website. Infomercials describe, display, and often demonstrate products and their features, and commonly have testimonials from consumers and industry professionals.
Idea Advertisements:
Idea cellular advertisements have created a widespread roar among the population of India. The unique concepts of advertising and innovative ideas portrayed have been well appreciated by the audience. The advertisements are generally based on the objectives of advertising e.g. Social causes supported / encouraged by the company; Use of a socially renowned & respected personality to promote the product. 1. STAY CONNECTED The first IDEA Cellular advertisement ?STAY CONNECTED? campaign which started a revolution is the one with the very famous Idea cellular music & caught on with the youth.
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"Stay Connected" is a brand promise that looks at the key purpose of mobile telephony. It converges with the tangible requirement of 'network depth' & at the same time, reflects the eternal human need for bonding, kinsman ship, and relationship forming. This new brand campaign enables Idea to own the biggest category benefit of "keeping people connected", through a simple, unique and likeable expression of connectivity. And it makes consumers aware that "no one connects better than Idea".
Slated to run through 2004, the campaign utilizes all relevant mainline media to propagate the message to its audiences with 60-second commercial and its various edits, print campaign & outdoor publicity. Apart from it, various innovative media / events has been used to further strengthen the message. 2. Walk & Talk,
IDEA has planned a range of on-ground and digital activities around the theme of Walk &
Talk, to mobilize people across different walks of life, age-groups and societies and get them to walk for
fitness. IDEA plans to initiate a countrywide movement on Walking & Talking, and expects that ?Ek Idea pe chal padega India? . 18
IDEA released its new TVC which shows its Brand Ambassador Abhishek Bachchan playing a Doctor this time, who discovers how people can get fit by simply ?Walking while Talking‘ and advocates this idea to the general public. While responding to a journalist‘s query on whether technology was making people lazy and unfit; the Doctor responds by saying that people can be fit by just ?Walking & Talking‘. Soon, this message sweeps the country through TV, making it a mass movement. According to Pradeep Shrivastava, Chief Marketing Officer, IDEA Cellular ?IDEA brand campaigns have always celebrated Champion Ideas which have the power to change the society and the way we live. This time, the Champion Idea is around ?Walking & Talking‘ for staying fit. The communication has been designed to appeal to the masses and classes, on a critical subject such as Health & Fitness. We expect the new theme campaign to initiate a wave of awareness on fitness, across the country.? The advertisements refer to Abhishek Bachchan as the provider of a brilliant idea for the well-being of mankind. Thus came into existence. . ”What an Idea Sirjee!” campaign. IDEA campaigns have been fresh and imaginative and carry a touch of social relevance while exploring the power of category. ?IDEA released its new TVC is fifth in the series of IDEA‘s brand campaigns with its Brand Ambassador, Abhishek Bachchan. The other campaigns around ?Participative Governance?; ?Education for All?; ?Championing a world in which no one suffers from the disability to communicate‘ & ?Championing a world without Caste‘ have been huge hits amongst the audiences, making its tagline ?What an Idea, Sirji!‘ a popular metaphor.
3. IDEA Launches 'What an Idea Sirji' Campaign
Idea Cellular has launched a 'Education For All' ad campaign featuring its brand ambassador, Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan.The creative agency for the campaign is Lowe India. The ad was shot by Chrome Films. The new campaign was launched in two phases. R Balakrishnan, chairman and national creative director, Lowe India, says, "The Idea campaigns have been specifically tailored to bring mobile telephony closer to the Indian consumers. By integrating a social message into the new campaign, we are not only reinforcing the difference that can be made through the use of modern technology but also the power of a new idea." Sanjeev Aga, managing director, Idea Cellular, says, "We believe that new ideas can change our lives, a thought that has been central to our brand promise from the beginning." 19
"The new campaign addresses a very relevant social theme education for all, especially the girl-child. I am pleased to be playing a part in this campaign and contribute to making a difference through the power of the idea," Abhishek Bachchan said. Education for all, especially the girl child, is what the team wanted to portray through this ad. To promote this thought, they have also tied up with an NGO Nanhi Kali.
4. PARTICIPATIVE MANAGEMENT
People of the world‘s largest democracy, India, witnessed a new dimension of the proverbial „Government Of the People, For the People, and By the People? while watching the newly launched media campaign of IDEA Cellular, a leading telecom services provider. The new campaign gives the idea of ?Participative Management‘ for Governance where two-way communication is encouraged between government and public.
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The brand tagline ?What an Idea Sirji!? is the message given by Brand Ambassador, Abhishek Ba chchan, which is echoed by the public at large in the story, and even viewers of the new imaginative ad. The ad explores the idea of Government(s) using mobile service as an efficient tool to gather public opinion and support, while taking vital decisions impacting people‘s lives. According to Pradeep Shrivastava, Chief Marketing Officer, IDEA Cellular ?IDEA‘s brand campaign celebrates Champion Ideas which have the power to Change. The ad is aimed at conveying a socially relevant message in an easy-to-understand form to our target audience, which mainly comprises of mobile users and intenders in rural India, and the youth. Through our new campaign, we wish to highlight the need for Governance through active public involvement, while promoting the usage of mobile phone?. The new campaign has been developed by Idea‘s creative agency, Lowe. Speaking about the concept behind the new ad, R. Balki, Chairman, Lowe said, ?The theme is relevant to the current times where political campaigns across the world are relying on reaching the voters through mobile and internet. Through this ad, we are highlighting citizen‘s empowerment by making the individual‘s opinion count.? The new ad, based on the theme of ?Democracy‘ is the fourth in the series of IDEA‘s campaign wit h its brand ambassador. The new campaign is a milestone in the journey of IDEA‘s brand building as it demonstrates the power of an ?Idea‘ by looking at mobile telephony and its benefits in a fresh, imaginative and elevating way. IDEA intends to create brand equity by continuously achieving excellence through individual insights that connect with the end consumer thus nurturing a culture of positive discussion and empathy.
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IDEA connects with consumers beyond transactional offers by looking at mobile telephony as more than a mere communication device. IDEA aims to convey the message that ?Mobile is a life-transforming tool for millions. It changes lives!‘ 5. Language Barrier. Another new ad campaign by Idea, aims to break the Language Barrier. With a land where a billion people with 850 mother tongues and 22,000 dialects live together, this campaign comes as fresh air in helping people overcome the language problem in a easy yet unique way. Actor Abhishek Bachchan, brand ambassador of Idea, will be seen in yet another ?Sirji? series of ads, the wildly popular character that had taken the telecom advertising industry by storm. The latest ad campaign will feature him in a completely new avatar as he uses his witty comments and breakthrough ideas to address this very real concern of our society. The new ad campaign will be targeted at Indians across the length and breadth of the country and aim at increasing the customer base in every circle If You are following Idea advertisements right from the launch, You could notice the fact that Idea always targets people with a general, powerful, social message OR social work. With the popularity of ?What an Idea Sirji!? tagline.. Abhishek Bhacchan being the Sirji, Now appears in the role of a Dumb Tea Shop worker.
The Ad Starts with 4 Friends visiting Tea Shop for the Last time before they leave for their respective new work places. Abhishek Observes the Sadness reflecting on their faces and comes to know that all were facing the Language problem as these 4 friends were posted on 4 different locations where they have no clue on how to communicate with people out there!! Sirji gets a Brilliant IDEA solution for this. Abhishek Suggests How IDEA mobile could be good Filler for their Communication deficiency in their so called Unknown Places.
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Think about This, A Marathi guy going to Kolkata, Malayalee going to Haryana, Bengali going to Kerala and Haryani going to Mumbai…The Challenge is one and Only ?Language? and here is How Sirji?s Idea of having Mobile with these friends could make the Difference.
The Ad has been executed well, with friends helping each other teaching them language (atleast some Basics!) and How Mobile plays a role in Uniting them as well as exploring things. The Haryaani who has been stuck up in a Strike-hit Train in Mumbai, finds a way to escape by asking an Excuse for Toilet.. seeks the Help of his Marathi friend for Translation… The Bengali Girl‘s Challenge to find a place for living solved by his Keralite friend who Teaches her to Say ?Boorne and Broot Up in kolktaaaaaa? with a typical Malyalam accent. Marathi Guy managing to get a Seat in Bengali Bus by Singing A Bengali song aloud.. and how a Malayalee manages to Grab a Cup of Lassi in Haryana!!! Absolute fun to Watch!! The Best Part of the Ad is Simplicity the Tea Shop Guy ( Sirji ) shows and says No Language is Necessary to Communicate.. ! The Advertisement is a winner as it brings India together and brings a Kind of Spark in Us spreading How Rich our Culture Is and How Language and Culture is Exchanged and diversified and how we Manage to Live in this Beautiful Country! A Nice Blend of Friendship Values, Culture and the Mobile Technology!
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6. A NEW INDIA WITHOUT CAST
The ad describes the story of two people of different castes running a shop which sells the same goods & end up fighting. This issue is taken up at the village panchayat where Junior B plays the sarpanch. The Sarpanch realizes that the hatred is not between two shop keepers, it arises from the difference of castes. Hence, he comes up with the idea, that no one in the village will be referred to by their surnames. Instead they will be referred to by their Mobile numbers. Thus the people are now more concerned about numbers than caste & religion. Hence the sarpanch comes up with a simple solution with an outrageous idea!
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7. Paperless Age. The cellular phone company owned by the Aditya Birla group, has also unveiled another of its latest television commercial envisaging a Paperless Age.
As the planet faces hazards of global warming, and the world leaders debate the role of developed and developing countries to save the Earth - there is one simple solution that our very prudent and popular Sirji! Proposes this time. He advocates the message 'Use Mobile, Save Paper', thus have a green planet. Is it really Possible?? Can you imagine a life without hard copy newspapers and magazines which you can touch and feel? No pamphlets? No leaflets? No Letters? Can you get all your news and views, pictures, maps and cartoons from a cellphone? Developed by IDEA‘s creative agency, Lowe, this new ad campaign promotes the idea of mobile VAS usage for vast number of day to day activities, to save paper and save Earth. This is IDEA Cellular latest campaign, after a successful series of What an Idea, Sirji! Campaigns with Brand Ambassador, Abhishek Bachchan, which now goes on air.
Speaking about the campaign, Mr. Pradeep Shrivastava, Chief Marketing Officer, IDEA Cellular said, "Environment‘ as a subject touches all, but gets attention only at strategic forums. The common man gets to contribute little towards the cause, due to lack of direction and ideas. Hence, IDEA Cellular has taken up the responsibility of educating the 500 million mobile phone users in the country. If they start using the mobile phone more judiciously, together we can make a significant contribution of saving paper, and therefore, the green cover necessary for the health of the planet."
As per the press release, "World over, millions of tonnes of trees get cut every day to produce paper, 25
leading to alarming rates of deforestation. The new IDEA TVC showcases how the mobile phone can be used as an efficient tool to read daily newspapers, generate e-bills, make payments and transactions, issue e-tickets and boarding passes; thereby saving tonnes of papereveryday."
Abhishek Bachchan can be seen portraying the role of an agonized ?Tree‘ this time. He advocates the idea of using mobile phone to save paper, and therefore, the greenery around him through this campaign.
8. Idea?s „Telephone Exchange? – Ek doosre ko samajhne ke liye!
Conceptualised by Lowe Lintas, the latest campaign aptly brings alive the core insight with an easily relatable marital situation
Idea Cellular has always highlighted the role of simple telephony answers in solving large social problems. ?An Idea can change your life‘ has been the fundamental plank on which the brand has been built. However, in its latest campaign, the brand addresses not so much a societal issue but an endearingly ?closer to my life? story that impacts a very large part of society. The latest campaign is based on the insight of ?Ek doosre ko samajhne ke liye telephone exchange, what an Idea!? The widely appreciated commercial has been conceptualised by Lowe Lintas & Partners. So far the brand championed socio-cultural anxieties like caste war, democracy, language barrier, saving paper from afar, from imaginary worlds rather than worlds that consumers regularly encounter in their daily lives. The brand viewed people holistically, seeking to understand every single time what gives their life meaning, rather than customers of category benefits. The new story is about a husband and wife in a normal household having a heated argument in a typical busy-morning situation, and sarcastically poking each other to put themselves in the other person‘s shoes to know how stressed their lives are. Their young son who is witnessing this argument gets an idea to exchange his parent‘s mobile phones, so that unknowingly his mom and dad get ?to put themselves in the other person‘s shoes?. What follows next is that both the husband and the wife receive a string of calls during the course of the day which were actually meant for the other person. Husband receives wife‘s calls and vice-versa! Be it the wife receiving the boss‘s call meant for her husband to convey the news of sales dropping or the maid calling up the husband to report that she won‘t be coming for the next 2-3 days, it‘s all stress-filled news built through the day for both of them. By end of the day both the husband and wife acknowledge and appreciate the fact that ?her husband / his wife? has an equally stressful daily routine and empathise with one another. 26
Commenting on the concept, Arun Iyer, National Creative Director, Lowe Lintas, said, ?If we look around, we all are leading extremely stressful lives that impact and strain our personal and professional relationships. It is becoming increasingly difficult to appreciate, empathise and respond to relationship demands that seem to snap at the smallest provocation. In today‘s context, our mobile phone is a true reflection of us and what‘s going on in our life. The next story plays off the age-old pearl of wisdom, that the best way to appreciate/understand other‘s life is to live it yourself. This leads to empathy. Empathy is always created out of the tension between the sound of the voice and an intended silence. And empathy by nature is a feeling which gets best demonstrated/heightened in a personal relationship.? Iyer further informed that the commercial would be promoted mainly through television supported by outdoor, print and digital. When asked what he thought of the campaign, Prathap Suthan, Co-Founder, Bang in The Middle, commented, ?The TVC has been conceptualised extremely well and comes with a great idea which happens in every home. Couples will know exactly how this happens and the concept is something people can relate to. It is a bang on commercial as it is not an artificial situation but a real scenario of situations in every household. Additionally, they have shown the child caught up between the fight and used him as an instrument when the exchange happens, which is very interesting to watch.? The TVC: Credits: Creative: R Balki, Arun Iyer, Ashwin Varkey, Subodh Menon, Jaywant Dabholkar, Shishir Kapre, Viraj Swaroop, Sarfaraz Siddiqui, Varun Panjwani , Amol Sutar, Deepak Nare, Pratik Mhatre Client Servicing: Raj Gupta, Satish Ramanathan, Sachin Pandirkar, Shrenika Ajeet, Tanvi Pawaskar Planning: S Subramanyeswar
9. Idea?s telephone exchange connects mother and son
Storyboard:
Idea has tried to emotionally connect with increasing cellular services subscribers in India with its new "Telephone Exchange" ad. Eyes getting moist with Idea‘s current commercial campaign? Why not after all its stirring the soul of families across India. This ad begins wth a conversation between an Indian mother and her grown up busily employed son. While the mother looks forward to spending time with her son in her old age and expects a a call as he leaves for the offce. Son being the busy man, tends to ignore her request by being indifferent and saying he has too much of work to even attend or make calls on 27
personal front. The father does the trick and swaps their phones. This results in mom getting all calls all day on her son's mobile & she realizes that her son is actually too occupied. At the same time, son feels disconnected as his phone has no calls (it also shows how mobile has become integral part of our life and that we miss it when our phone does not rings). Soon he realizes that he is carrying his mom's phone and feels how it must be affecting her as she does not even get a sngle call from her son, thats him. He calls his mom instantly and with all his emotions he promises to give a call to her every day. The commercial ends on a happy note father saying ?Ek dusre ko samajhne ke liye telephone exchange?
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Idea Cellular moots a public-police bond this Raksha Bandhan
Idea Cellular has released an ad film around the upcoming Raksha Bandhan festival. The TVC created by Lowe Lintas and Partners went on air on 7 August. A young woman on a bike stops by a policeman to ask for directions. He addresses her as sister (behenji) and guides her. On hearing ?sister‘, she checks his wrist to see that he isn‘t wearing a ?rakhi‘ and asks him why. He replies that he has been on duty since morning. She takes a rakhi, ties it on his wrist and wishes him ?Happy Raksha Bandhan.‘ He gets emotional and says that he has nothing to gift her. He insists that she take his number and reach out if she ever has a problem. A voice over signs off saying, ?Public aur police ka beech bandhan - ek accha Idea? (A bond between public and the police, is a good idea). On the campaign, Arun Iyer, national creative director, Lowe lintas and Partners, said, ?Idea Cellular releases a TVC for every festival. Previously, we have had TVCs for Diwali, Eid, Christmas, Valentine‘s Day and Holi. So we thought we should take the property forward and create a TVC for the upcoming festival of Raksh Bandhan which is a big celebration for Indians.? ?Normally one associates the festival with a sister tying a rakhi on her brother‘s wrist and he makes a promise to protect her. So we decided to give the idea a spin. The police work very hard for safeguarding the society and citizens. So we developed a story where we have a young girl located in city and she is lost. She approaches the policeman for help. She then decides to tie a rakhi on his wrist as a gesture of thanking him for the service provided. The idea was to bring a lot more trust in the equation between the citizens and the police,? Iyer added. 28
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Get the idea, honey bunny?
From the weighty to the cutesy, Idea Cellular‘s advertising has cut a wide arc, going from ?What an Idea, Sirji!‘ to ?You‘re my pumpkin pumpkin, hello honey bunny?. This jingle is on everyone‘s lips, having become quite a rage across the country, just as the earlier campaign became a big success. On December 1, the Aditya Birla group company launched its new ad campaign – ?Idea Rings All India‘ – after running a high-intensity teaser campaign for three days. The jingle caught on much faster than expected, with many humming it and some making it their Facebook and e-mail status. In February this year, the Supreme Court cancelled Idea Cellular‘s 13 licences, of which seven were operational. During the spectrum auction in November, the company won spectrum in eight circles, which included seven circles where its licences were cancelled. Idea Cellular, the country‘s fourth largest operator by subscriber base, now has operations across all the 22 telecom circles. The GSM operator had a user base of about 116 million and 17.22 per cent market share as of October 30, 2012. ?Now we are a pan-India operator, compared with operations across 13 circles earlier. Now it‘s a completely different situation. We needed much more visibility. Now we want to re-establish and project ourselves as a pan-India player,? explains Sashi Shankar, Chief Marketing Officer, Idea Cellular. The ?Honey Bunny‘ page on the company‘s Web site recorded more than one million visits during the first nine days of the campaign‘s launch. The YouTube page got about 1.9 lakh views, while the Facebook page received more than 2,000 likes. ?Music is something which is universal, something which blends with every culture. It‘s a hummable, likeable song, and that was exactly the thought behind creating the jingle,? says Shankar. For the record, the popular hit Kolaveri Di had triggered 2.10 lakh downloads within 18 days last year, according to a survey by Airtel Mobitude, an annual customer preferences and behaviour survey done by Airtel, based on what its own customers liked/used/downloaded. ?Our brief was to roll out a campaign on Idea‘s strong network and we tried to do it in our own way. If the phone rings that means there is a network, and the campaign is about network and connectivity,? Ashwin Varkey, executive creative director at Lowe Lintas, said. Lowe Lintas is the creative agency for the campaign, while Amit Trivedi of Dev D, Wake Up Sid andEnglish Vinglish fame scored the music. The lyrics were penned by Amitabh Bhattacharya, who shot to fame with the song ?Emosanal Attyachar‘ from the film Dev D. 29
The campaign, ?Idea Rings All India‘, involves radio, TV, digital (social networking sites such as YouTube, Twitter and Facebook), cinema theatres and outdoors. However, print is the one medium missing from the campaign. ?This being an audio-visual representation, print was excluded as it would be difficult to bring out the message through print advertisements,? Rajat Mukarji, Idea Cellular Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, said. According to Jagdeep Kapoor, managing director with Samsika Marketing Consultants, the campaign is an attempt to connect to the youth through music. ?We are likeable, we are lovable and we are popular, that‘s the message. This jingle has some memorability,? Kapoor said, adding that more than half of India‘s population of about 1.2 billion people is below the age of 25 years.
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IDEAS 121 CAMPAIGN
AGENCY/IGNITOR Lowe Lintas & Partners STORY LINE/CAMPAIGN HIGHLIGHTS TVC opens up at a road on a rainy day where a boy is shown asking man directions to the Idea Showroom. TVC shows the man responds to him with a dance move- he jumps once to the count of one, moves a step aside to right and limb again and says ?2‘ and then again takes the step to his left and limb one more time and says ?1‘ again. TVC shows, the man exclaiming ?aa gaya Idea ka showroom‘. TVC follows with a series of instances like one women is shown doing the same move in her house, one guy doing this gesture near beach, one women doing the same at bridge, restaurant, railway platform, tennis court, tunnels and many more. TVC then proceeds showing a big mobile screen on which this dance move is shown. Film then proceeds with a big 121 frame which shows different shops and showrooms inside it with features that are available over the phone. Another instance is shown where a guy tries to do the same gesture when the other man stops him and exclaims that his wife is actually waiting at the real showroom. TVC concludes with showing a guy holding Idea banner and doing this move followed by Aditya Birla group logo. Concept used by Lowe Lintas and Partners is very innovative and fresh. Idea took a break from their flagship social causes advertisement and came out with an interesting advertisement to break the ice and to make consumers aware that they can actually have all the services over the phone and there is no need 30
to go to the showroom. Segmentation is perfect as always in Idea advertisements. Viewers will definitely love this film as it is a perfect blend of humor, information and creativity and will be forced to stick to their couches till the end. Advertisement is completely relevant as it has perfectly marketed the product they were bound to.
13. IDEA KILL THE RAVAN IN YOU
AGENCY/IGNITOR Lowe Lintas & Partners STORYLINE/ CAMPAIGN HIGHLIGHTS TVC opens up featuring a taxi driver who finds a mobile phone left behind by a passenger in the taxi. TVC shows that the phone rings and driver disconnects the call. TVC shows him switching off the handset and when he was about to pull out the sim card out, headlights of another taxi passing by astound him. TVC shows driver undergoing a change of heart and putting the phone back. TVC moves on showing phone ringing again where driver picks it up and tells the caller to take the phone from near Paradise Hotel. Film moves on showing the driver walking towards his home amid Diwali festivities and a VO says, ?Apne andar ke Ravan ko Jalan, Ek acha Idea?. TVC concludes showing driver‘s lit-up home where he is welcomed by his wife and son and a frame showing Idea logo. Concept is old but timing to bring out this concept is very good. Theme around which the whole film revolves is to kill the demon inside you on the auspicious festival and is very well presented in it. Segmentation is nicely done. There was more room to evolve some more things out of the film but was underutilized. Viewers would like the TVC but I doubt it would be loved as other commercials of Idea Cellular. Still the theme involves social causes and thus is warmly accepted. The film has every spice to connect on with some of the viewers as it‘s a common phenomenon to see people losing their mobiles in cabs and there are increasing stories of some honest cabbies returning it to them.
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SPONCERSHIPS 1. IDEA sponsors KBC!!!
IDEA Cellular, struck a deal to sponsor the most popular TV Game show ever on Indian Television, ?Kaun Banega Crorepati‘ (KBC) in2010! Idea obtained the ?Telecom partner‘ rights of phone and SMS lines of The popular show hosted by Superstar Amitabh Bachchan ?powered by? Idea.The first 7 Questions of KBC were be open for public response till August 9th 20:59:59 Hrs.
Additionally Idea subscribers across the country could access ?Idea Pass‘ to register for the show. An exclusive offer for Idea subscribers, ?Idea Pass‘ would enable users to register for 5 days more, between 21:00:00 Hrs on August 11th, 2010 till 20:59:59 Hrs on August 16th, 2010, in addition to the general dates of registration. While accessing through Idea Pass, Idea subscribers need to respond to 5 exclusive Questions of KBC on the specially designed IVR by dialing ?55456‘ (Add ?01-04‘ for the answer Options A-D. For eg. ?5545601‘ for ?A‘). Idea subscribers could also SMS their response to the short code 55456. According to Ms. Anupama Ahluwalia, Vice President – Marketing, IDEA Cellular Ltd., ?Idea‘s association with Kaun Banega Crorepati is a major milestone in our brand building and customer engagement initiatives this year. The tie-up will provide over 68 million Idea subscribers an additional gateway of opportunity to be a ?Crorepati‘, by simply using the Idea network while responding to the Questions of Kaun Banega Crorepati. We have created special lines to accommodate millions of callers and give them an opportunity to realize their dreams through this unique show?. Idea also struck a deal with KBC to ensure unique brand visibility during the show. ?Idea‘ si gnature tune would be heard everytime the contestant on the Hot-Seat calls a friend through the lifeline – ?Phone-afriend‘. KBC Host and Quiz Master Amitabh Bachchan‘s voice would be heard on Idea IVR and would also be available for download as Dialer Tones. 32
IDEA Cellular also planned the launch a range of special KBC VAS packs and KBC Game exclusively for Idea subscribers. The new initiatives were rolled out in a phased manner throughout the build-up period and after the show went On-Air in October 2010.
2. IDEA teams up with MUMBAI INDIANS!!
Telecom players are increasingly cashing in on the popularity of the Indian Premier League. Idea Cellular is no different & it joined the bandwagon by partnering with one of the IPL teams. The cellular company struck a deal with Mukesh Ambani‘s Mumbai Indians for sporting its logo on the players‘ shirt. Idea Cellular is also taking the partnership forward by allowing mobile users to leave messages for their favourite Mumbai Indian player.
Mr Pradeep Srivastava, Vice-President (Marketing), Idea Cellular, said the objective was to take the partnership beyond just a logo to more interactive offerings wherein select subscribers would be able to talk to the Mumbai Indian players. Some of the subscribers were also be sent to South Africa to watch the matches. Idea Cellular also launched a media campaign to create awareness of this initiative.
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IDEA Cellular even launched an innovative campaign based on the theme of ‘Conn ecting Fans with their Cricket superheroes’ following a tie up with Mumbai Indians in the second season of the Indian Premier League.
Under this campaign, IDEA advertised the mobile numbers of Mumbai Indians skipper Sachin Tendulkar, pace bowler Zaheer Khan, spinner Harbhajan Singh, and batsman Sanath Jayasuriya, and encouraged people to call and SMS their favourite stars.
Idea received an overwhelming response with over two million calls and messages (till April 30). Sachin received a record 9.5 lakh calls and messages on his ten digit Idea Cellular number of Mumbai.
Followed by Bhajji at 7.05 lakh calls and Zaheer 1.3 calls. Similar calls and messages were also received on the ten digit numbers of other Mumbai Indian players including Sri Lankan Sanath Jayasuriya, West Indian Dwayne Bravo and hard hitting Mumbai batsman Abhishek Nayar.
3. Idea readies India to play „Oongli Cricket?
After Test Cricket, One-Day Cricket and T-20 Cricket, there is a new format of Cricket born in India – it is 'Idea Oongli Cricket'! With the new campaign this summer, Idea Cellular has brought Cricket at fingertips for the experts of the game as well as novice, men & women, old and the young, and everybody else who uses a mobile phone. 34
The new teaser campaigns ran on Television urging people to keep their fingers in good shape as 'Idea Oongli Cricket' is coming. The new format of the Game allows millions of mobile users in India to participate in this unique campaign. Idea Brand Ambassador Abhishek Bachchan along with other celebrities and cricketers will appear on TV, in this campaign.
Viewers are asked a question based on the events and happenings of the ongoing match of the day. The campaign has been designed to enable everybody to participate as it does not require detailed knowledge of the game. Each question will be unique and promises to be fun. Viewers just need to exercise their fingers to SMS the right answer after the question is asked. 'Idea Oongli Cricket' can be played by all mobile phone users by SMSing their answer to '9594939291'. The number is toll free for Idea subscribers, and standard messaging rates apply for other mobile subscribers. All Idea customers who send in the correct answer will get Idea VAS Packs for three days.
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Talking about the new campaign Mr. Pradeep Shrivastava, Chief Marketing Officer, Idea Cellular said, "All Indians are connected with Cricket, in some way or the other. However, only a few get a chance to play the sport while millions just remain spectators of the match. 'Idea Oongli Cricket' will enable every Indian to participate in this match of cricketing intelligence. Like all Idea campaigns, the concept is fun and entertaining, and will engage a cross section of consumers through the power of telephony". Idea Cellular has planned a complete 360 degree campaign with TV, print, radio, digital and outdoor media. Last year, Idea Cellular connected fans to their favourite cricketers; this time it will be the entire nation playing 'Idea Oongli' Cricket."
4. Idea Cellular To Be The Main Sponsor For 56th Filmfare Awards YET again!!!
IDEA Cellular has partnered with Worldwide Media to become the title sponsor for the 56th Filmfare Awards for the 3rd time in a row. The 56th Idea Filmfare Awards 2010 wil held on the 29th January 2011, at Yashraj Studios, Mumbai and as always, it promises to be the biggest celebration of Indian Cinemas. Over the last 5 decades, the Filmfare Awards had been testament to the grandeur and excellence of Indian cinema, and even today, the Filmfare Awards continue to be the most awaited celebration of our Hindi film industry. The awards was presented by leading telecom brand, Idea Cellular, third time in a
row. Announcing the most anticipated and honored award ceremony of the New Year, Bollywood‘s current reigning queen, the ethereal beauty Katrina Kaif, along with Jitesh Pillaai – Editor, Filmfare and Mr. Rajat Mukarji, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Idea Cellular, lit the lamp marking the start to yet another magical journey of honoring Bollywood‘s best. Having a legacy of its own, the Filmfare awards are the most prestigious film awards in Asia and the Filmfare Black Lady remains the Pièce de résistance on every Bollywood actor , director and producer‘s 36
mantle – an unabashed symbol of success and achievement recognized by the industry. From its inception in the early 1950‘s to its evolution of unmatched glamour, glitz and flamboyant persona, the Filmfare Awards is regarded as the most esteemed award and entertainment show within the fraternity.
Sponsoring such an esteemed institution & an event of such grandeur acts as a brilliant PR acticity for Idea cellular. The name of the company being tagged along with the greatest award ceremony in the history of bollywood automatically gets widespread media coverage of magnanimous stature at practically negligent expense. It also adds to the reputation & goodwill of the company. A reputation of an organization is made by various groups of its stakeholders, such as investors, media men, employees, customers, etc. Thus, we may conclude that there is no such a thing as the reputation of a company. Every company has a number of reputations, as it is perceived very differently by different groups of its stakeholders. Sponsoring an event like the Filmare Awards sky-rockets the reputation of the company which is in the best interest of everyone reated to the company. Rest assured, the future of this Aditya Birla Group Company is secure & healthy!
5. Idea Rocks India!
Aspiring Rock Stars of the country can now look forward to a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, as IDEA Cellular has flagged off a unique Musical hunt - 'Idea Rocks India' telecasted on the popular TV channel, Colors. Idea Rocks India ' gives an opportunity to all Indians aged 18 years and above, who are already a 'Band' or 'Member of a Band' or simply want to become a 'part of a Band', to participate in the first-of-its-kind music talent hunt show which will encompass all genres of music including Western, Indian and others. Young musical sensations from across the country aspiring to become 'The Baap of all 37
Bands' can participate in 'Idea Rocks India' by appearing in the auditions to be held in 10 Indian cities Bangalore, Chandigarh, Delhi, Goa, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai and Pune.
Flagging off 'Idea Rocks India 4', Mr. Pradeep Shrivastava, Chief Marketing Officer, IDEA Cellular said, "IDEA has always had a close association with music and its promotion amongst the Indian audience. 'Idea Rocks India 4' is yet another initiative in this direction. India has a rich and vibrant musical talent that is waiting to be explored and tapped. This show is designed to provide a platform to every individual or group that has a unique talent in music and the ability to entertain the entire nation. This year, we are happy to bring the show to millions of TV viewers across the country with the help of our partners - Colors, Encompass, Radio Mirchi and In.com." IDEA Cellular launched 'Idea Rocks India' in 2006 to bring the country's musical sensations closer to its subscribers, and other music lovers. For the last three consecutive years 'Idea Rocks India' has been entertaining the fans with its successful concert tours in Indian cities, packed with performances by the likes of Salman Khan, Lara Dutta, Bipash Basu, Kareena Kapoor, Shaan, Sunidhi Chauhan, and Sonu Nigam. This year 'Idea Rocks India' will traverse the length and breadth of the country to discover the best musicians. According to Mr. Rajesh Kamat, CEO, COLORS, "Our relationship with IDEA goes a long way as they have partnered with us earlier for our show Fear Factor Khatron Ke Khiladi for two innings. We are happy to partner with them again for 'Idea Rocks India' as it fits with the COLORS programming philosophy. It is an energetic and innovative concept that is in line with our channel's core values of differentiated and disruptive programming where for the first time ever one will be able to witness a band hunt on a GEC. We are sure that this show will find favour with our viewers for its novel concept and great musical talent." 38
Daredevilry: As Honey Bunny fever dies, Idea back to social service
As a part of its latest campaign Idea Cellular in the fourth year of its association with the Delhi Daredevils has launched a social theme based activation campaign targeted at audience in Delhi, UP West, Haryana, MP and Chhattisgarh. What is being called the ?Idea Daredevilry Awards‘ the brand will be recognising acts of daredevilry by citizens who have done exemplary work in fighting various ills in the society, on a day-to-day basis. The ?Idea Daredevils‘ award will be given away by the Delhi Daredevils team members in May. The brand claims that in the last three years of its association, the brand and the game have gained momentum and the scores have gone up with the association. This year, the brand wanted to up the ante and engage with consumers directly. The contest ?Share Your Daredevil Moment‘ is also open for nonIdea users in these circles. Idea Cellular has also taken Ernst & Young on board to validate the entries and select the Top 11 case studies for the awards. According to Idea, E&Y will be a part of the jury along with officials from the brand.
Sashi Shankar, CMO, Idea Cellular
Sashi Shankar, Chief Marketing Officer, Idea Cellular says that Delhi Daredevils is the marquee that the brand is associated with and Idea wanted to do something bigger this year as well as connect with it as a story. ?The brand philosophy is in sync with the campaign, ?an idea can change your life‘, people who have acted in a daredevilry moment have either changed their life or somebody else‘s. We are looking forward to a lot of mileage with the campaign as well as the Delhi Daredevils team,? he adds. According to the brand, this campaign will give Idea Cellular an opportunity to reach out to the audience in neighbouring markets through various on-ground activation programs, radio, and digital media. Idea Claims to have a 360 degree approach entailing FM channels like Fever 104 FM, Radio Mirchi, BIG FM and Radio City. In the first leg of the campaign the radio teaser was on air and from today the brand plans to have a full scale launch with on ground activations, opening its IVR for callers, tapping social 39
networking and brand websites as well as OOH banners. Idea also claims that through IPL it is trying to engage with the youth, which is a major chunk of the audience of the sport event. There have been a lot of young people who have been standing up and changing the way what the society has been doing, hence Idea wants to capture that. The sport the team the concept of Idea and the youth is all that the brand is trying to capture in a single campaign. Idea cellular has also launched a range of products and offerings for its customers in Delhi & Haryana circles, during the IPL season, including new recharges, T20 games and data pack centred around the sport and the team bringing in the aspect of ?daredevilry‘. Shankar also states that in the last two years the brand has grown double the industry rate in Delhi, citing an example he says that if the industry has grown around eight or nine per cent then Idea has grown around 16 per cent. ? Last two IPL seasons we saw a 2-3 point increase, but it isn‘t that that 2-3 point dropped after the cricket season was over, we have been able to sustain it throughout,? he says.
Hemant Dua, Marketing Head, GMR Sports
Hemant Dua, Head Marketing & Commercial, GMR Sports, says, ?We questioned ourselves, how can we take the association and engagement from one IPL to the other? We create content to engage the audience throughout the season and off season.? Dua claims that on the website the brand has launched a ?predictor game‘ which is under no legal implications with giveaways such as signed T-shirts if and when consumers win by predicting the progress of the game. ?With this campaign we want to take the story outside the realm of cricket,? he adds. According to the brand, the best estimates for an association with an IPL team were somewhere between Rs 55 and 60 crore last year. Previous year, the IPL was the number one expenditure in terms of sponsorship for the brand. ?We wanted to put forth our products such as 3G, data packs, handsets, therefore, it was necessary for us to be at that level. This year we did not want to be a sponsor, we wanted to be an advertiser only, as we don‘t see the necessity,? adds Shankar. Idea has had the ?social‘ angle to its campaigns for quite long, and this time too it seems to be in coordination with the brand philosophy. Rest assured, viewers will be hooked to the matches and a lucky 11 will be narrating their moment of daredevilry to the Delhi Daredevils.
6. OTHER SPONCERSHIPS
Apart from sponsoring several television shows, Idea is also associating itself with on-ground events in smaller towns. Do we smell a change in Idea Cellular‘s media strategy? Take the Idea Vraj Mela in Gujarat or Idea presents Jalsa, a 12 city classical music concert in association with the IMA (Indian Music Academy), for instance. In addition to these, annual Idea Rocks India music concerts have been organised for the past three years, featuring performances by prominent names in the Indian music industry. Are all these harbingers of a change in Idea‘s media strategy? ?Yes, with a fast growing pan-India presence, we are becoming 40
more and more national. This makes television rather cost effective for us, giving us wider reach,? Pradeep Srivastava, chief marketing officer, Idea Cellular, tells afaqs! ?Having said that, gone are the days when a marketer launched a TVC and the world sat up and took notice. The new, intensely competitive environment demands that we do something big in addition to the usual mass media advertisements.? Srivastava adds that there are many more modes of consumer engagement that a brand can leverage. Title sponsorships, particularly for anything to do with Indian music, films or cricket, while giving an edge to the brand with respect to eyeballs, brand recall and brand engagement, also serve a bigger purpose. ?They help us associate with a ?religion‘ bigger than the brand can ever hope to be and, in turn, the spirit of the event rubs off on the brand at a subliminal level,? says Srivastava. The Idea Cup, for instance, helps reach across to sports lovers and the rub-off on the brand is huge. Even Idea‘s association with Khatron Ke Khiladi helped the brand associate itself with a different genre (adventure sports), lending the brand a sporty, cool personality. Idea IIFA Awards, on the other hand, helped the brand gain a global imagery and connect. Association with music based events or reality shows is more strategic than that for Idea. According to the brand executives, music is already a buzzing mantra in the mobile world, what with caller tunes, ringtones and full song downloads doing the rounds. Soon, music will be also available in a superior digital manner on mobile phones. ?So, a music association is very relevant to our category,? explains Srivastava. With video clippings of shows on mobile phones slated to become the next big thing, telecom operators will benefit by associating with ?spicy‘ reality shows, which will induce subscribers to download clips onto their phones for repeat viewing. Idea is also set to launch technologies that help in live streaming of various celebrations to the mobile, including Siddhivinayak ?darshan‘ during the Ganeshotsav in Mumbai. Therefore, such ground level activity associations are, in a sense, groundwork for Idea‘s upcoming plans. ?Direct engagement is always better than a monologue,? concludes Srivastava, ?especially in our case, when we have such a diverse audience set… from industrialists to the poor tea vendor.? In these cases, there is a need to associate the brand with mass level activities that help in building a certain kind of image and recall. Idea‘s media agency is Lintas Media Group, which looks after the mass media work in addition to other activities. Some on-ground initiatives, however, are driven inhouse at Idea. In the past, some other telecom operators have also tried to leverage the arena of sponsorships. One may recall Airtel Bol Baby Bol, which featured music composer and singer Adnan Sami as its host. Airtel Presents Bigg Boss is another 'big' property for the GEC, Colors. Tata Indicom, too had flagged off a show, Tata Indicom Ek Se Badhkar Ek: Jalwe Sitaron Ke, some time ago. Sponsoring so many events and shows at the same time may perhaps leave Idea spreading itself too thin. Whether the gamble pays off in the long run is for time to tell.
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Radio Advertising
Radio advertising is a form of advertising via the medium of radio. Radio advertisements are broadcast as radio waves to the air from a transmitter to an antenna and a thus to a receiving device. Airtime is purchased from a station or network in exchange for airing the commercials. While radio has the obvious limitation of being restricted to sound, proponents of radio advertising often cite this as an advantage.
IDEA partners-up with Radio City
Radio City 91.1 FM, India‘s leading FM brand, partners with IDEA Cellular for their innovative environment campaign, ?Use Mobile, Save Paper‘. In a joint endeavor between IDEA Cellular and Radio City, the FM station will convey to its listeners the effective usage of different mobile phone applications which can help in saving paper.
Radio City has designed listener engagement programmes which will promote IDEA‘s ?Use Mobile, Save Paper‘ campaign, through a national initiative on air, and also through on ground activities over a period of 3 weeks. The Radio City RJ‘s will encourage citizens to use mobiles effectively to save paper in office and in the corporate environment, as well as in other day-to-day activities. They will give out information like stock and sports update, movie reviews and city happenings through the ?M newspaper‘ i.e. through their mobiles and educate listeners on how one can save paper. As a culmination of the activity, Radio City RJ‘s will also visit homes of listener‘s and gift them saplings as a crucial step in making the planet green. Commenting on this initiative, Apurva Purohit, CEO Radio City says, ?The planet is losing its green at a very fast pace. Going green is the basic solution to combat hazards of Global Warming. Partnering with IDEA Cellular‘s ‘Use Mobile, Save Paper’ campaign, we will convey the message to our listeners on 42
how one can save paper and thereby save trees. Through this Radio City strongly withholds the seriousness of environment conservation, encouraging citizens to unite to make our planet a better place.? Mr. Pradeep Shrivastava, Chief Marketing Officer, IDEA Cellular, says ?The new initiative on Radio, is an extension of our 360 degree campaign to promote the message of ?Use Mobile, Save Paper‘. It is designed to connect us with a large base of mobile users, especially the youth, and get them to use mobile phone applications more judiciously in their day-to-day activities, to save paper.? World over, millions of trees get cut everyday to produce paper, leading to an alarming rate of deforestation. One simple idea to save paper is to efficiently use the mobile phone for a larger number of day to day communication. The IDEA campaign showcases how mobile phones can be used as an efficient tool to read daily newspapers, generate e-bills, make payments and transactions, issue e-tickets and boarding passes; thereby saving tonnes of paper everyday.
Online Advertising
Online advertising is a form of promotion that uses the Internet and World Wide Web for the expressed purpose of delivering marketing messages to attract customers. Examples of online advertising include contextual ads that appear on search engine results pages, banner ads, in text ads, Rich Media Ads, Social network advertising, online classified advertising, advertising networks and e-mail marketing, including e-mail spam. Idea has launched WWW.WalkWhenYouTalk.co.in as a part of its „Walk When You Talk? campaign where the company encourages mobile phone users to walk while they talk on their mobile phone. The website invites visitors to enter their friends‘ mobile phone numbers and triggers a reminder call on those numbers asking the receivers to walk as they talk.
WalkWhenYouTalk.co.in also hosts a walk-n-talk meter, which helps the user to calculate the amount of calories he or she might lose by walking while talking for a particular amount of time on mobile phone. Users can also upload or check out interesting 'walking while talking' videos on the site.
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?We also plan to introduce a special character who can be identified with any teenager of this generation. We will launch games and contests around the concept of health and fitness, with this character, and give away exciting prizes to winners. The campaign will be linked with Facebook to increase the participation,? Rachana Dharia, head, digital solutions, Tribal DDB India, the company which designed the website, has told AlooTechie.
According to Rachana Dharia, WalkWhenYouTalk.co.in has already recorded over 1,50,000 visits and more than 65,000 calls have been made so far through the website. Over 10,000 ringtones have also been downloaded from the website. Idea Cellular, in association with MTV, had launched an online contest, titled „Idea Mobile Roadie Challenge 2.0? @ www.Ideastrikeback.com Powered by Tribal DDB India, the website offers Idea Cellular subscribers an opportunity to become an MTV Roadie, through an online audition.
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To participate in the contest, one first needs to visit IdeaStrikeBack.com where Cyrus Broacha will greet the contestant and conduct the online audition. To proceed, the contestant will be required to dial an Idea Cellular number (09990177777) for further instructions.
After the call gets connected, the contestant would be asked questions by Cyrus Broacha. To answer, the contestant will need to dial either 1 or 2 on his mobile handset. According to Tribal DDB, what is unique about IdeaStrikeBack.com is its ability to integrate the user‘s dialled response with the questions and reactions of Cyrus Broacha on the website, on a real-time basis.
?The ?Idea Mobile Roadie Challenge 2.0‘ is a melange of mobile and digital platforms coming together to provide users with a virtual experience by auditioning online,? Pradeep Shrivastava, chief marketing officer, Idea Cellular, has said. ?We are glad to partner with Tribal DDB India for this unique initiative.? Max Hegerman, president, Tribal DDB India, has said, ?The direct and instantaneous connection between web and mobile is dramatic and powerful - and a great model for building brand engagement.? Dinesh Swamy, associate creative director, Tribal DDB India, has added, ?The objective was for Idea to actually embed itself into MTV Roadies, rather than being just a sponsor.?
For „breaking the language barrier? campaign , Idea Cellular had launched an online reality show „Idea Language Champion?.The show comprises of a range of online tasks and quizzes in different languages which participants would need to solve at every step of the game. Idea Cellular Director (Operations) Himanshu Kapania says “Idea Language Champion” offers a unique opportunity to the net-savvy Indian youth to network with friends and exhibit their social networking prowess in their quest to bridge the language barrier often faced by people in a multilingual country like India.”
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Press Advertising
Press advertising describes advertising in a printed medium such as a newspaper, magazine, or trade journal.Another form of press advertising is the Display Ad, which is a larger ad (can include art) that typically run in an article section of a newspaper.
Some of the IDEA advertisements in newspapers:
This piece of comic strip was published by Idea Cellular in newspapers across the city as soon as the advertisement hit television screens.Such Comic strips are quite an hit with ardent newspaper readers as it describes the entire televised advertisement in a short time & makes for quick reading at the same time.
This Dislpay Advertisement is another example of a relevant press-advertising.It was published just days before the innaugration of Bandra-Worli Sealink in Mumbai connecting both the BWSL & Idea cellular as entites which are ?for the people,by the people? thus establishing an indirect realtion between the landmark monument & the company.This piece of brilliant advertising acts as a great PR activity for Idea.
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Billboard Advertising
Billboards are large structures located in public places which display advertisements to passing pedestrians and motorists.Most often, they are located on main roads with a large amount of passing motor and pedestrian traffic; however, they can be placed in any location with large amounts of viewers, such as on mass transit vehicles and in stations, in shopping malls or office buildings, and in stadiums.
Some of the famous IDEA banners & Billboards:
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Celebrity Branding
This type of advertising focuses upon using celebrity power, fame, money, popularity to gain recognition for their products and promote specific stores or products. Advertisers often advertise their products, for example, when celebrities share their favorite products or wear clothes by specific brands or designers. Celebrities are often involved in advertising campaigns such as television or print adverts to advertise specific or general products. The use of celebrities to endorse a brand can have its downsides, however. One mistake by a celebrity can be detrimental to the public relations of a brand. For example, following his performance of eight gold medals at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China, swimmer Michael Phelps' contract with Kellogg's was terminated, as Kellogg's did not want to associate with him after he was photographed smoking marijuana. IDEA Cellular‘s campaign with brand ambassador Abhishek Bachchan has been adjudged the „Best
Celebrity Endorsement of the Year? at the first edition of NDTV Tech Life Awards.The trophy was
jointly received by Bachchan and IDEA Cellular chief marketing officer Pradeep Shrivastava.IDEA‘s tagline ?What an idea, Sirji!‘ has generated tremendous recall value for the brand, amongst the masses.
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Bachchan said, ?I am happy to associate with a brand which is young, humane and is a Champion in its category. IDEA‘s communication is simple, effective and appealing to the masses and classes. It has given me an opportunity to connect with my countrymen and offer simple solutions to complex issues prevalent in our society.It is encouraging to see that my role in this communication has inspired people, and is recognized by the industry.? Shrivastava added, ?We are delighted to receive the NDTV Tech Life Awards in its very first year of inception. This recognition reflects the success of our campaign with our Brand Ambassador, which is aimed at demonstrating the power of an idea by looking at mobile telephony and what it can do, in a way that‘s fresh, imaginative and elevating?.
In all the IDEA campaigns Bachchan plays the spokesperson who gives an idea to solve a complex problem with surprisingly simple solution, through the power of mobile telephony. IDEA‘s ad campaigns based on the theme of ?Democracy‘; ?Championing a world without caste‘; ?Championing a world in which no one suffers from the disability to communicate‘; and ?Education for All‘, have been a huge success amongst all categories of audience. In all these campaigns, the Brand Ambassador has played a protagonist who connects with both the masses, and the classes. Be it the ?close aide‘ of the political leader in our Democracy campaign; or the ?Sarpanch‘ trying to get rid of caste wars; or the ?Tourist Guide‘ with a foreigner at Taj; or even the ?Priest‘ who has the vision of Educating One and All—each time the character has sprung up with an innovative ?Idea‘ which provides a simple yet effective solution to a problem, by using the mobile phone. The testimony of the success of the campaign is reflected from the rapid growth of IDEA‘s subscriber base in the country. The Aditya Birla Group company has grown to become the 3rd largest private GSM operator with over 43 million subscribers across 16 service areas, nationally.
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Sales Promotions
Sales promotions are another way to advertise.Sales promotions are double purposed because they are used to gather information about what type of customers you draw in and where they are, and to jumpstart sales.Sales promotions include things like contests and games, sweepstakes, product giveaways, samples coupons, loyalty programs, and discounts. The ultimate goal of sales promotions is to stimulate potential customers to action. A huge part of sales promotion for IDEA cellular takes place through games & contests.Most of these happen through online advertising or television advertising.
Examples:
1] Online Contests: ? www.WalkWhenYouTalk.co.in encourages mobile phone users to walk while they talk on their mobile phone. The website invites visitors to enter their friends‘ mobile phone numbers and triggers a reminder call on those numbers asking the receivers to walk as they talk ? „Idea Mobile Roadie Challenge 2.0‘ at www.Ideastrikeback.com the website offers Idea Cellular subscribers an opportunity to become an MTV Roadie, through an online audition. 2] Other Contests: ? Idea subscribers across the country could access ?Idea Pass‘ to register for Kaun Banega Crorepati.An exclusive only offer for Idea subscribers,the ?Idea Pass‘ would enable users to register for 5 days more than the regular period allowed for registration. ? ?Connecting Fans with their Cricket superheroes? Under this campaign, IDEA advertised the mobile numbers of Mumbai Indians skipper Sachin Tendulkar, pace bowler Zaheer Khan, spinner Harbhajan Singh, and batsman Sanath Jayasuriya, and encouraged people to call and SMS their favourite stars.
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OBJECTIVES Of the MARKETING STRATEGIES Of IDEA CELLULAR
This extensive research of the various modes of Advertising used by Idea Cellular to promote their product have enabled me to draw a specific set objectives they define for themselves in order to gain a competitive adavantage in the market. The objectives I have chalked out are:
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To use the impact of social causes as a tool for marketing
Most of the advertisements of ?what an Idea Sirjee‘ campaign realte to the betterment of the society giving away audaciously simple solutions to some of the most difficult problems face by the polupation of India. ?Walk when you talk” ads promote good health ; Education for all promotes education In rural areas especially the girls. ; “Participative Governance” magnifies the scope of a democratic government ; “Use Mobile Save Paper” provides a smart solution to save trees ; ?Breaking the language barrier” philosophically simplifies the fact that communication does not necessarily need a language
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To use the impact of celebrity marketing on consumer buying behaviour
Abhishek Babchchan ,the Brand Ambassador of Idea Cellular has played a protagonist in almost all of the Idea commercials & successfully connects with both the masses, and the classes. Be it the ?close aide‘ of the political leader in our Democracy campaign; or the ?Sarpanch‘ trying to get rid of caste wars; or the ?Tourist Guide‘ with a foreigner at Taj; or even the ?Priest‘ who has the vision of Educating One and All—each time the character has sprung up with an innovative ?Idea‘ which provides a simple yet effective solution to a problem, by using the mobile phone. The testimony of the success of AB Junior in the campaign is reflected from the rapid growth of Idea‘s subscriber base in the country.
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To understand consumer acceptance of the product based on its Marketing & Promotion
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Does the consumer really get influenced by the advertisements??Do the advertisements really affect the consumers buying behavior???Convincing a population of 100 million to buy a product is not everyone‘s cup of tea & In case of Idea cellular the answer to all the above questions is probably a YES!
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To keep up with the changing trends in marketing strategies
People don‘t have the time today to sit back and watch long ads.Short,smart and clever ads are the in thing in modern day advertising.The innovative scripts written for every Idea advertisement shows the changing mentality of the companies.They make it a point that the commercials have a certain degree of smartness to them.
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SURVEY
Questionnaire:
1] Do you enjoy watching the Idea Cellular Advertisements? o Yes o No o Sometimes
2] How would you rate the Idea Cellular advertisements? o Average o Good o Excellent
3] Do you think the ideas suggested in ?What an Idea Sirjee? ads are realistic? o Yes o No o Maybe
4] Do you think Idea Cellular is marketed in a better way as compared to its competitors? o Yes o No
5] Do you think about the social factor, when buying the product? o o Yes No 53
6] Does celebrity marketing affect your buying behaviour? o o Yes No
7] Do the advertisements appeal to you ? o o Yes No
8] Do the advertisements influence you to buy the product? o o Yes No
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Result Of the Survey:
1] Do you enjoy watching the Idea Cellular Advertisements?
The survey revealed that Out of 100 Respondents,41 people answered ?Yes‘, that they enjoy watching Idea Ads,19 said ?No‘, they don‘t enjoy the Idea Ads & 40 Said ?sometimes‘, that they enjoy watching the ads only sometimes
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2] How would you rate the Idea Cellular advertisements?
The survey revealed that, 19 people found the Idea advertisements to be ?Average‘, 52 people found the Idea advertisements to be ?Good‘ & 27 people found the Idea advertisements to be ?Excellent‘
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3] Do you think the ideas suggested in ?What an Idea Sirjee? ads are realistic?
The survey revealed that,21 people said ?Yes‘,that the ideas suggested in ?What an Idea Sirjee? ads are realistic,44 people said ?Nos‘,that the ideas suggested are not realistic & 35 said ?Maybe‘ the ideas suggested are realistic
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4] Do you think Idea Cellular is marketed in a better way as compared to its competitors?
The survey revealed that,57 out of 100 people believe it is not as well marketed as the other providers,while 43 are of the opinion it is better marketed than the others.
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5] Do you think about the social factor, when buying the product?
The survey revealed that,77 out of 100 people do not consider the social factor when buying the product while 23 people do consider the social factor when buying the product
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6] Does celebrity marketing affect your buying behaviour?
The survey revealed that Celebrity Marketing does influence the buying behavior of 25 people out of 100 while it does not influence the buying behavior of 75 people out of 100 .
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7] Do the advertisements appeal to you ?
The survey revealed that,the ads do appeal to 79 out of 100 people while it does not appeal to the rest of the 21 people.
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8] Do the advertisements influence you to buy the product?
The survey revealed that the advertisements influence 32 out of the 100 people, while 68 art not influenced by it
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Conclusion
We can conclude that –
? ?
People certainly do enjoy watching the Idea Cellular Ads
Most of the response is positive. i.e. only 19 people found the ads average, remaining 81 found it either Good or Excellent.Hence the short , smart & witty storyline has worked its magic
?
44 people believe that the ideas suggested in ?What an Idea Sirjee? Campaign are Unrealistic, Rest 56 believe they are or maybe realistic.Thus,Idea Cellular has all the positive signals to push on with the social cause campaign & bring about a change.
?
Idea has been successful in its brand building thereby building a long lasting brand image of a smart & a socially responsible brand.
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Idea believes in dealing with the best.Be it sponsoring KBC or the Mumbai Indians Team or the 56th Filmfare Awards.Thus Idea Cellular believes in & strives for excellence.
?
The changing trends in advertising define the changing nature of the market & Idea cellular are right up there when it comes to keeping pace with the modern-day changes.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
The books referred for this project are-.
ICFAI university journal Confessions of an Advertising Man by David Ogilvy
The websites referred for this project are –
www.Ideacellular.com www.coai.com www.wikipedia.com www.businessstandard.com www.infomercialreview.com www.googleimages.com
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Annexure
Questionnaire:
1] Do you enjoy watching the Idea Cellular Advertisements? o Yes o No o Sometimes
2] How would you rate the Idea Cellular advertisements? o Average o Good o Excellent
3] Do you think the ideas suggested in ?What an Idea Sirjee? ads are realistic? o Yes o No o Maybe
4] Do you think Idea Cellular is marketed in a better way as compared to its competitors? o Yes o No
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5] Do you think about the social factor, when buying the product? o o Yes No
6] Does celebrity marketing affect your buying behaviour? o o Yes No
7] Do the advertisements appeal to you ? o o Yes No
8] Do the advertisements influence you to buy the product? o o Yes No
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