For its comeback, the century-old shoe-polish brand Cherry Blossom has knocked the digital doors this time launching the Polish To Shine campaign. Experts decode its stance…

The Brand Father of Indian advertising, Late. Alyquee Padamsee once told his clients, “Humour has no language,” and translated this thought into one of the most cherished advertisements from the 80s. We are talking about the hilarious Cherry Blossom’s commercials featuring the legendary Charlie Chaplin look-alike- lovingly called Cherry Charlie.  The vintage ads of Cherry Blossom had everything essential- right from humor with silent comedy to upbeat music to a hard-hitting product selling proposition.

After 10 years, the brand is back with a digital ad campaign titled ‘Polish To Shine’, this time minus the Cherry Charlie, not a humor-led approach but a serious stance tasked with sensitizing consumers to the need of regular polishing of their shoes.  The campaign attempts, in a warm and engaging way to communicate how the simple act of regular polishing also exudes the characteristics of responsibility, discipline, and sincerity.

Also Read: Samsonite’s #EkDinKiChutti gets a thumbs up from experts

About the Films

Conceptualized and executed by Tilt Brand Solutions, the films are helmed by Rahul Sengupta and showcase different scenarios which have been conceptualized to the overarching message ‘Polish to Shine’. The first film based on a school girl highlights responsibility and discipline; the second ad on a father-son duo showcases sincerity.

Campaign Insight

While this particular category seems to have lost it’s the charm in the market and is poised to be dull, Cherry Blossom aims to revive its position with a different take this time – may be changing with the changing times. The brand, like several others, has gone the preachy way to inculcate necessary values of life in its consumers.

Cherry Blossom has always been touted as the integral part of the Indian household for dressing up smartly. Through the campaigns released on YouTube-first, the brand reaffirms the importance of polishing and what this everyday act conveys about the wearer of the shoes. The impact of smart, clean, well-shined shoes is incomparable. “These ads will definitely enhance brand recall in the audience’s minds,” affirms Sukhleen Aneja, CMO and Marketing Director, Hygiene Home, South Asia, Reckitt Benckiser.

The Creative Angle

For Shriram Iyer, Chief Creative & Content Officer, Tilt Brand Solutions, working on this campaign has been both a privilege and a great responsibility. He added, the films in this campaign while being warm and touching, aim to deliver on a very clear brand task – that of encouraging people to keep their shoes well-groomed at all times.”

“The ‘Polish to Shine’ campaign has been designed to be empathetic while being persuasive in reminding the youth that everyday discipline, responsibility & sincerity will always be timeless building blocks of success; in this case, in the context of the regular habit of shoe polishing,” shared Kedar Teny, Chief Strategy Officer, Tilt Brand Solutions.

After a decade long hiatus which is a long time for a brand to stay away from its consumers, Cherry Blossom is renewing its place in the hearts of its Indian customers by emphasizing the need for polishing shoes, a habit which has diminished in society today. But in this case, it gives the iconic brand a different vision and story to narrate that makes people recall and connect to it. Now whether a century-old Cherry Blossom is successful in making it a reality is a wait and watch game. Over to the experts…

Experts Speak:

Joey Pathak, Creative Head, Socio Sketch

The Cherry Blossom brand has been an integral part of Indian homes for decades. It’s the brand we grew up with and one that was the go-to brand for shoe polish. Their iconic (and lovable) Charlie Chaplin campaign still invokes nostalgia, and consumers tend to inherently root for the brand.

 In this context, it was good to see an old brand come up with a new campaign. The casting is spot on, with Manav Kaul and Ashish Vidyarthi as the leads. The concepts are drawn from everyday life, and so have an instant connect with the consumer. The story-line is light, yet poignant, with beautifully scripted dialogues and powerful punch-lines.  The use of the double entendres (“Dhyaan se, garam hai”, “Ab lagta hai kaam karega”) in the sign-offs, I feel, are the cherry on top of a very delicious cake.

I feel this campaign will revive the latent importance of polished shoes, and more importantly, enhance the recall of a well-established, albeit out of public consciousness for some time, brand.

RS Raghavan, Founder & CEO, Animaker Inc.

This is a well-designed Ad adhering to all the marketing rules. We call it as ‘Benefit Marketing’ which focuses more on people, emotions and value proposition than the product itself. In that perspective, this Ad should be given a thumbs up. On the other hand, the situations over which the story revolves around could be better, more intriguing and relatable for users. However, this initiative seems to be a video series and there is a scope for betterment in every step. We are sure that a brand like Cherry Blossom would definitely consider the missing parameters and continuously work to woo the audience and stay on top as they do always.

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Prega News on this Mother’s Day took it upon itself to instill the thought #GoodNewsIsGenderFree. While Experts analyze the probability of Prega News Mother’s Day campaign bringing about a real change.

‘Good news is good news. It sees no gender’

This Mother’s Day, Prega News urged you, me and all of us to welcome the ‘good news’ without any gender bias.  For years, the company from the house of Mankind Pharma has claimed to bring ‘good news’ to soon to be mothers. To take this relationship forward, Prega News launched its new campaign #PregaNewsMeansGoodNews targeting the Indian families and their regressive mindsets.

Campaign Insight and Objective

Gender inequality is a pertinent issue prevailing all over the world; however, its presence in India is far more complex. The preference for a boy over a girl has been deeply instituted in the Indian minds which leads to nothing but grave consequences that curbs the nation’s growth. But, with this new initiative, Mankind Pharma and ADK-Fortune hope to bring a change in people’s outlook. They request their audiences to wish for a healthy child, irrespective of their child’s sex.

This time with #GoodNewsIsGenderFree, Prega News has tried to break another stereotype. “Our society has been gender biased for a long period now and it is high time we get over it,” commented Rajeev Juneja, CEO, Mankind Pharma.

The Creative Thoughtprocess

The campaign has been conceptualized and executed by ADK Fortune. For the creative thoughtprocess, Akashneel Dasgupta, NCD, ADK Fortune shared that adds when a child is about to be born in our society, what everyone wishes for is a baby boy. “With our initiative #preganewsmeansgoodnews, we are urging people to wish only for a healthy child and mother. Nothing else.”

Also Read: Mother’s Day 2019 campaigns worship the reason we all exist

The campaign, which was released a week before Mother’s Day, was supported with other communication material apart from the film on social media.

While Prega News’ has been vocal about all things women in its campaigns, it stands to be seen how this attempt at breaking gender stereotype works on-ground.

Experts Speak:

Ramakrishnan Hariharan, Head of Creative, Publicis Ambience

The execution of the film is what I liked the most. It’s simple and tastefully done. Although, the argument presented is a bit too basic. Not convincing enough to challenge hardwired notions. In a country where people are exposed to movies like Dangal, which push the same agenda in a far more engaging or fresh approach, I have my doubts if this piece of communication is thought-provoking enough to deliver real change.

Jyotsna Parikh, Creative Head, Triton Communications

A lot of ad campaigns are now taking a stand on various social issues in an attempt to challenge stereotypes and spread awareness. Gender inequality as a subject is relevant to our times and the idea is quite powerful. However, it’s a bit melodramatic in its execution. A subtler display of emotions could have conveyed the message in a far more effective fashion.

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Snapchat carried out a research into how the frequency of exposure of Snap Ads drive marketing success. Here are the key takeaways giving you insight into Snap Ads data.

Snapchat’s Reach and Frequency tool gives control over the reach and frequency tradeoff. If the frequency of exposure is too high, reach will be sacrificed; if it’s too low the campaign’s impact may be sub-optimal.

To allow advertisers to take better advantage of this control, Snapchat circulated a report with affixed insights.

The data has been collected form over a hundred Snapchat campaigns consisting of Snap Ads which helped understand the frequency of Snap Ads and the level of brand impact.

Measured by:

Ad breakthrough

The extent to which the ad campaign is noticed and recalled by the audience.

Action intent

The extent to which the ad campaign elicits the desired action, e.g. intention to make a purchase in the next 7 days or watch a newly released movie online.

Also Read:[Download] 5 ways to win like Amazon on social: Talkwalker Report

Read on to know the key takeaways.

Weekly frequency of Snap Ad exposure impacts the ability for an ad to breakthrough.

The study found that frequency of exposure affected lift in ad breakthrough, with sharp and steady increases in lift, with increasing exposures, up to around a frequency of 2 a week, after which only modest gains in the lift were observed.

A lower weekly frequency is sufficient for longer campaigns

The study observed shorter campaigns (running for 1-4 weeks) benefiting more from a higher frequency per week than longer campaigns (5-12 weeks); for longer campaigns 75% of the estimated total campaign impact in ad breakthrough was achieved with a frequency of ~1 a week, whereas shorter campaigns needed a higher frequency of ~2 a week to attain the same level of campaign impact.

Although, there was no difference in the vertical mix between these two groups of campaigns, the longer campaigns were for more established brands and products, partly explaining the use of longer, “always-on” type media activations.

The frequency required for driving ad breakthrough was similar by vertical

To explore the impact of market factors on the relationship between frequency and brand lift, this analysis focussed on 29 campaigns in the CPG and entertainment verticals (53% of the total shorter duration campaigns).

The average lift was higher for entertainment than CPG, the relationship between frequency of exposure and lift in ad breakthrough was similar. The analysis found that on average, a frequency of ~2 per week was able to drive 75% of the total potential lift in ad breakthrough for both CPG and entertainment campaigns. This suggests that the relationship between frequency and lift in breakthrough might not be related to market factors, as far as can be explained by the differences in the verticals examined in this sub-analysis.

The frequency required for driving intent differs by vertical

The relationship between the weekly frequency of Snap Ads exposure and subsequent lift in action intent was found to be substantially different between these CPG and entertainment campaigns. The lift in action increased sharply with weekly frequency for entertainment campaigns up to ~ 2 per week, but for CPG the same was not observed. 75% of the total
potential lift in intent for entertainment campaigns was achieved with a frequency of ~2 a week, CPG campaigns required a higher frequency of ~3 a week.

The results here show that while possible to drive some degree of total brand impact with relatively low levels of weekly frequency, advertisers might be sacrificing significant levels of potential campaign lift by doing so.

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Mitchelle Carvalho, CEO of CogMat, shares her take and a few learnings on executing a substantial campaign with a relatively low budget. Read on to understand how to rise above the dichotomy of Good campaign low budget

This has been in the works for a while now but here I am finally writing a few pieces for the kind and patient folks at Social Samosa on things that matter to us Digital Media Industry folk.

Through this column, I shall talk about insights, observations and trends in our Industry. Things that affect us, things that don’t. Some heavy, some light. Hope you like what you read.

Today’s article is inspired by a Twitter thread I was following some time ago. Just like Arya Stark during her tutelage at the House of Black and White, this tweet belongs to “A person who has no name.”

However, said nameless person had a sentiment that I think is important to address.

To paraphrase said person – “Agencies are letting go off campaigns with solid ideas because client budgets are low. Sadly, retainers eat into overall digital marketing budgets and agencies that are unwilling to sacrifice said fees are losing out on opportunities to create campaigns that are worthwhile.”

Here is a statement that rings true in our industry on almost every level. Anyone and everyone who is part of the Digital Media Industry on either Client or Agency side have faced this at some point.

We longingly look at great ideas developed that had cracker potential only to see them rest quietly in a folder far, far away (mostly in drive C:\)

Who should be held responsible for this –  Client? Agency? Both? None? Tyrion?

There are two “key” phrases in the statement I wish to touch upon – ‘Campaigns with solid ideas’ and ‘Retainers eat into overall digital marketing budgets’.

Also Read:Case Study: How Shoppers Stop garnered 20K+ product visualizations without paid promotion

Not absolving or blaming anyone but here’s some perspective on agencies (since I run one) and reasons why we often, reluctantly, give up on good campaigns for lack of budgets:

Campaigns with solid ideas: No one understands this better than us agency folk. We’ve all spent many a sleepless night working on campaign pitches for potential or current clients. Pitches that are a result of countless hours of research, dipstick surveys, brand comprehension study, competition analysis and current industry trends. Pitches that are a result of that “One Great Thought” after countless hours of arguing and haggling following all that research. Pitches that we know, have the power to create a positive impact for a brand. Though some agencies in India (I call them The Big Daddies) charge to pitch for a brand, most agencies don’t and are often times asked for iterations and changes for a second round with newer ideas. 

While agencies still do this because of #RoziRoti, any agency in question has to put its best minds to work on such pitches and the execution thereon if they win the account.

These best minds are employees of a company and their time is billable. ‘Billables’ have a value attached to them and that value is Money which brings me to the next “key” phrase

Retainers eat into overall digital marketing budgets: While most argue that there are no standard annual retainer values for our Industry one must also remember that there are no standard values for salaries either. 

Every agency decides its annual retainer fee basis a Cost Sheet they’ve created. This cost sheet is arrived at by calculating the value of the team on the account (copy, design, creative strategy, client services, media management, HoD) plus additional tools, utilities, rent, and profit (Hahaha, #ProfitKyaHotaHai). It is basis this retainer value that a team is allocated to carry out digital or social media campaigns and daily management duties.

If one is asked to reduce this value, in essence, one is asking to reduce the structure of the team that will be largely responsible for executing these well-thought-out campaigns. A brand needs a capable team to bring great campaigns to fruition and such teams come with a cost, hence a certain retainer value. This obviously poses a conundrum – can great campaigns be executed without compromising on the quality of resources?

#YehSabTheekHai but can something be done?

CogMat has been around for 9 years and we’ve had our share of “Low Budget but want to execute great Idea” dichotomy and here are three ways in which one could address such an issue:

Find a cost-effective alternative to the main concept: Say the star idea is a live-action 45-second video that segues into the remainder of the campaign. However, the conceptualization and production of this video is eating into a large portion of the budget. You could think of cost-effective alternatives like Motion Graphic Videos or even multiple GIFs, helping you work the same messaging just in a different format.

Explore the power of User-Generated Content: This is an alternative to Influencer/PR collaborations that may eat into your budgets. If you have a brand page that has active people participation – create content (boosted with minimum spends) that compels your users to give you stories that you can spin into great content pieces for your brand. A little gratification, not always monetary, goes a long way in building a genuine base of users who follow your brand because they identify with you.

Be Judicious with Media Spends: As much as the core idea of a campaign is for it to be seen everywhere, careful selection of platforms where your ads are shown can be an effective way of working with a tight budget. After careful assessment of your TG’s digital/social media consumption habits, place ads on select platforms for an effective and meaningful campaign.

These are a few temporary solutions to deal with the issue of low budgets, however, as agencies, we must be responsible for continuously educating both current and potential clients on the power of digital media marketing and the desired results they could bring to the brand and then hopefully, Glorious Campaigns will receive Glorious Budgets.

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The recent P&G Shiksha Campaign introduces us to Bittu whose desire to educate himself hasn’t faded even if he’s waited for 75 long years.

The first quarter of 2019 is witness to the ad world weaving heart-warming narratives in the form of campaigns and spelling stories that are bound to stay with us. One of them is P&G Shiksha’s recent ad video which shows 75-year old Bittu fulfilling his dream of attending school and being a student.

About the film

Filled with innocence, realism and a powerful narrative- Bittu’s tale is worth lending our ear to and reflects the dream of children across the country who wish to attend school and receive quality education, but are denied this basic right.

The two-minute long film is inspired by a true story and highlights Bittu’s life at school. Having grown up in a village without schools, he had to wait until the age of 75 to attend one.

The campaign #DontLetDreamsWait has been conceptualised and created by Leo Burnett and is doing the rounds of all social media platforms including YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Campaign Insight

Education is the foundation of an individual’s development and the society at large. The film highlights the simple joy of learning and attending a school that no child should miss. “We hope the film builds an emotional connect with the audience and inspires them to do their bit towards Shiksha,” commented Abhishek Desai, Director – Marketing Operations, P&G India.

The Creative Thoughtprocess

Going to school is a dream that children have. Not just the learnings but the fun stay with us all our lives. “However, unfortunately, this dream is not realized for everyone. The new campaign is inspired by a true story and we have humanized the campaign by capturing the hopes and aspirations of ‘Bittu’ and how he is living his dream of attending school at the age of 75,” Rajdeepak Das, MD India, and Chief Creative Officer, Leo Burnett South Asia shared that with this emotional and thought-provoking story, the team hopes this campaign strikes a chord with everyone.

P&G Shiksha claims to have been working towards improving access to quality education for underprivileged children since 2005. Till date, P&G Shiksha has built and supported more than 1800 schools which will impact the lives of more than 1.4 million children.

Taking ‘Shiksha’ beyond the campaign

Touted to be a brand with a soul, P&G Shiksha is working extensively towards improving the education infrastructure by providing necessary amenities from building classrooms to building toilets, providing clean drinking water to setting up drinking water stations and playgrounds across India. It is also working towards empowering marginalised girls through education by supporting the KGBV schools and improving learning outcomes in children through remedial learning and early childhood programs.

From ‘Padhega India, Badhega India’ to ‘I Want To Be’ to ‘#ChooseForChange’ to ‘#DontLetDreamsWait’, P&G Shiksha’s campaigns have been melting hearts with the right storytelling conveyed to the right audience at the right time. The campaign has raked in 36 million views on YouTube and has also caught the attention of celebrities like Farhan Akhtar and Sonakshi Sinha who took to Twitter to cast a few words of appraisement for the video.

Also Read: P&G Shiksha introduces the world to Appu – the boy who wants to go to school

Instagram was flooded too with the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Soha Ali Khan, Ravi Dubey, Arjun Kapoor posting the video and penning down their thoughts on how the video has not only touched their hearts but has inspired them to keep the child in them alive.

In an era when causevertising is the new trend, P&G manages to not only create a tearjerker but put their money where their mouth is, initiating a change in the real world – thus taking up causevertising in the true sense.

Experts Take:

N Chandramouli, CEO, TRA Research

P&G has had a very involved and active CSR program from a long time before CSR was mandated by law. While many companies still struggle to find the right cause to support or find the right agencies to execute their CSR, theP&G’s CSR shows maturity.

This is a well-executed ad that uses positive reinforcement to show the impact their CSR program brings to people directly and touches the heart. It is our belief that every CSR must also give back to the brand so that more CSR is possible, and in this case, it leaves a great positive flavour of the P&G brands.

Akshay Samel – Head of Branding and Communications, The Minimalist

In the times when communication is increasingly shifting from advertising to ’cause-vertising’, few brands are cracking the code in a prudent way. P&G, a brand perceived so global, modern and contemporary is striking a right chord by addressing the challenges at the grassroots level. I think the impact P&G has on society has been beautifully captured when the freckled old, young Bittu stands in the middle of the class and proudly says ‘Aaj mein bhi student bana’. Speaking of creative execution, a real story has been narrated in a very real way. The music too conveys a story. Bittu is not a name that can be associated with a 75-year-old character but the story beautifully brings alive an adorable Bittu.

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Having an influential brand endorser can positively impact your audience’s choice, but can two successful & influential brand endorsers double the impact? Social Samosa investigates the impact of couple brand ambassadors in the aftermath of some of the biggest celebrity weddings.

Bollywood & Cricket are two widely followed cultures in India. So, when two of the country’s favorite actors or a cricketer & an actor unite for evermore, it opens up opportunities for brands to tap a wider audience, that united with the man & the wife, by having them endorse their products.

Such instances also provoke conversations as people show these couples much love.

The most recent wedding of Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone had escalated #DeepVeer on social media to 0.56 million mentions.

If the country’s favorite cricketer and an established actress tie the knot, it generates an even greater hype.

#Virushka had 0.72 million mentions in the last year on social media, as per Meltwater.

Do couple brand ambassadors double the charm?

A power couple’s influence and reach can give any brand a face that consumers may get attracted to and recall. Most consumers in India are fans of Bollywood and show interest in staying updated with celebrity relationships. Such attraction proves fruitful for a brand when represented by these couples.

Very recently, Lloyd roped in Ranveer Singh & Deepika Padukone after they got hitched as brand ambassadors with the Khayal Rakhenge Khush Rakhenge campaign.

Shashi Arora, CEO, Lloyd shared the idea behind roping in the real-life couple was that both Ranveer & Deepika are an inspiration to Indian millennials and portray a blend of talent, class and popularity that complements the brand’s legacy and brand ethos. As a cherry on top, Ranveer and Deepika have a following of close to 90 million fans on social media.

Prince Khanna, Founder & CEO, Eleve Media says, “Bollywood and Cricket have always been india’s favourite topics. The internet just made it easier for consumers to know more about their favourite celebrities and couples. It is a smart move, leveraging that interest to draw attention to their brand. Especially celebrities like Saif – Kareena, who people know very little about as a couple.”

He explains how it comes across as a glimpse into the lives of the stars, that audience always wants to know more about. It’s a tease for the audience. Be it Kajol and Ajay, Deepika and Ranveer or Virat and Anushka. It may not be that easy for a pair of non-couple actors to connect with the audience at that level when there is a lack of history.

An individual celebrity is influential and popular in their own right. So, the question that arises is how a celebrity couple better than an individual to promote brands and how did it become an acclaimed trend.

Pranay Swarup, CEO & Co-Founder, Chtrbox thinks it’s because people are more curious to know more about their favourite couples and want to see them together, whether it’s on the big screen or the one you’re probably reading this on. He adds. “Thanks to social media where influencers are able to connect with their fans in their natural ways. Advertisement campaigns whether designed for traditional media (TV, Print, Outdoor), all are extended today on digital. Here the fact that as a couple you endorse a brand matters a lot. There is a higher trust and authenticity in that storytelling.”

While Virat had been representing the apparel brand, Manyavar, as soon as he tied the knot with Anushka Sharma, the brand got the couple on board as ambassadors for Manyavar & Mohey (Manyavar’s arm for female apparels).

Earlier this year, Myntra got Virushka on board as brand ambassadors; according to media reports, the brand is investing around INR 10 crore for the couple as a brand endorsement fee. The report further shares that Virushka’s brand value stands at around $200 million.

Karthi Marshan, Chief Marketing Officer, Kotak Mahindra has a different take. He is a tad unsure about it being an acclaimed trend and is also sceptical about it being better than having an individual celebrity. He adds, “Truth be told, celebrities are both expensive as well as challenging to use due to the manifold demands on their time. To complicate this further by using two celebrities instead of one, is not doubling your challenges, its multiplying them. So frankly, hats off to the brands that do pull it off, and pull it off with flying colours.”

Also Read:#CreativeShowreel: Mercedes Benz: Feel the Drive through their ads

Over the years, we have seen many real-life couples come together as celebrity endorsers, Akshay Kumar & Twinkle Khanna for PCJeweller, Shahrukh Khan & Gauri Khan for D’Decor, and Ajay Devgn & Kajol for Lifebuoy. However, these were one-off campaign associations and not necessarily long term brand ambassador deals.

We have seen a lot of reel-life couples being featured in campaigns too, like Gully Boy’s Ranveer & Alia in MakemyTrip’s ads, so what is the difference when a real-life couple appears in an advert? Karthi Marshan asserts it must feel believable, “Like athletes endorsing sports gear or chess masters endorsing an educational brand.”

He feels when the couple is a reel-life one, viewers have already suspended belief because they know the actors are playing pretend. So the reel-life couple gets a hall pass compared to a real-life couple. He comprehends, if the real-life couple feels credible, the impact is also multiplied many times.

Pranay Swarup says it all boils down to relevance, “For example, Virat Kholi & Anushka Sharma were paired together as a reel-couple for Manyavar, while also being a real-couple. The ad was widely received and has had a positive impact on the brand.”

The Digital Extension

The trend isn’t restricted to television campaigns. Airbnb brought on board celebrity couple Saif & Kareena for their digital campaign as a part of which Saifeena spent time in A weekend in Windsor, England.

Swarup further shares that the trend is also being widely seen in the world of Influencer Marketing as well, where digital celebs, influencers & creators who are real-life couple have had opportunities to create content together.

For instance, couple influencer, Bruised Passports, by real-life couple, Savi & Vid and Sherry Shroff & her husband were roped in by UAE tourism.

In India, around 80% of the population between the age of 25 and 34 is married, as of 2018. Such numbers suggest that power couples would be an absolute fit for your brand if you are targeting the youth or young couples. Individuals of the pair may represent a different fan base but when they come together, so do their fan bases.

Brands whose products don’t cater to a particular gender can easily make their campaigns relatable with these power couples by adding the ‘couple’ factor, topped with the cozy feelings of connectivity. Brands who would want to be endorsed by power couples but cater to one specific gender, can still do so by infusing their campaign with a story involving both individuals unless the brand connect seems far-fetched.

This, however, also can be a challenge when couple as individuals endorse competitor brands. For example, Deepika endorses Axis Bank, while Ranveer endorses Kotak Mahindra.

Using power couples as brand endorsers may double the challenges to executing the campaign, but will certainly also double your audience and the impact if implemented effectively.

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The Tata Pravesh post-election campaign, Pehla Din, aimed to celebrate the will of the nation. Our experts drop in their verdict on what the message holds.

India was witness to the longest running elections of all time this year with a 900 million voting population. The biggest democratic festival was equally important for the advertising world with many marketers latching onto the election mania.

Tata Pravesh rolled out its campaign titled ‘Pehla Din’ as a tribute to the #ChoiceOfTheNation.  The two-minute digital film showcases a narrative that revolves around an elected representative of the people getting ready for her first day in office. Pehla Din glorifies the triumph of inner strength. The film signs off with ‘Waqt unhi ka hota hai jo andar se mazboot hote hain’ – a tribute to the will of steel.

Campaign Insight

Elections are all about our right to choose. Tata Pravesh created Pehla Din, a film which celebrates #ChoiceOfTheNation. Running on digital media, the film is about new beginnings and opening the doors of our mind to progress.

Pravesh products have steel inside which gives them unmatched strength. Firmly rooted in the product, the idea for the film is about how you can take on the world if you have steel inside. The film highlights inner strength which helps surmount every challenge – an inherent trait of Tata Pravesh that ensures it stands strong for years, no matter what the odds; unlike wooden doors & windows which fail to stand the test of time.

P. Anand, Chief – Services & Solutions Business, Tata Steel Ltd claimed that Tata Pravesh has always ushered in new ideas and encouraged people to look at things differently. “Through all our films so far we have attempted to make people pause for a while and think,” he added.

The Creative Thoughtprocess

The individual elected as the nation’s representative should work for the people, honoring the faith that they have reposed in him/her. Sharing the concept creative Arjun Mukherjee, Executive Creative Director & VP, Wunderman Thompson, Kolkata said, “This perfectly timed film aims to remind every elected representative how they should do justice to the mandate they have been given, where their responsibility lies and how they should address every challenge – with steely resolve, what else?”

Also Read: Experts vote for Comedy Central’s #ChooserNotLoser

Through this film, since India has already selected its fate, Tata Pravesh urges the nation to step confidently into a new beginning. In the words of the film – karo Pravesh ek nayi shuruaat mein.

While the narrative and thought process has been executed well, the campaign thought however fails to marry the brand and its proposition. The missing brand connect has been the talk of the town for a while now with many marketers joining the causevertising bandwagon; experts share their judgment on ‘Pehle Din’ and Tata Pravesh’s celebration for #ChoiceOfTheNation.

Experts Take:

Pranay Bhan, Associate Creative Director, 1702 Digital

Brand communication is visibly shifting from advertising to ’cause-vertising’, and some brands are often seen cracking the code seamlessly. Tata as an entity, even with it’s more recent offerings, is consistently addressing the thoughts and challenging perceptions of the common society, across multiple categories ranging from tea to doors.

‘Choice of the Nation’ is an impactful campaign that stitches together the topicality of Indian elections and women empowerment, along with touching on the concept of mother’s love – a classic example of a good mix.

From a creative execution standpoint, the narrative and music work well together, and the climax does leave the viewer thinking. 

Positive messaging coupled with a hopeful ending, Tata Pravesh played it smart. I am interested to see how well does the campaign perform from a business lens since the consumer sentiment seems quite positive over digital.

Dhananjay Arora, Founder & CEO, Kwebmaker Digital Agency  

The film is sweet, sensitive and touching and very well executed. Where it really fails is that there is no connection with the actual product they intend to market. I personally didn’t see how Tata Pravesh is marketing its doors and windows via the story/video. I understand the writers are talking about inner-strength and a whole new world waiting on the other side of the door but personally, I don’t see the film and emotion connect with the final product.

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KFC India addHope’s fight against hunger claims to have achieved a lot and marked its third anniversary by launching a campaign titled ‘Ab Meri Baari’. Experts share if it communicates the objective well.

It is to be believed that hunger is the number one cause of death in the world. According to online reports, there are 820 million chronically hungry people in the world and 1/3^rd of the world’s hungry live in India. .

Amidst the rising death toll due to hunger, KFC India, in 2016, launched addHope, an initiative to create awareness and raising funds to provide meals to India’s underprivileged children.  Marking the third anniversary of the program, KFC teamed up with ResPonseNet and Music composer Shloke Lal to weave a campaign or rather a music video titled ‘Ab  Meri  Baari’.

Campaign Insight

KFC’s founder, Colonel Sanders is eponymous with never giving up. The man who met success at the age of 65, once said, “I just say the moral of my life is – Don’t Quit!”.  What many might not know about the legendary Colonel though, is that he believed in serving the community, and giving everyone a seat at the table. Deriving from his core values, KFC India took on the cause of fighting childhood hunger, with its program addHope. Highlighting the impact of the program on a child’s overall development, KFC’s partner ResponseNet released the campaign.

About ‘Ab Meri Baari’ campaign video

The two minute long video features 30 youngsters from addHope supported centres who are out to grab the world with open hands, shouting out ‘Ab Meri Baari’.  With Ram juggling balls, to 7-year old Priyanshi doing the hula hoop, the campaign is a testimony to the fact that daily nourishment helps children reach their truest potential.

The music has been composed by famed Music Composer Shloke Lal, also the co-lyricist of Allah Duhai from Race 3. The song has been sung by Tushar Joshi, who has lent his voice for movies such as Jagga Jasoos, Jab Harry Met Sejal & Tubelight.

Also Read: KFC India to engage Millennials with face lens on Snapchat

Campaign Objective

Through ‘Ab Meri Baari’ KFC India wants everyone to see the impact of daily meals in a child’s life, as they grow into confident individuals. Moksh Chopra, Chief Marketing Officer, KFC India said, “Colonel Sanders would be proud today to see us not quitting in the fight against hunger and making a real difference through addHope”

3 years into the program, addHope today feeds over 15,000 children every day, with a goal to feed 20 million meals by 2020.

While KFC India’s launch campaign for addHope through digital media enabled consumers to contribute through an interactive online session which went like- for every plate created on the website, KFC will feed a hungry child, it’s later communication focussed on how it has been able to make a change and encouraged the consumers to do so.

Whether the music video rings in the right note? Over to the experts…

Expert Speak:

Upasana Naithani, Business Head, Digital- Infectious Advertising 

The attempt and intent of the video are on point however it lacks the connect to the original campaign thought. It’s only towards the end of the video that one gets the slightest idea of how it may be an extension of the campaign by KFC. The video doesn’t provide any narrative that may make the users stay and engage with them.

The production quality needed to be better and while the execution seems inspired by ABCD, the dance film, the song reminds you a lot about Gully Boy and the hashtag that had the nation going wild. 

It doesn’t leave me with any emotion. 

Saurabh Mathur, Head Planning and Strategy, VMLY&R India

‘In a country where millions of kids are under & malnourished, any brand that chooses to act is taking a step in the right direction.

KFCs addHope campaign has been around for a couple of years now & they have been promoting this through their own channels. But it was great to see their partner ResponseNet release a video of the programs impact on children.

This presents an interesting opportunity for KFC, one they should leverage on. How does a brand create stories around these kids, stories about how they are prospering because a basic need like hunger is taken care of. I could go on about the creative execution & production values of the film but that will be digressing from the larger goal. Their goal will be to draw more and more people into the program & there is no better way than to tell real, human stories.’

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AXE Deodorant’s Ab Teri Baari redefines society’s traditional rules of masculinity and is created in collaboration with Arré and Mindshare.

When recently Ponds ditched the beauty narrative to address a much serious issue of barriers faced by women; unless you see top label highlighting Ponds, it is difficult to identify what brand advertisement it is.

With its latest campaign, AXE deodorants too rolled up its sleeves to put forth a serious thought- albeit for the opposite gender. This time there is no hot man sauntering around. This time it is Ayushmann Khurana telling men to do what they want to do.

About ‘Ab Teri Baari’

With the music video titled ‘Ab Teri Baari’ featuring stories of Indian football captain Sunil Chhetri, Dance Star  Dharmesh Yelande, YouTube Sensation ‘BeYouNick’ and the Made in Heaven actor Shashank Arora, Bollywood star Ayushmann Khurrrana is trying to address ‘What does it mean to ‘Be a man?’.

Khurrana, who has defied stereotypes to become the face of content cinema in India, & Naezy – a rap/hip-hop star artist teamed up with Axe, Arré and Mindshare,  to find answers to this question.

Campaign Insight and Objective

Many boys in India still feel an overwhelming pressure to conform to masculine stereotypes. “There are many said & unsaid rules on how to ‘Be a Man’ – The way you look, the way you act & interact with your peers; even your career choices & hobbies are being judged through the lens of being ‘masculine enough,” affirmed Nippun Aneja, General Manager Deodorants & Men’s Grooming at Hindustan Unilever Limited

Axe wants young guys to feel free from the pressures of these ‘rules’, discover what makes them unique and work on it. 

The collaboration song composed by Clinton Cerejo is a call to action for Indian guys to stop worrying about the rules of society and the dreaded ‘Log kya kahenge’, focussing on finding what makes them unique instead. Built around Axe’s brand purpose of inspiring guys to express their individuality and becoming their most attractive selves, the song mirrors the brand’s communication platform of ‘Make Your Own Rules’

Defying ‘Stereotypes’ via Influencers

Sunil Chettri exemplifies that ‘It’s Ok for A Guy to Share His Emotions’. We all remember the iconic moment where his heartfelt request to fans to come and support the Indian Football team’s matches lead to an outpouring of love and support across the country.

Also Read: Experts share what clicks in KFC India’s addHope campaign

YouTuber ‘BeYouNick’ stands testament to the fact that guys can explore their passions and be successful by doing what they love. Dharmesh Yelande inspires guys to not worry statements like ‘Dance Like A Man’. Shashank Arora laughs off ‘Men Must be Macho’ stereotype and charms his way.

While the brand has picked top influencers for the campaign, only Shashank Arora has shared it on his social media handles.

On Twitter however, influencers such as Miss Malini and Clinton Cerejo were seen talking about #AbTeriBaari.

Axe has claimed to be an iconic youth brand with communication deep rooted in Pop culture. The idea was to use Music & more importantly Hip Hop as a genre which has been recently quite popular among the younger audiences.

Ajay Mehta, Vice President, Content+, Mindshare commented, “ Each of them (influencer) has a unique story to tell which brings alive the brand’s narrative in a compelling manner. It’s a light-hearted piece of content which is fun, catchy yet inspiring.”

The song will be out across Arre’s social media platforms and partner network and has garnered 28 million views on AXE India’s Youtube channel.

Expert Take:

Adrine D’mello, Creative Director, Monk Media Network

Though I feel Axe is a little late to get on the rap bandwagon, the message of living your life by your own set of rules comes through, especially with the people they’ve used in the music video, each one of them have a strong connect with the millennials and went on to achieve their dreams without the odds in their favor but with a simple belief and confidence. Which is the messaging they’re aiming for, Shushhh the haters, do what you love and be the very best you can. 

Amit Panhale, Business Head of Team Pumpkin

I found the anchor thought for the campaign to very hackneyed and typical of how the target audience for the brand is perceived. The song itself isn’t catchy and words didn’t connect with me strongly. Possibly the only appeal to the campaign is the celebrities/artists used in it like Ayushman, Sunil Chhetri, Naezy who have a strong connect with the target audience of the brand.

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Vivo Pro Kabaddi League is back with the seventh season and Star Sports is all pumped up to set the field for a powerpack ‘panga’ through the launch campaign. We ask experts if the Star Sports PKL campaign sets the tone for the battles ahead.

While we all are rooting for the team to bring home the much coveted World Cup trophy, Star Sports’ bet on ‘Cricket ka Crown Hum Le Jayenge’ is still a few days away to transform into reality. But that hasn’t stopped the broadcaster to keep the focus divided on the upcoming Vivo Pro Kabaddi League with an official Star Sports PKL campaign.

In the initial years, the league gained prominence as Kabaddi as a sport started gaining more attention after the Asian Games 2006. It went onto become the second most popular sports league in India but also witnessed a huge drop in its viewership last year. According to the data from BARC India,  the viewership rating drop was over 25% in the urban market followed by 33% in the rural areas.

Star Sports has had to up its game for the seventh season and launched a campaign video featuring Kabaddi stars to set the tone just after the World Cup finale culminates. Taking the ‘Le Panga’ josh to the next level, the network this time is betting big on #IsseToughKuchNahi.

‘Isse tough kuch nahi ft. Vishal Bhardwaj’

Depicting Kabaddi as a tough sport, the campaign highlights key aspects that players build over the course of the season which include strength, agility and absolute brute power. The campaign is conceptualized and created by the in-house creative team at Star Sports and was launched during the most anticipated clash between India and England at the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 on Sunday across TV and Digital mediums.

Also Read: #CWC2019: Strategy Review – Star Sports

In its seventh season, the launch video stars Telugu Titans ace defender Vishal Bharadwaj. Other films that follow, feature kabaddi heroes such as ‘The Showman’ Rahul Chaudhari and Siddharth ‘Bahubali’ Desai.

The Star Sports PKL campaign 2019 transitions from the thinking of a viewer who is not yet a fan and perceives Kabaddi as a simple neighbourhood sport and a game of tag. He is introduced to the sport by an ardent fan and is stunned by the insightful display of Kabaddi action by star players of VIVO Pro Kabaddi.

As mentioned earlier, the decrease in viewership of the matches was attributed to viewers fatigue, lack of marketing and popular shows like BIG Boss and Kaun Banega Crorepati on competitive channels. It is no news that although the numbers have grown and Kabaddi has seen its share of the limelight, it does not enjoy as equal crazy fandom as cricket. Star Sports has been rolling it sleeves each year to make it as popular while the buzz for season seven has already begun.

This year too, the broadcaster has been actively promoting the upcoming league through their campaign.

VIVO PKL is hitting the screens July 20 onwards. The opening match will be played in Gachibowli stadium, Hyderabad between Telugu Titans and U Mumba.

We turned to experts for their take on the Star Sports PKL campaign featuring Vishal Bhardwaj.

Experts Take:

Naresh Gupta- CSO, Managing Partner, Bang In The Middle

I like the line: Nothing tougher than this”, but the rest of the communication doesn’t rise up to the toughness quotient. PKL is now established, but it’s not that it is the first choice of viewers or of advertisers despite prime time TV slotting and very easy to follow format. For me, the way to build Kabbadi is to focus on passion and intensity and get viewers involved in it. Maybe there are more commercials on way and maybe together they will build the traction.

Harikrishnan Pillai, CEO- The Small Big Idea

Ask any sports lover and they will tell how they have spent hours explaining to a naysayer as to why the sport they love is more than just brute force or kicking a ball around. The ad captures that exact insight and that too quite well. If you see how cricket and football are consumed in the country, there is a significant evolution from ‘blind love for players’ to ‘dissection, strategy-identification, and immersion into gameplay’. The surge of fantasy leagues is also a key supporting data set to evolution that an Indian fan is going through. Kabbadi as a sport with this ad begins its attempt to evolve from the ‘game-of-the-hinterland’ to a ‘the sport-beyond-brute-force’ imagery. The ad addresses this exact evolution, empowering the native game lover with content to throw at the soon-to-be fan but current naysayer

Anngad Mnchnda, CEO & Co-founder, Chimp&z Inc

“The first thing that comes to my mind when I see the film is the fact that, even after 7 years of Pro-kabaddi, the channel needs to educate the masses about the game and make it relevant to the millennials of the country. Having said that the film does click on a few checkboxes like education about the sport, idolizing of a player, showing a signature move, an in-direct plug on Cricket is not the only sport in the country. However, it would be nice to see a little more emphasis on the player and mention of his signature move, ‘the Ankle hold’. I also hope that this is one of the films and we see a few more kabaddi players in the focus helping them become household names. 

Overall, the campaign does manage to ring in the right note and bring on the Kabaddi fever in the country. Let’s hope Pro-Kabaddi gets the attention it deserves through this campaign and removes all the myths around it.”

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Leveraging on the craze around ICC World Cup and cricket, Syska World Cup Campaign is a theme song to promote their audio products

Composed by Teenu Arora & Schbang, Syska World Cup Campaign, titled, #EkHiDhun is an attempt by the brand to create a brand image that resonates with the celebratory spirit for cricket in the country. It is a part of their campaign, ‘Sound of Celebration’ that drives home the message of how cricket is a sport that’s born in the gullies and is an integral part of India’s social fabric. The song takes a look at the journey of Indian cricket players from gullies to the cricket ground at Lords.

Explaining the timing of the campaign, Nirav Shah, Digital Marketing Head, Syska Group says, “Cricket is one of the most celebrated sports in this country and it’s natural that most brands would want to capitalise on it,” adding that while other brands tried to talk about their product lines, Syska picked on the nostalgia around the game.

“We have seen a fairly good response considering that quite a few brands have launched their campaigns at the same time, some with mighty celebratory power,” he adds. Shah feels that Syska managed to hit the right notes as the team has noticed college students and other sharing the song video and dancing to the hook steps shown.

Also Read: #CWC19: Are brands reluctant to experiment with their ICC World Cup marketing strategy?

Creation process

“When we conceptualised this campaign, the objective was clear that we need to bring our community together via the medium of music,” says Akshay Gurnani, Co-founder-CEO, Schbang, adding that the Syska World Cup Campaign was amplified with the help of prominent dancers and college students.

Shah tells us that the final piece didn’t move much from the initial thought process and feels that the teams were able to execute well. “Our idea of Sound of Celebration was to celebrate the various festivals and moments that impact India at large,” he says, adding that the world cup was the best place to start.

Digital Presence

He further tells us that the campaign wasn’t created from the RoI expectation, rather the intention was to augment Syska Accessories as a niche category. “Syska is well known in the LED segment. Through this campaign, brand augmentation was our core focus,” he tells us.

The song was marketed on digital platforms via social media channels — Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. In addition to sharing important moments of the match, Syska has been actively sharing #Throwback cricket facts to keep the engagement going.

Syska ran two interesting contests online as a part of the Syska World Cup Campaign, one where they asked fans to cheer for the Indian cricket team to win the ICC World Cup matches and in the other, fans participated in karaoke with Syska. In both cases, they got responses via tweet as well as in comments of the Facebook posts.

Additionally, the brand has been attempting to keep the engagement alive with commentary on India matches and general cricket trivia.

Further, the brand had also partnered with syndicate networks for the song to be published across. There are plans to launch ringtones and other assets as well. Shah says, “The song has been promoted by celebrity choreographer Melvin Louis and cricketer Ajinkya Rahane, among others.”

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Greenply World Cup 2019 campaign celebrated the game of cricket asking consumers to share their #MyMatchSpot.

I was not told to get up from my seat because some of my colleagues thought that it was a lucky spot and since I was watching the match sitting there, the Indian team hadn’t lost any wickets in the recently concluded India vs New Zealand semi-final. Yes, that’s how we Indians take cricket seriously. A story encapsulated in Greenply World Cup 2019 campaign.

Taking the celebration of cricket ahead and leveraging the World Cup fever, Greenply Industries Limited (Greenply) launched a digital campaign, #MyMatchSpot, to engage with cricket enthusiasts, creating conversations around the crazy superstitions we attach to cricket.

The campaign film opens with Sharma Ji watching a game and pulling his armchair to a particular spot for the match while in another household it is Chintu, a teenager who is undisturbed despite his mother’s continuous yelling and refuses to get up from his spot until the match ends.

Insight behind #MyMatchSpot

Every cricket fan has a superstitious belief/ritual when they’re watching their favorite team play. For some, it’s the t-shirt they wear while for others it’s the spot they sit on or the posture they sit in. The brand identified and found a brand connect in one such superstition, that would enable them to reach to a large audience whether a person is in his 20’s, 40’s or 60’s or from any part of India! 

Campaign Objective

Sanidhya Mittal, Executive Director, Greenply informed that the objective is making a low involvement brand & category that’s led by b2b move towards a consumer engaging brand in order to enable brand recognition & consideration in the minds of a consumer. Also making Greenply synonymous to the category (plywood, veneers, doors & blockboards).   

The Big Brief

The film has been conceptualized by Digitale, Kolkata.  Mrinal Lunia, Director, Digitale and the brief was to come up with a campaign that has longevity and can connect to the consumers in an instant while having a strong brand connect. 

The objective was to show the brand in a new light and resonate with both the b2b & b2c consumer through the one common campaign.  

Creative Thought Process

The spot you sit on during the game is one such superstition the team identified and found a great brand connect to. Using this insight Digitale crafted a campaign that was spread into 3 phases – Teaser, Launch & Sustain.

The teasers set the base for the campaign launch which happened through its video across channels as well as relevant publisher sites; the campaign was then sustained through match specific short spot videos, contests & user generation posts asking users to share their stories with Greenply.  

Also Read: Greenply redefines Sarbojanin this Durga Puja

The Consumer Response

“The response received on the campaign from the audience has gone above our expectations, we’ve crossed the 3 million mark on views across all digital channels, YouTube & Facebook being our key channels for video promotions with a view rate of 58% on YouTube,” Mittal elucidated.  

Apart from the videos the company has received an engagement rate of 24% on social across the posts & contests.

Taking #MyMatchSpot out and beyond

Greenply’s strategy during the World Cup duration has been to keep the consumers engaged through a mix of content that’s educative, informative, engaging & value added to a consumer’s day to day life. It has also leveraged the roles of different channels to create content for 2 segments of audiences, B2B & B2C depending on where a certain type of user is spending most of his time and type of content he is consuming. 

Mittal opined that every channel on social has a different role to play and caters to a different set of audience, for example, Facebook is for a consumer who is end-user of the product and relates to simple & engaging content that’s quick to consume. “Twitter is for topical & news updates as opposed to Instagram which is rich imagery focused channel that useful to interior designers & architects in our case & LinkedIn which is used to convey the brand’s message & updates for its stakeholders”.

Not going the ‘Anthem’ way

This year it rained anthems in the ad world. However, Greenply chose to not join the bandwagon. “It’s a crowded space as mentioned, videos that draw an emotional connect with the consumer has worked well for us in the past, for example, the sasta ply campaign or the stop saying women can’t campaign, the numbers have proven that content such as this sticks with our audience as its relatable &engaging,” Mittal highlights.

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Taking a break from some serious content-led advertising, CenturyPly this time added some laugh and drama in its campaign to promote Century Doors coming with ‘Suraksha ki Guarantee‘.

Raju Gentleman, Changu-Mangu, Thakur Sumer Singh,  Aaghat- Pratighaat and more such dramatic names would make you imagine a typical Bollywood retro movie plot. It is indeed, but not a movie. The one and a half minute long ad film has been rolled out by CenturyPly recently with an objective to present its customers with ‘Suraksha Ki Guarantee’ with Century Doors.

For the past decades, the brand’s core proposition has been that of structural strength with campaigns highlighting the durability of CenturyPly products, especially plywood. This time around, the brand has adapted a humourous take on both retailers and consumers; highlighting the importance of doors in our daily life by launching a web-video on CenturyDoors.

The web-video was curated focusing on the importance of quality indoors since it may have a bearing on security and safety of people, household assets and valuables. It showcases how customers should insist on a good quality branded door from a trusted manufacturer during purchase.

Insight behind ‘Suraksha Ki Guarantee- Century Doors’

Doors have recently shifted from a commoditized product to a consumer one. However, the consumers’ involvement is still not adequate while choosing it and dependency upon unidentified influencers persists as well. Therefore, it has been always a challenge for the creative team to infuse excitement and humor for such a category.

Also Read: Centuryply Celebrates the undying spirit of carpenters with #CPHeroes

The company claimed that being a dedicated consumer conscious brand, it has always aimed to educate its consumers on better quality products and hence, for an influencer-driven category like doors, it has to create affinity and preference for itself in the industry.

Campaign Objective

Through this video, CenturyPly makes an attempt to educate consumers in an entertaining manner about the importance of good quality doors, which saves a lot of hassles and cost in the longer run.

Adding the humour quotient liberally, the web-video aims to emphasize on selecting a quality product over a cheap one, which will save the consumers from unnecessary hassle and spending double in the longer run.

The campaign has been directed by Visual Audio starring Rajkumar Kanoria and others. The video will be promoted through CenturyPly’s official website along with all its social media assets, YouTube & other publisher’s site.

Furthermore, the video will be shared with CenturyPly’s impaneled carpenters, contractors, dealers, distributors and employees as well for a better connect and to educate them on the core messaging.

But did this hilarious dramatic composition ring the right note?

Experts Take:

Ashish Makani, Co-founder and Managing Director, Makani Creatives

Doors have recently shifted from a commoditized product to a consumer one; therefore, brands are opting new and innovative approach to build a better connect with their consumers. Being the front runner of the ply industry, Century Ply manages to drive home a message with a humorous take on both retailers and consumers. The ad, on the other hand, has also managed to deliver the message in a crisp way making it distinctive in a cluttered environment. Although an attempt to educate the consumers in an entertaining manner is visible there was a scope to do the ad more tastefully.

Ryan Thomas, Business Head, Fruitbowl Digital Media

This ad works well when one considers the functionality of the product. The insight and premise of the ad are on point and integrating slapstick comedy into the ad seems like a clever move. However, the craftsmanship is a little missing. The storyline of the ad seems a little stretched after the first 30 seconds. Although the ad serves the purpose of highlighting the key features of the product and is driven by insight from the target audience, the execution could’ve been shorter considering that audiences are now consuming snackable content.  

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Taking on the cricket craze, Reliance General Insurance tied it back to childhood nostalgia with their Digital Marketing Campaign, #CoveredHai.

At the brainstorming stage, Reliance General Insurance wanted to capitalise on the World Cup fever. By the time the rough drafts of #CoveredHai came into being, it grew within the scope of the cricket narrative and the team decided to “deviate from the world cup and focus on what made so many of us love cricket in the first place — unforgettable childhood memories of playing the game,” says Gautam Anand, Orchestrator of Content at AGENCY09, the agency that created the campaign.

#CoveredHai takes consumers along on a nostalgic experience with a brand video that integrates insurance expectations with the unforgettable memories of childhood cricket situations. The video campaign was launched across digital media including social media platforms.

The driving insight for the campaign was the fact that when it comes to insurance — the most common query most insurance sales agents get is ‘Yeh Covered Hai Kya?’.

Focus on motor insurance

The campaign was envisaged considering the entirety of Reliance General Insurance’s portfolio offerings, #CoveredHai was specific to motor insurance. Anand explains, “Owing to the rainy season, there’s an increase in the number of car maintenance and garage work. This leads to a peak in automobile insurance renewals and purchases during the period, thus the focus on automobile insurance for better recall value.”

Leveraging social media

Reliance General Insurance shared a number of creatives on social media that took the campaign beyond the cricket narrative and yet within folds. #CoveredHai seemed to be divided into the aspects of cricket and motor insurance and the brand was able to put across the message of the relation the two entities share, with the help of childhood nostalgia in places.

Going beyond cricket

After the World Cup ended, Reliance tried to extend the realm of the #CoveredHai campaign by asking people to wonder about the scope of insurance policies. The idea worked well in terms of pushing out content and keep the campaign going.

Experts Speak

Shubhojeet Sengupta — Executive Creative Director, Enormous Brands

As a singular piece of creative, I would term it as ‘have-met-the-brief’ kind of work. There is no room for a new narrative in terms of execution and the story. Using kids to tell a product story has been done a trillion times. Using analogy for car insurance is the most obvious path to take. There is nothing wrong with the strategy but the analogy route is quite predictable.

Amyn Ghadiali, Director — Strategy, Gozoop

I think it would have been fun to have pushed the envelope a little further, for something that would have really cut the clutter. The thought #CoveredHai could have beautifully touched upon the discrepancies that exist within the industry, and how Reliance as a player is reliable. It would have been an amazing take to make it stand out not just on mainline but also extend it beautifully on digital.

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Ford India’s campaign ‘Galiyaan’ under its #DiscoverMore content series appears to be an audiovisual treat narrating heartwarming stories one turn a time.

‘Ye Galiyaan mere Ghar Tak Aati Hain’ – ye kahani hai purani dilli aur Ford Figo ki.

Poetry and advertising go a long way. The concoction of perfect lyrics with an even perfect set up steal your attention the moment it hits the screens – be it in any form. This time similar magic has been recreated by Ford India in its two-minute-long commercial where the vehicle – Ford Figo – is seen romancing ‘Old Delhi’ like never before.

Titled ‘Galiyan’, the film is a part of Ford India’s #DiscoverMore series capturing the enchanting Delhi locales – right from the ‘nukkad ki chaat ’ to ‘masjid ke saamnwale paan ki dukaan’ to revealing the secrets of a ‘purani haveli’.

Insight behind Ford ‘s ‘Galiyaan’

A vehicle often stands witness to several self-discoveries spanning from a daily commute to an ultimate road trip. Such discoveries often relate us to new places, people, experiences and above all, emotions.

Shot against the backdrop of Delhi 6, Galiyan has been produced by Ford India Communications and shot by Word of Mouth Media led by Vineet Panchhi. The original poem was penned by Vineet Panchhi and Kapil Sharma, Head of Communications at Ford India.

“With our latest campaign, we look to celebrate these discoveries with a unique emotional touch – using original poems,” shared Sharma.

Campaign Objective

The objective of this social campaign is to strengthen the bond between brand Ford and its audience. It also seeks to build a deeper resonance for core brand promise of making customers feel like family.

Marrying Poetry and Advertising

We are all very much aware of the power of jingles, slogans, and spoken words in the advertising world. We have been all relishing them for decades. Poetries have been an integral part of the communication process when penned the poetic discourse is well penned.

Also Read: Social Media Campaign Review : Ford India Garnered Pledges for Safe Driving with its Ipledge Campaign

Ford India, for that matter, has taken this very route to merge poetry and advertising combined with an impactful voiceover to leave everyone anything but impressed. Sharma stated here, “This is not advertising but creative storytelling that aims to elevate the relationship Ford brand holds with its audience to a new ‘emotional’ high. We were confident that the use of verse will help us cut through the clutter and drive engagement on social. For this series, we don’t seek to sell but celebrate, the emotions or relationships we hold with our audience”.

The Creative Thought process

If we closely look at the commercial there are no vehicle specifications mentioned but time and again imbibes a subtle sighting of it. The campaign brings everyday emotions to life through compelling use of verse and visuals, with Ford products playing a worthy enabler. Sharma informed that Galiyan for example deftly highlights the nimbleness of India’s most loved hatchback – New Ford Figo across the narrow lanes, without overshadowing the narrative.

The campaign was conceptualized with the thought of showing Ford cars as a witness to many of the discoveries and emotions we undergo in our life.

Leveraging Digital

The first phase of the campaign will feature five original poems, beginning with Galiyan. During the process, Ford India looks to crowd-source original thoughtful verse on self-discoveries from the audience/fans across social platforms, only to be turned into more videos in different languages.

The path to self-discovery often begins with everyday journeys. Every turn has a story to tell. So, as a part of its #DiscoverMore content series, the company brings a unique perspective in the form of original poems. The ad film aptly places Ford Figo as the one who drives you home safely passing through several such ‘galiyan’ and filling the void of the bylanes with its speed and maneuver.

Experts Take:

Shormistha Mukherjee, Director & Co-Founder, Flying Cursor Interactive

What I liked was that the campaign stayed away from feature advertising and happy families bursting out of cars! However, I’m not sure if the idea of ‘Discover more’ and ‘we are proud to play a part in your journey to your loved ones everyday’ fits together. It’s like two thoughts in one campaign. So, while I like the visuals that unfold, I’m not sure if this moves me in any way. 

Usually, this technique of visuals layered with poetry is pretty powerful. If used well, it immediately conjures up a mood and has the capacity to make you feel something. I think in this film, the visuals and the pace of the visuals draw you in along with the poetry. But then, it gets too long and repetitive. And also, you’re sort waiting for it to make a point or say something more, and that doesn’t really happen.

Kishore Karumbaiah, CCO and Partner, Langoor  

Yes! The campaign rang the perfect note and how?! After a long time, I feel a brand has really struck the right chord in every second of the film. Realism at its best. Nothing hard to digest or to wonder. And it captured every emotion that we all feel when we are trying to relive our growing up years or generally when we are out exploring a place where we once were. Everything about the film was genuine and familiar…makes me want to visit someplace where I can relive those tiny special moments from my past. And the film left me with this strange intense urge of wanting to travel.  

The perfect balance between words and visuals made it that much easier to understand, evoking the right emotions.

Kartik Shinde, Associate Creative Director, Tonic Worldwide

The energetic design of Figo is made to fuel a fast-paced lifestyle. Accelerating the confidence to take on life and maneuver through twists and turns in a smart way is what Figo stands for.  The Ad tries to capture the story of every turn in a more emotive and personal manner.

The visual treatment could have been better for sure. We have seen numerous videos/ads/films that have tried to showcase the hustly-bustly charm of Old Delhi.

So, ‘Galiyaan’ in particular doesn’t break the clutter for me, visually. On a side note, other films from the #DiscoverMore campaign is what I found to be more relatable and effective.

The post Feature: Ford Figo’s tryst with nostalgia-driven poetry works? appeared first on Social Samosa.

The nutrition drink brand urged consumers to take #RiseUpChallenge and know the reason behind being tired; Horlicks roped in influencers like Sumeet Vyas and Aparshakti Khurana.

At any given time, 1 in every 5 people feel unusually tired and 1 in 10 have prolonged fatigue, state reliable statistics online when searched how common is tiredness. The reason for feeling tired often can be anything including an ample amount of work or peer pressure or simply, aging.  

Horlicks Protein Plus set out to generate awareness about muscle health among consumers who are 30 plus in age. The brand created a digital campaign called #RiseUpChallenge, conceptualized by The Glitch, and aims at spreading awareness about muscle health deterioration. Due to a lack of awareness – people fail to identify the early symptoms of poor muscle health.

About #RiseUpChallenge

A video film was created showcasing 6 individuals from different backgrounds, participating in a simple test to help identify their muscle strength. The test required them to attempt to stand up from a seated position balanced on one foot, with the other foot stretched straight ahead and arms folded. Completing the test would indicate the person has good muscle health.

Campaign Insight

Muscle health has a crucial role in the normal functioning of a human being. However, it usually goes untracked. With this campaign, Horlicks Protein Plus intends to educate the people about the importance of muscle mass and how it starts declining as they move into their 30’s.

“We are confident that after taking up the challenge, people will understand its significance and take corrective actions for building muscle strength and consequently foster a healthy lifestyle. Horlicks Protein+ is an offering from our portfolio to help consumers with quality protein intake,” shared Vikram Bahl, Executive Vice President Marketing, GSK Consumer Healthcare India 

Creative Thought Process

The agency used a seemingly simple test as a vehicle to draw attention to diminishing muscle health and thereby the need to consume adequate protein. Kabir Kochhar, Founding Partner, The Glitch  said, “Through the #RiseUpChallenge, we were able to make the consumer aware that poor muscle health could be the reason behind their tiredness.”

Routing the social way

The film was amplified on social media platforms using the #RiseUpChallenge, which then evoked interest from various influencers who attempted the challenge and further nominated social influencers like Sumeet Vyas, Aparshakti Khurana, Shifa Merchant, Viraj Ghelani to assess their muscle health.

Also Read: Does Women’s Horlicks ‘Stories of Strength’ stand as a differentiator out of the many pro-women campaigns?

The brand pulled off some pre-campaign launch buzz online and rolled out a few teasers.

Experts Take:

Yashraj Vakil, CEO, Buzzinga Digital

The thought of relating muscle health to tiredness is something that working masses will immediately take notice of. While the hashtag is scalable, it would need to be executed correctly to become a nice campaign. 

However, the challenge is both cliched and very well known. The video is boring and unimaginative with a rather poor build-up. Real people might have been used but they seem to be reading off of a script. The VO, too, unfortunately, is not very impactful and doesn’t ring a bell or build any recall. As a centerpiece of the campaign, more thought, effort, and budget should have gone into it. The campaign gets my Thumbs Up, but it’s a Thumbs Down for the video. Unless activities have been planned to scale this up, the campaign is forgettable.

Sandeep Singh Saini, Operation Lead, North, Team Pumpkin

The thought is good and very well executed. I think this ad allows the user to connect himself/ herself with the problem stated. It serves the purpose of highlighting the key features of the product and educating the user in an entertaining manner. I think this campaign #RiseUpChallenge could be extended as an on-ground activation moreover to the strategic tie-ups with relevant TV shows could help to make it big.

The post Review: Does Horlicks Protein Plus’ #RiseUp pass as an engaging Challenge? appeared first on Social Samosa.

Based on the philosophy of ‘achieving extraordinary things by ordinary individuals’, Mission Mangal is helmed by Fox Star Studios, Hope Productions and Cape of Good Films. Does the powerful topic translate through Mission Mangal Movie Marketing strategy?

Mission Mangal is poised to showcase the incredible saga of Mangalyaan. With a stellar star cast ft. Akshay Kumar, Vidya Balan, Taapsee Pannu, and Sonakshi Sinha, the movie hit the box office on Independence Day. We take a look at the Mission Mangal Movie Marketing Strategy and if it pays off.

Movie Marketing is a lucrative avenue to reach out to people. The key to striking a chord with the audience lies in effectively tapping on to the channels and the emotions, the plot might resonate with, to fuel the curiosity of the people.

Mission Mangal on Mission Social Media and Brands!

Mission Mangal makes a journey through the center of brands via social media. We observed some noticeable brand collaborations with the movie.

Peter England launched 360 degrees advertising co-branding with the movie.

Paytm

Fox Star Hindi

ixigo

Twitter India

Kajaria Ceramics

On the road to Quizvertising and Contests

We noticed Fox Star Studios and some other brands, getting into the Quizvertizing with contests and posts, to continue with the buzz around the movie.

Fox Star Hindi

Sonata Watches

The movie leveraged on World Emoji Day to promote Mission Mangal with an interesting activity led by the star cast.

ISRO takes notice of Mission Mars through Twitter’s binoculars

Indian Space Research organization was prompt to acknowledge the efforts of the Team Mission Mars and congratulate them on the release of the movie which strengthened their social media presence. Akshay Kumar immediately responded to the tweet with a ‘thank you’ message.

Celebrating the leading ladies

One of the major highlights of Mission Mangal is its leading ladies. The movie celebrates the unsung heroes, the female scientists, responsible for the accomplishment of the mission.

Promotions with a cause to inspire the next generation!

Mission Mangal leveraged on a powerful message for its promotions.

In JD Institute of Fashion Technology, the ensemble cast spoke upon various relevant topics; Akshay Kumar highlighted that “the movie will inspire the next generation to dream big and achieve the impossible”.

Making waves on Radio

The ensemble cast featured on a popular show of ‘Radio City’ with ‘Kasa Kai Mumbai’ to connect with the audiences. Radio city is also one of the official partners of the movie which chronicles the real-life story.

Memevertising all the way

The movie also generated engagement and created a buzz on social media via humorous and relatable memes:

Audience Reactions at the special screening in Delhi

While the ensemble cast was involved in the promotional campaigns and events, a special screening was arranged in Delhi garnering positive responses from the audience.

Overall, Mission Mangal taps majorly on latest social media trends and other key channels to build its presence amongst the audience, in an organized manner.

Backed by powerful messages of the real-life accomplishment, women empowerment, and inspiring the youth, Mission Mangal manages to generate conversations and curiosity.

The post Does Mission Mangal achieve the ‘extraordinary’ with its movie marketing tactics? appeared first on Social Samosa.

Leveraging on the craze around ICC World Cup and cricket, Syska World Cup Campaign is a theme song to promote their audio products

Composed by Teenu Arora & Schbang, Syska World Cup Campaign, titled, #EkHiDhun is an attempt by the brand to create a brand image that resonates with the celebratory spirit for cricket in the country. It is a part of their campaign, ‘Sound of Celebration’ that drives home the message of how cricket is a sport that’s born in the gullies and is an integral part of India’s social fabric. The song takes a look at the journey of Indian cricket players from gullies to the cricket ground at Lords.

Explaining the timing of the campaign, Nirav Shah, Digital Marketing Head, Syska Group says, “Cricket is one of the most celebrated sports in this country and it’s natural that most brands would want to capitalise on it,” adding that while other brands tried to talk about their product lines, Syska picked on the nostalgia around the game.

“We have seen a fairly good response considering that quite a few brands have launched their campaigns at the same time, some with mighty celebratory power,” he adds. Shah feels that Syska managed to hit the right notes as the team has noticed college students and other sharing the song video and dancing to the hook steps shown.

Also Read: #CWC19: Are brands reluctant to experiment with their ICC World Cup marketing strategy?

Creation process

“When we conceptualised this campaign, the objective was clear that we need to bring our community together via the medium of music,” says Akshay Gurnani, Co-founder-CEO, Schbang, adding that the Syska World Cup Campaign was amplified with the help of prominent dancers and college students.

Shah tells us that the final piece didn’t move much from the initial thought process and feels that the teams were able to execute well. “Our idea of Sound of Celebration was to celebrate the various festivals and moments that impact India at large,” he says, adding that the world cup was the best place to start.

Digital Presence

He further tells us that the campaign wasn’t created from the RoI expectation, rather the intention was to augment Syska Accessories as a niche category. “Syska is well known in the LED segment. Through this campaign, brand augmentation was our core focus,” he tells us.

The song was marketed on digital platforms via social media channels — Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. In addition to sharing important moments of the match, Syska has been actively sharing #Throwback cricket facts to keep the engagement going.

Syska ran two interesting contests online as a part of the Syska World Cup Campaign, one where they asked fans to cheer for the Indian cricket team to win the ICC World Cup matches and in the other, fans participated in karaoke with Syska. In both cases, they got responses via tweet as well as in comments of the Facebook posts.

Additionally, the brand has been attempting to keep the engagement alive with commentary on India matches and general cricket trivia.

Further, the brand had also partnered with syndicate networks for the song to be published across. There are plans to launch ringtones and other assets as well. Shah says, “The song has been promoted by celebrity choreographer Melvin Louis and cricketer Ajinkya Rahane, among others.”

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Leveraging on Dosanjh’s popularity in India, AirAsia India roped in the singer to roll out a music video cum campaign ‘Har Dil Bole Udippa’. Social Samosa goes behind the scenes of the AirAsia campaign

Donning a white turban, clad in red and white attire, much-celebrated singer Diljit Dosanjh looks no less than AirAsia’s live mascot in the newest commercial. Also, the video doesn’t really look like an AirAsia campaign, but more of Dosanjh’s new music video crooning to ‘Har Dil Bole Udippa’.  

Claiming to be the most preferred low-cost carrier, AirAsia recently announced their association with Diljit Dosanjh and 92.7 Big FM for their new brand campaign encouraging more and more people to fly aiming to align it with the company’s tagline, ‘Now everyone can fly.’

Objective behind ‘Har Dil Bole Udippa’

From time to time, we come across people who feel that air is an expensive mode of travel alongside being apprehensive about the other parameters associated with it.

“With this campaign, our objective was to perforate into the Northern hemisphere of India, wherein we connect Delhi, Jaipur, and Amritsar to over 135 destinations across Asia and Australia. The music video featuring Diljit is a very peppy upbeat song that debunks the myths associated with air travel,” shared Sanjay Kumar, COO, AirAsia India.

The Brief

AirAsia’s brief to the creative team was to work on a campaign that helps the airlines capture various slices of traveler types, in a simple manner to address the misconceptions of flying or reasons for not flying. The medium should be easily accepted / a music video, song, or something that is snackable in format.

From Conceptualisation to Execution

Taking us through the campaign conceptualization phase, Kumar informed that the brand team worked with Big FM to see if the music was the best approach for its TG and category. “Then we zeroed in on Diljit as the entire team felt that music and his appeal to our TG were apt. The contest was developed by FM team. We shot the video with Diljit and production team which was a very enjoyable process for all”.

Role of 92.7 Big FM

AirAsia in the past has done a few interesting campaigns on Big FM with the likes of Suresh Menon, Sunny Leone, and other artists. Kumar felt that the team at Big FM has been exceptional in executing integrated campaign beyond radio space, hence the company collaborated with BIG FM on this campaign.

The ‘Dosanjh’ Factor and Music Video

India has a very rich and diverse cultural heritage with a strong inclination towards music and dance. With music and dance, being associated with all our celebrations in India, Air Asia felt its imperative they express the core messaging of a hassle-free travel experience with an art form. Kumar added here, “When we started curating the campaign, Diljit was our first choice to help us propagate this messaging as he is a multi-talented youth icon who has a colossal fan following because of his exceptional body of work”.

Also Read: AirAsia India on the lookout for a publishing agency for travel360° India

The Digital play

With the digital world forming an integral part of AirAsia’s communications channel, its marketing mix involves both online to offline with YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and other few music content apps/portals serving as a communication route. And offline to online as print, Radio, Airport digital advertising, and the company’s internal assets. 

AirAsia also has a few social media contests in mind as part of the sustenance plan, which will be rolled out soon while one is already live.

Talking about the brand’s advertising strategy so far, Kumar claimed that the brand recall is higher especially in the markets that it operates despite the overall market share being 6%. He added, “With the mission to sprawl our grid across India and reach out to masses, we leverage the best of advertising opportunities through various outlets available”.

Expert view:

Yashwant Kumar, Co-Founder & CEO, GenY Medium and GenY Labs

Using branded content to engage with your consumers in a non-ad format is a rage these days and it is commendable that Air Asia has made this video in collaboration with Diljit Dosanjh who is incredibly popular among the millennials. This strategy has done wonders for brands across the globe – the most successful ones are campaigns by Gatorade, Old Spice, Lego, and Toyota.

This video does a great job of communicating (through the fun & peppy lyrics in Hindi mixed with Punjabi) why the new age discerning consumer should choose Air Asia over other low-cost airlines.

I guess the brand is yet to push hard on the promotion and distribution of this campaign video.

The post Feature: AirAsia with Diljit Dosanjh aims to fly massy appeared first on Social Samosa.

While the fans watch their ‘darling’ star come alive with #Saaho, movie marketers get on the bandwagon of the tidal wave of social media and trends. Does it hit a winning sixer via its movie marketing strategy on the medium?

“Gully ke cricket mein toh sab Tendulkar hai, asli Talent wo hota hai jo bhare maidaan ke bahar sixer maar sakey”. (All are champions like Sachin Tendulkar in the ‘Gully-Cricket’ but the real player can smash a sixer in an open field). Saaho shoots such striking dialogues with ‘Bahubali’ star Prabhas making a debut in Hindi, as the movie released worldwide on 30th August’19.

From #ShadesOfSaaho going viral to Saaho emojis to Saaho, the Game, #TeamSaaho seemed to be going the herculean way for promotions of the mega-budgeted film. With Prabhas, leading the pack and Shraddha Kapoor playing a pertinent role in the film full of twists and nerve-wracking turns, the action-thriller seems to be on the road to emblazon the silver- screen.

Also read: Does Mission Mangal achieve the ‘extraordinary’ with its movie marketing tactics?

The secret mantra to reaching the audience for the brands and movie stars, alike, is to strike the right chord with the audience. The movie marketers for this stellar venture left no stones unturned for the project’s promotions, albeit, in a slow but a steady, step-by-step manner.

Saaho, the Bahubali of social media?

Touted to be the year’s largest action-thriller, Saaho, set the social media world on fire especially when it garnered a record of more than 5 million tweets prior to even the theatrical release of the film. This included some prominent hashtags such as #Saaho, #WorldSaahoDay, #SaahoInCinemas, to name a few.

Shattering records through ‘The Shades of Saaho’!

The directorial venture of Sujeeth, Saaho movie marketing started with the first episode of the series on the birthday of the #Darling Prabhas on social media platforms. The #ShadesOfSaaho captured the behind-the-screen snackable footage of the making of the mega cinema.

Chapter 1 from #ShadesOfSaaho, introduced the dashing Prabhas in a magnanimous manner at Abu Dhabi. This digital film crossed 10 million+ views in just the 24 hours of its release!

Shades of Saaho 2, took this activity a step further with more mind-boggling scenes from the movie with the introduction of the bold and beautiful, Shraddha Kapoor, with a twist.

Teasing the Trailer

The movie marketing team for Saaho strategically launched the teaser trailer post the built-up for the film through the hit series #ShadesOfSaaho on 13^th June’19.

#SaahoTeaser received a whopping response of 25 million+  digital views within the 6 hours of the release.

The final trailer was finally unveiled on 10^th of August by the makers with fans pouring all the love with over 70 million + views across all platforms.

Can you Guess the First Song?

The Marketers for Saaho fired the glaciers of creativity with a simple yet interactive contest for the launch of the first song of Saaho. The Fans were asked to participate in guessing the first song of the movie and establish that they are the biggest fans for Saaho

Swooning the audience with the character-posters

The makers of Saaho shared the first glimpse of the characters from the film with immaculate posters and intriguing one-liners on social media.

Exclusive Saaho Stickers on Hike, #SaahuEmoji on Twitter, Social Media GIFs and what not...

Fans went crazy with the update of Saaho emoji on Twitter. Many even posted on social media in tandem to the view of the movie brand, it is apparently the first Telugu movie to get a superstar movie emoji on its platter. Much to the excitement of the users, with each post on the platform with hashtag #Saaho, brought out a Saahu Emoji on the twitter post.

Hike celebrated the movie with exclusive #Saaho stickers as a special gift to the #TeamSaaho.

Even the social media channels climbed the bandwagon with a plethora of Gifs to add to the invigorating conversations of the audience.

Transform yourself into the #SaahoAvatar!

To take interaction and engagement a notch higher, ‘Saaho AR Filter’ was launched with #SaahoAvatar on Twitter, Facebook, and Snapchat. It enabled the users to relate and turn themselves into the elements of their favorite star, instilling the feeling of ownership and personalization to the brand Saaho.

The viewers responded in an overwhelming manner to the fun-filled AR Filter with the Avatar stroke.

Enter the world of Saaho with #SaahotheGame

The movie-makers attempted to get the fans closer to the life-like experiences of  #Saaho with #SaahoTheGame. Claiming to enhance the adrenaline rush, the trailer for the action-packed game was released prior to Independence Day. It grabbed eyeballs of the audience with positive reactions., in collaboration with Pixalot Labs.

The Game was eventually released on 15^th August’19 with the Game contest.

The frenzy was kept alive with ‘Pixalot Labs’, the creators of the game, personally distributing the rewards and prizes, in the later stage.

Organic User-generated content with Scribbled Stories

Saaho reposted heart-warming, short tales from Scribbled Stories, which nurtured and enhanced the buzz around the movie.