Titan Tagged - New Commercial Review

Tagging you friends on Facebook and Google + has become more of an infectious obsession now. Based on these lines, Titan has introduced a new series, called Tagged. The company has developed a TVC on the theme of ‘tagging’, targeting the youth. It targets the connect youths like to have with each other.

A young woman riding a scooter sees another in a car and literally tags herself with her with the watch. Similar tag'ed moments are shown between a couple. A young man, fearing a tag, hides his watch and begins to run from a group. A young girl at a party tags another near a swimming pool and they jump in, enjoying the little dive. The TVC ends with a voice over saying 'Get tagged by Titan'.

Titan watches in this commercial are seen being used as a hook to bring together like minded individuals to share special moments. However, it appears to be a calculated risk - as many people hate to be tagged by their lesser friends in anonymous pictures. But having said that, Ogilvy & Mather translates the 'tagging' feature to a physical world using watches beautifully. Quite a fresh ad, it remains to be seen how much virality it'll create.

Headlines Today "Right to be Heard"

The "Right to be Heard" campaign by Black Pencil India for Headlines Today of the India Today group. A nice campaign that voices the sentiments of the Indian youth today. The campaign seeks to provide a platform to people to speak about their grievances and make sure they are heard.
Headline Today has also created a website: Right To Be Heard, where people can upload their videos, comments and issues they want to raise. There is also a hotline number they can call and record their messages at. The channel’s team will get in touch with them to highlight and resolve their issues. The channel has launched two new shows in sync with this campaign – ‘Right to be heard show’ and ‘Right to be Heard Town hall show’.
According to the channel, the campaign would encompass OOH, TV, print and digital. 

Allen Solly, Twitter, & Tweeples!

Calling it the country’s first ‘tweeple-powered’ collection launch, Allen Solly created a ‘live’ hoarding at a Bangalore mall which unveiled itself with more and more tweets. Hosted by an emcee and displaying the tweets real-time on a big screen, the hoarding claimed to have been connected to a computer-powered ‘solenoid’ (coil) which would push a shirt off it with more tweets. Through the event, the shirts began falling off, being rewarded to lucky tweeters. Behind all the shirts emerged a promotional visual of the new collection.

Allen Solly, one of India’s long-serving apparel brands has targeted professionals through the 90s and 2000s through sharp visuals of free-spirited casuals. Not to take away anything from this campaign, the brand already enjoys a neat recall among its target audience – the upwardly mobile urban pro, also a reason why the tweeple (Twitter users) here didn’t mind associating themselves with it. The idea isn’t new, really. The west has seen great outdoor campaigns for web-savvy customers using QR codes, Wi-Fi and social networks; but in India, the agency’s best bet was perhaps Bangalore, with its young IT crowd, and it seems to have worked.

The ‘Tweet to win’ route is boring, but turning that into a live event was the scoring point here. A high footfall zone(Garuda Mall) ensured high Twitter traction (not everyone’s on Twitter yes, but people wouldn’t mind signing up to win a crisp shirt!) Also, this event was an offline integration of the campaign’s online initiatives. The others were a website that gave 52 Friday dos and a Facebook page that had a card game going. Not bad syncing at all.

Overall, this was one of a kind for India, and surely a good bet for Allen Solly.

Samsung Galaxy Note 2 "Office Upgrade"

Samsung was on a roll last year when it came to its ads in USA, and from the looks of its newest spot for the Galaxy Note II, it looks like that trend will continue into the new year.

                             
Now that Christmas & New Year is over, it looks like Samsung is adjusting its Galaxy Note II marketing efforts from regular consumers to business men and women. Pretty intelligent positioning has led to this fine spot. The commercial shows two coworkers playing with their new phones, pointing out all the possibilities that the new "do two things at once feature" provides. Samsung features the Galaxy Note II in a comical office scene in which two employees discuss the usefulness of the device’s unique features, like Multi Window mode. One employee focuses on productivity while the other prefers to procrastinate. The spot then plays out in favor of the hard-working employee before closing with a new tag line – “The Next Big Thing for Business is Here.”

We see that Samsung is really pushing hard into the western market and is keen to win over more market shares. The heavy funding in advertisements and some great spots are surely helping it in the way. Lets see how far this goes in trying to disrupt the iconic Apple.

Sit Down, says Cafe Coffee Day

Cafe Coffee Day (CCD) has made its first TV Commercial, in its 16 years of being the most popular brand since its inception in India.

                              


Research suggests that 50 per cent of our target consumers in the top six metros - in the 17 to 35-year age group - haven't been to a cafe. This initiation of doing a TV advertisement, has come as the next step to its campaign in print medium in selected top nine cities across India.

The brand which initiated the cafe culture, is now foraying in to newer and unconventional markets and aims to get in to new segments through its TV Commercial.

Recently the coffee shop brand partnered with the movie Neethane En Ponvasantham (also in Telugu as Yeto Vellipoyindi Manasu) as one of its official partner and the coffee shop’s brand name is already visible in many of the film’s promotions.

This new TV campaign has represented the youth who come to their shop to have a conversation over a cup of coffee with their friends, colleagues, lovers, business partners, etc.

The TV ad has also added its humour quotient, by giving a new solution to many problems – by sitting down! The TV Commercial has come up with the new Anthem – Sit Down Anthem! This 2 minute and 20 seconds ad also uses this generation's biggest tool - Social Media Platform such as Facebook, Youtube, Twitter as they share & spread this new Anthem of Sit Down! Cafe Coffee Day has around 1400 outlets across the country now and this was a good time to introduce this idea to consumers. The best part is the way the tv advertisement builds a platform for brand activity on social media - is #sitdown a trend already or will it be in a few days to come?

K Ramakrishnan, President marketing Cafe Coffee Day, says, “The TV Commercial reflects the way of life of the millions of youth following the brand. At a time when ‘standing up’ for issues seem to be the order of the day, the ad reminds you of the positive results of sitting down and discussing various subjects over your favorite brew.”

Nike: Parallel Journeys

I don’t know whether any of you have seen Nike’s Parallel Journeys campaign? It’s probably one of the best campaigns I’ve seen from Nike. Ok, so I may be slightly biased and may have a bit of a soft spot for cricket and India.

The campaign captures young cricket athletes relentless quest for perfection, it doesn’t matter where they are, what they play, whether pro or amateur, you are given an insight into their journey, their training, hard work, dedication and desire to achieve success in the sport. The film’s culminates perfectly with Nike’s “Just do it” slogan.

The ad has been beautifully shot in various locations around India; Delhi, Ladakh, Pondicherry, Indore, Jodhpur, Varanasi, Mumbai to name a few places. I feel as though it truly captures the essence of India, the diversity of the cultural different parts of India, the varying age groups, religions, the variation in players economic backgrounds, however everyone is bought together by the sport.

All of this of course doesn't come cheap and the commercial is rumoured to be one of the most expensive made in India. While none of those associated with it are willing to comment, ad business moles suggest a price tag of Rs 4 crore. It appears to be money well spent going by the feedback at least within the industry.

There are no actors in the film, - just authentic players of the game from various corners of the country. To capture them, the crew travelled to homes, buses, trains, boats, gyms, chawls, gullies, colonies, schools, clubs and playgrounds that are the grooming grounds for cricket crazy Indian youth, across geographies.

So, after all the hype and discussion, did the ad work? I think, yes. It makes people go emotional for cricket again. It also sends the message clearly that one should follow his/her passion no matter what the hurdles be. This ad is a hit as far as I am concerned.

Coca Cola's New Commercial - Oct '12

Going with the "Open Happiness" tag-line, Coca Cola is all set to be a trend setter again with this new commercial.

TVC Link - "Saath khao, khushiyaan badhao"

The campaign builds on the “celebrating happiness” plank of the brand. The family that eats together stays together. This ancient proverb is depicted well in this commercial, done with an eye on increasing the per capita consumption of cola.

The TVC features a large family at the dining table. As they bond over food and Coke. It’s a very simple treatment, there are no dialogues, and typical family interactions are captured through expressions. A strict dad who won’t relent to his son’s demands. A granny with an emotional tale to tell. A disinterested kid who later begins to enjoy the family time. And so on. All the things that usually happen at a family table.

Actually the consumer research behind it is the key. Trends show that youths are returning to spending more times with their family. So what time is better than this festive season to start such an endearing commercial!

There are no celebrities in the ad, only regular people. The music track is very cool, it adds to the liveliness of a happy family gathering. And in spite of no storyline, the TVC entertains. Particularly the last touch is good, where a smartphone buzzes away in a corner and no one bothers to answer it.

CenturyPly and a Gorilla

CENTURYPLY is undoubtedly one of the major furniture brands in India. Century Plyboard stayed away from TV advertising from the last four years, before it came back on TV with its new TVC on the World Anger Day – 28th Aug, 2012.

Why did suddenly CneturyPly thought of attacking the end consumer? The company had sanctioned a survey two years ago to re-discover its consumers as it prepared to take on a crowded and cut price market.This survey identified a large group of consumers called atmosphere creators — 25-45 year olds looking to build a welcoming pad to chill out with friends and family — which CenturyPly decided to target.

For CenturyPly, getting noticed in the humdrum world of plywood and laminates required it to do something out of the ordinary. Its buyers were typically tradesmen like contractors and carpenters fixated on water and pest resistance. The solution was to swivel away from its typical intermediary focus to target the end consumer, attempting to build an emotional, rather than technical connect.

No doubt that the thrown car and the angry gorilla at the beginning of TVC attracts your attention, and is clutter-breaking among any group of advertisements. 100 out of 100 for the Bates team for such a clearly clutter-breaking start for the TVC.

As the consumer watches attentively, the next scene that attracts attention is that the gorilla is not able to break the door and it enters the house breaking through the roof. As the gorilla lands on a dining-table, the dining table doesn’t break and the gorilla chases the person in the scene to the cupboard. Until this point, the consumer is still attentively wondering “what is the gorilla upto?”.

Now, as it turns out that the gorilla is the husband’s imagination of his wife’s anger, it brings out an element of empathy and fun making the whole commercial very enjoyable. The message in the background also re-emphasizes on the visual communication.

It is a great story with an element of suspense, and clearly communicating the durability of the furniture. 100/100 in the communication of the functional aspect “durability”.

Thus, forgetting your wedding anniversary is never a good thing and for you men out there!

"Khali pet se pareshaan?" Parle 20-20.

Parle Products has brought out a new campaign to position Parle 20-20 cookies as a quick time snack. The campaign titled, 'empty stomach' aims at targeting teenagers and young adults. The objective of this ad was to build strong consumer brand franchise for the brand amongst the target group by positioning 20-20 cookies as an ideal quick snack for today’s generation through effective advertising.

The first ad shows a couple sharing heart-shaped offering through the hole in a boy's stomach. Then just as he gobbles up a biscuit, the hole fills up in no time! The second ad, shot in an office, shows colleagues throwing curled up paper in a bin, through a colleague's empty stomach. Their fun ends when the pale-looking man gobbles a Parle 20-20 cookie to fill his empty stomach. I liked the second one more.

20-20 cricket is suggestive of a quick game. Similarly they wanted to communicate that Parle 20-20 is a quick-time snack that fixes hunger in no time. Although the concept of depicting the empty stomach like a hole is good, I feel the execution fell sort of expectations. The ad will be aired for three months, however, I guess the ad will have a lesser recall value.

Fevicol Marine!

Fevicol has rolled out a new TV campaign for ‘Fevicol Marine’, its waterproof adhesive. The ad film reiterates Fevicol Marine’s strong bond in water with the tagline ‘Wahi mazboot jod, paani mein bhi’. It is created by Ogilvy & Mather.

The film begins with a boatman ferrying wooden chairs in his boat, with Rabindra Sangeet playing in the background. As he rows, an old man waves out to him to ask for a ride. The boatman points to his loaded boat and refuses. However, when the old man points to a young woman nearby, immediately he halts the boat and throws out a few of the chairs into the water. When the woman points to her goat, he kicks out some more. She then signals to her haystack and the boatman has no option but to empty his boat completely. Finally, the boatman ferries the woman, her goat with the haystack. The chairs have been tied to the boat with a rope, and float along in the water behind it, without getting damaged. The ad ends with the voice over, “Wohi mazboot jod, paani mein bhi.”

The TVC is on air on Hindi as well as regional channels. The campaign will be on air for four weeks. It will be supported by an integrated marketing campaign. The communication will be extended through various below the line (BTL) activities like outdoors, POS and increased visibility at trade outlets besides a number of activation has already been initiated with carpenter programs conveying the core message of the adhesive being able to hold its bond even in wet or most conditions. The ad keeps in line with Fevicol’s communication tone and humour and reinforces the promise of a strong bond that Fevicol Marine provides, even in water.

But there is one dark side to it. Rumors are abound that it has been inspired from one Jivanjor ad. Floating logs of wood—teak especially—is an image redolent of the subcontinent. The Jivanjor ad has been there, and done that- quite well too. Just that Fevicol Marine has a new fresh storytelling to it. See the ad for yourself and decide.
                                  

Silence Speaks Now-a-days! Or, Vibrates?

When we see the Volkswagen 'silent' commercial that says car features speak for itself, what does this ad convey?
Did it chose the timing just before the release of the much acclaimed Bollywood movie 'Barfi', intentionally?

What usually happens before a car purchase or any high involvement product for the matter, is that people compare brand features, so by the time they visit the showroom, they have narrowed down on what they want and know what the features are...in the showroom, all they then finally do
1) is experience those features
2) Check how true those claims have been and if it matches their own expectations as imagined.
So in this ad, I thought it was an affirmation of all the expectations being met and delivered. The target is clearly the young working class and the emerging-to-rich-class people, mostly in Tier-A cities of India.
                         
Innovative press advertising is not new to Volkswagen. From the ‘Talking Newspaper’ campaign in 2010 to the ‘Silver Newspaper’ in 2011, Volkswagen is credited with some of the most innovative marketing initiatives in India. On a Tuesday morning in 2010 (September 22), when the readers of The Times of India and The Hindu opened their newspaper, they were surprised to find their papers talking about Volkswagen cars. The German carmaker had spent close to Rs 5 crore for that much-talked about print innovation.

Volkswagen came up with another similar innovation exactly after two years yesterday, also a Tuesday (September 11). The luxury car brand used a vibrator to create a ‘shiver’ effect. The German automotive giant launched this innovative campaign for the Polo and Vento in The Times of India, Hindustan Times and The Hindu. The opening page simply read: “Feel the shiver of excitement?”

Yesterday’s print ad including the vibrator innovation included four pages talking mainly about different features of Volkswagen’s Vento and Polo. The vibrator was inserted on the last page. The innovation has been implemented nationally with The Times of India editions in Delhi, Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore; The Hindu in the south; and Hindustan Times in Delhi – thereby covering a major part of its target audience.

Volkswagen is learnt to have spent around Rs 7 crore to execute the campaign on this scale. DDB Mudra is to be credited with the innovative campaign.

So, first it talked. Then it shone. Now it shivered, or vibrated. Next what? Would it shake? Lets hope for another innovative campaign!