In May 2012, Bharti Airtel stole a march over its rivals and entered the mobile advertising space. The operator launched a platform to enable advertisers to provide personalised services to customers through mobile handsets. This platform leverages communication tools such as mobile internet, messaging services and Airtel digital TV.
Industry analysts say that the move is not only expected to revive interest in mobile advertising, but also highlights the operator focus on building brand equity. Despite a difficult year ? the Supreme Court?s cancellation of 122 2G licences and lack of investments ? telecom operators continued to leverage the potential of mediums like TV, radio, billboards, the internet and social networking sites to add subscribers.
According to AdEx India, a division of TAM Media Research, between April 2011 and March 2012, telecom and internet service providers ranked eighth on the list of the top 10 sectors advertising on TV, with a 3 per cent share. In the radio segment, these players were ranked fifth, with a 5 per cent share.
Meanwhile, cellular phone services stood third (with a 3 per cent share) after toilet soaps and social advertisements among AdEx?s top 10 product categories for the TV segment. In the radio segment, this service category was ranked fourth (with a 4 per cent market share), after properties/real estate, independent retailers and social advertisements.
Company-wise, Bharti Airtel and the Nokia Corporation were amongst the top 10 advertisers on TV (ranking ninth and tenth respectively). In the print segment, Samsung India Electronics was ranked fifth (with a market share of 1 per cent) and Videocon Industries tenth (0.4 per cent share). As per the research firm, the radio was extensively used by operators, with Tata Teleservices Limited (TTSL) at the top of the pecking order (1 per cent share), followed by Bharti Airtel (second) and Nokia Corporation (sixth).
Vodafone India was the top brand advertising on TV, followed by Bharti Airtel (third). In the radio segment, Bharti Airtel stood third in the pecking order, while Vodafone India was ranked fifth.
An interesting trend in the past year was the increasing use of out-of-home (OOH) mediums by telecom operators. Proof of Performance Data Services (POPDS) published a report in this context, based on 68 routes monitored by the firm in Mumbai between April and September 2012.
According to POPDS, the telecom, media, and the fast moving consumer goods sectors made the highest advertising investments in Mumbai during the period under consideration. Of the 68 routes monitored by the firm, telecom ad campaigns were the most visible.
The most visible brands in this category were TATA DOCOMO (16 per cent), Vodafone India (15 per cent), Bharti Airtel (15 per cent), Reliance Communications (RCOM) (13 per cent), Sistema Shyam TeleServices Limited (12 per cent), Idea Cellular (8 per cent), Uninor (5 per cent), Loop Telecom (4 per cent) and Aircel (2 per cent).
Bharti Airtel reportedly spent Rs 110 billion on advertising between January 2011 and June 2012. The operator?s advertisement spend in the quarter ended June 2012 is estimated to have increased by 22 per cent. Also, during the same period, TATA DOCOMO spent close to Rs 4 billion on marketing and advertisements, while Idea Cellular spent Rs 7 billion and Vodafone India about Rs 9 billion.
Creative showcase
During the past year, most operators focused on co-branding exercises to ensure brand recall. A key example was Vodafone India and Bharti Airtel renewing their association with the Indian Grand Prix. Bharti Airtel was the title sponsor of the 2012 Formula 1 Airtel Indian Grand Prix and announced a race partnership with the Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One team for the same. The operator also launched a 360-degree media campaign across multiple touchpoints, including TV, outdoor and print ads as well as events, promotions, offers and contests. For instance, extending the brand?s ?friendship? theme, Bharti Airtel launched the ?Join Our Pit Crew? initiative, wherein the winner and a friend would be able to meet Formula 1 drivers Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg. The tagline of the contest was ?Let your heart race? and the initiative was promoted through Facebook.
Also, Vodafone India has been the title sponsor and official communications partner of the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Formula 1 team since 2007. At the 2012 Formula 1 Airtel Indian Grand Prix, the operator launched the second edition of the ?Vodafone Drive Into The Big League? reality show, which offered small and medium enterprises the opportunity to showcase their logos on the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes vehicles participating in the event.
Moreover, several operators utilised the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2012 as a marketing platform. According to industry estimates, most of the major telecom players spend between one-tenth and a quarter of their annual advertising budget during the IPL, which is approximately a two-month-long event.
Interestingly, Vodafone India has been the tournament?s on-ground and broadcast partner since the event was launched in 2008. Its ZooZoo campaign was introduced during the event?s second season, which led to various campaigns from other leading players. During the last IPL, Vodafone launched the ?Internet Is Fun? campaign, which was aimed at driving internet usage among customers by simplifying their usage experience and showcasing the ?fun? possibilities associated with the internet.
Idea Cellular and TATA DOCOMO also made the most of the IPL platform. To promote its 3G services, the former launched a series of TV commercials based on the ?What an Idea, Sirji? theme. The ads underscored how the brand stands for new ideas and shuns old ones by giving a humorous twist to regular 3G applications (such as the ?Idea google goggles? and the ?Idea mosquito repellent? applications.)
TATA DOCOMO focused on ?refreshing? its brand?s core service differentiators ? no fine print, no hidden conditions and no unwarranted balance deductions. Its latest campaign features a high-handed owner/ manager of a restaurant, who imposes unreasonable conditions on customers, who have no choice but to comply. The campaign thus highlights that TATA DOCOMO is different from other operators and offers honest deals.
Operators continued to focus on tried- and-tested campaigns as well. For instance, Bharti Airtel extended the ?friendship? theme with the launch of the ?Jo Mera Hai Woh Tera Hai? series of advertisements, an extension of its ?Har Ek Friend Zaroori Hota Hai? campaign, which was launched in August 2011. While the former was aimed at establishing Bharti Airtel as a youthful and contemporary brand, the latter highlighted that a significant amount of ?sharing? is taking place through the digital medium. Interestingly, the double-decker bus featured in the commercial is used to exemplify the idea of ?mobility?. The media mix of the campaign also comprises outdoor, radio, print and cinema.
Meanwhile, the campaign for the Airtel Money service plays on the ?emotional? aspect. The campaign?s tagline is ?Baat sirf paison ki nahi hai? (it is not just about money). Besides TV, the campaign is using the print, radio, outdoor, retail outlet and digital mediums.
Similarly, Vodafone India brought back Cheeka the pug, the BlackBerry Boys and the ?Vodafone Delights? campaign in 2012. The pug appears in a new campaign comprising three TV commercials highlighting the quality of Vodafone India?s network based on three key parameters that define the depth or quality of a network ? voice quality and clarity, instant connectivity, and no call drops. The campaign is aimed at adding users through mobile number portability, particularly of those operators whose licences were cancelled in early 2012. Meanwhile, the new ?Vodafone Delights? campaign, like its predecessor, is focused on the theme of ?friendship? and highlights three new products ? ?birthday gift?, ?happy hours? and ?discounted offerings?. The campaign is aimed at enhancing the operator?s credentials as a telecom service provider which values its customers and is constantly launching initiatives to ?delight? them.
A notable new campaign from the operator?s stable is the ?121 Made for You? commercial, focusing on Vodafone?s 121 interactive voice response service, which enables customers to opt for the plan best suited to their requirements. The commercial is targeted at B and C customer segments, who are price conscious. The campaign?s message is that Vodafone understands that each customer?s needs are unique and different and, therefore, offers tailor-made plans.
Meanwhile, Idea Cellular continued to leverage the humour element. Its latest commercial, ?Idea Hai Toh Phone Will Ring?, aims to show that its network is available across the country. The ad shows people from various parts of the country singing variations of a song, wherein the lyrics keep changing with each new singer. Thereafter, it is revealed that the song originated from the handset of a backpacker who has travelled across the country. Currently a TV commercial, the ad will be supported by radio and outdoor, among other mediums, in the future.
After launching a 3D mass media ad campaign for its 3G wireless broadband service, RCOM went back to the tried-and- tested method of using celebrities to promote its products. Its latest campaign, aimed at promoting the My Best Plan offer, features Anushka Sharma and Rannvijay. The campaign focuses on ?bill shocks? and highlights that the operator charges the customer according to data usage, with no hidden charges or costs. The TV commercial is supplemented with a Facebook application, where a customised video bill is generated for users on the basis of their Facebook data usage history.
Another interesting initiative was RCOM?s ?Be Blue? campaign, aimed at promoting its alliance with Google to popularise the latter?s Android operating system and the operator?s mobile services.
TTSL?s advertising efforts were focused on promoting its 3G services. To begin with, it launched a series of commercials highlighting its unlimited data plans. These products were previously available only for post-paid customers, but have now been extended to prepaid customers as well. The operator extended the campaign by launching a three-month OOH campaign, which promoted its new tariff plan in Maharashtra and Goa. Hoardings were put up at 42 locations across Pune and Nagpur, displaying a doodle of a person holding a clapperboard in action, with the tagline, ?With unlimited 3G data, complete every story?.
Expected trends
According to industry analysts, operators are likely to focus on mobile-based advertising and on social networks like Facebook and Twitter. With a mobile user base of 850 million, of which 30 per cent are active data users, India has significant growth potential for m-advertising. The segment is poised to grow by over 40 per cent over the next few years. Meanwhile, operators have already begun to promote various products and services on Facebook and Twitter, which is expected to increase with the demand for data services.
Therefore, with operators pulling out all the stops to stand apart, significant activity in the advertising and marketing space is expected in 2013.
