The first time I saw these ads, I said to
myself - brilliant!
I was astonished with the idea conceived
and effectuation. But in no time, the first feeling I had started to sink and
the second one made its way.
Really? This is what it has come to? If I put
myself in shoes of the audience who was subjected to this brilliant marketing
campaign, will I still be pleasantly astonished? May be not.
The first campaign is the much publicized
campaign by HUL which is conceived by Ogilvy & Mather.
HUL and Ogilvy partnered with some 100
dhaba owners to have this campaign executed during the Kumbh gathering going on
at Allahabad,UP. Special heaters were made to stamp rotis with the statement “Lifebuoy
se hath dhoye kya?” (Did you wash your hands with Lifebuoy?) so as to serve a
warning for people to wash their hands before eating.
The
creativity of the idea has pushed the boundaries for the marketing for sure,
But isn’t it a dangerous intrusion to our lives? The marketing has reached on
to our lunch plates. It is going to be consumed with every bite!
Intrusion of privacy by social media has
been a long debated topic, but Intrusion doesn't get worse than this. While you
sign in for an internet account (email, facebook, LinkedIn etc) you can
complete the registration only when you have clicked on the terms and condition
page which also has a statement “…..We use the information we receive about you in connection with the services and features we provide to you and other users like your friends, the advertisers that purchase ads on the site, and the developers that build the games, applications, and websites you use”. Hence, I believe
that it is difficult to protest for intrusion when you sign such an agreement
for yourself.
However, this cannot be said in the given
case. How have the people who have been consuming these rotis have reacted to this
campaign, is yet to be reported but of course some people may feel disgusted of
the idea of chewing a bite of roti which has a soap ad stamped on it.
Marketing is getting competitive and
intense with every passing moment and marketers have no choice but to be innovative
yet effective. The above ad will reach approximately to two and a half million
people at a very low cost and hence will keep the ROI healthy. Hence, the campaign
may hurt few sentiments but for sure is a marketer’s delight.
Another
such campaign is for Pantene. The salt shakers on the serving table to add salt
in your meal has a woman imprinted on it. When the customers sprinkle salt and
place the jar on table, some residual salt appears like dandruff on the woman’s
scalp. The jar also has Pantene Pro-V written on it to remind user about what
to do to tackle dandruff.
Here too, the marketers have hit the right
nail. First, the campaign will be stuck in the mind of its customers for its
brilliant conception and implementation. Second, will remind user of a problem,
which is dandruff, at an unusual time and hence made a place in the mind of the
customer for a long time. Lastly, it has ensured itself the first recall
whenever customer thinks of tackling the problem. Whether, it disgusts the
customer who is sprinkling salt from this shaker, is debatable. But, does it do
what it was supposed to? Yes, definitely.
HUL and P&G have pushed the envelope of
intrusive marketing. Be ready for others to follow the suit!
Cheers,
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