The three TVCs created by Ogilvy & Mather put the focus back on substantive journalism vis-à-vis Page 3 brand of journalism
Two brands taking pot shots at each other,
directly or indirectly, is nothing new in advertising. Many brands have
done it in the past, such s Rin v/s Tide or Audi v/s BMW. The latest one
to do so is English daily The Hindu taking on The Times of India in
Chennai.
It all started in November last
year, when TOI challenged the leadership position of The Hindu in the
Chennai market with its ‘Wake up!’ campaign. Designed by Taproot India,
the campaign provoked readers to give away the newspaper that supplied
boring news to them and instead switch to TOI.
Now,
The Hindu has chosen the positioning ‘Stay ahead with the times’ to hit
back. Crafted by Ogilvy & Mather, the three TVCs have used the
format of ‘vox pops’, i.e., voice of the people in interview format used
in broadcasting. The agency found this sort of candid camera approach
an interesting way to deviate from the tried and tested means and
existing storytelling formats.
Talking about the genesis of the campaign, Joono Simon, Executive Creative Cirector, O&M, said,
“The Hindu has always stood for in-depth, substantive journalism.
Though the brand has always been slotted in a well-defined space in the
minds of the consumer, there was a need to articulate it sharply,
especially in the context of the growing competition. Also, the
environment around us is constantly changing as the notion of popular
culture is vastly different from what it was a few years ago. All this
demanded a fresh interpretation.”
The
three TVCs show the lame answers given by the general audiences in reply
to simple questions like “What does ATM stand for?” or “Which sport
does Dhyanchand play?” While a majority of the people fails to reply
correctly to these questions, they promptly revert back with an answer
for the last question based on Bollywood. Like “What is the pet name of
Hrithik Roshan?” or “Which actress is associated with Size Zero?” The
films end with a beeped sound of people responding to “Which newspaper
do they read?” implying TOI is the answer.
Clearly,
the creative idea behind the campaign exhorts readers to move out of
the Page 3 and Bollywood gossip news to relevant current affairs and
world events. And for this they need to change their current newspaper –
to The Hindu.
Talking about his
experience during the making of the campaign, Simon said, “We were
really astonished by the level of ignorance among people of general and
current affairs. What was more shocking was how some of them were very
comfortable with their lack of understanding of things that are
important.”
Although the campaign is a
direct dig at TOI, Simon rules that out saying, “It is not a direct take
on any newspaper. It is substantive journalism v/s what is generally
termed as pulp fiction.”
Giving his perspective about the campaign, Suresh Srinivasan, Vice-President, Advertising, The Hindu Group, said,
“The basic thought behind the campaign is that in an ever globalising
economy where knowledge is power, there is a tendency with media
companies to shy away from national and international issues. While in
the short term this is of benefit in terms of readership, in the long
term it takes a toll on readers who end up knowing nothing about
important issues. This was a concern and stance that we had taken.”
Simon also describes the campaign as challenging in terms of execution as it took
more than a week for them to complete the project. Interestingly, the
films that were largely shot around Mumbai, and featured many people who
were “street casted” keeping in mind a pan-India representation.
The
agency has also released various versions of the print ad with similar
insight. Going forward, the agency also plans activities in digital,
cinema, radio, outdoor and activation.
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