MUMBAI: Thomas Cook (India) Ltd, an integrated travel and related financial services company, spearheads the citizen election agenda 2019 by launching its ‘Ghar Jao Vote Karo’ campaign ahead of the upcoming general elections. The brand seeks to empower citizens to vote while simultaneously rewarding them- both on their flight to their hometown pre-election, as well as holiday discounts post elections.

According to the Election Commission, merely 540 million Indian voters or 66.4 per cent of those eligible cast their vote in the 2014 general elections. A key challenge attributed to the low turnout was the migrating Indian population, moving from tier II and III cities into larger urban towns and metros. Thomas Cook India has therefore strategically aligned its campaign to tap into India’s vote bank, by aiming to create awareness on the importance of voting while gratifying the voter with incentives.

Thomas Cook India’s ‘Ghar Jao Vote Karo’ campaign will extend from 26 March to 19 May 2019, to encourage Indians to exercise their right to vote by flying back to their respective hometowns- where they have been registered as voters. As part of the campaign, the pre-election offer includes a discount of Rs 1,000 off on return air tickets (per adult) on providing proof via any official document such as their Voter ID/ Aadhaar Card, etc. The last date of flight departure is 19 May 2019 to coincide with the last date of polling.

Voting in many states coincides with India’s largest vacation season. Hence, in its initiative to recognise the efforts taken by its customers who vote, Thomas Cook India will offer a special post-voting holiday discount – across both its domestic and international group tours (Rs 3000 off on its domestic group tours or Rs 5000 off on its international group tours, per family). All its customers need to do to avail the offer is to display their inked finger at any of Thomas Cook’s extensive retail outlets pan India. The post-voting holiday offer is valid up to 19 July 2019.

With several election dates falling on Mondays or Thursdays, Thomas Cook’s data reveals that travel hungry Indians are likely to extend their weekends into ‘smart weekend holidays’ thus giving a fillip to the emerging trend of ‘Election Tourism’.

Thomas Cook president and group head - marketing, service quality, value-added services, and innovation Abraham Alapatt said, “At Thomas Cook India, we are keen to do our part by motivating consumers to cast their vote in their hometowns and this formed the genesis of our Ghar Jao Vote Karo campaign.”

He added, “Social media is expected to play a strong role in the upcoming elections. Be it voting selfies showcasing an inked finger or the use of hashtags, consumers are taking their involvement beyond the booth. However, there is a strong urgency in getting the voting population involved in the pre-voting phase as well and hence our campaign motivates customers- both during the pre and post voting phases. Via our Ghar Jao Vote Karo campaign, we look forward to engineering a new wave of proactive social consciousness across metros as well as Tier II and III regions of the country.”