MUMBAI: The pandemic has officially infected around 14 million globally, felling close to 600,000 in its wake. The count for India is over a million, with over 25,000 being slain by the dastardly SARSCOV2.
As harmful, or even more, is the economic and business mayhem it has caused, with confidence both at the producer and consumer end at a well-bottom low. With its rampage not looking like stopping anytime too soon and warnings being aired by the World Health Organisation and other health bodies that Covid2019 is here to stay till next year, bringing the confidence back up to a healthy level seems extremely challenging.
Producers have to see light at the end of the Covid2019 tunnel to start thinking of promoting their products like they used to earlier. Not that their pockets are bulging; they will spend whatever well-shaved marketing budgets they have prudently with an eye on return on investment. Everyone is looking for some green shots of a return of confidence to open their purses. And they are looking at each other to see who will sprint from the promotion starting blocks first.
Zee Entertainment Enterprises (Zee) decided to take the initiative on this front. Hence, it rolled out an outdoor campaign wherein it featured some of India’s leading advertisers and their brands, announcing the date of the comeback of fresh episodes of shows on its general entertainment channels. It was a great move.
First, it recognised some of the advertisers who have been at it, putting TVCs out on television over the past few months when everyone was going snip-snip on their budgets. Secondly, it created a suspense-surprise element around who was behind the billboards, generating some buzz. Thirdly, it got people to start thinking whether they too should open their advertising spigot. Fourthly, it took a leadership in spending to promote its own products – namely its shows, clearly saying that it was walking the talk. Fifthly, it helped give some much-needed fluids to the emaciated outdoor sector. Lastly, it made an event out of it. ‘
It had its work cut out definitely; it had to get disparate brand managers to agree to its plan. Then it had to execute each brand’s creative similarly so that not one of them would take affront.
And of course, it picked up the tab, something the brands would have been more than happy with.
Did it raise confidence?
Indeed, it was a feel-good sight, outdoor sites promoting products, rather than carrying morbid messages about Covid2019.
As advertising guru Piyush Pandey told indiantelevision.com in a one on one virtual fireside chat recently: “Partnerships will play a crucial role in helping recover what we have lost courtesy the pandemic and lockdown.”
The pandemic is here to stay for a while. We will have to manoeuvre our way around it, through it and behind it, as it tries to cripple us even further. As they say: “the show must go on.”
One of the ways that can help make the burden of the show going on appear lighter is through partnerships. More and more companies can resort to such innovative collaborations. With supply chains getting in place and the country’s manufacturing engine beginning to chug, what is needed is some happy promotions and advertising to cheer us even as we are assailed by the dreary news daily about the increasing death toll as well as the much-tattered economy.
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