RPG Enterprises has unveiled a new campaign for CEAT tyres. After the rebranding exercise (it changed the CEAT logo in 2008), this is the second-biggest marketing investment. The positioning, “Be idiot-safe”, builds on the idea of following road discipline, and how good tyres can help a motorcycle rider avoid accidents.
CEAT Executive Director (operations) Arnab Banerjee says: “The idea behind the campaign is that the roads are full of idiots who do not follow road discipline. Since these idiots cannot be taken off the road, the tyres of your two-wheeler should have a superior grip to enable you to stop when necessary and save yourself. The campaign promotes the “better road grip” feature of CEAT tyres.”
The thought behind the three TVCs is to educate users about the chaos on the Indian roads. “Mostly, tyre companies show a mountain or a bumpy road to explain the features. But we wanted to take a slice of life to align the campaign with our brand strategy. Our target group is youngsters below 30 years of age: College-goers and first-time job-holders,” says Banerjee.
The first film opens with a man, who is talking on his mobile phone, as he walks on a busy street pushing a pram. With total absence of mind, he abruptly turns the pram to cross the street, and a biker driving on the road stops in no time before the man. The man looks disgusted, as he yells at the biker for not being attentive. The voice-over: “The streets are filled with idiots. CEAT tyres come with an advanced grip and angular grip design.”
The second film shows a couple (the wife is expecting) returning after watching a movie on a bike. As they discuss the plot of the film, a car with youngsters stops right across their path. The man driving the bike brakes to avert a mishap. The third TVC showcases how four-wheeler drivers also play havoc by keeping the car in the middle of the road.
While Shyam Madiraju is the director of the films, the production house is Magic Hour Productions. The films were shot in Mumbai over one night and two days. Ogilvy India Executive Creative Director Anup Chitnis says, “The creative brief was to play around the grip of the bike, as the biker needs the grip the most. On the Indian roads, people don’t care about the bikers, and they enter the road without any hesitation.”
Besides the three TVCs, the company launched a teaser campaign last month where coffee mugs at Café Coffee Day outlets were branded with traffic pictures and the brand positioning, ‘Be idiot-safe’. Also, it launched its digital campaign through the website, www.beidiotsafe.com, to showcase rash driving, traffic violations and dangerous riding habits to support the TV-led campaign. “While in just 20 days, CEAT acquired 10,500 fans on its Facebook page, 250,000 visitors had hit the site in a month’s time,” says Banerjee.
According to Automotive Tyre Manufacturers’ Association, three dozen tyre manufacturers operate in the industry, and 10 large tyre companies account for over 95 per cent of the total tyre production. “CEAT competes with other players like TVS and MRF in the OEM (original equipment manufacturer) segment as well as in the replacement tyre market. While CEAT’s market share is in single digits in the OEM segment, it has garnered 15 per cent share in the replacement tyre market. We have strong brand equity in the replacement tyre market which the current campaign aims to strengthen,” adds Banerjee.