 "Brands-elections")
Even as political parties are feverishly turning their candidates into brands, the actual brand owners are joining the poll pitch too, albeit in a different way. The latest to spring to action is Hindustan Unilever, which is releasing a film on 2 April that it has produced and one approved by the Election Commission of India. Piyush Pandey, executive chairman and creative director, South Asia, O&M and R Balakrishnan (Balki), chairman and chief creative officer, Lowe Lintas chipped in with their creative ideas and scripting, gratis. HUL joins the Tata Group, Google and ITC who have all released communication revolving around the elections.
What seems to underlie the films from most of these corporate houses is a message of empowerment. And, most have chosen to execute it by talking to the first-time voter.
HUL is launching a campaign to encourage elgibile citizens to cast their vote, with the Election Commission of India endorsing the two films. A result of a challenge set by the Election Commission for finalists on an inter-B-School challenge conducted annually by HUL and CNBC TV18, the idea that won was one that recognised that the urban voter was more politically apathetic and were less likely to vote as a result. Amrit Nanda, Ankur Chaudhary, and Anurag Katiyar from IIM-B had observed that reasons such as 'don't care about candidates', 'too busy to vote' and 'stay away from home' were reasons that led to a voter turnout of 58.19 per cent last Lok Sabha elections.
Pandey says, "Both Balki and I helped with the creative idea while Prasoon Pandey of Corcoise Films directed the two films. One of them convey the sense of pride that a first-time voter, someone who is 18 years of age, could feel when we remind her that she might not have been taken seriously earlier but now, India is asking for her mandate. The other film works on the guilt of people who refrain from casting their vote. We try to show that their single vote can create a difference." HUL produced the film and it would run on all the channels of Network 18 to begin with. "We have always carried out our operations with a belief that what is good for India is good for HUL and see this campaign as an opportunity to engage young Indians for creating a better future," says Hemant Bakshi, executive director, home and personal care, HUL.
The nuances of the strata among India's voters has also been captured in Tata Tea's 'Power of 49' campaign. It might be an extension of the Jaago Re campaign years back, mobilising the youth to vote, now moving on to underline the importance of women in the electoral process, but the execution of the latest ad chooses the one topic that would rally women from all sections - their safety - points out Lowe Lintas National Creative Director, Amer Jaleel. "It shows that people who think of themselves as more evolved might learn a thing or two about being part of the electorate from someone less well-off," says Jaleel.
Jaleel says the campaign saw the Tata Group participate as well: "Marketers try to ride a topical bandwagon. And, elections is a huge topic right now. However, this year, the Tata Group has pitched in with funds to power the campaign for the message of empowerment."
Saurabh Parmar, CEO & Founder, Brandlogist says, "The challenge of associating with elections is that for all the brands the 'product' and 'call to action' is the same. It is about encouraging people to vote. Thus, the connect heavily relies on the creative execution or the angle."
When Google started work on its latest online film on India's first voter, 97-year old Shyam Saran Negi, who still makes it a point to vote in his village in Kinnaur, the brief for O&M Group Creative Director Sukesh Nayak was to talk to the millions of first-time voters who are part of the Internet generation. "We wanted to inspire them to vote of their own volition," Nayak says. Unlike its Reunion long-form ads, this did not have any reference to the product. "Even an election message from a brand will work only if the brand is in the consideration set of the audience the campaign is targetting. As an Internet company, which would see the youth turn to it for research on the polls, from checking if names have been registered to the nearest polling booth, Google wanted to be a part of this important stage in their lives," says Nayak. Google has spun off a microsite to help people pledge to vote.
ITC seems to have devised an ad for its audience - kids and mothers - for Sunfeast Yippee around the elections. A TVC, showing a group of kids about to form a party of their own with demands of doing away with homework etc. distracted by the smell of noodles cooking nearby, has been running on kids' channels. However, Chitranjan Dar, CEO, ITC Foods says, "It was not supposed to be a comment on the elections as it had been approved of a year ago. Though the attire might have been inspired by events a year ago."
