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Telecom firms explore brand awareness initiatives
By siliconindia
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Thursday, 08 October 2009, 22:13 IST |
3 Comments
New Delhi: Telecom companies are exploring the awareness initiatives on the internet as Idea is the recent entrant who joins the league after Vodafone, reports Business Standard.
Meet Zac, he has a problem in staying fit, carries a paunch and needs to exercise. The celebrities are lined up who wish to take him out for a walk like Mahesh Bhatt, Yuvraj Singh, Chetan Bhagat and Gul Panang.
Zac is a cartoon character launched by Idea Cellular on the web as an extension of its "Walk When You Talk" campaign. The users call Zac on his Idea number and give suggestions on his fitness. He is available on Facebook and Twitter, while efforts are in process to introduce him on Orkut as well. He gets around 2,000 calls a day and has a fan base of 8,000 people.
The telecom companies are using the virtual space for brand awareness initiatives. Sony Entertainment Television (SET) introduced the first comic character on the web "Main Fekoo" to promote its reality show "Champion Chaalbaaz No 1." The character wrote blogs about the program and uploaded promos on social networking sites.
"Digital platforms are emerging as a key enabler for brand connect, especially with the youth. The intent is to create an engagement combining the digital and mobile medium aimed at the youth," said Pradeep Shrivastava, Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Idea Cellular.
The telecom company has also launched another cartoon character "Dada" on the web, coinciding with the launch of its services in Orissa. Dada is a tourist guide in Puri and has no idea about a thing, but ends making up for it with his cordial nature.
Vodafone-Essar had introduced Zoozoos on Facebook and YouTube in April. Its Facebook fan page received around 3,15,000 fan mails and over seven million page views in the first two months.
"With usage of internet on the rise in India, its effectiveness as a dynamic medium of communications is growing rapidly," said Kumar Ramanathan, CMO, Vodafone Essar.
Virgin Mobile is another telecom company that has put up its online character "Pebo" on YouTube, propagating its 50 paisa per minute STD calls and other services. The industry expects other telecom companies to follow the trend.
