Times are changing fast and how! From a tech-savvy generation that evolved from sending emails once or twice a week from Outlook, to 100 SMS per day, to getting frustrated because of the EDGE, to surviving the 2G & 3G scams, 4G seems to have reached saturation point now. Advertising will soon give all the major players in the telecom industry a run for their money. This article talks about how 4G is slowly getting blurred out of the picture and 5G is all set to hog the spotlight, thanks to advertising.
The JIO Effect
Reliance did spoil us, as consumers, with exorbitant data consumption habits. When they first offered free data for all JIO users, we all knew that it was a technique to widen their customer base. Some day or the other, the prices were bound to increase and that’s what we all are experiencing today. If you ask us to go back to the 2G/3G days, it would be nearly impossible for us to regress from the current lifestyle that we have adapted to.
Apart from JIO, other brands too have had their share of glory when it comes to using advertising as a powerful tool of communication. Idea’s “What an Idea Sirji” did break the monotony by showing the “Jugaad” ideas that have been a unique Indian signature style of innovation. AirTel, on the other hand, played the angle of connecting with friends because “Har Ek Friend Zaroori Hota Hai”. Coming to Vodafone, they took the quirky angle to talk about everything topical and created a mascot ZooZoo, which had its own language, identity and a whole new friends’ circle.
Just like the Telecom Service Providers (TSPs), each generation of technology offered something better. Be it faster networks, more telecom circles, better customer service, and so on.
Advertising – A Game Changer?
As an ad agency, the job, of any client, is always to identify the problem or the challenge. With every generation of technology, in the case of telecom, the challenge was to communicate the benefits of that technology. When Hutch became synonymous with “The Pug”, it was because of advertising. It told a story that “Wherever you go, our network follows”, which was a subtle dig at BSNL’s constant problem with the network coverage. While Vodafone (earlier Hutch, In India, at least), created these imaginary other-worldly beings called ZooZoos (which was a giant leap from The Pug), AirTel took the competition to another level and decided to humanise the brand by having a human mascot (Sasha Chhetri) who later became popular as “The Airtel Girl”.
Will 5G rule forever?
It obviously won’t! While ZooZoos visit Earth only when there’s a cricket match, and JIO ensures that all cricket players dance to the “Jio dhan dhana dhan” tune, 5G won’t be a permanent affair. There will be many players to claim uniqueness of some kind in their offerings, the slew of firsts will soon fade anyway. With the Vodafone-Idea merger (now known as Vi), having the upper hand to create some kind of unique storytelling around the new technology, it remains to be seen whether they harp on the offerings, the legacy, or the technology. Vi has already launched a 5G campaign communicating that the best is getting even better, we’re yet to see what the rest have in store.
The media spends by telecom players on 5G technology is reported to be a 700-crore and the staggering amount is all set to challenge the advertising minds on how well the new technology is made acceptable by all generations.
At 3 Dots Design Pvt. Ltd., we believe that advertising without challenges cannot really evolve. Unless the ever-evolving technology poses some serious creative blocks to the freethinkers, coming up with a brand story that stays for generations would be a long journey. Being one of the best ad agencies in Pune, we have a team of experienced content writers, digital strategists, creative designers and artists and brand custodians who ensure your brand story is heard. If you wish to know more about who we are or what we do, please visit www.3dotsdesign.in or get in touch with us at contact@3dotsdesign.in