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Company Brief
National, September 16, 2016
“Positioning” is something that occupies agency mind space all the time. An agency’s bread and butter comes from arriving at it for a client’s product, working around creating communication arrived at a positioning, etc. The reputations of many agencies have been built around their comfort level around this marketing tool! But logical then, what works for a client’s product should also work for an advertising agency: after all an agency too is a product.
So, how does an agency position itself: what can be its claim to professional fame – people who work there, brands that it handles, an intuitive understanding of the market place? Mumbai based ad agency, Collateral, ticks all the boxes but it has earned its spurs in an altogether novel way – it is India’s standard bearer when it comes to “automobile-related” communication and that too by a long margin! When it comes to this line of advertising, Collateral steals a march over many.
It is not just the brands that lend credence to Collateral’s claims but also the breadth of its expertise in the world of auto advertising. The gamut of activities that Collateral executes and infuses fresh thinking in automobile advertising makes it a Go-To team. From creating brand communication to communications for dealers, distributors, retailers and mechanics to thinking ideas for annual conferences to designing brand logos and relooking at brand logos to creating communication for engines, spare parts, auto repair kits and accessories to helping a foreign lubricant major make its India entry into the market, Collateral has been part of it all. The biggest names in the business: Volkswagen, Audi, TATA Genuine Parts (a division of TATA motors), Wurth and Drivol will vouch for Collateral’s contribution being integral to their brands’ success.
If Sales is the driver behind car communication, Collateral has gone a step further with Volkswagen and Audi – creating communication for after-sales, pre-owned cars, and even worked with the auto financing subsidiaries of these renowned car majors. Learning the ‘hot-buttons to press’ in these lines of businesses and using the knowledge gained to create new and more effective hot buttons.
Every car manufacturer worth its name will talk about the importance of its dealer network. Collateral has added substance to Volkswagen’s dealer communications: starting from looking after the needs of 28 dealers, it today partners more than 100 dealers. Be it communication required at an internal level or to highlight its CRM activities Volkswagen finds a trusted ally in Collateral.
Everybody is making a beeline for digital communication. Collateral used this fascinating new avenue to great effect for Volkswagen. Collateral created an SEM campaign for Volkswagen dealers in the south. The campaign struck a chord and garnered around 2000 qualified leads within a month.
With Audi, Collateral has been on a communication overdrive, being instrumental in conceptualizing and creating a number of brand campaigns, central campaigns and festival-focused communication. TATA Genuine Parts (TGP) will soon roll out its new brand identity to be visible all across including packaging, courtesy the efforts put in by Collateral.
The auto spare parts industry is fraught with lack of information and technical know-how. Collateral helped TGP envisage an experience zone which would address this issue, making it a convenient and informative experience for the buyers. TGP has since rolled out two such outlets and more are in the offing. Within the TATA group, these ventures have been noticed and Collateral’s pioneering efforts have been lauded.
Every conference of TGP, be it at a dealer, retailer or distributor level is a big hit and it stems from Collateral’s unique understanding of these vital cogs in the sales machinery.
If marketing successes are all about numbers, Collateral and TGP rub shoulders with numbers at a Limca Book of Records level. Together they created a record for the number of SMSes received on a day: Mechanics had to SMS a code to get special discounts. It created a buzz like no other.
Collateral has created a modular advertising kit for TGP called TGP Hub. It connects the entire ecosystem of TGP comprising Distributor, RSM, Product Group heads, HO and Agency to seamlessly process all communication needs and event requirements. Talk about communication that works!
Collateral is not just involved with the creations that ply on the road, but on the state of the roads itself, actually the traffic management. Recently, it created communication for Asia’s biggest Traffic Infrastructure Technology, titled TrafficInfraTech expo that showcased 200+ brands and had participants from across 20 countries. The pavilions housed gadgets and services under various heads: ITS, Tolling & Telematics, Safety & Security, Mass Transportation, Road Infrastructure & Facilities. Imagine having to understand all these and then communicate about them! Collateral came out with flying colours using digital media to great effect - . This was supplemented by event branding and above the line media vehicles.
Automobile related advertising is one of Collateral’s forte, but as the team there will say, “We still have miles to go! But a great start has been made nevertheless.”
For further information please contact:
Collateral - The Storytellers
Nandini Shastri
CEO
MOB: 09819907339