Vijay Karnataka says, "Don't adjust"

BCCL-owned Kannada daily Vijay Karnataka has launched a campaign that attempts to encourage readers to stop adjusting and stand up for their rights.

According to the brand, the campaign is an answer to Solpa Adjust Maadi, meaning 'please adjust', which is one of the most commonly used phrases in Karnataka.

The set of five television commercials for the campaign shows an average man being harassed and forced to adjust at every step of his life. Some of the scenarios shown are an auto driver not returning the change, demand for bribes at a government office, people adjusting to poor roads, accumulated garbage and overcrowded buses. The tone of the TVCs is irreverent. The message is presented in a comic manner, with the underlying message to stop adjusting.

At the end, each film refers to stop adjusting and urges people to complain and raise their voice. It also mentions the brand, which claims to be the No. 1 daily of Karnataka.

Saraswati Anand, head, marketing, Vijay Karnataka, says, "The campaign aims to establish the brand image and what the brand stands for. The situations shown in the TVCs are the daily problems faced by the Karnataka people, to which they have found a solution through what is known as 'Jugaad' in India. We are asking people to not adopt potholes, but to stand up and ask for their rights. We are urging them to change their mindsets and it can only happen once people decide to change."

For the first time, the brand has ventured on to Facebook to promote the campaign. Anand further adds that the campaign will be an ongoing exercise and will be supported by strong editorials in the paper.

Karnataka-based agency People Design & Communications has designed the creatives for the campaign.

Rajeev Ravindranathan, co-founder, People Design and Communications, says, "The brief from the brand was to talk to readers and engage them. And, a lot of it can be attributed to the kind of political change that we are witnessing in the country at the moment. We aimed at telling people that though adjusting to problems has got into our DNA, it is not the right way; we need to stand up. They have to believe in themselves and as the current situation of the country also says, even one person can incite a change."

V Balaji, co-founder, People Design & Communications, says, "'Solpa Adjust Maadi' isn't a motto, it's an excuse. But it is not our creation, it is in the lingo of the Kannada people and for this campaign we have given a twist to the entire thing. The crux of the entire campaign was definitely saying no, which has been said a number of times, but our priority was to come up with a twist relevant to our readers in Karnataka. Hence we chose Adjust Maadkobedi without being preachy."

The media mix for the campaign includes television, print, digital and outdoor. The brand has used more than 150 OOH touch points across Karnataka, and is regularly advertising in its newspapers. On the television front, the five TVCs are being aired on TV9 (news channel) and Kannada GECs. On the digital front, the promotions cover Facebook.

Print and inner voice

A large number of print media publications have suddenly woken up to the idea of riding the wave of social awakening. Many recent campaigns have attempted to reach out to people through social messages and initiatives. This campaign follows suit, albeit in a humorous manner.

Speaking on whether Vijay Karnataka's campaign will click, Emmanuel Upputuru, founder, ITSA says he finds the campaign immature. "I am not so sure. Social awakening ads have to hit below the belt, choke you, make you angry. If you go the fun route, you have to do much better than this. I feel this is pretty immature," adds Upputuru.

He adds that many media publications follow the social awakening route to reach out to people as it's easier to preach than practice. "It makes them feel they are on a higher moral ground. Or maybe at the back of their mind, they are guilty that their customers are buying and reading trash. So newspapers think by doing this kind of work, they are helping people think that they are non-corrupt and have values. It's a win-win situation," he observes.

Manish Bhat, co-founder, Scarecrow Asia, finds the ad in good taste but would like to wait and see the people's reaction to it. "The ad has a humorous insight, is populist in nature and hence has an appeal attached to it without being preachy with its TG being Aam Janta," he says.

He adds, "Normally the job of a news media organisation is to tell news impartially, without giving an opinion and allow people to form one through a debate and discussion. Here it seems that there is a complete confrontation with the establishment. There is definitely need of a change but it should be in a proper way."