Tata Indicom: Now advertising on bills

Telecom player Tata Indicom has decided to get brands to advertise on the telecom and broadband bills it disseminates. Network Media Solutions, a provider of innovative and out of home solutions, and with competence in airport advertising, is undertaking the initiative for Tata Indicom.

Ajaz Memon, director, Network Media Solutions, says, “Prior to this, we have taken up brand advertising on bills for Reliance Energy also. Brands such as ICICI, P&G (for Ariel) and HSBC used to advertise on the company’s bills before we came on board.” Once the agency took charge, advertisers such as Tata Sky and Reliance Insurance began to appear on the bills.

Abdul Khan, president, marketing, Tata Teleservices, says, “This is a first for Tata Indicom and we are considering every medium to reach out to our consumer. One is always on the lookout for engagement programmes for one’s brand, and our plan is to use this medium to the best of its capacity, to our advantage. Differentiating strategy is always welcome.”

Through this initiative, Tata Indicom is targeting to reach out to more than 25 lakh prospective customers. The bill is generally viewed by the chief wage earner of the family, and also has a long shelf life. The one bill-one brand strategy is a benefit to the advertiser, unlike the clutter in other print media. Bills have a vast reach across metros and non-metros.

In terms of ad space, the advertiser would get space right next to the bill amount, which is available in two sizes across different segment bills – mobile, fixed wireless and broadband. Advertisers can choose maximum or minimum ad space; irrespective of the size, each bill will display only one ad.

Considering the logistics, with the number of bills per month at a constant 25.17 lakhs, the cost per bill for the front portion is 80 paise; the envelope and the inserts would cost 99 paise.

Memon adds, “The future of this business is data mining, where a company will want a particular ad on the bill (the communication for a brand) to reach a particular locality, or even distinguish that an ad would appear only in bills with a certain billing limit. For example, an ad for a car would appear only on bills which amount to Rs 2,000 and more, as the brand is exposed to an audience which has a certain amount of disposable income.”