BSNL appoints PDM to take its 3G service amongst consumers

The telecommunications company selects PDM to execute a multi-city campaign

Technology can intimidate people, but not when a company takes the responsibility of familiarising its customers with it. That is what Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has set out to do, by launching a multi-city, on-ground activation to talk to customers about its 3G services.

The Rs 3.5-crore campaign was bagged by Percept D'Mark (PDM), PerceptH's activation arm, after a pitch that invited entries from all of its four empanelled agencies – Euro RSCG, Mudra, Prachar Advertising and PerceptH.

BSNL appoints PDM to take its 3G service amongst consumers

The campaign, which began on July 1, is on a two-month pilot run in 15 cities – Kolkata, Bhubaneswar, Lucknow, Patna, Kanpur, Varanasi, Ambala, Karnal, Jalandhar, Shimla, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Dehradun and Agra.

A general manager at BSNL informs afaqs!, "We wanted to give our audience a first-hand feel of the service, show them how the various aspects of 3G work. The activation is to make the consumer experience the service, as it is only through that the people will start demanding it. Through the campaign, we are targeting young executives and the upper-middle class, as they are more likely to use the service."

For executing the campaign, the agency divided the 15 cities into Category A, B and C. While Category A cities were Lucknow, Jaipur and Kolkata, Category B comprised Bhubaneswar, Patna, Kanpur, Varanasi, Shimla, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Dehradun and Agra. The remaining cities came under Category C.

The modus operandi is similar in all the cities, but the number of activities differs in the three categories. For instance, in a city like Kolkata (Category A), two branded canters went in and around the city; activities are being held in five retail outlets, such as Nokia, Samsung and such stores; information dissemination and other activities are being executed at five BSNL Sanchar Haats and four mall activations are undertaken every weekend.

In comparison, a Category B city such as Patna gets to experience the service one time less at each touch point.

Sanjay Shukla, national head, brand activation, PDM, says, "BSNL will take the feedback from the pilot run, and then, depending on the response the initiative gets, the campaign will be extended to other cities. The activation was flagged off by the local general managers at each city. We are looking at a number of 1.5 to 2 lakh people to share the experience of the service."

Shukla informs that each city centre of BSNL is also individually investing in promoting the event on television, radio and outdoor advertising.

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