Kapil Ohri
Digital

Nokia to focus more on digital advertising for N97 Mini launch campaign

The mobile handset manufacturer has already rolled out a launch campaign, which is aimed to create buzz and get bookings of the phone

In what could be a trendsetter for the industry, mobile handset brand, Nokia, has decided to allocate majority of its advertising spends on the digital media to announce the launch for its recently launched model - N97 Mini. However, the strategy has been adopted only for the four-month launch period.

Majority of the ad spend during the launch campaign will be routed to digital media," claims RP Singh, director, business planning, Maxus Interaction, the agency that handles Nokia's digital media duties.

Nokia to focus more on digital advertising for N97 Mini launch campaign
On why Nokia has decided to focus more on digital media, to advertise the customizable home screen and internet capability of N97 Mini, Singh, points out, "Digital media blends very well with the product features of N97 Mini. Also, the audience to be targeted is all available online."

N97 Mini is an internet-connected multimedia device, in which various mobile applications or widgets, such as Twitter, Facebook and Gmail come pre-loaded; while other applications can be downloaded from Nokia's mobile store, Ovi.com, for free.

Moreover, the phone's home screen, like a computer's desktop, can be customised; and users can place specific shortcut icons for mobile applications, say Twitter. Thus, the user gets one-click access to Twitter through the icon.

"The customisation of the home screen and the widget capability can be best explained and experienced through the digital platform, than any other medium. Also, its target audience - users in the 18-34 years age group in the top 10 metros - is definitely there on the digital medium," Singh adds.

The digital campaign for N97 Mini launch will take place in two phases. The first phase - to get bookings before the launch of the phone in the market - is already over. The second phase, aimed at creating buzz and generating sales, went live last week.

Singh indicates that in the second phase, more than 35 websites will be used to reach consumers. An ad network will also be employed to increase the number of touch points on the internet.

There are plans to carry out various innovations in the coming weeks, such as road blocks, homepage takeovers, skin branding, rich-media expandable banners and video advertising. Innovations have been planned across all major portals, such as Yahoo.co.in, MSN.co.in, Indiatimes.com, Rediff.com and Sify.com.

Apart from this, sponsorships of cricket, Bollywood and mobile related content on sites such as Cricinfo.com, Sify.com, and Ebay.in, as well as e-mail marketing, are part of the plan.

Have news to share? Write to us atnewsteam@afaqs.com