Sign up for afaqs! Newsletters
Revamped auto magazine TopGear launches outdoor and print campaign
The campaign objective was to encourage a wider cross-section of people to discover the joy of cars with the re-launched magazine.
The automotive magazine TopGear has gone through a 'makeover' this month, followed by a re-launch of the brand.
The major changes seen are in the expanded sections like The News, First Drives and Serious Car Tests, better and a larger spread of photographs, as well as the overall design of the magazine.
The communication objective was to use the re-launch of TopGear Magazine India to encourage a wider cross-section of people, besides 'petrol heads', to discover the joy of cars via the bolder, newer magazine.
A new tagline 'Man Love Car' was created by the agency that aims to capture man's innate passion for cars in a primal and powerful way. The creatives adopt the tone of the magazine, and are funny and a bit irreverent, needling the readers. The art is fresh and eye-catching.
The copy goes something like this: 'Your heart has valves. An engine has valves. Case closed.', 'What the receding hairline taketh, the red sports car giveth.', amongst other creatives.
"The communication idea came from the simple insight that while most men are passionate about cars and bikes in their school and college days, the interest diminishes over time, as other things take priority. This communication is designed to re-awaken their inherent love for the automobile and rekindle the romance," says Venkatagiri Rao, senior creative director, Mudra West.
The campaign was broken across print publications like The Times of India, The Economic Times, Mumbai Mirror, and World Wide Media magazines (a magazine joint venture between Bennett, Coleman & Co Ltd and BBC Magazines), as well as on hoardings, and via retail branding (window and in-store wall branding) in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru.
The revamp of the magazine was promoted amongst the media fraternity with e-mailers and print ads, culminating with a launch event.
Currently, TopGear has 28 editions worldwide, and sells more than one million copies, globally. It has been the UK's top-selling automotive magazine for the last 18 years. The brand's website, www.topgear.com sees more than a million unique visits per month.
Owned by BBC Worldwide, TopGear started as a television show in the UK in 1977. Today, the show is watched by 350 million people around the world. In editorial form, BBC TopGear was launched in the UK in 1993.
For the record, besides TopGear, Mudra West handles three other brands under the World Wide Media umbrella, including the Lonely Planet Magazine in India, and brands Filmfare and Femina.