rmg david walks home with Raj TV’s creative account

The Chennai office of WPP agency rmg david has bagged the creative duties of Tamil general entertainment channel Raj TV. Though small (about Rs 2-crore), the account saw five agencies in the fray for it including Fifth Estate, Wings of Change, Maitri Communications, Creative Garage, and of course, rmg.

The latter won the account after a pitch process that stretched for about two-three weeks. rmg has worked with Raj TV earlier during the launch of the Suhashini Maniratnam-hosted Ladies Junction in 2004.

According to B Shankar, vice-president, sales and marketing, Raj TV, the agency demonstrated an understanding of the brand that was superior to others. “All the agencies had good presentations, but rmg’s was the best,” he says.

The brief given to the agencies at the time of pitch was in connection with the channel’s proposed makeover, which is slated to go on-air on April 14. Channel executives asked the agencies to provide recommendations on how viewers should relate to the brand following the change.

The makeover will see the introduction of a slew of new shows in prime time and non-prime time, and Raj TV’s current positioning of being a ‘people’s channel’ may undergo a transition as well. “That will depend on the suggestions provided by rmg. Whether we should stick to it or go for a change will depend on what our creative partner tells us,” says Shankar.

Coupled with a change in content, the look, feel and graphics will also be altered, which will be the second such transformation for Raj TV. In October 2002, the channel had done some “cosmetic changes” by introducing a new logo. This time round, the channel is going the whole hog to bring in differentiation in product.

Its media partner is yet to be decided, which will be done during the relaunch. OMS, the media arm of Mudra – the erstwhile creative agency of Raj TV – handled relevant duties for the brand.

Apart from TV, Raj TV’s proposes to distribute its spend over print, outdoor and on-ground to increase impact.

© 2005 agencyfaqs!