ZooZoos are back...

The ZooZoos have returned to Vodafone India after a gap of one year. This time they’ve upgraded themselves with new “skills” and appear in Ninja avatars. Conceptualised by Ogilvy India, the new ad #HappyToHelp in-a-click promotes Vodafone’s customer services through the launch of the brand’s new digital transformation initiatives.

The brand explains the new digital transformation initiatives in a press note.

‘With the world going digital, customer service across categories has evolved from being a human-led, call centre-based query resolution mechanism to a more digitally evolved, self-care and 24/7/365 experience. Vodafone is leading this evolution; handholding customers to move from assisted-only care to digital self-care and anytime doorstep services.’

‘With speed and efficiency at the core of its service philosophy, Vodafone focuses on convenience across channels for customers. For example, customers can now customise their plans and numbers online and have a connection home delivered. They can also manage their entire family’s accounts on the My Vodafone App and pre-book appointments before they visit a store.’

Siddharth Banerjee

Commenting on the digital transformation, Siddharth Banerjee, executive vice president - marketing, Vodafone India, says in a release, “As technology drives the changing customer behaviour and expectations, we at Vodafone have driven our digital transformation initiatives hard and also evolved our Happy to Help philosophy for the 2018 Digital Customer to 'Happy to Help... IN A CLICK'. Further, in keeping with the topicality of our campaign break, we are bringing back our much loved ZooZoos in a brand-new Ninja avatar... they are quick, agile and efficient... much like our service experience, enabled by the digital transformation initiatives at Vodafone India.”

Kiran AntonyWe spoke to Kiran Antony, executive creative director, Ogilvy India, about the pressure that he faces while writing a ZooZoo ad and where he finds the inspiration to come up with yet another ZooZoo campaign.

He says, “Pressure is always there and it gets compounded after every season. The inspiration comes from the product/ service which we are advertising. In this case, we wanted to communicate 'help is just a click away'. Ninjas stand for speed and agility. And that's how Ninja ZooZoos came about.”

Experts Speak

Tamanna VirmaniTamanna Virmani, senior creative director, ADK-Fortune, says, “ZooZoo campaigns have always been a delight to watch. But what started years ago as something fresh and unusual has lost some of its sheen. The storyline of the ad is simple, but not eye-catching or dramatic in any way. The ZooZoo figures manage to keep the viewer glued for their cuteness. The ad might not make you laugh, but it still does bring a smile to your face.”

She adds, “Though long-running campaigns are easily recognisable and people immediately connect it with the brand, the only downside is that unless the idea is powerful, viewers just might miss the ad or could even change the channel thinking it must be one of the old ads. ZooZoo ads are a welcome break from the usual human actors on TV. The story of the ad needs to be more powerful so that people remember it is a ‘good ad’ and not just some white creatures delivering a message that you will forget the moment you switch off your TV.”

Virmani believes that ZooZoos have entertained many Indians. She says, “With a better storyline, it will surely win more hearts. To refresh the campaign, Zoo Zoos that are slightly different from the existing ones, can be introduced in the new ads.”

Chandrashekhar MhaskarChandrashekhar Mhaskar, vice president, Isobar India, says, “Since it’s come after a long time, viewers will definitely pause and have a ‘dekko’ at it, more so because the ZooZoos have that magnetic legacy to engage viewers. They would change the channel, perhaps, after having watched it twice. While the idea is not very out-of-the-box, the execution is worthy of a second look.”

Mhaskar believes that the brand could have tried something different with Ninjas. “Coming from Vodafone, one would definitely expect something clutter-breaking”, he says.

Gerard JayaranjanGerard Jayaranjan, national creative director, Social Kinnect, feels that the current ad lives up to the expectations, like the old ZooZoo campaigns. He says, “ZooZoos, as characters, have built certain equity for themselves over the years. And that’s quite favourable. So, I would imagine no one will change their TV channel immediately when this ad comes on. I do think they would be interested in seeing the latest antics of the ZooZoos. At least for the first time.”

Talking about the execution, he says, “It’s half-decent. The love for the characters will mask any shortcomings in the ideas department. The idea certainly could have been better.”

Jayaranjan believes that the music could have been better. “They could have played around with the ZooZoo’s expressions a bit more,” he adds.