Titan links its heritage with The History Channel

Titan Industries, in a bid to promote its collection of Heritage watches, has tied up with The History Channel. The content led association is supporting the Heritage India initiative, which aims to educate Indians about their rich cultural heritage.

Beginning last week, The History Channel has been running short capsules on interesting facts during its regular shows and during ad breaks. These capsules briefly highlight the background or significance of various monuments and heritage sites in India.

Talking to afaqs!, Suparna Mitra, head, marketing, Titan Watches, says, “The Heritage Collection represents and showcases the rich cultural and architectural heritage of our country. In the past, we have advertised the brand in some niche publications. The idea of getting the brand seen on a platform with appealing content on history was tempting. Thus emerged the idea of presenting Heritage India Facts, in which we decided to incorporate the brand name and its values by weaving it in with the content.”

For Rajesh Sheshadri, vice-president, content and communication, The History Channel, roping in Titan as the presenter of the heritage initiative amounts to a mutually beneficial association. Speaking to afaqs!, he says, “Titan was looking for a medium through which it could connect to its target group (TG) directly, presenting its collection based on monuments. Given the fact that our forte and expertise is in history and culture, it was a given that as a brand, it would do well to be seen on the channel. Again, we as a channel had an excellent opportunity to offer viewers additional content integrating the brand in question.”

Sheshadri shares that the brand integration is a month long initiative. Four-five snippets featuring different monuments will be aired at least 20-30 times a day. The high frequency of the campaign aims to make up for its short run on the channel.

Titan's media agency, Maxus Bengaluru, shares credit for coming up with the novel idea of taking the brand into the TG's drawing room.

H Vishwanath, general manager, Maxus Bengaluru, says, “The initiative shows that a well thought out media association can really work wonders for a brand. We saw no point in making our presence felt on the channel through a 30 second commercial. Instead, we explored the possibility of a content led tieup because The History Channel attracts viewers who have an interest in monuments and Indian heritage. We had a ready TG that could be approached for showcasing the collection.”

Vishwanath believes that to achieve sales, one has to make an effort to move the product out of the shop and bring it closer to consumers. The History Channel works suitably as a media vehicle using which Titan has been able to weave the brand promise of its Heritage Collection in the content itself.

He adds, “Last year, for our Aviator Collection, we had a similar tieup with the National Geographic Channel. In future, Titan will explore all such possibilities where the media vehicle and the brand are in sync, adding value to the brand.”