Vodafone makes a mark with catchy outdoor innovations at Rath Yatra, Puri

Puri's biggest annual extravaganza - the Rath Yatra, also heralds the return of Vodafone's annual initiatives to enhance the spirit of the festival. Vodafone India brought in ten different initiatives to enliven the proceedings and taking care of the comfort of devotees.

Each year, lakhs of pilgrims comprising of senior citizens, women, children and physically challenged, throng the route taken by the chariot to have a glimpse of Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra, the revered deities of the iconic Puri temple. Rath Yatra 2015 is extra significant given that it also happens to be Nabakalebara, an event held once in twelve years, where idols of the deities are replaced by a new set of idols. Given the sheer magnitude of human gathering that converges on Puri for this grand event every year, combined with the sultry weather conditions in Puri, Vodafone laid out a spread of initiatives for the benefit of devotees.

• On the day of the Rath Yatra, Vodafone arranged for 3 branded water vans/trucks to sprinkle water on the crowds and to relieve them from the sweltering heat
• Attention grabbing and absolutely free Vodafone Beach Shower Zone was put up at Puri beach, with life size ZooZoos stationed atop the structure seen opening the tap pouring out water
• To help travellers on the Bhubaneshwar- Puri route, Vodafone put up 100 KM of road-markers enroute BBSR- Puri- Konark , as these are more clearly visible while travelling than normal milestones.
• Direction markers in Puri to help visitors - all key routes and places to visit were marked clearly by Vodafone as Puri town did not have any direction markers.
• Set up Vodafone Umbrellas on Grand Road  on Rath Yatra Day to help people take shelter from the heat and humidity .
• Organised Nisan Drummers + Stilt Walkers to regale the pilgrims and to add to the festive spirit on Badadanda/Grand Road
• Vodafone tied-up with hotels in Puri to facilitate recharges and send money through m-pesa 24x7. This was planned to make it convenient for visitors to avail these services at their hotel itself without having to travel a distance
• Vodafone offered special roaming packs and Full Talktime recharges for roaming customers with specially made mobile Recharge Carts touring the city of Puri/Puri beach facilitating convenient top-ups
•  If customers recharged by dialling 121, they could get up to 75% off on Vodafone recharges - this was highlighted with unique outdoor hoardings at Damana Chowk and bus shelter at InfoCity depicting a large wheel reminding people about the Chariot Festival
• Vodafone customers could get discount on select restaurants under Vodafone Delights initiative. Customers needed to send a SMS to avail this offer, which cost Rs. 6.

Conveying his greetings to the residents of Odisha, on the occasion of the Nabakalebara Rath Yatra festival, Deepak Saluja, Business Head - Odisha, Vodafone India said, "At Vodafone, we are customer obsessed and keep their needs and requirements at the forefront, always. Being an occasion that brings together one of the largest human congregations in the state, we have found the Lord Jagannath Rath Yatra at Puri as a perfect platform to be out there with the pilgrims and demonstrate we care. Through our multiple assistance, safety and engagement initiatives, Vodafone's endeavour is to instill a sense of safety and help make their pilgrimage more comfortable, so they can get the most out of the spiritual experience that the Rath Yatra invokes.”

Apart from the above, Vodafone also used cube branding and tower branding at strategic locations across the State to create visibility and stature through the outdoor medium.