Brand activation broadens OOH canvas

Brand activation is seemingly gaining significant ground on the Indian OOH landscape. A host of brands, in particular automobile, mobile, and consumer services brands, are seen to undertake on-ground consumer engagement events and activities to complement their OOH presence. Ketan Lakhani, Director, Orienta Cine Advertising, a Mumbai-based firm that carved its own niche in the brand activation space, observes that onground activities provide consumers the opportunity to “touch and feel” brands and experience services that they come across in different advertisements.

While malls are the preferred locations for carrying brand activation and sampling activities, other places like multiplexes, modern trade outlets, traditional trade outlets, Metro stations, educational campuses, and residential localities also serve as good locations for these initiatives, says Lakhani, while adding that the choice of location is aligned with the particular product profile or service offering.

In the recent past, Orienta Cine Advertising planned and executed brand activation for two major brands – Oppo and Ola Cabs – with a good measure of success. In the case of Oppo mobile brand activation that was conducted at R-city Mall in Mumbai in mid-August, Orienta Cine Advertising created a zone that featured LED Oppo cut-out on the backdrop and a selfie zone where people took their own selfies and had an experience of using the Oppo phones.
 
Orienta Cine Advertising captured the data generated from consumer touchpoints and engagements on a daily basis, and that served as useful inputs for the brand.

In another case, Orienta Cine Advertising ran an “Olaphant” activity in the R-city Mall in July to promote Ola Share Cab services. A huge huge inflatable elephant was put up in the designated area to highlight the compelling and strong features of Ola Share Rides. Olaphant also symbolised the positive outcomes shared rides – reduced traffic emissions.

In this case too the brand gained significant insights on consumer acceptance of the concept of shared rides.

Lakhani says that the opportunity to conduct power brand activation programmes are not limited to the metro cities. Rather, there are ample opportunities to connect with consumers in the non-Metro cities and towns through this method. What keep the business ticking is indeed the business impact that such activities have on the brand – amplified by noticeable spike in sales volumes.