SEEKING YOUNGISTAN

• Strategy - Tailored, more relevant offering for a single, distinct segment

• Positioned as a youth centric brand.

Why this segment?

• Target customers aged between 15 and 30 years.• Estimated population in India of people between

15 and 30 years - 400 million.• Distinct mobile phone usage habits by the young

users present a huge advantage:– Early adopters.– They make more and longer out-bound voice

calls. – Significant users of SMS, potentially large

customers for other value added services.– Shorter handset upgradation cycle - under

12 months.

Ad Tagline - “Think Hatke”

Sir Richard Branson –

‘There is no point in Virgin doing anything, unless we can make

a difference.’

The branding and marketing style of Virgin comes

with a difference.

Their approach towards their targeted segment has been concerted and “HATKE” from what public has been treated to over the years

• 10 paisa every minute for incoming.

• Revolution in India’s mobile world with the offer of rock-bottom call rates and a unique cash back offer for receiving calls.

Objective

• Spread brand awareness and create a foothold in this market segment for itself and satisfy some unmet customer needs.

• Virgin mobile had to communicate its brand in a way such that the customers notice it and perceive it as being a bit different.

• Virgin found that its users cared more about community than utility, so had to ensure its offerings were tailored to suit this group's preferences.

ADVERTISING

TV COMMERCIALS

INTERNET BASED ADS

PROMOTIONAL OFFERS

EVENTS ORGANISING

TV Ads

Virgin aired commercials where youngsters use street smartness and a mobile to turn situations in their favor.

Most protagonists are college going youth with high dosage of wit incorporated.

Emphasis on the idea – Show

how Youth in India today

behave and react – find a way

‘SMART’ around rather than

fight against.

Internet Ads

SALES PROMOTIONAL

• Online ParticipationAllows customers to earn free airtime by participation in online advertisements and media.

• Free Virgin Mobile MinutesWin win situation for the customer and Virgin Mobile.

Contd….

• Virgin Mobile Insider Program Free phones and swags to insiders in exchange of feedbacks

• Virgin on Campus: Students becomes brand ambassador and sell Virgin merchandise in exchange of counseling sessions .Encourage students to produce content.

• Online Purchase Schemes

• Tie-up with MySpace

Providing free and instant access to world’s largest social networking site

Publicity

• Richard Branson - Outrageous, flamboyant, unconventional, maverick entrepreneur.

• True to style, Branson unveiled his mobile brand with a 15-storey jump off a hotel building.

Direct Marketing

• Internet portal: The official portal of Virgin gives a lively

feeling and has a very jazzy look.

Contd….

• Youth customers spend significant chunk of their time online.

• Convenience of buying from home.• Customers rewarded with additional talk time,

extra messages and other freebies.• E.g.: Bak Bak offer provides online customers Rs.

100 worth of free talktime, 500 free SMSs, lifetime validity and a free prepaid connection on purchase of every handset.

• Online viral campaign: Interactive microsite to promote its new ‘SMS Free After First Three’ tariff plan

• Parental Enlightment Kit: a series of tools kids can use to persuade their parents to buy them a Virgin Mobile phone.

• a guerrilla marketing campaign targeting parents

Events and Experience

• Virgin Festival: Virgin Mobile organizes Virgin Music Festivals allowing customers to "Book The Band" by voting for who they want to see in an open show .

• Rockathon: Virgin Mobile, in partnership with Yahoo and Planet M are attempting a rocking feat! 100 hours of live music

Attempt to enter the Limca Book of Records for the longest ever continuous musical concert.

Personal Selling

• KIOSK• Trained customer care

personnel address queries.

Help in educating the end consumer.

Offerings

Dedicated webpage on the Virgin Mobile website, and with a direct-contact-to-consumer campaign

Flashy launch

Strengths

The branding and marketing style of Virgin comes with a difference

The ad causes the consumer to pay attention

The ad attempts to connect with the consumer’s personality

and style

Internet portal: The official portal of Virgin gives a lively

feeling and has a very jazzy look.

Are objectives met…?

Completely alienates other segments of the society.

This effort also comes out to be too desperate an attempt to enter into ‘Youngistan’ territory and ‘connect with the youth’.

The youth mostly are dependent on their parents for mobile connection and appearing alien culture to them may not make readily open purse for a Virgin Mobile when player talking of family values – a la ‘AIRTEL’

Creative Content Virgin have taken an off-beat creative and unorthodox approach in their advertising, esp. in TV commercials

Motorola had taken similar approach with their ‘MOTOYUVA ‘ adverts with very good rate of success (even some actors were same)

Initial TV ads were based on theme of way today’s youth use mobiles

Later adverts were an attempt to keep up the style with lower grade content – some irrelevant story with Virgin Mobile name being thrown at the end

Creative Content Print media Ads instead talked of the ways Virgin is different from other players like network congestion, limited coverage, etc

Uses high dosage of red and graphics to maintain consistency with its brand image and promote brand recall

Internet adverts and its website uses similar color combination and tongue-in-cheek humor

Q & A

Thank You !!!