Indigo Nation has dipped its marketing hands in — what else, but — something blue. Bluetooth technology, that is.
As mobile phones become purchase facilitators, an advertising niche is being created
MUMBAI: Indigo Nation has dipped its marketing hands in — what else, but — something blue.
Bluetooth technology, that is.
The men’s clothing retailer’s Bangalore outlet recently turned into a gaming arena of sorts. Customers with Bluetooth-enabled handsets who visited the store were given a chance to download an Indigo Nation branded game for free and redeem discounts on purchases.
“With every passing level in the Indigo Nation Monster Car Rally, the user can redeem a discount coupon of 5% with a maximum of 20%,” said Kanwalpreet Walia, marketing manager, Indus-League Clothing Ltd., which manufactures the clothing line.
Walia’s strategy was in tune with the brand’s positioning. “Indigo Nation is targeted at the under-30 working male. And considering cellphones and gaming are the in-thing for this segment of people, it made sense for us to try it out,” she says.
Try it out.
That’s what Mobile2win (the game’s creators) and Starcom IP (Indigo Nation’s media buying agency) wanted to do.
It’s what Rajiv Hiranandani, country head, Mobile2win calls ‘bluetooth marketing’.
Hiranandani says this is a very localised marketing strategy and can be put into place at retail outlets and high traffic areas.
“A week long bluetooth based activity at a particular outlet could cost about Rs 50,000. If done over a period of 2-3 months, this could cost about Rs 2-3 lakhs,” he says.
Walia claims that the conversion ratios are encouraging, too.
“We had about 4-5 redemptions in the first week itself. Currently we’re using it on a trial basis but moving forward, we’d like to use it across our other outlets.”
Walia’s response is what technology companies like Nexeia have been waiting for.
Nexeia’s created a Bluetooth-enabled technology applications for mobiles called Cellmagix, which it hopes will rope in more advertisers to try out this medium.
“We have already installed over 250 Bluetooth Access Points at all the leading malls and multiplexes across the country. Retailers can advertise about their ongoing offers on Cellmagix and a user within the mall premises who has installed it in his / her cellphone can check them out at the store itself,” says Nexeia CEO Anil Peswani.
The idea has got Cinemax excited and Devang Sampat, vice-president, marketing and programming, says that Cellmagix Access Points installed at 3 of its multiplexes in Mumbai.
“Not only can you download value added services (VAS) like wallpapers and view trailers, but also check out combo meal offers and show-timings straight on your mobile. All of it is for free. All you have to do is keep your bluetooth switched on inside the multiplex premises,” Sampat said.
However the CEO of a leading mobile marketing player says Bluetooth marketing does not yet have a convincing business model in place.
He says, “It’s not scalable and the strategy is disrespectful to the end user. Considering telemarketers are already being taken to task with the Do Not Call registry, a Bluetooth marketing ploy is being extremely intrusive.”
Still the absence of a telecom operator to take away a share of the revenue is good reason for Saurabh Vartikar, head of mobile marketing for People Infocom (Mauj Mobile), to be interested in it.
Mauj has worked with the Essar Group’s chain of mobile stores to power their Bluetooth-enabled kiosks, where customers can view various content and download them on their phone.
Pointing to its earlier work with GroupM clients such as Pepsi, Accenture and Lee jeans, Vartikar says he sees an an optimistic future for concepts such as Bluetooth marketing.
“More so because agencies are now focussing on strengthening their digital arm and are looking at strategic associations with mobile value-added services players.”
However, both Hiranandani and Vartikar agree that the market for this is still in a nascent stage in the country largely due to its technology dependency, since this medium caters only to Bluetooth enabled handsets.
“As mobile phones evolve from mere voice and data devices to purchase facilitators, advertisers can have a very good opt-in database of people within the age group of 15-24 years, most of who are out in large numbers in malls,” says Hiranandani. “This segment is otherwise difficult to reach in a captive manner.”
c_arcopol@dnaindia.net
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