IN the year 1981, actor Amitabh Bachchan had foot-tapped his way into the hearts of millions of Indians with the hugely popular Bollywood song ?Saara Zamana Haseeno Ka Deewana?. Cut to 2013, and Philips Lighting Solutions attempts to recreate the same kind of magic with a contemporary version of the hit song. The video stars actor Ranbir Kapoor in a suit of lights, much like his predecessor, and has generated more than 5 million views online. The promotional music video is a bid by Philips to promote its LED (light-emitting diode) range which lags behind its conventional lighting offering. It is targeting 45% of its overall revenues in India to come from LED in 2017. At present, 78% of Philips?s global revenue comes from the conventional lighting and rest 22% from the LED segment. The video will also be supplemented by three television ads with the tag line ?See what light can do?.
Sumit Joshi, head-marketing, Philips Lighting India said that the brief to ad agency Ogilvy & Mather India was clear-cut. The agency was briefed to make people sit up and take note of the possibilities of LED lighting and to highlight the contemporary, modern and youthful Philips brand. ?We decided to go in for celebrity endorsement and both Ranbir Kapoor and Shruti Hassan fitted really well. Both of them are young and dynamic, and are rockstars in every sense. They are not only about style but have also given some great performances. Like Philips, they have great lineage?their parents and families have been legends in entertainment and have contributed a lot to the Indian film industry.? As per Joshi, consumers have started realising the benefits of LED. ?This campaign has generated lot of discussion amongst younger audiences, which is great news. But this is just the first step. It?s a long-term strategy and we will continue to invest in consumer education on this new technology.?
Joshi says that it was Ogilvy?s idea to remake the song. ?The song was not only about Amitabh Bachchan; it was also about the suit of lights that he wore in the song. It has a great connect with lighting. More than anything else we could show the transition in lighting over these 32 years between Saara Zamana by Bachchan and Saara Zamana by Ranbir,? he said.
Joshi adds that the idea had started making waves even before it got launched. ?We were successful in creating buzz about the video online and offline, even before the official launch of the video song. Philips Lighting released a 1-minute 30-second video showing Ranbir Kapoor shooting for the song on YouTube, 15 days before the actual launch of the song. The brand was not revealed in the leaked video. It was done to build buzz and curiosity around the video. The leaked video has garnered over 9 lakh views till date. It was pushed organically and no paid media was used for the same. Users thought that the leaked video was related to Ranbir Kapoor?s next movie project. During this time, Philips Lighting did not claim any ownership to the leaked video and remained silent. Thereafter, in a staged video clip, Ranbir was shown getting angry with a journalist. This was uploaded on YouTube. The angry video clip got more than 305,000 views,? said Joshi.
Branded music videos have always been big globally. Virgin America airline has just launched a funky music video which has break dancers and rappers listing out in-flight instructions, and the video?s turned viral on social networks. But brands in India are also starting to pick up global cues. The Indian Premier League (IPL) created the hugely popular ?Jumping Japang? music video in order to build buzz for the brand. Actress Alia Bhatt did a music video for brand Maybelline called ?Babylips Kiss? which did well online. Boost did an anthem for Sachin Tendulkar, styled on the hugely successful ?Kolaveri Di?. The brand even got Dhanush to sing it.??
?Nescafe got Shankar Ehsaan Loy to create a song for them. Airtel had a longer version of ?Har Ek Friend Zaroori Hota Hain? for its online audience which got downloaded many times over,? says Navin Shah, co-founder, EMC Solutions Worldwide. Shah points that increasingly, brands were looking to associate themselves with music content. One way was to introduce themselves through a Bollywood song, which could prove to be a costly proposition. The other, easier route was to actually create a music video, which will start off with an online blitz and then make its way to radio and music channels and on ground events. His firm has also produced a music video with Virat Kohli for the Max Steel franchise on Cartoon Network.? The rewards are plenty, as per Shah, because the promotional song, in many cases, goes viral and adds to the buzz factor around the brand.
Marketing consultant Harish Bijoor says that LED lighting is typically the ?niche? side of the business. Such lighting is also called intelligent lighting because it?s more about the d?cor and the ambience. Getting youth icon Ranbir Kapoor and employing such an unconventional route was certainly the right step for Philips. ?I liked the video,? he says, ?The reason why branded music tends to do well is because it is 99% content and 1% about the brand?. He adds that the experience was in sharp contrast to traditional advertising and therefore much more enjoyable.
Philips has a 30% market share in the lighting segment in India. Bijoor notes that in the past, Philips and Sylvania and Laxman were the only two options in lighting solutions. Today, Phillips has its work cut out. ?There are more than 16 companies competing in the lighting segment. And at the end of the day, a light bulb is a light bulb. How much more different can you get?? remarks Bijoor.
