Recently, 94.3 My FM partnered BIG 92.7 FM to air a campaign which even its creators, though delighted with the idea, were extremely skeptical rival FM stations would agree to run. Harrish Bhatia, CEO – My FM, tells Pavan R Chawla that the sheer power of the thought behind something like the Bajaj Electricals’ Happy Mixing campaign, is bound to add to listenerships and showcase the power of Radio as an innovative advertising medium. Excerpts:
Congratulations on agreeing to run a campaign along with another, rival radio network, especially a campaign that involved playing a creative on your station asking your listeners to leave your station and go to the other one to savour the â€?happy mixing’ experience, which could have been bad for your listenership.
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Radio is a new medium hence it’s important to do such innovations. 94.3 My FM has been constantly striving towards creating new benchmarks in the Radio industry and enhancing radio creativity.
We saw there was potential in the idea and that this idea will highlight Radio’s power to innovate and yet keep the communication relevant and engaging. I would like to compliment BIG FM too for the enthusiasm shown to air the spot.
The sheer power of such a thought is bound to create new listenerships rather than adversely affecting the existing ones, as it has the power to generate huge word of mouth for stations, the brands and the Radio Industry as a whole.
MY FM and BIG FM ran the campaign in Ajmer. Each spot was of 60 seconds duration.
What was the listener response to the campaign?
Decent. We received calls from people applauding us on our confidence, on allowing a competitor’s mention on our station, simply to proliferate an idea.
We also came to know that some of our listeners tried their hands at mixing the two spots out of sheer excitement. I would like to add that out of many messages being aired on a daily basis, if listeners can identify with and qualify a communication, then that in itself is an indication that the medium carries the potential of being engaging enough to create a desired response.
We are told that there were several calls to each station from listeners asking that it be replayed. Was it?
At MY FM, we constantly endeavor to foster a category developer of an idea. Still, owing to the fact that such initiatives are pre planned and coordinating the same on real time basis is not a possibility due to different clock patterns of both the stations, the spot was aired only as per the schedule decided.
Is this kind of a campaign across two networks an industry first?
If you talk about the space in Radio only, then yes this is the first of its kind of a campaign. An idea which actually asks listeners to tune out and tune in to another station is a first, as we would want to believe, in any radio space around the world. Otherwise, there’s been a Vodafone conference call initiative that involved multiple stations through content integration.
What is your view of the standards of creative advertising on Radio in India? Mention some memorable creative campaign spots.
Advertising has developed much faster in the Radio arena than in any other medium. We have been witnessing various benchmarks in creative advertising led by the stations and rapidly followed by the Ad agencies too. Being an evolving medium, Radio has offered a challenge to the creative minds.
Campaigns like McDonalds Delivery through Radio, Vodafone, Airtel, Docomo product re-launches and MP Toursim’s Bharat ka Dil Dekho have helped advertising creativity touch new heights in the Indian Radio space. Nokia’s innovative use of Radio in its handset launch and many more are just a few examples.
All in all, Radio Creativity too has been recognized by the numerous awards constituted to encourage the same. I am very happy that creative work done is being recognized and is acting as a motivation, encouraging the others to follow.
Do you agree that nowadays, while TV and / or Print are the first medium in term of size and ad spend on campaigns, Radio is a near default media-multiplying second medium? Can you give some examples? If you do not think so, why not?
I would start by saying that Radio hasn’t got its due with the kind of potential it has. Radio is the medium that many professionals include in their quarterly and yearly plans at the last moment to highlight the probability of their idea being campaignable. But, if properly planned and used innovatively, Radio can work wonders for a particular brand. Unlike TV or print, Radio is the only medium that has the power to address area-specific challenges through a focused communication in the local language and in the most cost-effective way.
Radio offers opportunities to create unique â€?Radio properties’ and build â€?sonic triggers’ that are hard to be replicated on other mediums. Long-term properties like Modi Ke Matwale Rahi, Binaca Geet Mala, Hawa Mahal or the recently launched Ramayana on MY FM should be seen as a strategic investments by advertisers to build a connect between the consumer and the brand.
Radio uses the human voice â€?real time’ providing â€?active sampling’ opportunities closer to the time of actual purchase for faster conversions. In a competitive category where higher salience in the consumer’s mind is of utmost importance, radio can play a critical role in occupying a dominant share of mind via higher frequency and faster turnaround time.
Both, clients and agencies, are now realizing the huge and vast potential that the medium has to offer. Many clients are already looking at Radio as a prime medium.
