This is one telecom company, which has maintained its aggressive marketing intents, despite undergoing various advertising and positioning changes over the last four years. Right from the days of the Monsoon Hungama campaign in 2003 to the current Yeh India Ka Cricket Hai, RCOM has always managed to develop an instant connect with its customers. So much so that the brand is now fast closing the gap with market leader Bharti Airtel in number of subscribers. Talking to 4Ps B&M, Sanjay Behl, Marketing & Branding head at RCOM, reveals the strategic mantra behind RCOM’s marketing initiatives.
What has been RCOM’s marketing thrust?
The main thrust of our marketing strategy has been to lead the market growth. And to follow our vision, we at Reliance Communications, have initiated a series of unique and breakthrough initiatives. Whether it is the One India plan, handset bundling, mobile TV, we have always aimed at changing the whole paradigm in customer space.
Visible in all RCOM’s campaigns is the aggressiveness on the pricing front. What is the strategy?
We always strive to stick to our
commitment to offer the best deals to our mobile users. In the last few months, we have launched various handsets at varying price points, starting from the Monochrome handsets for Rs.777, Classic Celebrations handsets for RS.999 and the colour handsets for as low as Rs.1234. We also broke the price barrier in the value added service arena by launching a caller tune for Re.1/day.Most successful RCOM campaign in your opinion?
A campaign which deserves a special mention is RCOM’s Go Colour campaign stating Baton Baton Mein Rang – that really caught on the emotions of mobile users. The Bus Batan Dabao was also a hit, reflecting RCOM’s focus in the VAS market.
What is your strategy for rural markets now?
Targeting the rural customers has been at the forefront of our marketing blueprint. Apart from the ads, we have tried to penetrate deeper into the villages through unique concepts like mobile vans and e-recharging, thus, reaching to almost two lakh retail outlets spread across the country. We have also kick-started the world’s fastest and largest telecom infrastructure roll-out to provide coverage to more than 2,34,000 villages.
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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist)
