Earlier this evening, telecom major Vodafone announced its first campaign of 2018. It brought back its iconic mascot – Cheeka – "India’s favourite pug" that has been associated with the telecom entity since the days the brand was known as Hutch in India.
This time, however, the single dog was replaced with a full pug army to charm customers with this new campaign.
The 360-degree high decibel campaign, which is going live on 10th January, 2018 has been conceptualised by Ogilvy & Mather India. Presenting a wholesome marketing mix, the six-week campaign will connect with customers across diverse mediums like OOH, radio, print and digital.
In another part of the world, in Britain, which houses the global headquarters of Vodafone, there is a protest that's gaining momentum. At the beach-head of the protest is the British Veterinary Association, that has launched a campaign four days back, to keep the pug and its look-alike breed, the French bull dog, not just out of commercials, but also away from the consideration set of buyers.
Watch the campaign by the British Veterinary Association here:
A report in The Guardian, "Think twice about buying 'squashed-faced' breeds, vets urge dog-lovers" states that celebrities like Lady Gaga and YouTube star Zoella are drawing criticism for showing off their pets belonging to these breeds, in photo features and videos.
Among brand marketers, Heinz, Costa and Halifax have committed to avoid featuring these breeds in their future advertising campaigns, The Guardian reports.
In a press release sent by Vodafone India, Siddharth Banerjee, EVP, marketing, Vodafone India, said, “From the early 2000s, the Pug has always been associated with Hutch and then Vodafone’s reliable network. The new campaign #StrongerTogether highlights our continued commitment to providing a world class network experience. We hope people like the evolution of the “Network That Follows You” to the refreshed thought of "The Data Strong Network which always Follows You”.
“Refreshing icons is always difficult. People still remember our first boy and dog ad and even the line ‘wherever you go, our network follows’. The challenge was to convey the new network proposition, ‘we are getting stronger’, while retaining the simplicity and charm of our most loved asset,” said Kiran Antony, ECD, Ogilvy and Mather India, the agency behind this Vodafone campaign.
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