Airtel launched its digital
TV service in October
2008. As a part of the launch campaign, Airtel did a
series of ten-second teaser ads with a tag line "See You at Home".
The teaser advertisements showed different characters
saying "See You at Home" followed by a
red couch landing on the floor. The idea was to use teasers to
build curiosity in the viewers about the product in question. It was
thought that since there was no mention of the product/service,
consumers would be inquisitive and this would create some excitement in
the market. At the end of the teaser campaigns, Airtel planned to
launch the final campaign that would reveal the actual product
`Airtel Digital Service'.
But the plan did not go in the way the company envisaged.
Another player in the dish-TV segment, Reliance Big TV torpedoed
the campaign by launching a spoof. Big TV launched three ads featuring
the same red couch and background as in the Airtel advertisement with
the same slogan "See You at Home" projecting the Reliance Big TV
brand. So the consumers thought that the teaser campaigns belonged
to Reliance Big TV rather than Airtel. The entire teaser campaign
was torpedoed by the competitor.
Teaser campaigns are usually double-edged swords.
Unless carefully crafted, these campaigns can create more damage than
benefits. Teaser ads are defined as those advertisements that do not reveal
the brand to the consumers but will try to create curiosity in viewers
by providing cues or puzzles. Teasers usually keep the audience
guessing about the brand and thus provide some amount of buzz in the market. |
