An Idea that changed telecom industry

With its slogan, "An Idea can change your life', catching on early, India's leading telecom operator, Idea Cellular, was able to effect an industry-changing expansion of its network. And as John Berry said, "a good idea plus capable men cannot fail." The credit for the company's dizzy success goes to its Chief Marketing Officer, Pradeep Shrivastava. It was because of Shrivastava's tireless efforts that Idea Cellular has emerged as a cellular giant straddling the entire country. It is a telecom goliath connecting India to other members of the global networking village through its innovative, affordable, and customer-friendly services. In an exclusive conversation with Adgully, Shrivastava discusses his future plans and how he intends to take Idea Cellular to greater heights.

Adgully: A journey of almost two decades in serving the nation. How has it been so far?

Pradeep Shrivastav: Idea Cellular started operations from two telecom circles of Maharashtra & Gujarat in the year 1997, and brand Idea was born in 2002. Since then, Idea's journey has witnessed a significant evolution from being a regional Brand with scattered presence to becoming a national brand with pan-India presence now. Today, IDEA Cellular is the fastest growing telecom operator in the fastest growing telephony market in the world.

Ag: The sector is chock-a-block with service providers. How do you manage to grab eyeballs in this virtual ad blitzkrieg?

PS: Idea is a "Champion, Elevating and Humane' brand. The brand communication resonates with what is happening in the society today, and hence there is a reflection of socially relevant topics in our campaigns like "caste war', "education for all', "democracy', "health and environment'. The key thought in all the campaigns is to offer simple solutions to complex and big problems through the power of mobile telephony in a way that's fresh, imaginative and elevating. We believe "An Idea can change your life!", and this is the theme of all our communication which connects with our audience.

Ag: Idea as a brand has always partnered with entertainment-related events. Is this part of a strategy?

PS: Mobile is a mass service offering that cuts across age, gender and income groups. Hence, the TG comes from diverse backgrounds, and therefore, connecting with the audience through a common platform is always a challenge. Music, cinema and cricket have mass appeal in India; in fact each is like a religion in our country. We have established strong and long term associations with best in class properties in these areas ” Idea IIFA Awards, Idea Filmfare Awards, Idea Rocks India, Idea Cup Cricket Tournament and the most recent Oongli Cricket campaign. These have helped us establish strong connect with our diverse audience.

Ag:What prompted you to induct an independent research (Brand Track Index Study) to track your brand's perception?

PS: As a telecom brand connecting with millions of consumers from diverse backgrounds, there is a constant need to gauge feedback for creating effective communication. Brand Track Index (BTI) provides an objective, unbiased opinion in a scientific manner.

Ag:Reduced ARPU and lengthening of RoI has been a point of concern for the sector. Your comments.

PS: Today, IDEA Cellular is the third largest GSM operator in the country with pan-India presence. It has a soaring subscriber base of over 62 million at the end of February 2010. This can be attributed to the overwhelming market response, making Idea a Champion brand and a Champion company.

With a strong national footprint, fastest growth rate on the back of strong network and technology edge, and a strong VAS portfolio, we see potential for continued growth in future. While price competition on voice is likely to continue for sometime in 2010, Idea is fully equipped for this phase of hyper-competition and expects to emerge competitively stronger.

Ag: What is your customer loyalty mantra?

PS: As a brand, we go beyond merely meeting the basic category needs by continuously delighting our customers.

In a highly competitive category such as telecom, where multiple players offer more or less similar services, it is important to create a differentiation through innovative brand communication to build strong connect with the consumer.

Idea intends to create brand equity by continuously achieving excellence through individual insights. This helps connect with the end consumer thus nurturing a culture of positive discussion and empathy to remain connected with the consumer. It also helps in building a strong bond with the consumer, ultimately resulting in loyalty towards the brand.

Ag: What is your digital marketing strategy? How do you plan to address the growing population of internet users in India?

PS: Digital is a fast emerging medium, and we are constantly innovating to engage the large community of internet users in India, particularly the urban youth, through this platform. We look at creating customer engagement and delight on all online touch points with the brand, to be one of the top brands with respect to web engagement in India. Example: The first ever interactive virtual character "Zac' launched for the "Walk When You Talk' campaign; "Use Mobile, Save Paper' Digital Activation Game; Idea Mobile Roadie Challenge among many more ideas.