Track2Realty Exclusive: Call it stale or repetitive but real estate advertising has always been too sales-centric with no thrust on building the iconic brand. Though the sector has matured on several other parameters of corporate quotient, and charging for the brand premium seems to be on top priority; still the advertising has been by and large project driven.
However, Track2Realty Brand X Report delves deeper into the strategic dilemma of marketing communication to find that brand driven innovation has been applied by some of the smart movers, though such case studies are few and far between.
‘Sea View-A View for which rich pay a fortune, but is free for the love birds on beach-fronts.’ Does this ad remind something? ‘Footpaths-A place where everything happens except pedestrians are walking.’
Doesn’t it remind of the iconic Amul girl, wearing a polka-dot frock, famous for poking fun at national events and personalities that first made an appearance in 1967 and even after 46 years is as relevant, interesting and innovative?
But wait, these are not Amul ads but a campaign called Mumbaipaedia by a Mumbai-based real estate company. It is true that the Amul ads have often been described as one of the best Indian Advertising concepts because of their humour, with puns being its forte, and their penchant of picking up on current events to bring home a point. But the question that was often asked in the realty sector was whether something of that sort is feasible in the business of real estate?
Real estate advertising in the Indian context is at best what the management guru Peter Drucker once famously said, “Efficiency is doing things right; effectiveness is doing the right things.”
The question whether Amul ad can be replicated in the realty has been actually answered by a Mumbai-based developer, though the medium (OOH) and the message (poking fun with intended pun) is very much Amulasque.
The initiative, Mumbaipedia by Omkar Realtors & Developers offers some interesting trivia that is aimed at getting attention of the Mumbaikars for whom driving is more often like a punishment due to traffic snarls. Mumbaipedia gives a little dose of humour and at the same time gives away some interesting information about the city engaging the audience and bringing smile on their faces.
The initiative decodes or rephrases the common current terminologies to which the local population can easily connect with. Mumbaipedia gives new connotations to the common words and phrases. For instance, ‘Monsoon: An excuse for a rain dance sequence in a Bollywood film. More commonly a cause of traffic snarls.’
The short message clicks immediately with the inherent meaning which Mumbaikars can associate with quickly. Another example, ‘Flamingo: A tall pink bird that owns mudflats in Sewri, which it comes to visit annually.’
…to be continued
