Page 27 - Sphere No.5 (Feb 2002)

S PHERE
25
STRAIGHT TALK
systems, remaining particularly mind-
ful of the need to educate.”
As a result, Hutchison affiliates
now boast some of the highest stan-
dards of customer service in the
world, with Hutchison Max Telecom
the only telecom company in India to
have achieved ISO 9001 certification.
ONE-TO-ONE COMMUNICATION
A vast bank of customer information
based on surveys and feedback from
users and dealers is preferred over
input from consultants. This direct
approach enables the Hutchison affil-
iates to work together with mass mar-
keting initiatives. The ultimate goal is
to position all of them as process-
oriented, boundaryless organisations—
ones that, essentially, live or die
according to customer judgments.
The Indian cellular market is
extremely price-sensitive, which has
made value-added services crucially
important. That Hutchison has, for
the most part, managed to achieve
this across its affiliates is also testi-
mony to the impressive raft of
I N AN ENVIRONMENT WHERE
too much “technospeak” often baffles
consumers, Hutchison has remained
entirely consumer focused, building on
the fundamental values of honesty,
dynamism and friendliness.
Back in 1995, Hutchison Max Telecom
successfully launched the Max Touch
brand following a barrage of unique and
imaginative pre-launch advertising. Using
‘Hello Bombay’ as the tagline, the cam-
paign effectively communicated the arrival
of a world-class service with a truly inter-
national pedigree by using celebrities
from various backgrounds to endorse the
brand and build on local relevance.
In February 2001, Orange replaced
Max Touch, pulling off a major marketing
coup in the process. By successfully
replacing a highly recognised brand with a
virtual unknown in just two weeks, the
company essentially redefined Indian
communication strategies.
The results of the company’s advertis-
ing and marketing strategy, which has set
new standards in innovation and creat-
ivity, have been impressive. Hutchison Max
Telecom recently won the Mumbai adver-
tising industry’s ‘Campaign of the Year’
award, and competitors have often mimic-
ked the company’s marketing initiatives.
Thanks to their highly focused market-
ing and advertising campaigns, Hutchison’s
affiliates have rapidly achieved aspirational
and premium overtones in their brand
imagery, with very high brand awareness
amongst consumers.
Remarkably, this was accomplished
without employing the broadcast medi-
um, as each brand is city or state specific
and not national. Instead, billboards and
print media have been at the forefront of
most advertising, engaging consumers
through focused localised campaigns. In
Mumbai, for example, advertisements
compare the cost of a mobile phone call
to cutting chai, the locally sold inexpensive
tea. Similar examples are used for other
locations.
Besides advertising, the Group has also
raised its brand profiles through strategic
sponsorships. In Mumbai, it has allied
itself to the theatre, music and book
launches—events that hold great reso-
nance for the city’s middle-class citizens.
This kind of niche-sector approach has
transformed consumer perceptions, with
Hutchison Max Telecom becoming over-
whelmingly associated with leadership
and innovation.
The Group’s development across the
country is matched by a seamless
progression in advertising, with a com-
mon look and feel coupled to a high
degree of creative insight. The strategic
direction has been to consistently “talk”
of the tangible benefits delivered in a
refreshingly direct approach. That it has
succeeded with this approach throughout
the country speaks volumes about
the quality of the creative work, and the
strategy of talking directly and simply to
the customer.
RAJESH MISTRY; STOCK IMAGES