Hey just came across this website... for Harry Potter fans.... Dumbledore is not Dead after all... :)
Happy Reading
"I will have only truly left Hogwarts when none here are loyal to me!" Prof Dumbledore
This is dedicated to all Harry Potter fans...
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
Sunday, March 19, 2006
The Idea Extension
From a capitalist to a socialist.
Extending the idea in my quick blog earlier, I thought I’ll put it as a social business plan. It’s an idea for cause marketing for a corporate. It can be targeted towards ills that plague a city.
For E.g. in Delhi, out of the 9 sewage treatment plants for Yamuna, 4 are dysfunctional. Now money generated from the activity I mention hereafter can be used to cure these plants and contribute directly towards cleaning of Yamuna
Or another one could be building on an over-bridge at ISBT, where at present there are two red lights to facilitate pedestrian crossing. These leads to a lot of wastage of fuel, causes unnecessary delays, causes accidents with people running after buses unmindful of the traffic signals.
The idea is that all the activities should be above the line where in the impact can be seen by the people of the city immediately or it makes perceptible difference to their lives. Another could be greening/beautifying/maintaining some green spots in the city.
In kolkata it could be providing 100s of Recycle bins for the city to manage the filth generated daily in the city... Point is causes are many...
I don’t think people would buy in these schemes if they were told that the money generated is going into spreading AIDS awareness or benefits of blood donation. The reason is then there is no accountability and KPIs which can be mapped by general public opting in for such schemes.
The WIN-WIN Plan (Utopian but practical)
I can identify four stake holders for it.
1.) Telecom Service Operator: This is the first pillar of the plan, and the buy in has to be created for them at first.
What does it get?
For starters it would be a good CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) initiative for the TSO without a major investment. So all the jazz (I know not a correct word usage but can’t write here an essay on CSR which everybody would agree is utmost important) that goes along with CSR, happens
It also would give cause marketing imitative and the operator can run city specific campaigns to win over customers, so as customers opt in for the TSO and directly add to the top line. It’s much better than city Marathons in my personal opinion, which is a latest fad. These are able to generate mass interest, but are a one-day affair and people forget all the causes that a marathon had stood for. People come there to run, have some good time for a day, get some good PR and that’s about it. Instead city specific high visibility initiatives would directly contribute to the top line in addition to building on the brand image of a corporate.
2.) A consumer like you and me. The consumer is the central pillar holding on the entire structure of this plan. That’s how important a consumer is. The idea is that a consumer would voluntary opt in for receiving marketing communications from a TSO. Advertising without permission of the consumer is banned by TRAI and amounts to SPAM and rightly so.
There are two methods of generating revenue through this plan
§ One is where the consumer opts in caller tune of Advertisements. So anybody who calls this consumer would hear some funky marketing communication from some advertiser. (Something on the lines of: Hello Sir, Main Amitabh Bachchan bol raha hoon. Apke mitr Reid and Taylor mein wishwas rakhte hain. 15 march tak uspe 15% ki choot hai, to aap bhi lijiye.)
§ Second is whenever the consumer dials any number he/she hears a marketing communication (reverse of caller tune). This helps in pin-point targeting of consumers by marketers since all the demographical data would be available with the TSO and can be used effectively and efficiently
The consumer need not pay anything to enroll in this scheme. A voluntary opt in SMS would do.
In any case if uses it as caller tune, this gives a boost to the self-image of a consumer, that he/she is directly contributing to the good of the city and after the project execution would also bask in the benefits of the project. Also consumer’s friends also get to know that their friend is in all for a good cause which further boosts the prestige of the consumer and also leads to a snowball effect with his/her friends opting for this service.
3.) Marketers/Advertisers
The third pillar constitutes the revenue stream for the model and hence is the financial pillar of the model without which the model is not sustainable.
These people are fighting in a cluttered environment to get their brand message across to a consumer. Here lies there unique chance of finding an uncluttered intimate environment to reach out to their consumers. The demographics are known, The SECs (Socio-Economic Classification) are known, what more does a marketer needs. :)
I’ll list down some of these marketers
Levis
Colgate Max Fresh
Nike
Close-Up
RBK
Adidas
AXE
Mountain Dew
Sprite
Pepsi
Coke
HP
Nokia
Zod
Duke
LG
Samsung
Gaming Zones
Timex
Fast Track
Ponds
Lakme
Sunsilk
Dove
The list is endless and is growing. So a Nokia can advertise its new cell phone to select customers while a Nike can send mobile coupons for redemption to selected customers who use a mobile in excess of 20 times a day. A fast track can air its “Yes Sir” Campaign or an AXE can ignite the desire of men using this service. The possibilities are limited only by one’s imagination.
The reach is immediate and intimate. So no more relying on 4000-odd-TV-sets-TRPs-deciding-for-the-whole-nation theory. The ROI is much easier to calculate and the pricing benchmarks can be much lower (Say 10 paise per impression) It can’t get cheaper I guess :)
4.) NGO: The fourth pillar is the executor and hence one cannot underestimate the role of this entity. This is the one that would make project reports and envision solutions and would get the projects completed. There has to be a lot of accountability in what it does. I am not sure how many organizations can do it. But one that I know of is Association for India’s Development (AID). This has it’s chapters in various cities, Delhi being one for starters. Now the volunteers in this organization are all graduates/Postgraduates from IITs/IIMs and other bright institutes, who want to do something for the country. Whoever said they run after dollar dreams probably did not hear about this organization. In-fact people have quit their US assignments and come to India and now actively work with this organization. They are media shy and believe in slogging it out rather then generate PR. All people are high enthu and gung-ho about doing something big for the country. Now this not a advetorial for them but I truly believe in the spirit in which they work. I attended a couple of meetings with them before relocating to my job location.
There would be other good NGOs working for many causes and they can all pool in.
A good amount of PR would get us the consumers who opt in for this scheme voluntarily, so net-net it’s a good win-win utopian yet practical model.
Being an MBA, I had to fiddle with some numbers so here they are:
Social Business Plan
Total Subscriber Base in Delhi for Airtel : 2000000
Voluntary opt in for Scheme (Consumers): 200000
People from a target group 18-35 (50%): 100000
Calls Received per day (random Avg): 5
Calls Made per Day (Random Avg): 3
Revenue per Advertiser per Impression (paise): 0.1
Revenue per day per advertiser (Rs): 50000
Total Advertisers: 10
Total per day (Rs): 500000
Total per month (Rs): 15000000
per annum (Rs): 180000000
So a totally simplistic and random calculation shows a generation of whopping 18 crores in a city per annum. Multiply that with 10 cities, and you have 180 crores pumped back into the benefit of the society, without anybody loosing anything.
Any takers for the above plan. :) We can work towards making this crude blog into a sound social business plan.
Extending the idea in my quick blog earlier, I thought I’ll put it as a social business plan. It’s an idea for cause marketing for a corporate. It can be targeted towards ills that plague a city.
For E.g. in Delhi, out of the 9 sewage treatment plants for Yamuna, 4 are dysfunctional. Now money generated from the activity I mention hereafter can be used to cure these plants and contribute directly towards cleaning of Yamuna
Or another one could be building on an over-bridge at ISBT, where at present there are two red lights to facilitate pedestrian crossing. These leads to a lot of wastage of fuel, causes unnecessary delays, causes accidents with people running after buses unmindful of the traffic signals.
The idea is that all the activities should be above the line where in the impact can be seen by the people of the city immediately or it makes perceptible difference to their lives. Another could be greening/beautifying/maintaining some green spots in the city.
In kolkata it could be providing 100s of Recycle bins for the city to manage the filth generated daily in the city... Point is causes are many...
I don’t think people would buy in these schemes if they were told that the money generated is going into spreading AIDS awareness or benefits of blood donation. The reason is then there is no accountability and KPIs which can be mapped by general public opting in for such schemes.
The WIN-WIN Plan (Utopian but practical)
I can identify four stake holders for it.
1.) Telecom Service Operator: This is the first pillar of the plan, and the buy in has to be created for them at first.
What does it get?
For starters it would be a good CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) initiative for the TSO without a major investment. So all the jazz (I know not a correct word usage but can’t write here an essay on CSR which everybody would agree is utmost important) that goes along with CSR, happens
It also would give cause marketing imitative and the operator can run city specific campaigns to win over customers, so as customers opt in for the TSO and directly add to the top line. It’s much better than city Marathons in my personal opinion, which is a latest fad. These are able to generate mass interest, but are a one-day affair and people forget all the causes that a marathon had stood for. People come there to run, have some good time for a day, get some good PR and that’s about it. Instead city specific high visibility initiatives would directly contribute to the top line in addition to building on the brand image of a corporate.
2.) A consumer like you and me. The consumer is the central pillar holding on the entire structure of this plan. That’s how important a consumer is. The idea is that a consumer would voluntary opt in for receiving marketing communications from a TSO. Advertising without permission of the consumer is banned by TRAI and amounts to SPAM and rightly so.
There are two methods of generating revenue through this plan
§ One is where the consumer opts in caller tune of Advertisements. So anybody who calls this consumer would hear some funky marketing communication from some advertiser. (Something on the lines of: Hello Sir, Main Amitabh Bachchan bol raha hoon. Apke mitr Reid and Taylor mein wishwas rakhte hain. 15 march tak uspe 15% ki choot hai, to aap bhi lijiye.)
§ Second is whenever the consumer dials any number he/she hears a marketing communication (reverse of caller tune). This helps in pin-point targeting of consumers by marketers since all the demographical data would be available with the TSO and can be used effectively and efficiently
The consumer need not pay anything to enroll in this scheme. A voluntary opt in SMS would do.
In any case if uses it as caller tune, this gives a boost to the self-image of a consumer, that he/she is directly contributing to the good of the city and after the project execution would also bask in the benefits of the project. Also consumer’s friends also get to know that their friend is in all for a good cause which further boosts the prestige of the consumer and also leads to a snowball effect with his/her friends opting for this service.
3.) Marketers/Advertisers
The third pillar constitutes the revenue stream for the model and hence is the financial pillar of the model without which the model is not sustainable.
These people are fighting in a cluttered environment to get their brand message across to a consumer. Here lies there unique chance of finding an uncluttered intimate environment to reach out to their consumers. The demographics are known, The SECs (Socio-Economic Classification) are known, what more does a marketer needs. :)
I’ll list down some of these marketers
Levis
Colgate Max Fresh
Nike
Close-Up
RBK
Adidas
AXE
Mountain Dew
Sprite
Pepsi
Coke
HP
Nokia
Zod
Duke
LG
Samsung
Gaming Zones
Timex
Fast Track
Ponds
Lakme
Sunsilk
Dove
The list is endless and is growing. So a Nokia can advertise its new cell phone to select customers while a Nike can send mobile coupons for redemption to selected customers who use a mobile in excess of 20 times a day. A fast track can air its “Yes Sir” Campaign or an AXE can ignite the desire of men using this service. The possibilities are limited only by one’s imagination.
The reach is immediate and intimate. So no more relying on 4000-odd-TV-sets-TRPs-deciding-for-the-whole-nation theory. The ROI is much easier to calculate and the pricing benchmarks can be much lower (Say 10 paise per impression) It can’t get cheaper I guess :)
4.) NGO: The fourth pillar is the executor and hence one cannot underestimate the role of this entity. This is the one that would make project reports and envision solutions and would get the projects completed. There has to be a lot of accountability in what it does. I am not sure how many organizations can do it. But one that I know of is Association for India’s Development (AID). This has it’s chapters in various cities, Delhi being one for starters. Now the volunteers in this organization are all graduates/Postgraduates from IITs/IIMs and other bright institutes, who want to do something for the country. Whoever said they run after dollar dreams probably did not hear about this organization. In-fact people have quit their US assignments and come to India and now actively work with this organization. They are media shy and believe in slogging it out rather then generate PR. All people are high enthu and gung-ho about doing something big for the country. Now this not a advetorial for them but I truly believe in the spirit in which they work. I attended a couple of meetings with them before relocating to my job location.
There would be other good NGOs working for many causes and they can all pool in.
A good amount of PR would get us the consumers who opt in for this scheme voluntarily, so net-net it’s a good win-win utopian yet practical model.
Being an MBA, I had to fiddle with some numbers so here they are:
Social Business Plan
Total Subscriber Base in Delhi for Airtel : 2000000
Voluntary opt in for Scheme (Consumers): 200000
People from a target group 18-35 (50%): 100000
Calls Received per day (random Avg): 5
Calls Made per Day (Random Avg): 3
Revenue per Advertiser per Impression (paise): 0.1
Revenue per day per advertiser (Rs): 50000
Total Advertisers: 10
Total per day (Rs): 500000
Total per month (Rs): 15000000
per annum (Rs): 180000000
So a totally simplistic and random calculation shows a generation of whopping 18 crores in a city per annum. Multiply that with 10 cities, and you have 180 crores pumped back into the benefit of the society, without anybody loosing anything.
Any takers for the above plan. :) We can work towards making this crude blog into a sound social business plan.
Monday, March 13, 2006
Quick Blog - Idea
I am going to write some quick blogs from now on. This is to preserve the ideas that keep knocking my mind off and on. These ideas need to be captured I guess... Donno when and where, which Idea would click. Also I would be able to write more often
This is regarding a mobile service plan i.e. either free or subsidized. The revenue would come from advertisers who would advertise their brands as caller tunes... you would agree that Technology can help us in doing a very targeted promotion. So my friends reading this blog start actioning, if you work for a telecom service provider.
So next time you call me, you could be hearing to a Salaam Namaste promoting Colgate MaxFresh Gel. So more the people that call me, lesser is that I need to pay when I call.
Now if somebody plans to implement this in India, I would like to be the first customer :)
This is regarding a mobile service plan i.e. either free or subsidized. The revenue would come from advertisers who would advertise their brands as caller tunes... you would agree that Technology can help us in doing a very targeted promotion. So my friends reading this blog start actioning, if you work for a telecom service provider.
So next time you call me, you could be hearing to a Salaam Namaste promoting Colgate MaxFresh Gel. So more the people that call me, lesser is that I need to pay when I call.
Now if somebody plans to implement this in India, I would like to be the first customer :)
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