In a post-pandemic world, the norms are changed and brands are evolving with millennial consumers. The old school tricks and marketing gimmicks are passé, and to appeal to woke Gen Z and millennial customers’ brands are opting for smart, digital routes for better outreach. Recently, DAO EV Tech and their exclusive branding agency Thomas & RAD launched a successful viral campaign to create a buzz in the automobile industry around their latest flagship product: Dao Model 703 with LFP Batteries. In an exclusive interview, J. Thomas, Executive Business Director at Thomas & RAD, mentions about the latest campaign and the collaborative effort by both client and agency teams.
What’s the buzz?
Dao EV Tech is a smart electric mobility manufacturing start-up based in Hyderabad and factories in Pune. The brand aims to deliver reliable, high quality and innovative products through the ‘Make in India’ initiative with a mission to mature the EV industry in India. It combines global expertise on two fronts — Services and Manufacturing — to bring advanced technology and best practices to the EV industry. Recently the company announced that they will use only LFP Batteries in their vehicles. “The brand tagline “Ride an Electric, Ride a Dao” comes from the mission of the company to be the leaders in the sector and mature the EV industry by being consumer centric and focused on innovation. The tagline makes the brand synonymous to the category of Electric Vehicles. For Dao Model 703 we use the LFP Batteries, which are known for their significantly higher thermal runaway threshold as compared to the conventional NMC’s which catch fire easily. The other salient features will also be revealed during the launch, so keep a look out,” informs Thomas.
Hitting the bull’s eye:
The COVID19 pandemic is a huge disrupter; it changed the way people think. Clearly, now young people want to move away from the mistakes their older generation committed. Thanks to the awareness around climatic change, sustainability and energy conservation, young consumers want to choose the right brands and move ahead responsibly. The latest ad campaign of the brand to initiate pre-bookings of the high speed model DAO 703 only had a few words “which is the next EV after color hype?” and a QR Code. Speaking about this idea, Thomas reveals, “The DAO Model 703 pre-booking announcement campaign integrates ATL & Digital in a unique way. While the digital platforms have gained power over the last decade, for quick awareness we depended on the ATL media. The Times of India (TOI) carried the AD across multiple cities (7 cities – Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Pune, Vizag, Vijaywada and Kochi) to create an element of curiosity around the topic “which is the next EV?”. We are confident that the topic of discussion will gain the required awareness and then we can expand the topic further to social media and digital platforms which then can reinforce and give it wings. We will convert the topic to relate to the brand and the pre-Bookings. In a country of 1.3 Billion with an average age of 27 years, we can easily integrate the digital with traditional media.”
“EV Industry is still in its nascent stage and the consumer wants a genuine brand that can showcase a real launch. What better time of the year than the holiday /festive season when the maximum buying happens. The campaign targets the spirit of the season but with a technical twist to it. COVID19 brought in the high dependency on digital medium and brands are spending a lot more on the digital platforms than ever before. This makes digital a highly distributed channel, but it lacks the power and trust. To gain visibility on digital has become really difficult, which is why we depended on the traditional newspaper for our awareness,” he adds.
Evolving consumer behaviour:
When a consumer scans the QR Code, it takes them to the pre-booking page where the customer can quickly enter their information and get a reminder on 15th October 2021 for pre-bookings. On the day of the launch they can pay the pre-booking amount and get their favourite Dao Model 703. “With his ad, we are targeting two groups of people – customers and potential dealers. Our customers are within the age group of 20-35 years and they are an economically active new generation from urban cities, who are seeking high-speed options to drive to work and back. The young people are tech-savvy and have the ability to maneuver through IOT solutions that our vehicle provides. Potential dealers on the other hand are the business community or young entrepreneurs looking for potential opportunities,” highlights the ad guru.
Today’s consumer would like to ride a new brand; they do not want the same brand their fathers used, believes Thomas. He sums up saying, “Creating a new brand becomes easier as the consumer is ready for that change. Another trend which is becoming quite visible is that no matter if you have an online store the consumer wants to see you with a physical presence, so a multi-channel approach is required. Viral communication is a powerful tool if we can create conversations. Let people decide, engage and talk about the topic.”
(For more information on Dao EV Tech, click below)