Whether it is cementing homes or cementing the nation's important infrastructure projects, UltraTech has always played an integral role in every Indian's life. But due to increasing product-centric communication in the category, its visibility was reduced to that of a homebuilder rather than a nation builder.
The brand's communication focus had largely been geared towards individual home builders (IHBs), a target cohort largely concentrated in tier 2, tier 3 and rural centers of India.
Hence, there was a need to make the larger Indians aware about UltraTech's role in the nation's Infrastructure development and shift its perception from just a bag of cement to a brand with nation building at its core.
This was the first initiative by UltraTech that focused on unlocking greater possibilities for all.
This was a category-first stance, where a market leader/cement brand aimed to celebrate the role of infrastructure in every Indian's life and own the positioning of nation builder.
While UltraTech's core audience consists of Individual Home Builders (IHBs) from tier 2 and tier 3 cities, it was essential to make the brand relevant among non-IHBs as well. Therefore, the company targeted the demographic group between the ages of 30 to 50.
This audience is primarily located in metros and mini-metros and benefits significantly from infrastructure development, including roads, freeways, metros, schools, and bridges. These individuals are the driving force behind India's progress and could also serve as long-term perception builders for the brand.
First-time voters often find roadblocks in terms of locating their correct polling booths. The company addressed this by mapping over 20,000 polling booths in Delhi and Mumbai and pinning them on Google Maps. Ultratech Cement then used geo-targeting, to target people within a 200-to-300-meter radius with ads featuring actor and producer Shahrukh Khan along with the topical message — Vote Karega Toh Mazboot Banega India, and help them find and navigate their polling stations.
Voter turnout has been a persistent problem in Indian elections every year, especially in urban centers, where most of the migrants have a problem locating their newly allotted polling booths.
While most of the campaigns around elections just aim to encourage Indians to vote, Ultratech Cement wanted to induce a behavioral change by not only using one of the nation's top voices — Shahrukh Khan on the importance exercising their fundamental right - but also go a step further and make it easier for citizens to find their polling booths, thereby eliminating one of the barriers to vote.
Since Ultratech Cement geo-targeted citizens around the vicinity of polling booths, 100 percent of the total budgets were allotted for mobile.
The big idea centered on content. For instance, when Indians are not voting, they are often on their phones consuming content. Using InMobi's cutting-edge technology, the campaign geo-targeted them with contextual communication, educating them about their correct polling booth locations and encouraging them to vote.
InMobi fetched all voting poll booth locations from the website of the chief electoral officer and pinned them on Google Maps. People within a 200 to 300-meter radius consuming content on news, entertainment and other online platforms were targeted with contextual communication.
The ad included a 30-second commercial featuring Shahrukh Khan on the power of infrastructure in unlocking new possibilities, a banner with the communication "Vote Karega Toh Mazboot Banega India," and a CTA leading them to the correct direction.
Everyone is eyeing a tactical/product-driven strategy for their brands to gain brand salience, but UltraTech sought to be synonymous as a market leader. As such, the company had to take a larger stance to position itself as the brand to trust, and as a cement that builds the nation.
Campaign results included:
