Aadhaar is Percept/H's biggest challenge till day, perhaps bigger than its earlier Bharat Nirman campaign. With the pilot phase underway, TSI gives the freshest scoop into what's up! Identity: one word that chases you along, right from your first breath till the last. Yes, we're referring to birth and death certificates. What are all these documents for? To authenticate that you are you and not someone else! But then, does anyone have any unique id that is not prone to manipulation? Passports, Driving Licenses, Ration Cards; you name it and it can be fabricated. Enter Nandan Nilekani, and a hope of getting a unique id, apparently immune to fudging.
Aadhaar, the government initiative with an eight digit number id promises every citizen of India his/her own identity, which will have a universal acceptability. This unique number would be given to each individual after he/she goes through a biometrics process, which involves scanning of all ten fingers, iris and facial structure. So even if you were Jason Bourne ' for the sake of a metaphor ' the system will remember you irrespective of you being oblivious of your own identity.
Percept/H has recently bagged the Aadhar account for handling the pilot phase of the campaign. Although they refuse to divulge the expected billings, one is given to understand through secondary sources that this is one of the biggest initiatives the government of India has undertaken in a long time. Percept/H itself is an old hand when it comes to handling government campaigns. One might remember the Bharat Nirman campaign that reached heights during the last assembly elections. Percept/H was the creative brains behind it, with its slogan, Bharat ke badhte kadam, har kadam par bharat buland.
For starters, why brand the current initiative Aadhaar? Apparently because the word means the same across various Indian regional languages. 'A foundation base,' says Amitava Mitra, COO (North), Percept/H, 'This rare word signifies the same thing across the nation.'
The Aadhaar campaign will be executed in three layers. Layer one involves letting people know what Aadhaar is all about including the benefits and the process. The second stage would be to build the brand across the country, maybe region wise as well. And in the final phase of the campaign, co-branding exercises would be undertaken.
So where's the 'media' in their 'campaign'? Well, cutting the suspense loose, there is no media involved as such. 'Aadhaar,' says Mitra, 'is really not about media. I don't think any organisation has ever gone into such a thing; we're not going so much into media. We're starting the campaign next month but we're not going to major cities. It will actually start in media dark areas, where media doesn't reach; nothing reaches, for that matter.' Aadhaar is a medium, which everybody is going to be riding on. It will act as an enabler, a facilitator, that will cut across political boundaries, and equalise opportunities in more than one ways. The arduous task ahead of Percept/H is to decide how to communicate this message so that it remains simple yet striking.
The creative team on board for Aadhaar comprises over 20 brains. Currently, the team has fled to the remote areas of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan to get the common man's feedback, catch their vibes! 'We are testing lines, visual interpretations' We have to understand what visuals will work, what phrases will work, what slogans will work. For instance, government used a visual, which has a fingerprint. When we took it out in public, it gathered negative feedback. A section of people thought it symbolised being angootha-chaap; this is about ten fingers, not just one. Therefore, what you think you are trying to depict may not be interpreted likewise.' Not just using multi-lingual campaigns, but multi-dialect ones, and with next to zero media aid, Aadhaar is unpretentiously set to bring a new form of advertising that one might have never seen or heard of before! Will it work? If you've read this article, it's working already... 'Other vendors also fared well'
Awadesh Kumar Pandey, Assistant Director General (Media), UIDAIHow has it been working on a project that is so enormous in its reach and objective?The project is still in its pilot stage and will be launched in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Karnataka. Our project will start from August 2010. As on date, it is going in the right direction. This project, just like any other, will be accomplished with resources and the guidelines formulated for the purpose.
Why percept/H?We have our own selection procedures, consisting of DAVP and multi-media agencies. Percept/H has qualified, both in technical and financial evaluation. Hence, the firm has been awarded the work of Multi Media ' Creative Partner.
How did the others fare in competition? was it close?Other vendors also fared well and were close to Percept/H. However, in our evaluation, we only follow the rules framed under the GFR and other guidelines framed for the purpose.
Other than aadhaar, what other brand names were suggested?We had set up a Media & Advisory Council, consisting of eminent personalities that scrutinised and selected the brand name. The same has been accepted. There were many names, but this was only appealing.
