Visa Going The India Way...!

Visa will soon launch its global campaign, along with its new global positioning, in India. The campaign went on air in the USA market in the first week of March and will be released in the Indian subcontinent on the day of the festival of colours, Holi (March 11). It is pretty impressive to see That Global Brands are taking keen interests in India an Emerging Market and launching seperate communication strategy for the same

Craft & Media Masters

Visa consolidated its entire creative duties with TBWA and its media duties with OMD on a global level. Following the global consolidation, the first ever global campaign will be released in India simultaneously. The brand’s new positioning line is ‘More people around the world go with Visa’.

The idea has been tweaked a little to suit the Indian consumer. The 60 second ad pegs the various ways in which a consumer relates to the word ‘go’.

The Indian Tadka

In the Indian version of the ad, cricket and Holi have been woven in to impart a regional flavour. Visa was launched in India in 1989. According to Saurav Bhattacharya, marketing director, South Asia, Visa the initial task when Visa entered India was that of informing the prospective Indian consumer about Visa and the facility of plastic money.

Back Then...

It adopted the tagline – 'Visa Power. Go get it' – with cricketer Sachin Tendulkar as its brand ambassador from 1997 to 2003.

The next campaign was about connecting emotionally with the consumer. ‘Mind and Body. Heart and Soul’ was the next big campaign. Musicians Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy, who composed the tune for the campaign, were also the brand ambassadors at the time.

Shifting Focus

Earlier, the idea was to empower the consumer with 'Visa power' and then ‘go’ get what they desired. Now, since the consumer is aware of Visa, the focus has shifted to communicating that he can ‘go’ with it anywhere – be it shopping, marriages, dining or even for a holiday abroad. Accto Uttam Nayak, country manager, South Asia, Visa- The aim now is to convert cash and cheque transactions to electronic payment platforms.He goes on to explain that in order to bring this to effect, Visa will be present at all sites of consumer action to convert those into transactions.

In the Indian version, the print uses Indian nuances such as Indian marriages and eating habits to depict the word 'Go'.

Apart from print and outdoor, Visa will also use the digital platform through websites such as Shaadi.com, Yahoo and Sify.