Outdoor is one of the cost effective mediums to invest and to reach our target audience LG Electronics is credited with

some of the most impactful campaigns seen in the Indian OOH domain, showcasing the brand s new and innovative mobile handsets, LCD and LED TVs and a host of other electronic goods. The brand has reposed its faith in the outdoor to connect with both the urban and rural markets. Lakshmikant Gupta, chief marketing officer, LG India , talks about the brand s experience in outdoor advertising in an interview to network2medias Neha Nagpal . Excerpts: LG Electronics is a visible brand in the Indian outdoor domain. How important is this medium for you in connecting with consumers? Outdoor advertising provides broad target coverage and speedy reach. Size does matter in generating impact and comparatively. It is one of the cost effective mediums to invest and to reach our target audience. How effective is the OOH platform for sustained brand building i nitiatives? As I said above, OOH medium is one of the best platforms for brand building initiatives since it has consistent brand reinforcement and sustained awareness. New innovative options like LED and neon panels help in making the platform more interesting. When it comes to product launch campaigns, what is the brief that you normally give to the OOH firms? Are you satisfied with the results that you obtain from the outdoor campaigns? For the product launches our brief is very clear -- we need the most visible site and if possible with unique innovative option for immediate recall from other traditional media. Of course, most of the campaigns have positive response. Since there is no common currency for ROI measurement in the Indian outdoor media,what benchmarks do you consider when planning for this medium? Increase of particular product s response at our dealer ends, increase in number of visitors on our website, increase in customer calls, SMS, etc., helps us to gauge the campaign s instant response. Advertising brands often talk about clutter in the major outdoor markets. How do you tackle this issue when you plan for outdoor campaigns? Even though, impact sites, which have very clear visibility help to break clutter level, unique creative visual effect and innovations play a major role in standing out among clutter.

Is innovation the best bet to be noticed in the outdoor? From experience, do you seeOOH firms coming up with innovative solutions that deliver big impact?

Yes. Innovation is the big di fferentiation tool to create impact and increase noticeablity. Now,international players help OOH firms to execute many outstanding ideas. With LG Ad beginning operations in India, is there a change in approach toward engaging OOH firms for your brand comm unications?
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LG India / Big Picture

No, our strategy remains unchanged. Even though LG Ad is our in -house wing, we invite other leading OOH firms for every campaign based on our common brief. Based on best deals and deliveries, we shortlist the agency. As you foray into smaller cities and towns in India, do you consider OOH for your brand communications? Yes. We are moving into rural belt. Since the last quarter of 2010, OOH has major contribution in this market to build our relevant product related communication. What are the changes that you would like to see in the Indian OOH space for you to consider a higher outdoor spend? Like other traditional media, we expect reach measurement tool functional with accurate data supporting. Uniform ru les for OOH advertisers should be set up by authorities on LED displays at prominent locations. Finally, foolproof site monitoring method to have completecontrol on OOH spends.
LG is known for its array of new products. It has expanded its Chocolate Edition mobile phone range in the Indian market with the launch of LG BL40. Now, the global leader and technology innovator in mobile communications has used outdoor heavily to create buzz around the new LG BL40. The campaign has been executed by OMI (A Division of Laqshya Media Pvt. Ltd.) servicing LG for more than two years. The idea behind the campaign was to promote the new LG Chocolate device which boasts a 4-inch wide HD LCD screen that offers 800 x 345 pixel resolution. This fashion diva of LG also sports a superior quality 5 megapixel camera. OOH, has been spread out in nine cities including Mumbai, Bangalore, Pune, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Delhi NCR, Chennai, Kolkata and Surat for duration of 21 days using a media mix comprising of unipoles, billboards, gantries, bridge panels, bus shelters, LED screens, malls and multiplexes media targeted at the premium SEC A/A+ segment. The media plan has been chalked out carefully and all the important junctions have been carefully plotted and selected to give omnipresence to the messages and exposing the TG to the creative. For the campaign, LG has taken up more than 100 sites pan-India