NEW DELHI: Outlook has worked on a new print campaign, based on its strategy of releasing its weekly magazine on Saturday.
Created by Triton Communications, the campaign focuses on highlighting the fact that Outlook is a news weekly reporting on developments from Monday to Friday.
Outlook’s vice president (advertising), R Rajmohan says, “Monday to Friday coverage makes Outlook a complete news weekly. What we miss in our hurry to hit the stands on Friday, actually never gets covered in the magazine as it's stale by the next week. We are in the business of news and current affairs. It really doesn't matter to the reader whether the magazine is released on Friday or Saturday morning. What matters is how much more of the week you are covering."
On the origination of the initiative by Outlook, Rajmohan adds, “India Today had a mail shot about the 'Friday release' claiming that to be an advantage. We felt that competitive edge lies in the fact that we have an extra day to cover news/events of the week. We thought of putting things in perspective through a mail shot from the same web site. However, we are sustaining this activity, of communicating this definite competitive edge, through a print campaign which breaks on Saturday. In fact, point of sale (POS) materials are already up for the last five days.”
Outlook briefed Triton to convert its rival’s idea of hitting the stands on Friday into a competitive advantage. “In doing so (through new Outlook campaign), Outlook would own the plank of being a comprehensive newsweekly, reporting all the news till Friday for the reader to devour over Saturday and Sunday. This would be unlike the competitors hasty approach of meeting a dateline at the expense of comprehensive news,” says Triton Communications executive director Vivek Srivastava.
According to Triton, the media strategy is to utilise in-house publications as well as all leading dailies to convey the message toOutlook’s current and prospective readers, highlighting the fact that early on the news stands for a weekly means lesser current news and analysis.
“The campaign tries to portray this move of India Today as another desperate move by a cornered, besieged leader who is faced with a formidable competitor in Outlook. The key strategic thought is to reinforce the brand value of Outlook, to ensure that it is the reader who gets full information on happening in a working week Monday to Friday. Friday is important for news as it is the last day of the week for business and central government, the day for blockbusters release on box office, and so on,” adds Srivastava.
The campaign aims to strengthen Outlook's brand values of being bold, incisive and non-partisan and committed to complete news coverage.
On the mail shot, Srivastava says, “The mail shot - 'Outlook Agrees...' was an opening shot meant to turn the tables on India Today by saying that yes best things shouldn't be hurried especially news coverage. Outlook will cover everything till Friday and reach its readers complete and fresh on Saturday."
