We located three strategically placed cell towers close to Maha Kumbh Mela and tied up with Airtel, the largest mobile network in India to location target 3-5 km radius around the Mela. A voice call was set up in Hindi using the familiar voice of legendary Indian radio figure Amin Sayani.

Once pilgrims were in close vicinity of the Mela area, they received a call from Mr Sayani on their mobile phone. The call guided them to the Colgate stall. To build excitement, it also announced about the magic show and exciting prizes which were awaiting them there.

There was a massive word of mouth from those who had received the voice call –they informed their friends and relatives. During the promotion period, visitors to the Colgate stall went up to over 300% of the pre-promotion period. The Colgate stall attracted over 700,000 visitors during the Maha Kumbh Mela promotion.

This campaign opened up a new door to reach out and engage rural consumers from media dark areas, leveraging mobile phones in gatherings like village Fair, Haat and Mela to broadcast location targeted voice messaging. This was the first such kind of innovation ever in India.