My best campaign is 'Ami KKR' for Kolkata Knight Riders, says Jitto George

Which is your best campaign and why have you chosen it? Which year was the campaign launched?
 

That campaign would be Ami KKR for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), which was launched in the year 2016 just ahead of the Indian Premier League season that year. This was the first campaign we launched for the brand. The translation for Ami KKR would be I am KKR. For us, the campaign is special because for a primarily digital agency, this was the first mainline campaign we ever did. As a matter of fact, we had pitched it as a digital-only campaign to the client but they liked the message and it became an integrated campaign. This was the first such campaign where fans could show their love for the brand through a piece of brand commun-ication. Usually, it is the other way round where a brand tells people that we love you and support us.     

What did the campaign achieve for the brand?
 

In terms of scale, it is one of the biggest campaign for us. The message that everyone was a Knight Rider gave us the confidence to continue it for the second year also, in 2017. The engagement rate that we got for KKR was the highest at that point. We had 623 posts on Faecbook which gave us 1.2 billion impressions, there were 32 million video views and more than 235,913 hours of videos seen. It helped gained 400,751 followers on Twitter and received 49.1 million impressions and more than 155,000 retweets on the platform.

What was the key idea behind the campaign?
 

The key idea was to send across the message that KKR was not just a cricket team but a part of the fan’s family and the lifestyle of the city. It was everything for the people it was addressing. We all know how passionate people in Kolkata are and their engagement with the game is a perfect example of how that enthusiasm is part of their day to day routine. We also wanted to build a lasting loyalty — once you are for Ami KKR, you are a fan for today, tomorrow and forever. Credits to the client also for understanding the campaign and the brand message well to help it graduate to mainline.  

What was the industry response to the campaign?
 

It was well supported no doubt and more than the awards, our takeaway was how our fans supported it. Even now if fans put out social posts on KKR, they mention Ami KKR. We aced in terms of content also, thanks to the illustrated posters and hoardings that stood out compared to other franchisees who packaged their content on the same lines later.

What were the execution challenges?
 

Learning about the brand in a short period of time was a challenge for us. We had worked with other teams as well but knowing the people of Kolkata was important to execute it well. We had just 20-odd days to pull it off including taking it outdoor. Digital took us across the world and the outdoor and mainline activities had to be taken in a big way to all the places the team was travelling to. From a player’s dressing room to a fan’s house, it was everywhere.

Today, tomorrow and forever

My Take

This was the first campaign where fans got a chance to talk to the brand. Usually, it is the other way round where a brand tells people that we love you and so on

Brand: Kolkata Knight Riders

Year of launch: 2016

Agency: Gozoop