With competition in the online travel space intensifying, Cleartrip has unveiled a new campaign to break through the clutter. Cleartrip Chief Marketing Officer Niraj Seth explains, “Most brands in this space are transactional in nature. With the new campaign we want to project our brand as more humane in its approach.”
Adds National Creative Director Publicis India Emmanuel Upputuru who has worked on the campaign, “We wanted to move away from the focus on travel deals, discounts and packages that most travel portals showcase and position ourselves on a higher ground.”
The new campaign, titled ‘Every trip has a purpose’, delves into the reason for travel and showcases real travellers from different walks of life speaking about their desire to travel. The campaign consists of 40 spots (10 seconds each), of which only 13 are on air. According to Upputuru, 200 travellers were chosen from cities like Mumbai, Varanasi, Kovalam and Kolkata, of which only 40 people were short-listed. It took Publicis two months to shoot the campaign. Says National Creative Director Leo Burnett India KV Sridhar, “The campaign strategy is fresh and insightful and will help the company build a strong value proposition and a loyal set of consumers.”
Of course, one key objective of the campaign is to reach out to a broader set of consumers. As Cleartrip CEO Stuart Crighton says, “Currently, domestic and international airline, hotel and train bookings contribute the bulk of our revenues and with the new campaign we hope to tap into new segments like corporate travellers, travel agents and mobile bookings.”
According to industry estimates, the market for online travel bookings has grown to $6 billion (Rs 27,198 crore) in 2010, from a mere $295 million (Rs 1,337 crore) in 2005. Chief operating officer and co-founder of competitor MakeMy Trip.com, Keyur Joshi, attributes this growth to increasing internet penetration, wider acceptance of e-commerce and the emergence of low-cost carriers. A large number of players have entered this space with the promise of better deals and attractive packages. The latest move is perhaps an attempt by Cleartrip to score over competing online travel sites and direct supplier sites like hotel and airline-branded sites.
To increase consumer engagement, Cleartrip has launched a micro-site which asks customers to list the place and purpose of their travel. This is a smart move which will allow the brand to gather insights on customer behaviour and help it tailor-make future communication. A contest is also running on the micro-site, which provides a cash-back incentive of Rs 150 on any booking on Cleartrip.com. The website also has a blog section where it draws inputs on design and accessibility from visitors to the site.
The company is also bullish on the mobile space, which currently contributes to only 3 per cent of its overall sales. “As 3G takes off with newer tariff plans and access to smart phones at cheaper price points, the mobile space will see significant growth,” says Crighton. According to Seth, “Our mobile interface clearly differentiates us from other players in the market. It allows the user to book multiple passengers, make round trip bookings and check PNR status.” Competitor MakeMyTrip.com too is looking to launch native applications for major mobile platforms like iPhone, Android, Symbian and Blackberry.
The company plans to also introduce other revenue streams like bus ticket bookings. “Until now, we did not have this as a option as the bus industry in India is fragmented,” says Crighton. “Going forward, bus ticket bookings will be a natural addition to our offerings if the product is good enough to meet consumer expectations.”
