Smart marketing

Smart marketing

Rarely do we get to read any positive or good news in the
newspapers these days.

So, your "Focus on Jakarta" on page 3 on Dec. 2, 1997 gripped
my attention. It is nice to know that a five-star hotel in
Jakarta is offering free lunch for the city's taxi drivers. What
better way exists to satisfy a man except through his stomach?

However, in all advertising related activities, my theory is
quite simple. If the message is too good to be true, don't
believe it. Look for a hidden agenda and be sure to read the fine
print!

In any case, I was happily reading along the said news item
until I came to the last sentence, which gave away the truth.
While the drivers enjoy their free lunch, the hotel staff would
be putting the hotel's stickers on the taxi's windshields, of
course, with the gracious permission of the drivers.

You can bet no cab driver (worth his salt) would be inclined
to deny such permission. But, it's obvious that wherever the
taxis ply, the stickers represent free advertisement for the
hotel too.

In the final analysis, we should keep in mind that nothing at
all in this world comes without paying the price and there's just
no free lunch any time anywhere.

The hotel's campaign is rightly called "Power Lunch". What a
nice name these Marketing/Advertising executives came up with for
their strategy.

By launching the "Power Lunch" campaign, the hotel management
is assured of "empowering" themselves through the medium of taxi
drivers, who may be counted upon to bring in much needed business
for the hotel.

It's not always easy to be a step ahead of competition but by
roping in the cabbies as partners, you can be pretty sure of
driving fast and keeping the competition far behind!

All the same, we must congratulate the hotel management on
their novel idea. It's indeed a win-win concept.

I would certainly not rate this as yet another marketing
gimmick, for the simple reason that sometimes, the means may also
justify the ends.

D. CHANDRAMOULI

Jakarta