Tapping on the multiple meme-worthy scenes and elements such as entertaining characters and punchlines that influence pop culture on social media, ALTBalaji generated a buzz for 'Bicchoo Ka Khel' that outlasted its release.
Here we deconstruct the launch campaign for Bicchoo Ka Khel by ALTBalaji and analyze the popularity the series garnered through this campaign.
Brand Introduction
ALTBalaji is a video-on-demand platform, a subsidiary of Balaji Telefilms Limited offering original and exclusive stories tailored for Indian audiences across the globe.
Bicchoo Ka Khel is a crime thriller based in the city of Banaras, revolving around revenge, murder, and the excursion of Akhil, played by OTT platforms' favorite Munna bhaiya aka Divyendu Sharma starred opposite Anshul Chauhan.
Summary
With a digital-first approach, the campaign tapped interactive social media posts, brand collaborations, and digital content creators, to build a content marketing strategy that increases shareability of the campaign, and also triggers user-generated content. The creative outline focussed on introducing Akhil (the protagonist) as the mastermind.
Objective
The objective of the campaign was to create intrigue and awareness about the show, build the 'Khel' aspect of Akhil aka Divyendu, and to present him with a sense of mystery, so the activities result in social media conversations and eventually lead to conversion.
Execution
Pre-Teaser Buzz
The pre-teaser buzz was generated through a series of activities that builds interest and intrigue for the new show, giving them hints to look forward to, but always leaving them wanting more.
Starting with 'Ulti Ginti' where snippets from popular shows of the ALTBalaji slate were shown playing in reverse with no mention of the show, or the title sequence revealing the show's logo, and the characters talking about Akhil.
Taking the minimalist approach, and leveraging the punchlines from the show, the brand introduced the characters with one line that gives an apt idea of their persona and induces familiarity.
The teaser left the viewers with more questions than answers, the kind of questions that can only be answered with each episode of the show generated a level of interest that was amplified with posts in collaboration with several famed television actors.
Pre-Trailer Buzz
The pre-trailer buzz was generated with the launch of the ensemble poster featuring the whole cast, interactive social media posts, and crossovers between Bicchoo Ka Khel and other ALTBalaji shows.
The trailers finally released the tension built up within the viewers' minds and gave them the whole perspective of Akhil's world and the scorpion's play, taking the interest-level to new peaks.
Trailer
Trailer 2
Post-Trailer Buzz
The trailer launch was followed by a series of activities that keep the intrigue and interest alive to know why Anil Chaubey was killed. 'Dialogue Baazi', mind-bending riddles, horrors of the horoscope, a digital track, and the socioverse's favorite memes sustained the foundation, created the initial phases of the campaign and intensified it.
To give a boost to the whole launch campaign, user-generated content, and the social media conversations stirring around the show after its release, the brand closed it off with one final phase that integrated a Press Conference, virtual meet-ups, conversations with brand partners, Instagram filters, creator collaborations with Kusha Kapila, BC Aunty, Ronit Ashra, and more, along with giveaways, offline activations in the TV Show Bigg Boss, giveaways and more topical content.
ALTBalaji also tied up with News Nation to run a seven-day campaign, showcasing twelve promos each day, accompanied by the integration with the drama series Kundali Bhagya. EMT, CRedR, Gamezy, are a few of the other brand partners, along with Bollywoo, the merchandising partner for additional promotions. The brand collaborated with over 10 brands and 120 influencers in total.
“While consumer engagement, subscriptions, and watch time escalated substantially last year during the unprecedented lockdown, one of the vital content consumption trends that we witnessed was the digital adaptation from Bharat audience (HSM Markets), in terms of entertainment consumption. Bichhoo ka Khel set in Banaras was tailor-made to interest the Hindi heartlands of the country. Given the current OTT crime thriller genre trends across metros, the show became a success pan India. On the back of the show, ALTBalaji garnered substantial subs during the quarter of the show's release. With an average daily subscriber addition of 21,000 in the third quarter (Q3) of FY21, an increase in watch time, and engagement per consumer, ALTBalaji witnessed an incredible jump in viewership from the Hindi heartlands of India, and a huge credit goes to 'Bichhoo Ka Khel'!”
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