From the "Dark" to connectivity. While the world is connected and spoilt with an overload of entertainment through regular

media and digital mediums, there are parts of the world that are totally in the dark and

disconnected from the world. Such as Bihar and Jharkhand, two of India’s most media dark

regions , with no electricity for 8-10 hours every day.

But with a population of 130 million they were key growth markets for Unilever

and we had to find a way to reach out to them. The solution for this was to use a

device whose reach was spread far wider than traditional mass media combined-

Their rudimentary mobile phones. This led to the creation of the

“Free On demand, Mobile Radio” service, the Kan Khajura Station.

Considering the market geographies where the campaign existed, this

medium helped bridge a gap between Unilever and a large audience

that was earlier un reachable. For an audience that was craving for

entertainment, Unilever was successful in providing them with content

that was culturally relevant to them. And with the strategy of ‘engage

and not interrupt’ they managed to become the largest media channel

in the region in just 6 months.

The Background

Hindustan Unilever Ltd is the market leader in Indian consumer products with presence in

over 20 consumer categories. Other players like Procter & Gamble, Nestle also exist in these

markets and give a stiff competition to Unilever. In spite of being the market leaders in

consumer products across India, there was an audience they found difficult to reach. There

are parts of India that are totally in the dark and disconnected from the world.

Such as Bihar and Jharkhand, two of India’s most media dark

regions. With no electricity for 8-10 hours every day, but

ironically with 23 million TV sets which lie blank.

However with a population of 130 million, they were key growth markets for Unilever and

they had to find a way to reach out to them.

The Solution

The answer lay in the only electronic equipment the people here kept turned on-

a rudimentary mobile phone. And 54 million people here had one!

By transforming their rudimentary mobile phones, Unilever was able to give them

something they didn’t have- THE KAN KHAJURA STATION- A 15 minute free, on-demand,

entertainment channel that worked with just a missed call.

Unilever got together brand creators, mobile operators,

content providers and some of their brands to

create Kan Khajura Station.

The moment anyone called in, the call would

get disconnected and an automated call back was

generated with 15 minutes of music, jokes, news

and promotions from those brands.

This ensured listeners that this service was free. Incoming calls are free in India.

Our next challenge

Getting people to remember a 10 digit number.

To popularise it, we created a memorable logo with

the number to call. (a 10 digit number) posters and

banners were put up everywhere people gathered -

railway Stations, local cattle fairs, mobile recharge

outlets. Other mediums like out bound calls and local print media in pockets were used

where it was available. All with a simple message to give a missed call to a number for free

entertainment.

From darkness and disconnectedness, through this new channel we found a way to reach

out to people with a rudimentary mobile phone. And connect them back with the world,

with content relevant to their culture.

All this at a cost of under 4 cents per person.

For an audience that was craving for entertainment, Unilever was successful in providing

them with content that bought a smile to 24 million people. The strategy used was to

‘engage and not interrupt’. The content was NOT overloaded with Unilever ads, this helped

in generating a regular and loyal subscriber base.

Through constant call monitoring and back end support, it was possible to study what

content was liked and at what point in time did a user end a call. With this critical

information Unilever was able to modify the content every week to ensure constant

engagement with the callers.

Never before has any campaign explored a simple missed call for its communication

potential like the ‘Kan Khajura Station’.

The target was to achieve 6-7 million calls in 6 months. But people kept dialing in with a

peak of 150,000 calls a day.

The goal was to reach out to 10% of the population in 6 months.

Unilever managed to reach out to 25.5%.

The campaign was able to generate 24 million missed calls and

8 million unique subscribers, that is 13000 hours of engagement

each day and 2.3 million hours till date with 70 million ad

impressions clocked so far.

There was a rise in spontaneous awareness for some of the brands –

Ponds 1400 BPS, Close up-1300 BPS, Wheel-1100 BPS

Kan Khajura Station is the largest media channel in Bihar & Jharkhand today. We were

successful in creating a new media through a rudimentary

mobile phone, that brought people out of media darkness,

and reconnected them with the world. And what’s more

it’s an invention that can be adopted anywhere in the

world to reconnect with people who are in darkness -

and give them "ears of joy".