Integrated Marketing Communication: Comic Con, Mumbai 2012
Nikhil Kuchroo, Welingkar School of Management- Mumbai
ARTICLE
Figure 1: An official Comic-Con Mumbai 2012 Poster
The Comic-Con( Comics Conference) was held on 19-20 October 2012, at the World-Trade-Centre Building in Mumbai. This annual Event stands for the promotion of the graphic world of comics and films. This free-entry event, in its second year, saw more than 15,000 people throng the multiple stalls put up by several movie & comic merchandise manufacturers and Indian publishing houses, including, Amar Chitra Katha and Diamond Comics. This Event gave fans a chance to interact with their favourite comic characters and their publishers & creators and get a chance to meet like minded people. Last year the event generated revenues of close to INR 35 lakh in Mumbai alone.
The special treat for the fans at the fest was the sneak peek of Warner Bros India ' s upcoming films- The Hobbit & Man of Steel. Also, there was a special preview of " The Sixth ", the animated series by Vimanika Comics and Maya Animation.
The Event was modelled on the lines of the Comic-Con International: San Diego, USA. The economic impact study from the San Diego Convention Centre, in 2011, estimated that over $ 1.63 million was generated for the San Diego economy during Comic-Con week. It boasted of 130,000 delegates and 1,000 exhibitors. The biggest draw was the content, the exclusives and the chance to meet and get the gear signed by some of the biggest names in the business.
So how did JatinVarma, Founder, Comic Con India and his team pull the crowd to the Event? It started off with the identification of the core TG, the energetic, tech-
savvy and modern Gen-Y of Mumbai.
A text-book execution of all aspects of integrated marketing communication for the Event targeting the core TG worked together as a unified force, rather than getting each to work in isolation, which maximized the cost effectiveness of the communication. We need to understand that comics appeal to a small section of the people in India and so utilizing media channels like TV will not only be expensive but lead to a lot of wastage with low Return on Investment.
So, what was the procedure for effective communication for this Event and it ' s Promotion?
1. Get a Celebrity to visit: Actor Aayushman Khurana, protagonist of the movie Vicky Donor, launched Abhishek Sharma ' s( Famous from the movie Tere Bin Laden) brainchild Munkeeman 2.
2. Draw in the right delegates: The exclusive merchandise that was up for sale is near impossible to find elsewhere in India. Masks, accessories, action figures, comics, T-shirts and memorabilia saw that no visitor went empty handed. The presence of the right target group also saw the delegates spending lavishly over the merchandizes.
3. Socialize: Social media especially Facebook and Twitter were used extensively to spread the word. Word of mouth for this Event was so strong that the Mumbai Gen-Y truly got to know about the Event in spite of having no connection with the organisers, and roped in 6-8 more friends to visit the Event.
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