Pre-activism Will Be The Next Phase In Social Marketing: Tata Global Beverages

Tata Global Beverages has been one of the rare companies which has mastered the art of social marketing by rolling out concepts like ‘Jaago Re, which has played a prominent role in influencing people’s behaviour thus benefiting the individuals and communities for the greater social good.  Now the company is going the extra mile by coming up in new avatar aka Jaago Re 2.0, which focuses on pre-activism, an idea which urges consumers to act before a tragedy happens.  It may be recalled that Tata Tea’s decade-old 'Jaago Re' campaign, which struck a chord with the masses and ignited the spirit of activism much before the advent of social media, has now become a hallmark for social media marketing. 

Sushant Dash, Regional President, TATA Global Beverages, stated, “I believe the kind of results that you get a movement from the lens of a ‘Brand’ or from the lens of ‘Marketing’ can give you a lot more success. What we have realized is that most of the activism happens after an incident has happened.  But what we believe is if we really want to make an impact, then this activism has to become pre-activism. We need to raise our voice and do things before a disaster happens. Then only a true change can happen.  That is the next phase of Jaago Re, which is about pre-activism and creating a new language. Our new campaign says, “Alarm Bajne se Pehle Jaago Re.”

Differing with his views slightly from Dash, Jeroninio Almeida, Founder, iCongo, Rex & Karmaveer Awards, maintained, “Marketers and Business Heads need to make this an important step of their strategies. What you see in this country is that whenever there is a Tsunami or earthquake or something goes wrong, you don’t wait for the alarm to wring. I don’t think we should pre-empt something which is preventive. That is where the corporates and business leaders play a huge role.  There ideal situation would be when the business leaders, army and the government come together and decide how to prevent a certain disaster, whether it a manmade or a social one."

Delineating her thoughts, Lynn de Souza, Founder, Social Access said, “As an individual, whether you are in the army, company or in a managerial department of Tata Tea, or an NGO, ultimately all comes down to the individuals. If the country has to progress, the individual has to contribute. You (referring to Sushant Dash) chose to walk the talk. We being in the social space, urge you to ‘Talk the Walk’ instead of what you are currently doing. There is so much that needs to be done by NGOs, individuals, etc. They want to talk about it now. That’s where the marketing community and corporate sectors can come and spread awareness and help these people ‘Walk the Talk’.”

Talking about the genesis of social marketing that the company had pioneered, Dash said,
“A Lot of people talk about social progress and the role that corporates and brands can play in it. We run a very successful ‘Jaago Re’ campaign which is a cause related marketing for the last 10 years. When we started this campaign in 2008, we were the first one to talk about cause related marketing. 

Talking about its ‘Jaago Re’ campaign, Dash recalled, “When we started in 2007, we believed in apathy among the youth. People were not worried about social progress, but were only concerned about individual needs like job, house, etc. That apathy has turned to activism and people are vocal about it.   We had a punchline-don’t just wake up every morning, be awake. We were the first one to do it from the realm of a brand doing rather than just a CSR initiative. We did it because our brand’s DNA is cause related marketing. We do it because my company’s profitability is linked to cause related marketing i.e. social movement or social progress.  The passion with which what we bring to the table is very different from just a CSR activity.”

He also stated how an ordinary person can take a cue from Tata Global Beverages by doing something which is in sync with their brand philosophy. “As an individual, don’t blame others rather than change yourself.  So if you and I stop taking a bribe, then there will be no corruption and we will be able to elect the right candidates. ‘Jaago Re’ is not just about creating awareness but also about helping individuals ‘Walk the Talk’.”