Colors lines up high-decibel marketing for launching India's Got Talent

The show, starting on January 11, will be promoted heavily on radio and Twitter, along with TV, print and outdoor. It is organizing a first-of-its-kind Twitter concert to create social media history

Sohini Sen | Mumbai | January 8, 2014

(L-R) Judges Malaika Arora Khan, Karan Johar and Kirron Kher at the launch of COLORS India's Got Talent Season 5

Colors has announced the launch of the 5th season of 'India's Got Talent' which hits TV screens on Saturday, January 11, 2013. The reality show produced by FremantleMedia India, will be telecast every Saturday and Sunday at 9 PM.

The popular talent search show will see judges Malaika Arora Khan, Karan Johan and Kirron Kher returning for yet another season. This season will see top performances like pole dancing gigs, basketball stunts, para gliders to acrobats, fire jumpers and synchronised swimmers. It will be hosted by the comic duo Bharti Singh and Mantra.

“We have set very high benchmarks for India's Got Talent. We are travelling the entire country and they see it on air every year. We have a lot more variety than we have ever had on this show. All these contestants are hopeful that they will find a new lease of life through this. We do silent auditions at least six months before the start and people from all over India come there. There are challenges taking it into the fifth year, but unlike any other show, you will never know what's coming next on India's Got Talent,” said Manisha Sharma, Weekend Programming Head, Colors.

While the format remains the same for the show which is replacing Bigg Boss, there has been one addition: a 'Golden Buzzer' has been added that provides a direct entry into the semi-finals by the three judges. This would enable really talented people cut the queue.

Like always, celebrity guests would be seen this year. The first episode will find Madhuri Dixit-Nene joining the judges panel and sharing anecdotes, followed by Remo D'souza and Manish Paul in later episodes.

Colors has launched a 360-degree integrated marketing campaign which will enhance viewer engagement through never-seen-before initiatives on radio and Twitter that promise to create a strong recall for the show amongst audiences.

Keeping in mind the relevance of social media, especially of Twitter, Colors will organise a first of its kind Twitter concert. As part of the initiative, the channel will invite its followers to compose lines for a unique India's Got Talent song, using the hashtag #IGTTwitterConcert. The channel will record the song, using lines sent by followers, which will be released before the show's premiere on January 11. This initiative will be promoted across radio, on television, and other social media platforms.

“This is apart from the microsite that we have. The anthem will follow a 30-second video that we will release and invite reactions. The reactions will be collated and made into the anthem and the lyrics will be crowd-sourced from various corners. This is the only property where we don't release an app but we will be using our social media platforms extensively. We have to promote the talent and make sure it is recognized, especially on that day. The IGT campaign will be done in two phases. The first phase is the Twitter anthem. Post launch is when we will individually acknowledge each talent and promote them,” pointed out Vivek Srivastava, Digital Head, Colors.

Besides digital, the marketing initiatives will include TV, outdoor and radio. Two innovative radio initiatives have been designed to create radio airwave history. For the first time on Indian radio, an Acapella act will be presented by this season's participants 'Ki Umjer' which will be aired across radio stations and cities to showcase the international caliber of talent that will feature on the show. Colors in association with Red FM involves another first in radio history as 30 RJs from across the country get together in Mumbai to share their inimitable hosting styles as well as showcase the talented individuals that reside in their respective cities.

An innovative campaign has also been planned for outdoor whereby the journey of specific celebrities will be shared in certain pre-determined areas. The celebrities will include Sachin Tendulkar, Govinda and Amitabh Bachchan, among others. What will also be different is these will be shown in areas where they had started their journey from. So, if it's Shivaji Park in Mumbai for Tendulkar, Bachchan's outdoor campaign will be shown in Allahabad.

“Along with the innovative radio and outdoor campaign, we have started to work on promoting the show and talent. The format of IGT is already popular and therefore we are going to build reach. We will be including over 3,500 + spots on television, 50 plus editions of key print, over 8,000 radio spots, OOH covering 100 towns, and DTH imprints ensures that the show's target audience is engaged through at least one touch-point in the launch week. The theme will be 'Itihaas banayega' and we will be working towards it. In Mumbai we will also let people showcase their talent at Churchgate station where the spotlight will be on them. All the campaigning will be at one go and will not be in phases,” said Rajesh Iyer, Marketing Head, Colors.

Sohini.Sen@BestMediaInfo.com

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