The Hindu Business Line : Vodafone recalls the pug after 10 months

Bangalore, July 8 The Vodafone pug paws its way back! The adorable little dog that captured hearts (in both the Hutch and later the Vodafone advertisements) is back on TV after nearly 10 months.

For those who thought the iconic pug was gone forever, after Vodafone unleashed the egg-head characters Zoozoos during IPL-2, this is indeed good news. “The pug and Zoozoos are properties that the brand built to deliver on a bigger brand promise. Although the pug was not on TV, it was on our signage at the Vodafone stores. The pug is still part of Vodafone’s brand philosophy,” says Mr Kumar Subramaniam, Executive Brand Director, Ogilvy and Mather, the creative agency behind the Vodafone commercials.

The latest ad campaign has four commercials featuring the pug and the little girl – also from the older campaigns, though a bit grown up.

The ad campaign, which burst on TV four days ago, is built around the ‘Happy to help’ philosophy, which showcases the brand’s customer services. “The ads re-emphasise and refresh consumers that the brand is customer-centric and is easily accessible,” says Mr Subramaniam.

The latest ‘Happy-to-help’ campaign talks about Vodafone’s retail network of 4,000 stores and mini-stores, its mobile vans that travel around cities, the SMS store and the self-service kiosks. The ads have been shot in South Africa and are expected to run for three-four weeks.

While O&M Mumbai is the creative agency, the commercials have been produced by Nirvana – the production house behind the Zoozoos campaign as well.

Does the pug coming back mean the Zoozoos are history? “We will continue with the Zoozoos, but when and how – we are still talking about it,” says Mr Subramaniam, who also does not rule out using the pug in the future.

So whether you are a fan of the pug or the Zoozoos, there’s something to cheer!

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