Hero Electric charges ahead with electric campaign

Cliched as it may sound, auto-makers are now getting charged about electric at least going by their advertising efforts.

Hero Electric, for instance, has decided on a digital film to deliver a sobering message. Inspired by the UN mask challenge campaign for World Environment Day, it decided to use the familiar face buffs worn by millions of two-wheeler riders in India, as a medium of education and awareness.

UN mask challenge

Hero Electric’s message showcases a cleaner, greener and sustainable future powered by electro-mobility.

The company decided to take up the UN mask challenge by evoking the brand’s inherent quality: to commute without polluting.

It took it one step further by showing its Managing Director, Naveen Munjal, wearing a mask encouraging people to #BeatAirPollution.

Hero Electric employees also joined in, with a video showcasing the scale and impact of air pollution, and how countless Indians tend to cover their face up with a mask/handkerchief while on roads filled with ICE vehicles.

The film was conceived and created by digital agency Zeno Group India.

The brief from the company was simple: to create and map an engaging and socially meaningful campaign for World Environment Day that would go beyond just that day; and bring together Hero Electric’s ethos and constant efforts towards creating a cleaner future.

While #BeatAirPollution is what the UN leveraged to create noise and start a conversation on social media, the corporate brand wanted to add its voice.

An existing hashtag #SwitchToElectric was used as a driver to make people aware and encourage them to act.

This was combined with the adoption-based #DilHaiElectric.

Hero Electric has 610 sales and service outlets spread across the country.

Hero’s role

It has been at the forefront in developing and launching the first lithium ion-based electric scooter in India as well as the concept of everywhere charging.

With nearly three lakh electric two-wheelers on the roads, the company has played a key role in the e-mobility space.

In the US, where billions of dollars have been invested in the EV sector, car-makers appear to be launching an all frontal attack. Honda, Ford, General Motors, Nissan and others have announced massive EV ambitions.

The Volkswagen Group, whose brands include Audi and Porsche, has said it will launch 70 new electric models in the next 10 years.

Its luxury brand, Audi, ran a Super Bowl advertisement, touting claims that one-third of its new models would be electrified by 2025.

Kicking off a new ad campaign designed to promote electric cars and rehabilitate the company’s image, which has been badly tarnished with diesel exhaust fumes, Volkswagen decided to show how it could “credibly contribute to the greater good.”

Its new advertisement featured during the NBA playoffs and then later on several social media channels in India, highlights VW’s current fleet as well as its upcoming electric fleet. The Group has set a target of global carbon neutrality across its fleet, production and administration by 2050.

Back home in India, Hyundai will soon launch the Kona Electric, while group company Kia Motors will also have its own EV.

Mahindra & Mahindra, which has been investing considerably in this space, will have its E KUV100 on the roads. There are others on the list, which include Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors, MG Motor and so.

In the coming months, advertising campaigns on these new electric initiatives will kick off in right earnest to woo customers.

While India is keen on putting in place a far more proactive electric automotive ecosystem, the challenge is to provide fiscal sops and adequate charging infrastructure.

Amidst this din, a startup has decided to make its voice heard.Spurred by the move to everything electric, BattRE, a technology-driven startup, recently launched its e-scooters.

Nishcal Chaudhary, Founder and CEO, says e-mobility needs a lucrative and long term policy support to incentivise demand while fostering a manufacturing ecosystem to fulfil it.

BattRE has taken on board a core group of advisors and investors to help it charge ahead.

The list include Gajendra Chandel, former HR President of Tata Motors, Anant Arora, former CEO at Bharti Airtel, Manpreet Oberoi, former director at Cargill and American Express, and Kshitija Karnik, formerly with Citibank, HSBC and TVS.

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