Part 4 of my e-book on social media marketing

Part 4 of my e-book on social media marketing

Prologue: Operation Kamadhenu

Before the commencement of this plan, it is assumed ITC has evolved a way to make cows yield n litres of milk. This fact is kept in tight wraps from the general public:

A.      The research is done and the pilot project in a village successfully completed

Let’s imagine that ITC’s R&D department has proven that a buffalo yields n number of litres of milk a day. Let’s assume 10 liters of milk a day

B.      Other villages that have already been identified for the Kamadhenu project from different parts of India (and Nepal) follow the path as prescribed by the researchers

C.      Once the cows start yielding 10 liters of milk, the farmers, from all the happening regions of India and Nepal, claim that their buffaloes are, in fact, Kamadhenus. That a miracle has happened...

D.      A sales representative or a journalist arrives at the scene after they hear of Operation Kamadhenu

Operation Kamadhenu, in summary:                                                     Duration: One Week

For purposes of convenience, the marketing team is divided into four zones: east, west, north and south, and the experiments are implemented simultaneously across each zone in the country.

According to my proposal, the R&D department of ITC has devised such a plan that each cow yields around 10 liters of milk a day.  

This development is phenomenal. And once every farmer who takes care of his cattle in the way as suggested by the R&D department realizes that this is nothing short of a miracle, they tell the other dairy farmers of the miracle, of their own Kamadhenus. It is hoped that word spreads to more dairy farmers who join the movement much like the cooperative movement of Amul.

Operation Kamadhenu – the Event:

When the dairy farmer declares his cow to be a Kamadhenu, a journalist gets a whiff of the news and he arrives at the scene to watch the spectacle. He takes a picture of the event on his mobile and sends it to the press and media who then report the sensational news.

But before this, the Nutramil website already has a video recording of it. In fact, a more elaborate one has already been uploaded even in its channel on YouTube. It also has videos of farmers who speak of the marvel done by ITC. There are interviews with lead managers, a glimpse of the cleanliness in the surroundings, and hygiene of the dairy farm etc all are readily available on the website.

There is but just a mention of the fact that the owner of Nutramil is ITC.

This is also uploaded on the Nutramil channel of YouTube.

An opinion leader like Amitabh Bachchan could receive a link from the journalist or sales executive about the phenomena and he could RT it to his followers on Twitter thereby making the event hopefully a viral. It is assumed that the followers would in turn share the video with their friends in other social media websites such as Facebook etc., and word would spread.

Barely have the people of that state digested this interesting piece of information when another dairy farmer declares his cow to be a Kamadhenu from another zone and then there is a third and even a fourth, etc. The whole country is agog with the news. It becomes the talk of the town. Reports allege of sightings even in Nepal where the cow is revered much like it is in India – and all this in a day’s work.  A whole week-long debate starts in all news channels, some with reverence, while others rubbish it as a ploy by some demented religious fanatic hell bent on converting the minorities.

Possibly, a rich and educated farmer could be interviewed by a channel and he tells the channel and its viewers that the R&D department of ITC was responsible for the sudden increase in milk production and he could give the details - thereby smoothly closing the chapter on supernatural elements and highlighting the good ITC has been doing behind the scenes.

At no point does ITC on its own agree with or veto the idea. All the credit comes from the farmers themselves.

There could be another few episodes on TV featuring the humble landless poor farmer now converted into a dairy farmer, doing pretty well and looking a little prosperous ending the episode on the note that he is about to buy another buffalo so that his wife and daughter can run the business on their own., leaving him free to try his hand at some other profession. 

This episode could be relayed on YouTube. It is hoped that this would ensure that the word spread swiftly all across the country and the globe.

The event can be announced on the company’s Twitter page with a link to its own YouTube channel.  In fact, all the videos, the electronic media interviews etc should find its secure place in the brand’s own channel on YouTube. 

The week could perhaps end with a spokesman of ITC speaking about the project and the company’s concern for the marginalized farmers, thus squashing all the rumors and putting the wild stories to rest.

For more of the same, tune in tomorrow...