Sanguine Media launches 'SAMRAT' - custom designed mobile vehicle for rural marketing

Sanguine Media Ltd on December 27, 2006 has announced that the Company has launched "SAMRAT" - India's first custom designed vehicle for mobile product marketing and brand promotion initiatives especially aimed at facilitating penetration of rural markets.

SAMRAT, based on a long wheelbase truck chassis, is designed and equipped with state of the art equipments and details specific to requirements for field marketing initiatives in rural areas. These include features such as IT equipment to help advertisers monitor their promotions in real time; 'ready to roll' state of the art audio-visual equipment with large screen projection; special sound & light equipment; stage for live events and game shows; modular design of space for mobile exhibitions accommodating at least 10 different brands on a single platform; air-conditioned inflatable rooms for use by brand ambassadors.

D V Vinod Gopal, Managing Director & CEO of the Company said 'SAMRAT is designed based on our extensive experience in rural marketing promotions and understanding of the rural consumer. The design incorporates nuances that are effective, not only from the rural public's point of view, but also to facilitate field logistic support including storage space for products as well as promotional collateral and support props.

He pointed out "SAMRAT's modular design makes it possible to simultaneously promote up to 10 brands, thereby enabling cost sharing among various brands. Our field experience shows that single product promotions do not elicit as much response as multiple products do.'

SAMRAT will also tap shandies and melas that are big cluster points for rural consumers. 3 village markets can be covered in a day reaching out to about 12,000 people each day. As per Sanguine estimates, a fleet strength of 800 vehicles are required for covering every village each quarter in South India alone. Mr. Vinod said, 'The current thrust of marketers to aggressively pursue the rural consumer made the SAMRAT an imperative need.'

In addition to promotion, events and communication, SAMRAT will also be a rural distribution and retail vehicle. Interestingly, this will not be confined to FMCG products. Mr. Vinod said 'Sanguine already has enquiries from multinational financial majors to take their financial products such as IPO forms and insurance to rural India using SAMRAT - perhaps, setting a benchmark in rural promotions, keeping in line with new age sophistication of the SAMRAT as well as the rural consumer.'

In July 2006, the Company acquired Godavari Ads, a specialised rural marketing and event management services Company. Godavari Ads has been servicing corporate clients like Coca Cola, ITC, GSK, Britannia, Dabur, Nestle, NFCL, GTC & Dalmia Consumer Care. Godavari has operated more than 55 vans per month for providing rural marketing services across South India.

The Company has recently taken over Rohinie Media; a Coimbatore based Media Company, having a presence of over 10 years in media related activities. Rohinie media is providing sales promotion, print media advt. & rural marketing activities to various clients based in Coimbatore & Madurai region.

With these acquisitions, the Company - a television software production and marketing Company positioning itself to provide what Mr. Vinod calls 'promotional distribution' combining logistic, promotion and communication support for rural outreach activities.

Source : Equity Bulls

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