On Sunday, August 20, Facebook users received poke notifications from an unusual profile – a dengue mosquito, part of an awareness drive about World Mosquito Day, a Facebook initiative by Godrej.
This use of the Facebook “poke†functionality was created by OgilvyOne, Mumbai for Godrej HIT’s platelet donation drive. Godrej HIT has partnered with Apollo Hospitals to build an online community of platelet donors to save lives of critical dengue patients.
By A Correspondent
Swatting mosquitoes is a chore for anyone, especially during the monsoon season, but Apollo Munich Health Insurance makes it fun with an interactive online game – “Kill the Killerâ€, combined with a public interest message.
‘Kill the Killer’ game is an innovative customer engagement tool that aims to educate people – “Not all mosquitos can be killed, one needs to stay completely covered rather than just merely using devices to banish them.†‘Kill the Killer’ game can be played on Apollo Munich’s homepage (www.apollomunichinsurance.com) anytime, anywhere and as many times as you would like to. All one needs to do is swat as many mosquitoes as one can in 20 seconds and check the score thereafter.
Speaking about the idea behind the game, Antony Jacob, Chief Executive Officer, Apollo Munich said, “Gamification has undoubtedly become a very strong communication tool and the whole world talking about Pokémon Go corroborates it. The Internet offers a world of activities that people can indulge in and through this gamification means, we are hoping to raise awareness for dengue, educate consumers about the disease, and thereby infuse an interest in people to banish dengue fear from their lives. At Apollo Munich, we have always focused on innovation and this time around we are moving innovation from products to customer engagement.â€
The much awaited monsoon season in India not only brings respite to the summer and farmlands, but it also brings with it a slew of healthcare frights, as stagnant water provides breeding grounds for many infection borne mosquitos. Dengue, leptospirosis, malaria, etc. all arrive within a month of the rains. Although these diseases can be treated, dengue has become the largest vector borne disease and sometimes proves fatal, if left untreated.
Known for its innovative products, Apollo Munich has been active in its social media initiatives and with gamification, the company is taking its customer engagement initiatives to the next level. People can share the game through social media and hence effect a larger understanding amongst the population. The company is embracing the online medium to further uncomplicate insurance and make it easy to understand for people. Moreover, such initiatives also help solve purchase related concerns and complete the purchase, as well as the renewal processes.
By A Correspondent
Over the years, Godrej HIT has been at the forefront in building awareness against pest borne diseases through its ‘Kill Pests Kill Diseases’ campaign. Driving the initiative in a big way for Godrej HIT is its variant – Kala HIT that has executed many successful education campaigns through media and on-ground activations to fight diseases like dengue and malaria.
It is a well-established fact that diseases like dengue and malaria claim thousands of lives globally every year. In fact several institutions and brands have been constantly sensitizing people on the measures that need to be taken by spreading the message through mass media vehicles. But despite such investments, Godrej HIT realized that intense media clutter and noise in traditional media channels has made people indifferent (it often becomes a blind spot) even to such critical messages. However, if such messages are designed to address a specific need, people are far more receptive. Godrej HIT decided to draw people’s attention by causing a disruption in the communication by using a tech intervention that solves a specific need.
An idea of developing a mobile app called ‘HIT – Track the Bite’ was thus born. Developed by LinTeractive, the digital arm of Mullen Lowe Lintas Group, the mobile app is designed to deliver real-time information on dengue and malaria based on the user’s location at vulnerable places. Timely and personalized messages provided on the app leads to higher engagement and persuades people to take effective action against dengue & malaria. Rapid awareness also builds up if information is available and sharable in one click. HIT – Track the Bite mobile app is the perfect solution. With app features like easy share, users can push information with their family and friends at the click of a button, which is a must for boosting organic reach.
Godrej HIT would be running a special drive that would kick off on August 20th – World Mosquito Day to create heightened awareness around the need to download the app. The app is available for download on Google Play store for Android users (http://bit.ly/TrackTheBite). It will be launched on the iOS platform soon. The brand would be running an app download campaign on the day on Twitter where it will trend under the hashtag #HarKoneMeinDanger. This would help in driving more app downloads and also create buzz about the impending risks arising due to dengue and malaria.
Sharing his thoughts on the new initiative undertaken by Godrej HIT, Sunil Kataria, Business Head India and SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products said, “As a category leader Kala HIT has always led the fight from the front against dengue and malaria by educating people about this threat. This has been achieved through innovative campaigns under “Kill pests Kill diseases†like sand art activity on beaches of Chennai and Puri last year. This year on the occasion of World Mosquito Day, we are unveiling HIT – Track the Bite App, a latest initiative on our mission to provide real time information to people. We are hoping that this information will empower people to fight the threat of dengue and malaria.â€
Adding further he said, “Taking our fight against mosquitoes a step further, HIT intends to reach out to every citizen in the country sensitizing them about the threat of dengue or malaria through a technological disruption. HIT-Track the Bite is one-of-a-kind mobile app that intuitively provides real-time information on the threat levels to users basis their location. The app also provides precautionary measures required to remain safe. Spreading this information is critical and thus the app has a built-in feature that allows users also to alert their family and friends at the click of a button.â€
According to Kataria, Kala HIT would be embarking on a 4000 plus kilometers drive starting from the national capital – Delhi with the objective of educating people about dengue. On its way to Bangalore, the HIT van will cover more than 20 cities and demonstrate how HIT – Track the Bite app can help them be informed and be safe from dengue and malaria.
Some of the highlights of the app include:
Sumanta Ganguly, Senior VP – Lin Teractive said, “HIT — Track the Bite app is an offering that is unique in its approach. It’s the first of its kind that takes safety and precaution to the next level on the digital platform.â€
Sharing her views on developing the app, Gauri Joshi, Unit Creative Director, LinTeractive said, “Our vision to create a unique app that protects users from the ever-present risk of dengue and malaria has finally been realized. Given the increase in smartphone penetration, we are confident that the users will download and discover the many benefits that the app offers. With the app, users can stay informed and keep their near and dear ones safe from these diseases.â€