The aim of the push is to address the general perception that Maxis is not as progressive or innovative as its rivals in the market.
Sharina Ismail, Ogilvy’s account director for the Maxis business, explained: “Maxis is not seen as an innovative service provider, but it does have a suite of ingenious products which have not been advertised.
Our aim is to put Maxis top-of-mind when it comes to innovative value-added services.”
The advertising push aims to increase consumer awareness of its new mobile services. Driven primarily by press ads, the campaign features an illustrated cat as the central character.
Each ad depicts the cat engaged in a different activity and is accompanied by text beginning with ‘Your phone is a…’ and a call to action.
For example, one ad shows the animal eating popcorn on a bench and the copy reads ‘Your phone is a movie world. Catch the latest movie and trailer buzz. Visit the Maxis WAP portal.’
The creative agency chose to use the cat to represent the new services as it is an animal that’s well-loved by people, noted Ismail. “The cat demonstrates our products and services in the simplest possible way. Cats are agile and endearing creatures, and our feline character is a smart aleck who’s curious and cheeky.”
The campaign is targeted at all mobile phone users in Malaysia and is currently running on English-language paper The Star on Fridays.
Ogilvy retained the business for the Maxis post-paid account in April (Media, 18 April) after the telco called for a RM200 million (US$60 million) creative review. The incumbent fought off challenges from Y&R and Leo Burnett while BBDO saw off Grey to retain the pre-paid Hotlink account.
The Malaysian telecom sector is a three-way fight between Maxis, DiGi and Celcom. In 2006, 40 per cent of the almost 22 million subscribers were Maxis customers, while Celcom and DiGi held 34 per cent and 26 per cent of the market, respectively.
However, DiGi has outgrown its competitors and Celcom has seen its market share slip in recent years.
