Developed by agency-of-record Bates Vietnam, the campaign features a fresh logo, print and TV executions, activation and online efforts to express the joy of keeping in touch with Mobifone.
The new look incorporates brighter colours and younger faces. “Mobifone has always been seen as a premium brand. When you see the Mobifone prefix — 090 — the association is with wealth and status,” said Tue Nguyen, MD of BatesAsia Vietnam. “But Mobifone felt it was a good time to modernise the brand. Everyone’s launching new logos these days.”
Nguyen said although Mobifone is used by all demographics, its premium positioning makes it especially attractive to the nouveau riche.
Mobifone’s rejuvenation efforts fall a year after its sister telco, state-owned Vinaphone, relaunched via Saatchi & Saatchi. The two dominant players have recently seen their pole positions threatened by military-owned telco Viettel.
According to Nguyen, Viettel’s draw is cheaper pricing and aggressive marketing in rural areas. “People here often carry two phones — Mobifone to receive calls, which is free, and Viettel to make calls.”
According to reports, Viettel, which launched less than three years ago, signs on 37,000 mobile subscribers a day. Meanwhile, Vinafone and Mobifone respectively sign on 30,000 and 23,000 new subscribers each day.
Vietnam’s mobile penetration comes in at just under 30 per cent. Despite the dominance of the three national carriers, Vietnam’s telco sector is fragmenting following this country’s accession to the WTO.
European telcos such as Vodafone, Lucent and France Telecom have opened wholly-owned offices in the country. Hutchison and S-fone, a Korean joint-venture aimed at teens, have also given the state-owned players more competition.
