Publicis India to manage integrated communications mandate of UPES

Publicis India has won the integrated communications mandate of UPES, a multi-disciplinary and specialization-focused university. The agency would be providing full-service responsibilities including advertising, strategy, experiential, and other suitable offerings. The account will be managed out of the New Delhi office of Publicis India.

Flagging off the partnership, Publicis India has launched an integrated ad campaign led largely by a series of print ads and outdoor that captures UPES’s specialized approach. The campaign has been launched across major traditional avenues including print, outdoor, and digital.

Commenting on the appointment, Bharat Kharbanda, chief operating officer, UPES said, “UPES has grown exponentially since its inception and we are constantly expanding, with the recent inclusion of three new schools. Our excellent student outcomes, strong focus on research and pedagogy and multiple new initiatives at the university level are impactful stories that need to be told. We are happy to have Publicis India as our partner agency because of their enthusiasm towards our vision and purpose and their years of expertise in this industry.”

Speaking on the partnership, Sridharan Iyer, EVP and Head of office – Publicis Delhi said, “UPES is a truly forward-looking university in India. It is a privilege to partner with them in their endeavour to raise the benchmark of higher education by offering students an edge that will not just give them a head-start in their careers but will see them playing a pivotal leadership role in their chosen field of specialisation as well as society at large. As an agency the challenge was to underline the uniqueness of UPES’s offering and differentiate it from the run of the mill promises that institutes make which is common in this category.

The insight behind the recently released campaign stems from the fact that in the current educational scenario the value of degree is actually below par. However, UPES believes in adding value to the degrees by viewing it from the lens of tomorrow.”

Speaking about the campaign, Vikash Chemjong and Basabjit ‘Tito’ Majumdar – national creative directors, Publicis India said: “In our times as students, holding a degree was of utmost importance, be it for job proposal, for a business proposal and even for a marriage proposal. Degree was pedigree. But with the changing times just running with a degree has become simply run of the mill. Even in their specialization one needs to find something special. And our job was to position UPES as a university that gives students that cutting edge to cut it in both career and life. Education that’s not only top notch but a notch higher, not just a degree but a degree higher.”

Stuti Gandhi, head of marketing, UPES, added, “Being an education brand that caters to the youth with changing characteristics every few years, it is necessary to be innovative, creative and agile while communicating with them. While it is imperative to impart specialised knowledge, it’s the ‘Extra’ that sets the individuals apart in today’s day and age. With the messaging of ‘Go a degree higher’, the idea is to position UPES as a university that pushes the envelope and truly puts its students a degree higher in both professional and personal space."