As per Mahindra's research, the social causes people are talking about online are climate change, waste management and girl child education, in that order. We spoke to Nayer about his latest CSR push.
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A tree is the hero of Mahindra's new CSR communication. Everyone loves an unsung hero, and Mahindra aims to celebrate that with their latest CSR push. The campaign is titled #RiseAgainstClimateChange and pays tribute to trees. To zero in on this topic, the Mahindra team conducted a detailed social media listening exercise on social causes in India. Climate change emerged as the second biggest concern for millennials that accounted for over 22 per cent of the conversations online.
Vivek Nayer
"We use tools to listen to millions of conversations online. Almost 8 million conversations have been heard by us over the last year or so to figure out what social causes people are talking about. Then we create a campaign around it with 360-degree activation," says Vivek Nayer, Chief Marketing Officer, Group Corporate Brand, Mahindra Group.
"It's high time we changed mindsets. We followed up the listening exercise with some focus groups and then looked at secondary research to make sure we got the topic right," he tells us.
He also quotes information from the National Geographic Greendex report. He points out that 73 per cent of Indians said they were concerned about environmental issues while 66 per cent were more worried about the potential negative impact on the health.
"All of this data was at the back of our mind when we made the campaign. In this film, we are paying tribute to the humble tree. Most people don't realise that a tree helps fight against climate change for its entire lifetime. Everyone else is busy polluting the environment and this one humble worker, is contributing without asking for anything in return," says Nayer.
Mahindra's newest CSR push pays tribute to trees
"What's unique about this communication is the whole film was made entirely using sets made of recycled waste paper and cardboard boxes. Even in the making of the film, we've given a very subliminal message on waste recycling," he tells us. He also informs us that the film sets were shredded and composted once the shoot concluded.
To create engagement, the company is taking a three-step approach. The first step is to conduct a design contest called 'thank a tree' inviting entries in all art forms (including dance, poetry and painting). Nayer adds, "The second form of engagement will be based on social engagement numbers (the number of likes, retweets and quote tweets). Mahindra promises to dedicate the same number of trees in the next planting season. It will also send people an acknowledgement thanking them for rising against climate change, promising to plant a tree on their behalf." The third and final step will be creating a 'behind-the-scenes' video about how the film was made.
The film was conceptualised by FCB Interface, which includes the idea of celebrating the tree and using animation and recycled paper. It will run exclusively on digital and Nayer told us why - "TV as a medium is very limiting because it's not possible to know if your ad has reached the right audience. For this kind of conversation, we felt social media works best."
He also acknowledged that ten years ago, a campaign like this would've been difficult to execute without social media.
Nayer emphasised the importance of feedback on digital platforms saying, "Digital allows conversations. People can converse with the brand and with each other. These conversations become a repository for the future as well. On TV, the film plays and it is gone; I don't know what people are saying about it. Here, conversations are getting captured for posterity."
The trend these days is that most brands pick a cause and create communication around it. This was Nayer's take on the phenomenon. "I think it is fantastic that brands have woken up. I think the issue is if there source credibility and authenticity for what a brand is trying to do. Consumers are smart today and they can see through it, so, brands need to be genuine," he tells us.
Among Mahindra's noteworthy campaigns are 'Ladki Haath Se Nikal Gayi' which deals with educating the girl child, done in collaboration with the NGO Nanhi Kali. Mahindra's Hariyali Program has planted over 15 million trees across the length and breadth of India since 2007. 'This Is Not Enough' is a film that highlights the CSR work that Mahindra has done in the past with a call to action that ends with the titular 'this is not enough,' calling on viewers to do more and give back to society.
This CSR initiative spoke about the importance of educating the girl child
"We said that this is not enough, what we're doing is not enough because the world has so many issues... We encouraged others to join in and we took them to our website where we showed them the work we are doing. We also listed certain NGOs they could contact if they wanted to donate money or their time, so we enable the change to happen," Nayer signs off.
This film showcased Mahindra's CSR efforts including a call to do more
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