Sushant Sreeram on why Amazon Prime Video asked viewers to give up binging

Amazon Prime Video’s Diwali campaign this year asked people to stay away from the OTT platform and instead spend the festival with friends and family, after all, Diwali comes but once a year, while the enticing content on OTT can be watched anytime.

As part of this campaign, Amazon Prime Video launched two ad films featuring two actors from its highly successful web series – Pankaj Tripathi (‘Mirzapur’) and Maanavi Gagroo (‘Four More Shots Please!’). Laced with humour, the core message of the ad films was for the viewers to get off their solo binging sessions and celebrate Diwali with their friends and family, even as the actors assured that, “Hum Toh Yahaan Kal Bhi Rehenge”.

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In this interaction with Adgully, Sushant Sreeram, Director – Marketing, Amazon Prime Video, dwells at length on the uniqueness of the campaign, and how it has resonated with the customers in a compelling way. Excerpts:

What was the inspiration behind the campaign? How did Prime Video arrive at the insight for this campaign?

At Amazon, our customers are the focal point and everything we do begins with a deep understanding of what customers want. And like all years, this year, too, as we reflected on the upcoming festive season, a strong customer insight caught our attention. Unlike the festive season last year, which was marred by the pandemic, the robust vaccination rollout across the country has infused a sense of hope in people. Everyone is looking forward to connecting with their families and friends, whether physically (in small social bubbles with adequate precautions) or even virtually. Our campaign insight was born from this hope, and honestly, this was a sentiment that resonated personally within the team as well!

Over the past four years, and particularly, during the last 18 months, we have become the most trusted entertainment destination for viewers across the country. In fact, we now have customers streaming on Prime Video from 99% of India’s pincodes, watching their favourite Amazon Originals and movies across genres and languages from the safety and comfort of their homes. We have, in some sense, taken on the role of a trusted friend over the past year and hope we have, in our little way, provided respite and joy. This year, we wanted to take this responsibility a step further and nudge our consumers to ‘step away from the world of Prime Video for just a bit’ and spend this festive season with their loved ones. And, as we tell them this, we wanted to assure them that their favourite Prime Video stories and characters will be right here waiting for them, as reflected in the campaign’s tagline – “Hum Toh Yahaan Kal Bhi Rehenge…Par Diwali Kal Nahi Aayegi”.

Why is Prime Video urging viewers not to watch it for a day? Why such a bold campaign?

Well, what we are urging viewers is to make sure we all spend time with our loved ones this festive season. Even if it means stepping away from their favourite Prime Video for just a bit. It’s nothing but being true to our focus on ‘customer obsession’. The campaign has come about from a simple but resonant customer insight and all we have done is presented that back in a simple way, through two of Prime Video’s most beloved characters – Kaleen Bhaiyya (Pankaj Tripathi) from ‘Mirzapur’, and Siddhi Patel (Maanvi Gagroo) from ‘Four More Shots Please!’. While Prime Video’s fascinating characters and stories have been with our customers through the toughest of times over the past 18 months and will be there with them even after Diwali, the festival itself won’t come back for another year. We don’t think of this as being bold, just being customer-first and authentic.

How has advertising evolved during the last two years, especially amid the tough times? What aspects should brands in general keep in mind while building a campaign? Any market/ consumer trends that you would like to highlight?

I think there is a new reality to customers’ lives that is formed over the last two years, as we have all dealt with an unprecedented set of circumstances. From this new reality have risen new hopes, aspirations and expectations from brands. Good advertising will continue to reflect the combination of an authentic brand promise and customer aspirations. Brands that continue to remain ambivalent or indifferent to this new reality will struggle. While driving business growth continues to be the fundamental driver of marketing and advertising investments, marketers need to reflect on and articulate the core role the brand plays in the lives of people. Now, more than ever.

How has the response been to your two Diwali ad films?

The response to the campaign has been way bigger than we honestly imagined! We decided to just put it out there as an honest message from Prime Video, in a small-scale way, and hopefully remind some of the value of spending time with our loved ones. We have honestly been blown away by the sheer diversity and volume of positive reactions that are pouring in. It goes to show that a simple message told well and credibly, and one that places the customer at the center, has a decent chance of resonating.