The art of the matter: How MP Tourism and Ogilvy told and retold a success story
It’s one of the longest partnerships in the segment, and one that has proved beneficial to both. But the Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board has empanelled four to six agencies, and 64 media owners under different categories for its advertising and communications.
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"Hindustan ka dil dekho!"
Nearly 20 years ago, the Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board and Ogilvy released a TV commercial that not only placed the state firmly on India’s tourism map but also set a new benchmark for the advertising industry. The partnership between the state tourism board and Ogilvy India from 2006 to now has been a long one, and both sides have benefited. Madhya Pradesh stood among the top 10 states in tourist arrivals as per Ministry of Tourism data for 2022. Ogilvy on its part bagged numerous awards, including a Silver and Bronze Lion at Cannes for MP's ‘Memories of Destination’ ad and Graphite Pencil for 'MP Mein Dil Hua Bacche Sa' at the D&AD Awards in 2018.
"We have created a benchmark by launching a series of innovative TVCs (television commercials) such as 'Hindustan Ka Dil Dekho’ in 2006; 'MP Ajab Hai Sabse Gajab Hai’ in 2010; 'Rang Hai Malang Hai' in 2013; 'MP Mein Dil Hua Bacche Sa' in 2016; 'MP— Memories of Destination’ in 2018, and 'Jo Aaya Wo Waapas Aaya, Ye MP ki Maaya’ in 2023. We focus on ensuring that our TVCs are a visual and audio treat that will stay on viewers' minds," an official from the MP Tourism Board told Storyboard18. "Madhya Pradesh is undoubtedly an offbeat multispecialty destination of first choice and Madhya Pradesh Tourism is in line to promote it through strategised TV ad campaigns," he added.
In the age of social media, travel has witnessed a significant boost and as per the Federations of Association in Indian Tourism and Hospitality (FAITH), tourism will contribute $3 trillion towards GDP by 2047. And several states have found potential in their hidden spots and unexplored art and culture. But well before the advent of smartphones and social media, Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board proved a trailblazer in promoting the state's unseen culture and historic forts.
Anurag Agnihotri, chief creative officer, Ogilvy West, said MP Tourism ads are "creatively satisfying", and the entire team wants to contribute. Agnihotri quipped that it's the only 'tourism brand' in which they don't travel but shoot everything on a set. Agnihotri recounted his experience in working on the 'Jo Aaya Wo Waapas Aaya' commercial that was released in September last year. He said, "We wanted to shoot the ad using MP's famous Gond art but it takes at least two years to complete an entire piece. Therefore, we shot the ad by replicating the original art and launched it in two months."
When it comes to promoting the state's tourism, an MP Board official said, they believe in "minimum expenditure and maximum branding". "We pitch media based on their visibility; higher visibility implies better reach. For instance, branding in the metro rail card, instead of the unipole hoarding. We prefer branding with digital screens at airports and railway stations. Our focus is also branding at our renowned UNESCO sites including Khajuraho and spiritual destinations like Ujjain," the official said.
The MP Tourism Board said it has empanelled four to six agencies and 64 media owners under different categories such as photography, video production, brand management, media buying, printing and souvenir production, and creative branding at national and state levels to promote the state.
"The national-level agencies for media buying and creative branding empanelled with MP Tourism are the agencies that are also empanelled with DAVP and Ministry of Tourism," it added.
According to the state's financial data for FY23, the Madhya Pradesh government allocated Rs 50 crore for promoting tourism including marketing and advertising in digital and print media, event management, and other activities. Of the Rs 50 crore, the department had spent Rs 43 crore.
TAM AdEx, a division of TAM Media Research, shared data exclusively with Storyboard18 showing Madhya Pradesh’s percentage share based on ad volumes for TV and radio, and ad space for print and digital. According to this, MP Tourism's television commercials grew at 475 percent of indexed growth, on average, in 2023 from 100 percent indexed growth in 2021. Additionally, 2023 witnessed the highest ad space growth for MP Tourism per month in print media at 648 percent of indexed growth in the past three years. In the digital space, monthly advertisements grew by 77 times in 2023 compared to 2021. In 2024, 993 percent of indexed growth in ad volumes was seen in the digital space.
An official said that spiritual tourism in Madhya Pradesh increased threefold last year, with 11 crore visitors in 2023 against 3.4 crore in 2022. In 2024, 3.15 crore visitors came to India in March, out of which 1.89 crore visited Ujjain. As per Ministry of Tourism data, Madhya Pradesh bagged the eighth spot in both foreign and domestic tourism in 2021.
What next?
The Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board has said that a new TVC, which is currently in the post-production phase, will be released in a few months. The campaign will be through print ads, jingles on the radio, cinema campaigns, ads on different TV channels, and creatives (10-15-second video clips) at airports and railway stations in metro cities. Earlier this month, it launched PM Paryatan Vayu Seva, an intra-state air service. The air service currently connects eight cities: Bhopal, Indore, Jabalpur, Rewa, Ujjain, Gwalior, Singrauli and Khajuraho.
