In the wee hours of Saturday, Sameer was awoken by an avalanche of SMSs from his friend Aleena (she was a part of Sameer’s close group of friends in IBA and an extremely stubborn person). Aleena wanted to meet everyone one last time before Ramadan started. Sameer wondered why the planning couldn’t wait until the sun had risen for the day but he knew the easiest way to stop the incessant messaging would be to reply. Therefore, he quickly agreed to meet at Park Towers.
Despite several delays, Sameer reached earlier than his perpetually-late friends. To kill time, he decided to delve into the pleasures of Movenpick’s Swiss Chocolate. As he did, he observed several excited people milling about. The central atrium of Park Towers is usually host to some activity and today, the hustle bustle of a large crowd and the presence of news reporters suggested something grand was underway. Sameer sensed a coup in the making.
It soon became apparent that Procter & Gamble’s latest BTL feat, Pampers Premium Care Baby Olympics was being held. Normally, Sameer wouldn’t have given it a second thought but he swore loudly as he realized that Aleena’s plan all along had been to witness the event. Aleena was a Marketing Major at IBA and a very annoying one at that; she discussed every Safeguard commercial, analyzed every Sana Safinaz billboard and drank the ink off Synergyzer.
Before he could scurry for cover, Aleena arrived and pulled Sameer into the midst of the crowd. The colorful setup was attractively designed and decorated. Toddlers were participating in games on a life-size racing track mattress adorned with balloons. Parents were happily ushering their kids into crawling races, push balls and running games, celebrating the freedom of movement. Sameer, not a fan of babies, particularly in public places, where their amplified wailing gives him migraines, was relieved to see most of the kids laughing, although a few looked downright terrified by the cheering, music and lights.
Sameer has to hand it to the team behind the concept. The event not only garnered parents and their toddlers and allowed them to enjoy a fun-filled activity, but also provided Pampers’ customers a medium to interact with the brand’s creative heads. Takeaways from the event included free photo frames, certificates and gifts. Moreover, parents could get their children photographed at the victory pedestal.
Now Sameer is no marketing buff but Aleena very kindly pointed out the ingenuity of the concept to him. In her extensive knowledge, toddlers are happiest when they are playing and running around and Baby Olympics was an ideal way to cherish those moments. Something Sameer picked on was that the event cleverly allowed busy parents, specially working mothers, to spend some quality time with their children, thereby increasing Brand Affinity for Pampers.
As soon as the words escaped his lips, he regretted them. Aleena started laughing at him for using marketing terminology so casually when he was trying to feign disinterest. To change the topic, Sameer suggested shisha at Indulge and started messaging the rest of the group to come save him from Aleena’s jokes.
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