Brands
IndusInd Bank roots for Indian Blind WC T20 team
MUMBAI: IndusInd Bank, in association with Cricket Association for the Blind in India (CABI), has launched ‘TheOtherMeninBlue’ campaign for the IndusInd Bank Indian Blind Cricket Team under the World Champions Programme – Cricket for the Blind. Advocating the cause, IndusInd Bank aims to garner support for, and generate passion and visibility for the defending champions in the ongoing T20 World Cup Cricket for the Blind, which commenced in Delhi on 19 January, 2017.
The campaign intends to showcase the fact that cricket as a religion needs to be all encompassing. While the nation focusses and cheers for mainstream cricket, that visually-challenged cricketers also make the country as proud, both on and off the field, and that they too require support and cheering, while they represent their country at the highest level.
Through this campaign, IndusInd Bank strives to mobilize that support for the unsung heroes. IndusInd Bank has developed a dedicated microsite to encourage people to root for ‘TheOtherMeninBlue’. To make it more participative, the Bank has developed a unique game, with 3D sound technology, that provides users with a firsthand experience as to how the visually-challenged cricketers play the game. Users can click on the Play, Cheer and Share the Score options, which they can put up on Facebook to show solidarity with the team.
A two-week long campaign on social and digital platform aims to garner goodwill and cheer for the Champions – the main highlights being a massive influencer campaign via social media, player profiles, thought provoking / did you know content, interactive contests and games which will make the overall experience highly participative and engaging.
The campaign aims to put the spotlight on the team’s dedication, rigorous training and successful achievements on both the national and international stage. The campaign brings to the fore IndusInd Bank’s continuing endeavor to work with diverse communities to bring about positive change and improve lives.
One of the major highlights of the campaign is the anthem ‘Shor Machayega Sara Mohalla’ as a part of cause marketing campaign – launched by Cricket Association for the blind in India (CABI) in association with IndusInd Bank – is an inspiring sixty second anthem to excite the nation to support the “#TheOtherMenInBlue”. It opens with the lines “Dikhayi nahin deta, Par dikha toh saktey hain, Dikhayi nahin deta, Par sun toh saktey hain. Aao… shor machao, Humaari himmat badhao, Aao… shor machao.” In English, it means, “We can’t see, but we can show you, we can’t see, but we can hear you! Come and cheer us, come boost our spirits, come and cheer us!”
IndusInd Bank Head – Marketing & Communication, and Head – Retail Unsecured Assets Anil Ramachandran said, “The T20 World Cup is the ideal platform to acknowledge the many achievements of ‘TheOtherMenInBlue’ and cheer them as they play hard to defend their title. The campaign is a part of our continuing endeavours and belief that IndusInd Bank as a part of society ,can reach out to diverse communities and work for their support and betterment.”
IndusInd Bank Country Head – Commercial Banking and in-charge of Sports Vertical Sanjeev Anand noted, “Through our unique campaigns, we are providing the much-needed impetus to compete and excel in sports, and encourage visually challenged sportspersons to come forward and play for personal and national glory.”
Brands
Uber launches hotel bookings feature in partnership with Expedia
From hotel bookings to room service at your door, the ride-hailing giant is making its boldest push yet into everyday life
CALIFORNIA: Uber is done being just a taxi app. At its annual GO-GET product event, the world’s leading mobility and delivery platform unveiled a sweeping set of new features designed to plant itself at the centre of how people travel, eat and shop, hotel bookings included.
The headline move is a partnership with Expedia Group that lets Uber users in the United States book hotels directly within the Uber app, with access to a catalogue that will eventually grow to more than 700,000 properties worldwide. Uber One members get 10 per cent back in Uber One credits on all hotel bookings and savings of at least 20 per cent on a rolling list of more than 10,000 hotels globally. Vacation rentals from Vrbo, Expedia Group’s home-rental brand, will be added later this year. The partnership is expected to expand beyond the United States. From June, Uber rides will also be integrated directly into the Expedia app, with push notifications sent to travellers ahead of hotel check-in to book discounted Uber rides for the duration of their stay.
Dara Khosrowshahi, chief executive of Uber, framed the expansion in terms of the modern condition. “Uber is becoming an app for everything, helping people go, get, and now travel all in one place,” he said. “We’re all living through a moment of real cognitive overload: too many apps, too many decisions, too much noise. At the end of the day, our job is to help people reclaim their time, spending less of it managing the logistics of life and more of it actually living.”
Ariane Gorin, chief executive of Expedia Group, struck a similarly ambitious note. “Travel should feel effortless, and this partnership gets us one step closer to offering a seamless traveller experience,” she said. “By connecting our two-sided marketplace with Uber, we’re bringing Uber rides directly into the Expedia app and Expedia Group’s lodging inventory into the Uber app through our Rapid API technology. Together, we’re helping travellers spend less time planning and more time enjoying the journey.”
Beyond hotels, the product announcements come thick and fast. Travel Mode, available within both the Uber and Uber Eats apps, offers curated recommendations on local favourites, tourist destinations, OpenTable restaurant reservations and on-demand delivery to hotel rooms. Uber One International means the membership programme now works globally, allowing members to earn credits on rides abroad that can be redeemed once back home. A new Shop for Me feature lets users request items from any store, even those not listed on the app. Eats for the Way allows riders in select cities booking an Uber Black or Uber Black SUV to have a drink or snack waiting for them in the car. Voice Bookings, powered by artificial intelligence, lets users book a ride conversationally, without touching their phone. And a redesigned One Search bar consolidates results for places, food and items across the entire Uber platform in a single query.
Uber has now logged more than 72 billion trips since it launched in 2010. The question it is now answering is what comes after the ride. The answer, apparently, is everything else. Whether users want a hotel in Paris, a coffee in the back of a car or a snake plant from the local garden centre, Uber would very much like to be the one to provide it. The app economy’s land grab has a new front-runner.
NOTE: The image used is AI generated and only for representational purposes.
