Ufone – Flashback

There are very few local ads that leave their mark on the mind of the viewer instantly. Not that there aren’t good ads being made but for how long does one recall them is still quite unpredictable. Some very nicely made ads also lose their charm after being watched twice or thrice.  And some can even become annoying as they keep popping up on the screen again and again. At times overspilling the message can be very harmful as well. But then there are also quite a few commercials that slowly and gradually grow on to you and then you just wait to hear or watch them.

Ufone wasn’t coming up with any great commercials for sometime if we look back in the last few years,  while the rest of the telcos were doing their flashy advertising.  I just recalled one of  the older Ufone ads of those times – the Ufone Public Demand ad with Meera, Gia Ali and Veena Malik. People watched, stressed their eyeballs and harmones a bit and then forgot in no time. That was the best that could be done to gain attention at that time may be.

However, Ufone made a u-turn with Faisal Qureshi’s amazing concepts since 2008, which was probably the thing Ufone was looking out for.

Although, telecoms have so much money to spend that they are all  coming up with countless campaigns every now and then. At times, it is even difficult to recall what the ad is all about. Or one just gets confused with the packages being offered by one company and the other.

But, the series of ads Ufone has been coming up with for quite some time now are a treat to watch. It’s just not me, I have heard so many others within media and outside media say the same. People actually wait for a Ufone ad, especially the ending as each ad ends in a slightly different and humorous way. Something that Pakistanis enjoy watching thoroughly.

I still recall when we watched this ad the first time all the planners instantly started talking about it. It was not just the humor but even the message that was communicated in a simplistic manner rather than showing some pretty faces dancing to some song with 100s of extras in the background and yet makng no impact.

The Ramzan ads were also quite fun to watch with Naveen as the model, everybody loved watching the ad. The Ufone ad stood apart from the rest of the ads promoting bachat offers in their own ways, again leaving its mark.

And then who can forget the “Sab Se Sasti Call” Ad of Ufone. People loved the jingle and the way the entire ad was made.  So I just thought to put that up too so that all those who enjoyed watching it can have a look at it once again.

And the inspiration as well which is pretty good too just in case anybody hasn’t seen it before. It is very rare to find good local adaptations of international ideas but then again it all depends on how one picks the ideas and adapts them to their requirement locally, which was done in  a decent manner in the Ufone ad. It didn’t seem like fitting the idea just somehow but rather it was rather put aptly at the right time.

So let’s see what’s in store as far as the new Ufone ads are concerned and that for how long can this style of advertising survive here.

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Category: Brands