After a multi-agency pitch from advertising agencies, Maruti Suzuki has given its creative rights to Dentsu Creative Impact. The account is estimated to be worth Rs. 25 – 30 crore. Eeco is Maruti’s latest multi-purpose vehicle launched at the Delhi Auto Expo.

Shashank Srivastava, Chief General Manager Marketing, Maruti Suzuki confirmed and added, “The reason we gave the creative duties to Dentsu Creative Impact was because their capabilities and ideas were really different from others in the presentation. It is a 360 degree account comprising print, TVC, OOH and the Internet. The print ad has already broken. The TV ad is slated to break next week.”

Other agencies who also pitched were Capital, Percept Hakuhodo and Lowe Lintas. The media rights of the account are handled by Lintas Media Group.

Maruti Suzuki has roped in actor R Madhavan as WagonR’s brand ambassador. WagonR, is one of the top-selling Maruti Suzuki brands with an average monthly sale of 12,000 units, and has a customer base of 7.45 lakhs. The actor was chosen for his popularity which is not divided within geographical constraints.

Shashank Srivastava, chief general manager, marketing, Maruti Suzuki said , “Madhavan is a very geographically neutral face as he is well known across the country. WagonR’s contemporary, pragmatic and balanced brand value resonates well in his personality.”

He also adds, “Our research established that a famous face works well for a brand if both are just the right fit for each other. We feel that associating with a personality such as Madhavan will certainly reinforce the brand values of WagonR with the TG at an all-India level. Additionally, the tie-up is going to give a boost to WagonR’s KPI (Key Performance Indicators) in key Southern cities such as Bengalaru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Cochin etc.”

The creative agency for Wagon R is Percept/H. The agency will launch an ad campaign featuring the actor with the tag line ‘Smart ideas lead the world.’