Soon after receiving the mandate from Om Creations Trust, the PR consultancy conducted a survey among mediapersons to gauge their awareness levels about the Trust’s activities. Our research revealed a distinct lack of understanding about Om Creations and its efforts to skill and empower specially-abled women.

To bring about increased awareness levels around Om Creations’ efforts to create sustainable livelihoods for women afflicted with Down’s Syndrome, we decided to position these women as creative individuals, who particularly excelled in art. It was a gamble of sorts, given the negative perception towards such people. But, we were convinced that once we showcase their creativity, the aversion will change to admiration.

• July 2016: Around a fortnight before Army Day, we requested Om Creations to produce 100 rakhis (a rakhi is a bracelet made of cotton/silk with ornamentation, given by a woman to her brother) as a gesture to thank the Indian army. On Army Day, Lt. Col. K J Singh, COD – Mumbai region, received the rakhis. He expressed genuine surprise and happiness on discovering that those were crafted by women with Down’s Syndrome.

• September 2016: On the eve of Ganesh Chaturthi, festival of the elephant-head Hindu God, we showcased eco-friendly clay idols of Lord Ganesh produced by Om Creations. The President of Mumbai’s biggest Ganesh Chaturthi organiser presided over a press conference to highlight the benefits of ‘green’ idols. The same event was featured by state broadcaster Doordarshan during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s monthly show, ‘Mann Ki Baat’ (Musings).

We conducted multiple similar events to showcase Om Creations’

Media Outputs: We generated over 200 media clips over a six-month period. The entire PR activity produced an ad value of USD 183,336; 23 mn opportunities-to-see (OTS) and 4mn listeners on radio. Leading dailies such as The Hindu, Mumbai Mirror, Hindustan Times, Navbharat Times, Maharashtra Times and The Asian Age featured Om Creations and its founder, Dr. Radhike Khanna. A few leading portals such as thebetterindia and yourStory also featured the success stories of specially-abled artists of Om Creations.

Target Audience Outcomes: The execution of the Consultancy’s strategy not only built widespread awareness about Om Creations’ work with women afflicted with Down’s Syndrome, but also led to genuine appreciation about the artistic abilities of the specially abled. Last but not the least, our efforts brought in dignity and self-respect into the lives of these women.

Business Outcomes: Through our constant efforts to reach out to influencers, we were able to increase product enquiries. For example, one of the events sold out over 130 paintings and artifacts from the 175 exhibited at the show.