MxMIndia

Author: mxmadmin

  • Films conceptualized by Brand League Partners

    3 new TVCs for Hide & Seek biscuits

    By Our Staff

     

    Parle Products has launched its latest advertising campaign for their chocolate chip cookie brand Hide & Seek with a sharp focus on establishing its identity as an enabler of first -time conversations. The films have been conceptualized by Brand League Partners.

     

    Said Mayank Shah, Senior Category Head at Parle Products: “We, at Parle Products, realise how important it is for a brand to be a part of a customer’s journey. There are certain moments that we all face while growing up as teenagers and we understand the significance of these changes and decisions we make at that time. All of us have come across that time in adolescent years when the fear of rejection keeps us away from initiating conversation with that special someone. Our premium brand Hide & Seek resonates with young and innocent love while acting as an enabler to ignite a spark in situations wherein people feel hesitant to express themselves freely or directly. Our brand plays the role of breaking the ice so the first-time conversations between two young people are comfortable and relaxed. Since the campaign is targeted towards teenagers, it’s not about intense love but about innocent attraction & young playful chemistry. The campaign is light-hearted and at the same time builds our brand so that we achieve top-of-mind recall among consumers and continue our brand narrative. With this TV and digital campaign, we aim to strengthen our position in the chocolate cookies category.”

     

    Added Samir Chonkar, Head at Brand League Partners said, “We wanted to create something special for consumers and we are happy to be able to create a theme for Parle’s Hide & Seek brand – ‘Start your story with Hide & Seek’, which will bring forth something relatable, fun and engaging experience for everyone! The films showcase cute and innocent interaction between couples designed to appeal to customers’ lovestruck-side and get some attention directed towards the brand.”

     

  • It's a domain that's close to his heart. We all know that. And it's an area that he will defend, even in his sleep. So when we asked him the question, we knew we would hit it out of the park. Which he did, but pyaar se. Here's Dr Bhaskar Das in the Jan 24 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

    Das ka Dum with Dr Bhaskar Das | The number of pages in your mainline English/regional newspaper used to be an effective indicator of the state of the economy. A bellwether of sorts. Would that still hold true?

    Bhaskar DasIt’s a domain that’s close to his heart. We all know that. And it’s an area that he will defend, even in his sleep. So when we asked him the question, we knew we would hit it out of the park. Which he did, but pyaar se. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the Jan 24 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

     

    If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar.

     

    Q. The number of pages in your mainline English/regional newspaper used to be an effective indicator of the state of the economy. A bellwether of sorts. Would that still hold true?

     

    A.I think the parameter of evaluating the state of the economy, as mentioned by you, is indicative of a legacy habit. Every media format has a different trajectory of recovery (more like K- shaped recovery) and consequently can’t be reflective of a general trend. For instance, the digital media is experiencing a double digit growth, TV revenue has come out of the slump of Covid days and even in case of newspapers, the pace of recovery of Indian language newspapers are in a different trajectory compared to metro-based newspapers. So, it is better to get used to de-averaging while making generalisations. It would help if one learns how to decode signals from the noise.

     

  • Aims to salute the spirit of Mumbai and its will to survive

    Fortis Hospital Mumbai launches social media campaign

    By Our Staff

     

    Fortis Hospitals Mumbai has launched a social media campaign called #AllisWellMumbai to dispel Covid gloom and pep-up the spirit of the city.

     

    Speaking on the initiative, Rinku Mavani, Business Partner-Sales, Fortis Hospitals Mumbai, said: “Times are such that we need to focus on keeping our anxiety at bay. At Fortis Hospitals Mumbai, we believe in support our patients within and beyond the hospital. Our caregivers understand the amount of panic that COVID19 has brought in its wake. We want to assure Mumbaikars that we can tackle wave and help them understand that ‘precaution over panic’ is paramount. Key is to take preventive measures and stay safe at home to protect oneself & others. We are geared up for the third wave and, all is well! #AllisWellMumbai campaign will be delivered through all our social media platforms”.

     

  • Third wave dashes imminent recovery

    Tough times for multiplex operators: ICRA

    By Our Staff

     

    Multiplex owners are once again facing a tough time due to the emergence of third wave of Covid-19 pandemic. As per ICRA, while November 2021 to March 2022 was expected to witness a strong rebound, given the strong content pipeline, which was also reflected in the box office performance of major movies released in Q3 FY2022. However, the restrictions imposed by various state governments on multiplex operations due to the third wave has dashed imminent recovery for the industry. With malls and cinema halls closed temporarily in Delhi and Haryana, allowing only double vaccinated consumers in a few states such as Kerala/Karnataka and night curfews in many regions, most of the movie releases were deferred. Consequently, occupancy for Q4 FY2022 will be impacted and revenues for the quarter will be sequentially lower than Q3 FY2022.

     

    Said Jay Sheth, Vice President & Sector Head, Corporate Sector Ratings, ICRA Limited: “The industry participants were pinning recovery hopes on the festive season in Q3 FY2022 with the strong content pipeline, increased pace of vaccination and relaxations in key markets like Maharashtra adding to the optimism. In Q3 FY2022, supported by increase in occupancy (60-65% of pre-Covid levels), higher average ticket prices and spend per head, the multiplex operators are expected to report their highest revenues (since Q4 FY2020) and turn EBITDA positive. This is despite some restriction on occupancies in key states of Gujarat (60% cap) and Maharashtra (50% cap) and restrictions on consumption of food and beverages inside cinema halls (a high-margin segment) across a few key territories such as Maharashtra. Furthermore, as occupancy remained sub-optimal, contribution from another high-margin revenue source viz. advertising income (comprising 10-11% of overall revenues) also remained low.”

     

    As per the report, during FY2021, the profitability and consequently the credit profile of multiplex operators had taken a severe beating with low to mid-single digit occupancy resulting from the stringent restrictions and lockdown implemented for most part of the year. Moreover, as state governments eased restrictions in Q4 FY2021 leading to better occupancy, the second wave added to the woes of the operators, significantly impeding their revenues during Q1 FY2022. To help them survive the difficult phase, apart from equity fund-raising, the multiplex operators had undertaken various cost rationalisation measures on the employee front and rental waivers/ discounts with the mall operators to keep their fixed costs low and reduce cash burn.

     

  • Features Gul Panag, Kalki Koechlin, Chitrangada Singh and Kunal Kapoor in brand campaign

    Oyo launches multi-film campaign

    By Our Staff

     

    Oyo Hotels & Homes has launched a multi-film brand campaign that will be visible across television, social media and OTT platforms. It stars actors Gul Panag, Kalki Koechlin, Chitrangada Singh and Kunal Kapoor, who bring to life day-to-day stories of travellers.

     

    The concept of the brand campaign and script of the films have been developed and written by Oyo’s global in-house brand team. The film is directed by Vishvesh Krishnamoorthy from Corcoise Films.

     

    Speaking on the brand campaign, Mayur Hola, Head of Global Brand – Oyo said: “Oyo truly believes that progress is for everyone. No matter who you are, where you’re from or where you’re headed, we’re all looking to evolve in our lives. That’s the spirit Oyo embodies and supports. You could be experiencing a hotel for the first time. You could be relying on a safe and sanitised stay as you go about your 50th sales trip to a far away place. You could be looking for a beautiful home in Europe, a nice hotel in Bali or a premium stay at Jaipur. There’s an Oyo for that. At the core of it all is a simple to use app that is backed by some serious tech. An app that enables you to find an Oyo right next door, wherever you may be. That helps you keep your plans and life flexible, as we all must today. An app that enables you to step out and reach your next stage of progress. And that’s exactly what this campaign is about. It is about the evolution of Oyo’s customers, our patrons (our  hotel owner partners) and indeed the evolution of Oyo into the global  tech-hospitality brand that it is today.”

     

     

  • To air two new brand animated series for young Tamil viewers

    Colors Tamil partners with Nick to launch kiddie segment

    By Our Staff

     

    Colors Tamil has announced the launch of ‘Nick Neram’, a kids’ special segment, partnering Nickelodeon (which is run in India by Viacom18, the owners of the Colors network of channels). As a part of this special initiative, Colors Tamil will air Golmaal Jr and Rudra: Boom Chik Chik Boom, two brand new animated series.

     

    Commenting on the new shows, Rajaraman S, Business Head, Colors Tamil, said: “After the success of our current shows, we are elated to introduce two animated series to our lineup. While all our fiction and non-fiction shows have been popular among the Tamil viewers, we are now confident that Nick Neram will help us gain prominence among children as well. We are certain that this fresh, relevant, localised and compelling segment is another landmark for Colors Tamil in its journey to become the most preferred family entertainment channel in the Tamil entertainment space.”

     

    Speaking on synergising its content for Tamil viewers, Anu Sikka, Head, Creative, Content and Research, Kids TV Network, Viacom18, said: “At Nickelodeon, it has always been our endeavour to make our stories and characters to travel and reach out to a wider audience set. Tamil is an important market for our kids cluster and Colors Tamil’s popularity will help us establish a deeper relationship with our existing viewers while attracting new viewers with home-grown content that is relatable. We are excited on this integration with Colors Tamil and will continue to synergise and explore similar possibilities going forward.”

     

     

  • It disrupt the current digital media consumption pattern of Indians, writes Indrani Sen

    Boom, Boom! India’s Short Form Video (SFV) market explodes. And how!

     

     

    By Indrani Sen

     

    Indrani SenThe Indian government’s ban on TikTok in June 2020 along with 50+ other Chinese apps was a blessing in disguise for the homegrown user generated short video apps. TikTok, introduced in India in September 2016, opened up a new category of users in digital media consumption and had almost 90% share of the total time spent by Indian netizens on creation and consumption of short video contents.

     

    In fact, as I wrote here on May 4, 2020, (https://www.mxmindia.com/2020/05/indrani-sen-tiktok-ticks-fast-in-india-during-lockdown/) during the first two weeks of the lockdown in 2020, TikTok along with Aarogya Setu were the two most favourite apps downloaded by the Indians.

     

    Six months after the ban on TikTok, we saw many homegrown apps like Times Internet’s MX TakaTak, ShareChat’s Moj, InMobi’s Roposo, Dailyhunt’s Josh, Tech4Billion Media’s Chingari, etc. trying hard to fill in the void left by the sudden disappearance of Tik Tok. In June 2021m the combined efforts of all the homegrown apps got back nearly 97% of daily active users compared to June 2020. Aggressive influencer marketing and content creation in local languages on these platforms were the two main factors which helped in getting back lapsed users as well as create new users. Many of these platforms initially used Tik Tok’s name for promoting their apps on digital media.

     

     

     

    A year after, in October 2021, a report by Redseer Consulting revealed that homegrown Indian short video apps have nearly 250 million monthly active users (MAU) compared to Tik Tok’s monthly active users (MAU) of 170 million users at the time of its closure in September 2020. These platforms’ offer of creating short videos in local languages as well as simple interfaces accessible by cheaper smartphones helped to make inroads to small towns and rural areas. The Redseer report estimated that active users spend up to 45 minutes daily on these platforms.

     

    The combined monthly active userbase (MAU) of the homegrown short video apps stood at 170-190 million beyond India’s 50 cities, as per the Redseer report titled ‘Short-form video – The Rise of Made in India Digital Content.’ The report stated that 60-62% of the short-form video users are from Tier 2+ cities, a proof of the fact that India’s short-form video (SFV) market has spread to “Bharat”. There is a huge scope of growth as compared to more than 90% of internet users in China using online videos, in India the penetration of online video users is below 60% of Internet users.

     

    India’s short-form video (SFV) market is set for an exponential growth over the next few years to 500-600 million by 2025. RedSeer has further predicted that short-form content would be overtaking the over-the-top (OTT) or streaming video content users by middle of this decade. The entertaining content supported by influencers has made short-form video the fastest-growing content category in Indian digital space. The marketing and advertising strategies of the major platforms have also changed as shown in the more recent advertisements of MX TakaTak featuring Virat Kohli and Chingari featuring Salman Khan.

     

    Last month, an article in www.exchange4media discussed how “after successfully filling in the void created by the ban of TikTok, the desi short-video platforms are now looking beyond advertising revenue”. Many of the platforms are now exploring revenue streams like live and social commerce and are actively driving the growth of live creator driven social commerce in India and the SFV market.

     

    Let me share a few examples of this changing scenario here. Trell, an early adopter, entered the social commerce space in 2020 by setting up Trell Shop marketplace which today offers 500+ brands. Moj has entered into a deal on video commerce partnership with Flipkart. Bolo Indya renamed itself Bolo LIVE in order to emerge as a leading social live-streaming platform in India. Roposo has fully transformed from a short video platform to a creator-led live entertainment commerce platform. Woovly has targeted youth in T2, T3 cities with short videos on lifestyle products through by short videos created by micro/ nano influencers in regional languages. Chingari has recently launched its own crypto token $Gari and NFT marketplace. $Gari token will become the default currency for transactions made on Chingari platform. All these moves have been possible due to various high profile investment deals made by these platforms.

     

    Our local short video apps also have a scope to go global. Dailyhunt launched their short video app Josh about a year back. Recently Josh featured in the Top 10 of App Store and Play Store downloads in May 2021. As per Sensor Tower, Josh ranked as the world’s 10th most downloaded app overall, and as eighth most downloaded on Play Store. Chingari’s crypto token is listed in top 13 exchanges across the world. There is no doubt that India’s SFV market is all set for an explosive growth in the coming years which will create a disruption in the current digital media consumption pattern of Indians.

     

  • Features brand mascot Fido Dido

    7 Up unveils its latest campaign in its ‘Think Fresh’ series

    By Our Staff

     

    Soft drink 7 Up has  unveils its latest campaign in its ‘Think Fresh’ series featuring the curly-haired 7 Up mascot Fido Dido.

     

    Speaking about the new campaign, Naseeb Puri, Senior Marketing Director, Flavors, PepsiCo India, said: “7 Up, our clear refreshing drink, instigates youth to ‘Think Fresh’ to address the various life’s curveballs with a cool mind & smart thinking. The new campaign throws light on the many tricky situations that we face every day… and Fido Dido, with his quick-wit and fresh thinking demonstrates that that no matter which curveball comes one’s way, keeping a cool mind will ensure one finds a ‘Fresh’ way to emerge on top and win in this evolving reality. I am confident that our new bold, tongue-in-cheek campaign will resonate strongly with our consumers.”

     

  • To help transform lives of blue-collar workers by building digital platforms

    H+K Strategies bags communication AOR of GoodWorker

    By Our Staff

     

    GoodWorker has appointed Hill+Knowlton Strategies (H+K) as its official communications agency of record. With an ambitious vision of impacting 300 million lives by bridging the gap between workers and employers by 2030. H+K will partner with GoodWorker and support its aim of transforming the lives of blue-collar workers in India. The mandate will encompass raising visibility, driving brand awareness, and building thought leadership across India amongst national and regional audiences.

     

    Confirming the appointment, Ketul Acharya, COO, GoodWorker said: “We look forward to working with Hill+Knowlton Strategies India as our public relationship and communications partner. H+K’s diversified experience across sectors and its track record of success makes them an excellent partner to drive our communications in a compelling manner and support our immediate endeavor our vision of empowering millions of workers.”

     

    Commenting on the announcement, Abhishek Gulyani, CEO, Hill+Knowlton Strategies India added: “We are delighted to begin an exciting journey with GoodWorker and to support their strategic communications in India. Through this partnership, we will help them build a reputation through insight, analysis and broad media, investor, and influencer relationships. With a dedicated team and sectoral knowledge, H+K is well placed to deliver the desired outcome and positioning of the brand. We are thrilled to become a part of GoodWorker’s brand story in India.”

     

  • The theme for the World Sustainable Development Summit 2022 is 'Towards a Resilient Planet: Ensuring a Sustainable and Equitable Future.'

    Kaizzen partners with TERI

    By Our Staff

     

    Kaizzen has partnered with The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), the not-for-profit, policy research organisation, as an outreach rartner for World Sustainable Development Summit (WSDS) 2022. WSDS is TERI’s annual flagship event, which will be virtually held from February 16-18, 2022. The umbrella theme of the year is ‘Towards a Resilient Planet: Ensuring a Sustainable and Equitable Future.’

     

    Said Dr. Shailly Kedia, Senior Fellow, and Associate Director, TERI: “By driving multi-stakeholder conversations, the World Sustainable Development Summit series seeks to play a constructivist role to reinforce commitment towards a more sustainable and equitable world. The role of media and communications is extremely crucial to strengthen the momentum on sustainable development. Partnering with organizations such as Kaizzen is a step towards effectively amplifying the message.”

     

    As an outreach partner, Kaizzen will work along with the TERI communications team to strengthen media and social media outreach for WSDS 2022.

     

    Speaking on the partnership Vineet Handa, CEO, Kaizzen, said, “Kaizzen is proud to partner with TERI’s prestigious World Sustainable Development Summit 2022. The age-old, celebrated event brings several countries together to find sustainable solutions towards a healthier planet. I believe that ESG will be a great focus area of the industry and the corporates this year. As communications consultants, we have been an advocate of sustainability and therefore we fully resonate with this year’s WSDS theme which is futuristic, progressive, and highly ambitious. Lastly, I would like to thank TERI for this opportunity and commit my support as their outreach partner.”

     

  • The consulting company has just released findings from its first ever India Budget Survey

    Consumers expect increased allocation for healthcare in the 2022 Budget: Kantar

    By Our Staff

     

    Kantar, the insights and consulting company, has just released findings from its first ever India Budget Survey. This survey maps consumer sentiments and expectations from the Union Budget 2022, just ahead of its unveil on Feb 1.

     

    Most Indians are looking forward to Budget 2022 as they have had a largely positive experience with the 2021 Budget. Two out of three consumers claim that the 2021 Budget positively impacted their household budget in the past year. Consumers in the 21–35 age band are more enthusiastic (68%) as compared to the ones in the older age band of 35-55 which stands at 56%. Overall, most are upbeat about what the 2022 Budget holds.

     

    As the pandemic continues to enter its third year, consumers expect the government to continue focussing on healthcare with 66% expecting an increase in the healthcare budget allocations and strengthened policies.

     

    Interestingly, consumer sentiments around electric vehicle subsidies and schemes see traction amongst consumers as well. With increased focus on climate change and sustainable living, 60% consumers expect the government to prioritise subsidies on electric vehicles in the coming year.

     

    However, fuel prices continue to remain a concern. Majority (72%) expect the government of India to bring petrol and diesel under the ambit of GST, with an expectation it may reduce fuel costs. This expectation is higher among metros (74%) than non-metros (65%).

     

    Cryptocurrency as an investment avenue is expected to continue making noise this year as well. As per a Kantar’s cryptocurrency survey from July 2021, 19% Indians intended to invest in cryptocurrency in the next 6 months in Urban India. As of December 2021, this number has increased to 32%. This is possibly driven by awareness and exposure that advertising and celebrity endorsements have generated over the last few months. Millennials seem to be keener on trying this new investment avenue as their intention to invest is higher at 32% as compared to those in the age group of 36-55 years which is at 26%.

     

    Majority expect India to launch its own official cryptocurrency in 2022. There is an overwhelming preference towards investing in India’s cryptocurrency with 79% claiming to invest in that over existing cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin etc. This is driven by the perceptions of it being more secure due to clear regulations laid down by RBI.

     

    Commenting on the findings, Deepender Rana, Executive Managing Director- South Asia, Insights Division, Kantar, said; “As we step into the third year of the pandemic, the public wants the government to further invest in public health infrastructure and other favourable policies like tax deductions for insurance, which help alleviate the burden of medical expenses. Concerns about fuel prices come through, as does a desire that government should help us wean ourselves off dependency on dirty and ever more expensive fossil fuels, through e-vehicle subsidies. Meanwhile, as cryptocurrencies take off and the government mulls a tax on crypto transactions, investors want the government to play a role in encouraging yet regulating these innovative finance instruments through India’s own cryptocurrency.”

     

     

  • To manage paid marketing portfolio

    HiveMinds wins digital mandate for Max Life Insurance

    By Our Staff

     

    Hiveminds Innovative Market solutions, the digital specialist arm of Madison World, won the digital mandate to manage Max Life Insurance’s paid marketing portfolio. As per the agreement, HiveMinds will be responsible for carrying out digital marketing activities across all publishers and platforms for Max Life Insurance including Google, Facebook, Taboola, Outbrain amongst others. This will in turn enable new customer acquisition for Max Life Insurance.

     

    Said Aditya Satpute, Corporate Vice President – Ecommerce & Digital Marketing, Max Life: “Today’s consumers are evolved and very digital-savvy, so the success of insurance companies is increasingly dependent upon their ability to innovate and engage with customers on digital platforms. We are pleased to partner with HiveMinds in the next phase of our digital growth, where they will manage the entire paid marketing portfolio for the e-commerce business.”

     

    Commenting on the win, Jyothrimayee J T, Founder & CEO, HiveMinds added: “We are proud of winning this highly contested mandate. There is a massive transformation happening in the Insurance sector powered by digital expansion. Bringing the right digital integrations and innovation will be key to our success.”