Asahi India Glass Ltd. (AIS), has onboarded Enormous Brands, an independent creative agency, to create brand films for its complete doors and windows solutions brand, AIS Windows. With this campaign, AIS Windows is aiming to make a large impact in the doors and windows segment.
Vikram Khanna, CMO and COO – AIS Consumer Glass, Asahi India Glass Ltd. said: ‘What was once a low involvement category in the interior of a home is now taking centre stage. We need communication that is engaging to create an impact in the market. AIS is extremely thrilled to have Enormous on board as our creative partner. We believe that Enormous is an idea-first agency with the right strategy and digital communication balance and that this partnership will help increase our ability to communicate with our target consumers in a more relevant manner.”
Added Ashish Khazanchi, Managing Partner, Enormous Brands: “Asahi India Glass Ltd. (AIS) is a well-known brand in the Indian glass solutions market, and we are extremely honoured to be associated with them. We believe that there is substantial potential in the category and our goal is to make AIS Windows the first choice for system window and door solutions in India. The 3 films are unlike any other in the category, and we have tried to add an element of fun to them while also communicating the offerings of the brand”
Bandhan Bank, headquartered in Kolkata, launches its integrated marketing campaign featuring the Bank’s brand ambassador Sourav Ganguly. The ‘Jahaan Bandhan, Wahaan Trust’ campaign emphasises the ‘trust’ that the brand has been able to earn in a span of seven years as a Bank and over the last two decades in the various avatars prior to the Bank.
The campaign was conceived by Leo Burnett Orchard.
Apurva Sircar, Head – Marketing, Bandhan Bank, said: “Bandhan Bank, in the last seven years, has established its presence in 34 states and union territories, has more than 2.77 crore customers and its book size is nearly Rs.2 lakh crore. This has been possible due to the trust of stakeholders that the Bank has been able to secure. Dada’s (Ganguly’s) life has been witnessed by one and all. While both Dada and Bandhan have origins in West Bengal, both have not let that define them and have established themselves as trusted names across the country and the world, thereby winning the trust of millions. Our campaign draws inspiration from this similar journey of both brands.”
Speaking on the campaign, Pravin Sutar, Head of Creative – Leo Burnett Orchard, added: “There are very few purpose-driven brands across the world and to get to work on them is a privilege. Bandhan Bank’s journey has been exemplary and it needed stand-out storytelling. With Sourav Ganguly, we got the opportunity to create a campaign that seamlessly connects the story of Bandhan Bank and Dada, promising to strike a chord with everyone. We are confident that this piece of work will be memorable and will drive impact for Bandhan Bank.”
Story Brews Pvt Ltd communications agency has been appointed the official public relations agency for Vaishnavi Group, the Bengaluru-based real estate development company. Story Brews won the mandate after a multi-agency pitch. The work will involve media networking and public relations.
Additionally, the agency will assist Vaishnavi to form industry alliances across various forums and platforms and support the company in establishing thought leadership in the national market.
Natasha Gupta
Commenting on winning the mandate, Natasha Gupta, Founder & CEO of Story Brews, said: “Story Brews is a trusted brand communications partner for leading corporates in the real estate, technology, financial services and e-commerce domain. With the objective of a robust promotion, Vaishnavi Group’s mandate is a remarkable addition to our services portfolio. We will work on external marketing through public relations and form industry alliances while brand building.”
Added Cyriac Joseph, Chief Marketing Officer, Vaishnavi Group: “We are happy to have partnered with Story Brews and its founder Natasha, who brings relevant industry experience and her expertise on board. The association will only strengthen our external promotion.”
The interactive ability of digital and social media has given rise to the concept of Hypertext Marketing. Hypertext Marketing differs from traditional integrated marketing strategy in that it not only integrates a single brand message across multiple media but also draws upon interactive platforms that modify and generate new brand messages.
The integrated brand strategy and management school gathered momentum in the late seventies and early eighties of the twentieth century. It began with the outmoding of Vance Packard’s famous persuasion model of marketing and the resultant “hidden persuader” school of advertising. Instead, brand strategy and management took on a consumer-centric focus on meeting consumer needs rather than manipulating consumer minds through artful advertising.
This evolving school of marketing then further challenged the notion that rational forces and metrics drive markets. This evolving understanding of consumers, market and culture led to the Marketing Semiotics paradigm.
Semiotics focused on the role of emotion and creativity in consumer decision-making and on applying these insights to the strategic planning process.
Marketing Semiotics focuses on three dynamics – a) the semiotic space defined by the product category, b) the relative positions of the competitive brands in this space and c) changing cultural trends that might affect the semiotic space and the positions of brands within this space.
The dynamic interaction between cultural norms, marketing action, and consumer interaction defines the dimensions of a category semiotic space.
For example, in formal Western menswear, research in India has shown that two dimensions define the semiotic space – the Elite-Accessible dimension, Trendy -Traditional. In traditional analysis, this leads to four quadrants for available brand positions – Elite and Trendy. Elite and Traditional, Accessible and Trendy and Accessible and Traditional.
In semiotic analysis, even the negatives of each dimension – Not Elite, Not Accessible, Not Trendy, Not Traditional are considered -leading to ten quadrants of positioning space to be explored. This approach allows for a) more positioning options to emerge, b) for more dimensions to emerge and c), over time, better track cultural shifts affecting the semiotic space as well as brand positions.
Semiotics can lead to more effective marketing communication. In the communication context, marketing communication is defined by its formal and cognitive properties as a medium of consumer persuasion. Semiotics, however, defines marketing communication from the marketing context – as a vehicle for sustaining brand positioning over time, maintaining its competitive distinction and aligning brand message with cultural change.
To sum up, Marketing Semiotics is an approach that creates and builds brands as an integrated and interactive part of the product category code and the broader cultural code within the competitive framework and responds to category and cultural code changes over time.
Combining Hypertext Marketing with Marketing Semiotics allows integration with the ability to respond to interactive platforms.
In her book “Creating Value: The Theory and Practice of Marketing Semantics Research, “ Laura Oswald gives an example of the integrated use of Marketing Semiotics in Hypertext Marketing by Red Bull.
Red Bull used the brand metaphor of “Wings” to signify its core benefits of “Lifts, energises, inspires” and fashioned the advertising theme of “Red Bull Gives You Wings”.
Red Bull decided on the brand tone of “irony” because humor was the most engaging content genre with its core target audience – the young. And within humor – irony had the most upmarket appeal.
Red Bull consolidated its functional position with its consumers by sponsoring extreme sports and high-energy cutting-edge rock music. However, in the Hypertext Marketing context, it needed to find an interactive platform that resonated with its ironic advertising and enhanced the brand’s chosen persona. It did so with the Flugtag events. The basis of Flugtag events was the concept of giving human wings – literally. The event invited teams to build a flying machine solely powered by humans and then demonstrate these at the event by flying over a water body. Most flights lasted less than a minute, with the spectacle of the contestants crashing harmlessly into the water. After a Flugtag event, social media would light up with user-generated content based on videos of the event. The zaniness of the Flugtag event, the ironic advertising on the theme “Red Bull Give You Wings”, and its sponsorship of extreme sports and rock music allowed Red Bull to build and nurture a formidable brand that was equally strong on the functional and emotional dimensions.
Chart from “Creating Value: The Theory and Practice of Marketing Semiotics Research” by Laura Oswald
In my decades in the Indian advertising world, I have seen much change. When television emerged as the primary media in the late nineties, the lingua franca of Indian advertising changed from English to Hindi and other Indian languages. Today as the focus of Indian marketing shifts from mass media to digital media, from linear TV to connected TV, from brick-and-mortar to omnichannel, and from Gen X to Millennials and Gen Z, the process of marketing and marketing communication strategy making needs to shift. Many consumer behavior models that today form the basis of marketing and advertising strategy need to be updated. We need to audit and continuously reframe our understanding of the semiotic and cultural spaces that constitute the operational matrix of our products and brands. Finally, we need to reinvent market research from the silos of quantitative and qualitative, ad hoc and syndicated, and move to a more strategic form of analysis and research that integrates across all marketing mix elements and time.
We must also know and act on the actual value of digital and social media emergence. Most brands across categories solely base their digital and social media strategy on the paradigm of better and more fine-tuned targeting. The big unexploited opportunity that digital and social media platforms offer brands is Hypertext Marketing, which creates a virtuous, brand-building cycle between the brand and the consumer.
India Gate Foods, Basmati Rice Brand from the house of KRBL Ltd, announces its new campaign “Basmati Rice Se No Compromise” with the onset of 2023.
The campaign has been conceptualized and created by CreativelandAsia, the new agency-on-record for KRBL Limited, and features actor Pankaj Tripathi.
Kunal Sharma, Head of Marketing ,KRBL India Ltd said: “With the help of this multi-market brand campaign, India Gate Foods is switching from India Ki Purani Aadat to Basmati Rice Se No Compromise. The world’s No. 1 brand of packaged basmati rice is now occupying the category captain pedestal after utilising various growth levers. Mr. Pankaj Tripathi, who has considerable influence in the Hindi-speaking markets, aids in effectively communicating our point. On the other end of the spectrum, we have massive regional campaigns that have been launched in line with our brand objectives. WB & MH are already available, and additional campaigns targeting particular markets are in development. So, keep this in mind the next time you reach into a bag of rice at your neighbourhood kirana store: never compromise on your loved ones, not even for Basmati rice.”
Okaya Power Group, manufacturers of batteries, has appointed Mullen Lintas as their creative partner to promote their wide range of Ultra Low Maintenance and long-lasting batteries manufactured in most eco-friendly environments. The account will be managed by the Gurgaon office of Mullen Lintas.
Commenting on the association, Arush Gupta, Director, Okaya Batteries said: “We have some ambitious plans for the future and we were looking for a creative partner who could deliver impact and disruption. With Mullen Lintas’ refreshing approach to strategy & creative, we look forward to creating significant market impact for Okaya with Mullen Lintas.”
Speaking about the win, Hari Krishnan, CEO, Mullen Lintas added: “We are thrilled to have been given the opportunity to be the creative arm for Okaya Batteries. It’s a somewhat commoditized category with trade playing a huge role in influencing the purchase decision. Our intent would be to build consideration & preference for Okaya and change the purchase decision process with our ‘Challenger’ approach.”
Infidigit, organic digital growth platform, has bagged the search engine optimisation (SEO) mandate for SBI Life Insurance. As part of the mandate, Infidigit is all set to create a strategy to organically boost SBI Life’s ranking through its interactive website and further consolidate brand SBI Life’s strong online identity.
Kaushal Thakkar, Infidigit’s Founder and Managing Director said: “Infidigit is proud to have SBI Life Insurance as one of our esteemed clients. SBI Life is one of the most credible and reputed insurers in the Indian life insurance space. In the post covid era, a large number of Indians have realized the importance of securing their family’s financial future and the effects of this can be seen on Google search. Google has become a crucial touchpoint for brands as users turn to Google for quick answers. We aim to further drive organic traffic and rankings by optimizing for both users and search engines.”
Speaking on the development, Ravindra Sharma, Chief of Brand, Corporate Communications & CSR, SBI Life Insurance, added: “We are excited to onboard Infidigit for taking over the SEO responsibilities for SBI Life Insurance and look forward to their valuable strategic direction that will further enhance SBI Life’s online presence. Looking at Infidigit’s notable SEO work, we are optimistic that the team will enhance SBI Life’s presence and grow our website’s organic traffic and enhance online ranking.”
Star Sports, official broadcaster of the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup 2023, launches its new promo featuring India cricketer Hardik Pandya. The three-match ODI series gets underway from January 10th.
The promo, created and conceptualised by the in-house team at Disney Star, is an extension of the fan centric campaign recently launched by the broadcaster. In this fan universe, the enterprising duo of Madhu and Bala assume different roles to try and get as close to Hardik with an endeavour to garner tickets for the upcoming ODI matches. In this film, they assume the role of grounds men curating the pitch to blunt Sri Lankan spin.
A Star Sports Spokesperson said: “2023 assumes greater importance from an Indian context due to the ICC Cricket World Cup at home later this year. We wish to reinvigorate ODI cricket using the bilateral series as tentpoles which can fuel and channelize the support for Team India, leading up to the ICC event. Every bilateral series will be used to grow the chorus of fans through a common narrative and strengthening our #BelieveInBlue proposition. The promo films exemplify the fan universe we are trying to establish through these films which act as voices for Indian fans at large.”
The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) recently published a discussion paper titled ‘Dark Patterns in Advertising’ highlighting how certain UI/UX deployed by digital platforms could manipulate consumer choices and consumption patterns to the detriment of consumer interest. The self-regulatory organisation had invited public feedback and comments on the recommendations of the discussion paper which will help ASCI extend its self-regulatory code on objectionable ads to cover dark patterns too.
Now, ASCI has extended the deadline for the feedback until the 16th of January 2023 based on requests it has received from a few organizations. Submissions by any member of the public or any organization public can be sent to contact@ascionline.in
We know it’s another unfair question, but it’s a question that we are sure it’s cropped in the minds of people. Let’s read what Dr Bhaskar Das has to say in the January 5 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 or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/
Q. Would you say that it’s the beginning of the end of the way the Indian (and global) media will be?
A. Not at all. All beginnings have to start from the end. That’s healthy. Indian and global media have already realised the unfolding reality of their partners and have started transforming them. It’s a continuous effort and can’t have a full stop. And of course it cannot wait for a new year, for heaven’s sake.
Earlier this week, when I tried to look for reports on what exactly was happening in Haldwani, Uttarakhand, the only coverage I could find was on local websites and social media. The mainstream media was typically silent. After all, Muslims being de-housed and moved in a BJP-run state, who’s going to cover it, right? We all know that’s how low we’ve fallen.
But someone brave took the case – of alleged encroachment on railway land – to the Supreme Court and suddenly the mainstream media is all over it.
The case is complicated. It affects over 50,000 people, living in the area since Independence. Some of the residents claim to have bought land in auction. The Railways claimed encroachment and the Uttarakhand High Court ordered clearing of all human habitation in one week. Most of these people are Muslim and today’s India is now used to the Yogi Adityanath way of governance – bring out the bulldozers and bring down Muslim homes.
The Supreme Court – unlike several other recent judgments – has looked at the human angle and stayed forced evacuations.
There is an additional problem here which affects all of Uttarakhand. Land ownership laws are strange. The courts are happy to ignore all evidence of land sales post-Independence and depend on British colonial maps which are over 100 years old. This has resulted in gate posts being chipped down by one inch because of High Court orders. Okay, that’s a free story for someone!
The problem of course is that we will move on. The Indian media does not appreciate the idea of staying power and returning to ongoing stories. And television only plays to the gallery. In the current scenario, that apparently means to increase hatred against Muslims.
For instance, on Twitter, once again right-wing BJP handles target Muhammed Zubair of Alt News for amplifying the protests in Haldwani. And these handles will not stop because they have the go-ahead from forces above to continue with the spread of hatred.
Do you want me to repeat myself? That the media needs to stick to stories like this because these are human interest stories at the intersection of law, morality, livelihood and public interest? Naah, I get it. Boring. Let’s get back to Modi ji’s latest fun and games.
Although two days without social media and I am shocked to find that Modi ji does not appear to have inaugurated anything in my absence. Nor stopped for any ambulances. What is going on?
Here’s one story which will not make Modiji happy:
The imminent collapse of the Uttarakhand town of Joshimath is a clear indictment of “development” minus sense and accountability. Independent news sites, local activists, environmentalists and geologists have been ignored. The other day, Nitin Gadkari made even more promises about the “development” of the mountains to help tourists. Obviously, no one in the media will question him about the collapse of Joshimath thanks to “development”. I do not expect anyone to question Modi ji.
The less we discuss issues that matter, the more these matters will press upon us. Wanton destruction of homes because of social hatred and greed are not that different from attacks on natural resources for greed in the name of “development”. What we ought to know is that the reasoning of the past no longer applies. But the same media that will highlight some renewable energy promise made by the government will wilfully ignore the consequences of bad government when it comes to ecology, the environment and climate change.
**
At the end, how does one ignore this incident? A real media treat!
A Friday question, and, well, a Friday answer. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the January 6 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 or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/
Q. You are a voracious reader, watch films and webseries, track sports. Anything that you would recommend to our readers, as a must-consume this year?
A. You have chosen the wrong person. I am not an avid consumer of all that you have described. Seriously. No modesty. The only thing I can suggest is that individuals would follow their own tastes and preferences across a slew of options. Why should someone else have to recommend?! If at all they can engage with their preferred communities with shared values.
The interactive ability of digital and social media has given rise to the concept of Hypertext Marketing. Hypertext Marketing differs from traditional integrated marketing strategy in that it not only integrates a single brand message across multiple media but also draws upon interactive platforms that modify and generate new brand messages.
We know it’s another unfair question, but it’s a question that we are sure it’s cropped in the minds of people. Let’s read what Dr Bhaskar Das has to say in the January 5 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…
Earlier this week, when I tried to look for reports on what exactly was happening in Haldwani, Uttarakhand, the only coverage I could find was on local websites and social media. The mainstream media was typically silent. After all, Muslims being de-housed and moved in a BJP-run state, who’s going to cover it, right? We all know that’s how low we’ve fallen.