MxMIndia

Author: mxmadmin

  • Launches relay marathon called Zindagi Express to raise awareness

    Edelweiss Tokio Life unveils campaign for organ donation

    By Our Staff

     

    Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance unveils a 3-week long Organ Donation campaign called #PassItOn. At the centre of the campaign lies a relay marathon called Zindagi Express, which will travel 5,500 Kms across multiple cities in India to raise awareness regarding the dire need for Organ Donation. Besides an extensive BTL activation, the campaign will be supplemented by a robust digital and PR outreach.

     

    For a 4th consecutive year, the life insurer will join hands with Mohan Foundation, an NGO working to improve India’s organ donation landscape since 1997, to augment its awareness efforts.

     

    Abhishek Gupta, Chief Marketing Officer, Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance said: “After sustained digital efforts for the last 3 years, this is the right time to take our awareness efforts to the ground. When we embraced this social cause in 2019, our research showed us personal beliefs were the biggest roadblock in mobilising people for this cause. We, therefore, decided on taking inspiration from something fundamental that has worked well for the life insurance business – counselling people face to face.”

     

  • To launch a new digital-first campaign

    ICICI Prudential Life Insurance signs Suryakumar Yadav

    By Our Staff

     

    ICICI Prudential Life Insurance announced an association with Suryakumar Yadav, to launch a new digital-first campaign – “360° Financial Protection with ICICI Prudential Life Insurance”.

     

    The campaign’s central message is how ICICI Prudential Life Insurance offers a comprehensive suite of protection products providing all-round life cover that offers 360 degree financial protection in any critical situation, together with trust, dependability and consistency.

     

    Since his international debut, Suryakumar Yadav has quickly risen to emerge as one of the most consistent and dependable batters in the white ball format. The multi-dimensional batter is popularly known as “Mr. 360 degree” for his wide array of shots covering every inch of the field.

     

    Manish Dubey, Chief Marketing Officer, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance, said: “We are delighted to partner with Suryakumar Yadav. His commitment – both on and off the field – is admirable. SKY is an inspiration owing to his consistent form and dependability. He is a seamless fit with our brand which has always delivered on its promises and thereby has earned the trust of millions for over two decades. Just like Mr. 360 degree, who has got every shot in the book, our offerings also cater to the customers’ diverse and evolving needs at every stage of life and provides a 360 degree financial protection.”

     

  • Will be responsible for the brand building

    Lowe Lintas wins mandate of brand Lifestyle

    By Our Staff

     

    Lifestyle, fashion retail company, appoints Lowe Lintas to manage its creative duties. As a part of the partnership, Lowe Lintas Bangalore will be responsible for the brand building mandate of the parent brand Lifestyle and its in-house brands (Ginger, Melange, Code, Forca, Fame Forever, IKSU, Kappa, Bossini, Smiley and Juniors).

     

    Speaking on the partnership, Rohini Haldea, AVP & Head, Marketing – Lifestyle said: “We are delighted to onboard Lowe Lintas as our new brand building and creative partner. Their sound strategic thinking and path-breaking creative capabilities, combined with fashion expertise make them the perfect partner to lead Lifestyle. With this partnership, we look forward to creating inspiring, and impactful work that lead the consumer and take Lifestyle to the next level of engagement and growth.”

     

    Commenting on the win, Sonali Khanna, President and Head of Office – South, Lowe Lintas added: “While online shopping ruled during the pandemic, people are keen to return to a more visceral in-shop experience. But the plethora of choices available today, both offline and online, has made it imperative for brands to go beyond the obvious. Merely providing on-trend products or a captivating shopping experience is just not enough; brands have to connect with customers through a deeper meaning by taking a powerful stand that is both inspirational and aspirational at the same time. Lifestyle has always enjoyed a special connect with its consumers, and we believe our new work will stir their souls and reignite their imagination. By focusing on the stand of the Lifestyle brand, we are confident of lifting the Lifestyle experience to even greater heights.”

     

  • Aiming to give credit to Gen Zs and Tier 2-5 city audiences

    Snapmint data: 487% increase in women buyer during Year End

    By Our Staff

     

    Snapmint, fintech startup, study reveals there is 487% increase in women buyer during Year End. In the midst of the growing craze, reports show that 22% of Indian women are likely planning to adopt instalment payments for their personal finances in the next 12 months. This rapid adoption can be confirmed by Snapmint that has seen about a 487% increase in women customers buying on instalments this year.

     

    Snapmint is aiming to give credit to people with thin credit, Gen Zs and Tier 2-5 city audiences. Their easy split payment model allows women to make purchases on EMI. The RBI licensed NBFC makes it possible with an easy 2-step process without the hassle of physical documentation. Women seem to buy more in the categories of fashion, beauty and kitchen appliances on the app. Reebok shoes, Noise Smartwatches, Liberty shoes, Street Style Store boots and FCL SKINCARE remain some of the top brands.

     

    New year’s is especially a lucrative time to denote numbers as most apps have sales going on. Snapmint’s women adoption has seen a 60% spike in its average order value (AoV) in December 2022 when compared to last year. However, the real game changer numbers can be seen during the new year season. The numbers saw a massive 487% increase when compared to 2021 with a GTV increase of 163%. Most of the orders were from tier 2-5 cities like Ranchi, Sangrur, Prakasam, Bhilwara etc. A large number of the women segment also searched and bought gift cards from popular ecommerce stores indicating that they needed an EMI option to purchase on these platforms. What’s interesting is that the numbers also break the stereotype of what EMI payments can be availed for. Traditionally, EMIs were associated with purchases like bikes, furniture and large appliances. However, Snapmint’s numbers are a clear indication of the need for splinter payments in lower price points categories such as fashion and beauty.

     

    Said Abhineet Sawa, co-founder of Snapmint: “Out of the 550 Mn PAN holders in India, only the affluent 50 Mn have access to credit. We give credit to such customers. These include people with thin credit, entering in the workforce, Gen Z’s and tier 2-5 city audiences. Snapmint is changing who has credit and how. We are empowering GenZ and tier 2-5 customers to avail splinter payments. Our technology is enabling Gen Z customers to make fashion/lifestyle and electronics purchases.  And most importantly we are doing all of this with full transparency, no hidden costs for customers without asking for too much documentation. Our aim is to make EMI payments as available and prevalent as UPI.”

     

    According to a recent survey, only 19.23% of Indian women make the total Indian workforce***. This indicates that most of the purchasing power still lies with the male population. Snapmint is working to increase the purchasing power of non-salaried and Gen Z women who are currently entering the workforce.

     

  • To create awareness on plastic waste management

    Sunfeast Yippee rolls out eco drive among school students

    By Our Staff

     

    ITC’s Sunfeast Yippee, Instant Noodles and Pasta brand, has launched a campaign in partnership with an NGO partner, Way For Life, to create awareness among school children on plastic waste management. It unveiled a program ‘YiPPee! Better World Trash-to-Treasure’ program which is consistent with the brand’s mission to instill the attitude of A Better World.

     

    The initiative, curated by YiPPee! is designed to bring behavioural change in 3.5 million students across 100+ cities through on-the-ground awareness programs in schools about plastic waste, its impact on the environment, and strategies to minimize, reuse, and recycle. Through this initiative students are also being encouraged to collect household plastic waste and deposit them at designated collection points in the school. The plastic waste collected will contribute towards the creation of 1000 sets of benches and desks made from recycled plastic which will be deployed in schools that are devoid of this infrastructure.

     

    To date, over 80 recycled benches have been deployed in schools across Bengaluru and the complete deployment is planned to be completed by end of March 2023

     

    Speaking about the initiative, Kavita Chaturvedi, Chief Operating Officer – Snacks, Noodles & Pasta, ITC Foods Division said: “ITC is a global exemplar in sustainability with multi-dimensional initiatives for environmental stewardship and supporting large scale livelihoods. Taking inspiration from our organizational efforts to support the creation of a circular economy for post-consumer packaging waste, Sunfeast YiPPee! has embarked on a journey to create community champions in schools to help reduce, reuse and recycle plastic waste.  We are confident that YiPPee!’s Trash-to-Treasure initiative will educate and motivate school children to make a conscious effort towards creating a Better World.”

     

  • Here's Shailesh Kapoor's wishlist for related to the Indian M&E industry that I’m hoping to see, some of them only wishfully so, in the new year

    From RRR to TRAI… Five Wishes From 2023

     

     

    By Shailesh Kapoor

     

    Shailesh KapoorIt’s a new year, and that’s a legit reason to be excited about what one can expect in the year ahead. Here are five things, in no particular order, related to the Indian M&E industry that I’m hoping to see, some of them only wishfully so, in the new year.

     

    1. RRR at the Oscars

    An Indian film being nominated in the main Best Picture category at the Academy Awards is an exciting thought. It’s never happened before, and there’s more than a decent chance that RRR may be the first. The film also hopes to be nominated in some other categories, especially Best Original Song (Naatu Naatu). I’m eagerly looking forward to January 24, when the nominations will be announced.

     

    2. Box-office revival of Hindi cinema

    2022 has been a tumultuous year for Hindi cinema at the box-office, with collections dropping by almost 30% compared to the pre-pandemic year 2019. Other major Indian languages, especially the South ones, have grown or stayed stable, and the overall India box-office has done quite well in 2022, which is only the second year after 2019 to have grossed more than ₹10,000 crore across languages put together. If Hindi cinema is back on its feet in 2023, starting with Pathaan in January, it is almost certain that 2023 will be the biggest-ever year for the Indian box-office.

     

    3. Better non-scripted content

    After all the exciting developments in the decade of 2000-2009, which saw the import of several international formats and creation of a few homegrown ones, non-scripted content on Indian television, and now streaming, has lost its innovative streak. Even the true crime genre, that saw Crime Patrol, and later Savdhaan India, create a category of their own, is languishing. Shark Tank India (Sony) and Indian Predator (Netflix) have come as beacons of hope. But they stand out more as aberrations, because the streamers are obsessed with fiction, and television is happy launching new seasons of their long-running international formats. It won’t be an over-statement to say that along with comedy, non-scripted content is currently the most under-served category in mainstream entertainment in India. Hope 2023 changes that, at least to some extent.

     

    4. Reboot of Indian television news

    I’m now entering wishful territory, by hoping that 2023 can see rejuvenation of Indian TV news. It’s not a realistic wish given the timing of the recent change-of-ownership at NDTV. Indian television news has slowly but surely acquired a spoof-ish imagery, and even though mass audiences continue to watch it, that’s more a testimony to the reach of television in India, than the quality of the content our news channels are dishing out. One would have used the phrase ‘trash television’ for it, but Indian TV news content is often purposefully idiotic or divisive. The good old days of UFOs lifting cows up from the fields suddenly seem quite acceptable, when you compare it to the communal ideas being spread through the news on primetime every night. While digital news platforms attempt to make a difference, they currently don’t have the reach and the budgets to make the larger national impact.

     

    5. TRAI exits the television business

    This is that joke wish, the kind that a media website can run as a Fool’s Day headline. It’s not going to happen (at least not in 2023), but nothing will make me, and the entire television industry, happier than seeing TRAI’s incessant meddling, which has damaged the business in more ways than one can imagine, stop in 2023.

     

  • 360-degree campaign juxtaposes universal human emotions with fundamental strengths of brand

    Muthoot Finance launches new marketing campaign: ‘Kholiye Khushiyon Ki Tijori !’

    By Our Staff

     

    Muthoot Finance has launched its new campaign that reinforces its unique and core strengths.

     

    The campaign is anchored by actor Amitabh Bachchan, who has been the brand ambassador for the past five years. The new campaign ‘Kholiye Khushiyon Ki Tijori!’ includes four TVCs.

     

    Speaking about the campaign, Alexander George Muthoot, Joint Managing Director, The Muthoot Group, said: “Muthoot Finance has always consciously focused on its own core strengths and key differentiators. We have carefully and consciously built and nurtured some great differentiators and always made efforts to add delight to our customer’s experience with us. The 2.5 Lakh+ customers who are satisfactorily served every single day by our network of 5750+ pan-India branches is one such unparalleled differentiation.”

     

    Talking further about the new campaign, Abhinav Iyer, Senior General Manager – Marketing & Strategy, The Muthoot Group said: “Muthoot Finance has always served as a catalyst that has helped its customers move ahead in life. In general, the gold owned by people stays idle and is not monetised, for reasons like it simply does not cross one’s mind or because of old-world beliefs or social taboos. Our new marketing campaign ‘Kholiye Khusiyon Ki Tijori!’ encourages people to consider Muthoot Finance Gold Loans to realise their dreams and unlock happiness. The campaign nudges loan seekers to unlock their gold lying idle in safes & lockers and in turn let it bring happiness for them by helping them fulfill their personal, family or business needs. In this campaign too we have advocated utilization of this idle lying gold to enable people to do things that can help them move ahead in their lives, giving themselves and their families more happiness and joy. These films have been carefully crafted in an emotive way drawing parallels to real-life emotions that makes them very pleasant for people to relate, despite presenting a core product benefit of Muthoot Finance Gold Loans.”

     

  • He was until recently Marketing Head at Gaana

    Ferns N Petals appoints Shashwat Goswami as CMO

    By Our Staff

     

    Gifting brand Ferns N Petals (FNP) has announced the appointment of Shashwat Goswami to the newly created role of Chief Marketing Officer.  He was until recently Marketing Head at Gaana where he was leading growth, retention and brand marketing for the music streaming app.

     

    Speaking on the appointment Pawan Gadia, Global CEO and Director, FNP said: “For the past 30 years FNPm has brought a lot of joy to people’s lives through its products and services. As we ready ourselves for the next phase of growth, innovation, marketing experience and sustainability will play a crucial role. We intend to bring our consumers closer to the brand by positioning FNP through an innovative lens, by capturing unique story telling opportunities and personalised retail experiences. Shashwat with his compelling track record, his depth and breadth of marketing experience is the right fit and we are thrilled to welcome him to the team.”

     

  • To accelerate growth and solutions for the clients

    Dentsu appoints Sapna Arora as Chief Client Officer

    By Our Staff

     

    Dentsu India has announced the appointment of Sapna Arora as Chief Client Officer (CCO).

     

    In this role, Arora will continue to enhance integrated solutions for existing and prospective clients and drive growth for the network. She will report to Rob Gilby, CEO APAC, and work closely with the leadership as well as teams across Creative, Media and CX.

     

    Prior to this, Arora was with OLX India as CMO, PRO, Brand Head – Emerging Markets.

     

    Commenting on the appointment, Gilby said: “We are in a very exciting phase of our evolution with a clear vision and strategy and I am delighted we continue to attract the best industry talent to join us and share their expertise. This is what makes Sapna the ideal fit for today’s Indian dentsu! She brings incredible global expertise that will be invaluable in cultivating pride, employee advocacy, and a sense of collective purpose that will strengthen dentsu India’s reputation among key stakeholders. I would like to extend a warm welcome to Sapna and look forward to working with her.’

     

  • Atrium Academy is an online music learning academy

    ActiMedia wins Artium Academy mandate

    By Our Staff

     

    ActiMedia PR & Digital has won the India PR mandate for Artium Academy, an online music learning academy.

     

    Said Vivek Raicha, Co-founder, Artium Academy: “Artium Academy wants to use its unique performance driven curriculum and customized technology to democratize music learning. We are excited to partner with Actimedia PR & Digital as our communications partner. With a deep knowledge of the media ecosystem and consumers, we hope that Actimedia will help us to promote the value of music learning amongst Indians globally.”

     

    Added  Amitabh Saksena, Founder & Managing Director Actimedia PR & Digital: “Artium Academy offers a gold standard in music education and is set to disrupt the music learning industry. We are happy to onboard Artium Academy and develop compelling PR strategies to help them accomplish their desired output.”

     

  • Titled #AtFortisWePledge

    Fortis Mumbai launches social media campaign

    By Our Staff

     

    Fortis Hospitals Mumbai has launched #AtFortisWePledge social media campaign to highlight the importance of self-health for both patients and caregivers.

     

    Said Dr S Narayani, Business Head, Fortis Hospitals Maharashtra: “The purpose of the campaign is to encourage patients and their caregivers to make and follow through on their health-related new year’s resolutions, with support from the doctors & caregivers at Fortis. The aim is to promote self-health and wellness, which will in long run eventually reduce the need for hospitalizations and visits to outpatient clinics. Through this initiative, we intend to inspire individuals to prioritize their health and make choices that promote healthy living, leading to happier and healthier lives”

     

  • When many of the wants became needs, writes Vikas Mehta

    Pandemic: Not the driver of change but the change accelerator

     

     

    With apologies to none at all

    Vikas MehtaBy Vikas Mehta

     

    With the turn of the year, there was a splurge of articles on trends, what awaits us in 2023 and of course life post-pandemic. Trends were being captured and changes were being highlighted. A lot of debate on how life has changed for good and bad post-pandemic.

    So, I reflected on these changes, tried to relate it to my own life and read some researched articles.

    My conclusions however differ than the most. I don’t think there was much change. What though did happen was that a lot of change that had already started, accelerated. Let me explain with a few trends that are being hailed as change due to the pandemic.

     

    Digital payment: From Wallets to UPI: The UPI phenomena picked up immediately after demonetisation. Wallets, which was what was the first new age Digital Payment method, quickly gave way to UPI. While it grew as it eschewed the perennial problem of cash exchanges including small change, the pandemic accelerated it considerably. Let’s also not forget that UPI payment needs bank accounts and the opening of millions of jandhan accounts enabled even a streetcart hawker to open an account and get a UPI link. And while we talk about the role of jandhan accounts let’s not forget to give due credit to the 4G revolution and the availability of cheaper smart phones in promoting UPI payment. The timing of pandemic was the catalyst which got all these elements together and UPI payments have since ballooned exponentially reaching 782 crore transactions estimated at Rs 12.82 lakh crore in December 2022.

     

    Online shopping: From novelty to necessity: The miracle of shopping from home had entered our lives more than a decade ago. And the convenience of card payments followed by UPI made online shopping catch on and also achieve penetration in smaller towns. What the pandemic did was to make it a habit. So, when it was not safe to be in a shop or any crowded place online delivery became a preferred mode of shopping. And even the neighbourhood kirana caught on to it. No, every kirana store did not rush to put up a website but they used WhatsApp to communicate availability of the merchandising and whatever offers and promotions were on. These kirana shops facilitated delivery by getting a hired help or even the regular staff, whose workload had decreased due to less footfalls, to do home delivery. So, the concept of online shopping became more acceptable, and more user friendly. But let’s not ignore that there was a huge class of consumers like the government employees who did not suffer a salary cut or loss of employment and whose savings during the pandemic went up as their spending avenues like travel or shopping during holidays got curtailed. As a result, this type of consumer not only picked up the nuances of online shopping but embraced both, the technology and the offers that came along with it. The boom was therefore accelerated. And let’s be sure it has also slowed down. The same consumers are now rushing offline to experience the rush of shopping.

     

    WFH: From Work to Personal Life. Video conferencing and apps like Zoom were not just in place but they were being used by corporates pre pandemic. The pandemic made them verbs. Zoom, Meet, Facetime etc crossed the threshold of corporate world and became household names. Birthdays, anniversaries, even prayer meetings went online. Housewife groups, student groups, educational institutes, understood to use video conferencing as a mean to not just work from home but to also socialize, do part time work and peddle their interests into small business. Again, here the timing was important. Broadband connections were already being rolled out giving faster internet speeds and affordable prices, which the whole family could use. Suddenly everyone, not just working professionals realized that one need not spend time travelling to work or even to meet someone socially. The need to safeguard their health made an individual realise that what was considered non-negotiable like travelling to work, physical meeting with customers had an alternative. And this available also gave the individuals to indulge in new habits.

     

    Reels: From a passive receiver to an active creator. Software combined with smartphones and apps like Tik Tok had already whetted the appetite of the youngster to indulge in expressing themselves through videos. The pandemic gave the youngsters time to explore various technologies and software. The allure of fame and instant recognition added to it. Extra time in hand allowed the youngsters to indulge in their creative language and it also helped ignite a deeper connect with technology. Technology moved from an exclusive domain to a more generic domain. It also fuelled more liberal arts interest in areas like film making, music and liberal arts. Tik Tok had already shown the way. Pandemic fueled it to much greater heights

     

    OTT: Primetime slots to personal primetimes. Time in hand, coupled with more savings, enabled consumer segments like government employees, software engineers etc buying OTT subscriptions. Anyways, movie theatres were shut. TV serials had stopped production so new episodes were not available. These consumers spread their net wide by dipping into the old inventory of OTT channels. Plus, they also started looking at other language programmes which had subtitles. And then, they started taking more than one subscription. As a result the OTT channels which already had good inventory took off. It was not just films or serials it also applied to old sports footage of cricket and international football. It was a win0win situation for both the consumers and the channels. As the consumers opened their wallets the channels started investing in new films or programmes. Pandemic was the rocket fuel for the OTT channels.

     

    Education: From home tutions to online tutions: Forget the role of edutech companies, private tutions, which seem to be a staple for every middle class Indian child were not only a financial burden but also meant parents having to spend time picking up and dropping their children for tutions. So, when online tutions was tried out by some enterprising teachers, the trend caught on. Even now, I hear of one to one online tutions which involves student getting slots at an unearthly hour of 5:30 am or 6 am. But that is manageable as it involves no travel or getting ready.

     

    Tourism: From global to local. Local tourism, a trend that had started around a few years back blossomed during the pandemic. Many youngsters in small towns and even metros had started exploring and then organising local tours which featured forgotten heritage, architecture, natural spots and local cuisine. When the lockdown relaxations started, long distance tourism was still a no go but these local tours picked up. Coupled with the fact that these were mostly walking, and gave an opportunity to get away from the confines of homes, I have seen these flourish and thrive almost everywhere.

     

    Social Media: From gossip to extra income. While social media has fueled enough gossip, innuendos and fake news it has also been used to whet the appetite of work from home housewives or youngsters who channeled their hobbies like cooking or knitting or even worked for social commerce sites like Meesho to earn an extra buck. Even now I come across some students who use Instagram or whatsapp to make some money baking cakes and goodies during festival season. Again, the pandemic enabled these people to use the time available to monetise their hobbies. 

    On a personal level, I saw and experienced some of these explosions. Before the pandemic I would be using Zoom for some business meetings, so as a family we were happy with 4G data plans or using wifi hot spots. But with both me and my spouse working online and my daughter into online schooling, an unlimited data plan backed by higher speeds for video consumption meant that we opted for two broadband plans with the second one as a backup. Online shopping for even daily needs like milk and bread became a habit. My bank statement transactions doubled and tripled due to the increased use of UPI. DTH connection was pruned down to some sports and news channels and Netflix, Sony LIV, Disney Hotstar, Amazon Prime became staple entertainment medium. Zoom became the default verb for any family gathering across countries and continents.

    And when the pandemic struck my mother-in-law in Mumbai, we did tripartite online medical consultation twice daily. The chemist near her house would be sent a list of medicines and nutrients by WhatsApp, his delivery person would place it at the doorstep and we would make UPI payments. Fruits and groceries followed a similar pattern. Even for her food, a tiffin person in her neighbourhood was employed. And finally, a healthcare worker was contacted who physically moved in to tend to her.

    The point to be noted is that many of the abovementioned habits were accelerated due to the pandemic. One would have tried them and adapted them at one’s own pace but the pandemic did not allow the luxury to do so. The pandemic put into perspective the difference between needs and wants and many of the wants became needs. This led to immediate change in habits and trends, instead of a gradual acceptance. And that has made all the difference.