MxMIndia

Author: mxmadmin

  • Not an easy question to answer, but not so for our Wizard with Words. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 8 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

    Das ka Dum with Dr Bhaskar Das | Do you think that while recruiting, the creative/ writing/ editing teams in media must be truly representative: people from all strata, parents, divorcees, etc etc. That this will ensure content is more inclusive?

    Bhaskar DasNot an easy question to answer, but not so for our Wizard with Words. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 8 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. Do you think that while recruiting, the creative/ writing/ editing teams in media must be truly representative: people from all strata, parents, divorcees, etc etc. That this will ensure content is more inclusive?

     

    A. Ideally inclusivity presupposes that all the categories of the population need to be included as a proof of moving beyond platitudes. However, the concerned categories of the population need to be appropriately skilled to cater to the organisational need of the recruiting company. The other route could be to recruit them with some basic intelligence and train them for a specific role, through a combination of structured modules of training and on-the-job exposure. If we want inclusivity to be real and move beyond lip service and wishlists, organisations have to walk the talk in the same way as I proposed (other routes can also be explored , so long the end objects met). It would a long journey, but it would be worth it and it would open up new sources of talent acquisition.

     

  • To help build brand

    Blue Buzz bags PR mandate for Serene Envirotech

    By Our Staff

     

    Blue Buzz, marketing agency, has been awarded the Public Relations mandate for Serene Envirotech Solutions, active in the field of preventive healthcare and wellness.

     

    Commenting on this achievement, Dr. Babu Sudhakar, Chairman, and Managing Director of Serene Envirotech Solutions Pvt. Ltd said: “We are delighted to continue our partnership with Blue Buzz. Over the past year, with their expertise and creative understanding they have helped us build our brand narrative and establish ourselves as a thought leader in the field of preventive healthcare and wellness. We look forward to their continued support in the coming year.”

     

    Neha K Bisht, Founder and CEO, Blue Buzz, added: “We are thrilled to be working with Serene Envirotech for another year. Our team is excited to leverage their expertise in the field of preventive healthcare and wellness, and create compelling stories that highlight their commitment to making the world a better place. We thank Serene Envirotech for their continued trust in our capabilities.”

     

  • To oversee the company's brand strategy

    Makani Creatives appoints Suchana Sarkar as CBO

    By Our Staff

     

    Makani Creatives, advertising and creative agency, appoints Suchana Sarkar as Chief Brand Officer (CBO). In this role, Sarkar will be responsible for overseeing the company’s brand strategy, marketing campaigns, and overall brand experience.

     

    Said Aejaz Khan, CEO, Makani Creatives: “We are excited to welcome Suchana Sarkar to our team as Chief Brand Officer,” “With her extensive experience in building and elevating global brands, we are confident that she will be a great asset in our company’s transformational journey.”

     

  • Festival, a precursor to Cannes, is scheduled in April

    The Montreux Advertising Festival entries open till March 31

    By Our Staff

     

    The 34th edition of Golden Award of Montreux Advertising Festival is scheduled this year at Montreux Switzerland in April, 2023. Montreux Festival has been a precursor to Cannes for 30 years now and is one of Europe’s premier Advertising, Media, Digital & Design Festivals.

     

    At last year’s Montreux Festival, Indian entries were successful and they won 4 Golds and 9 Finalist Certificates. BC Webwise, Blink Digital, Cog Culture and Tree Design won a Gold each. HT Labs, Blink Digital and BC Webwise won 2 Finalists each while Cog Culture won 3 Finalists. The Grand Prix of the Golden Award of Montreux was presented to Energy BBDO Chicago.

     

  • Yet another question that's a tad tricky, but not so for our Wizard with Words. Here's Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 9 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

    Das ka Dum with Dr Bhaskar Das | When you see an ad around Women’s Day, what’s your first response: “good work” or “yet another case of tokenism”?

    Bhaskar DasYet another question that’s a tad tricky, but not so for our Wizard with Words. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 9 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. When you see an ad around Women’s Day, what’s your first response: “good work” or “yet another case of tokenism”?

     

    A. I know that you have a reason to ask this question: while we celebrate Women’s Day with all the appropriate and inspiring buzz, the empirical happenings at the ground level throughout the country and perhaps the globe are quite contrary to the sprits of the special day. We should actually celebrate it every day of the year with the same ethos and conviction. An age-old gender bias in different strata of society, both economic and social levels, has been prevalent from eons and it can’t evaporate overnight or by celebrating one day in a year. Besides, what we see as statements in various media vehicles or social media handles or advertisements, eulogising women on International Women’s Day, may not be even known to the occupiers of the bottom end of the pyramid of society.

     

    Having said that, I would hasten to add that some beginning is important for any major societal transformation. I am optimistic that someday the light of awareness would gain momentum and the disparity and discrimination among genders would blur and we would celebrate the rise of an equitable and just society. When I watch a WPL match or women getting entry and excelling in traditional male-dominated domains, I feel optimistic about the future. On that day, your apprehension of tokenism through celebration of a day, needn’t arise.

     

  • With a new TVC campaign

    Sourav Ganguly bats for Rich Marie biscuits range

    By Our Staff

     

    Bisk Farm, biscuit & bakery brands from the house of Saj Food, has launched a new television commercial campaign for its popular Rich Marie biscuits range, featuring former Indian cricket captain, Sourav Ganguly.

     

    Vijay Kr. Singh, Managing Director, Saj Food said: “Our association with Sourav Ganguly goes back a long way and our Rich Marie segment is one of the most popular biscuits range from the Bisk Farm portfolio. With his charismatic personality and mass appeal, we are confident that this campaign will connect with our target audience and drive sales for Rich Marie biscuits. The campaign comes with an exciting offer where lucky customers can win gold coins. We are confident that all biscuit lovers and Dada’s fans will enjoy this offer as much as they love our Rich Marie biscuits.”

     

  • We were promised a truly inclusive world with digital access for all, but what does the ground reality convey, asks Shruti Pushkarna

    Is Digital India truly inclusive?

     

     

    By Shruti Pushkarna

     

    Shruti PushkarnaA few days before India assumed the G20 Presidency on December 1, 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to the G20 leaders in Bali about the transformative power of digital architecture, applauding India’s efforts in the recent years. In July 2015, the flagship programme of the Modi-led government, Digital India, was launched with a view to digitally empower the society and knowledge economy.

     

    The initiative was deemed promising by different groups for varied reasons. It was seen as a step towards bridging the socio-economic gaps by providing access to services, digitally. Education could reach a wider audience tucked in far-out nooks of the country. Small business owners could tap into a new market share, thanks to digital payment gateways.

     

    Persons with disabilities, especially those with vision impairment, also saw a huge opportunity of inclusion and integration into the mainstream of things. With innovation in technology, acquiring a decently priced smartphone is no longer difficult or out of bounds. Increased internet penetration and the special push of the government to go digital, has opened up services to millions of blind citizens.

     

    A visually impaired student can access books, browse for information, appear for examination and more, all through the power of smartphone, computer and internet. A blind woman can apply for a job and work efficiently through a digital system built by the employer for all staff.

     

    Similar avenues have opened up for persons with other types of disabilities. Covid-19 is a case in point, where people transitioned to a largely digital existence because of social distancing. The corporate world experienced a mindset shift pertaining to remote work. The 2022 National Employment & Disability Survey which compares workplaces in 2017 and 2022, reveals significant gains in recruiting, hiring, accommodating and retaining employees with disabilities.

     

    Reports cite that around 40% of the world’s real-time payment transactions took place through UPI in the last one year. Reviewing these statistics, one tends to share PM’s optimism when he pitches for a digital transformation into the life of every human being in the next ten years.

     

    Sounds like all is hunky-dory, right? In principle, yes. Because the idea has immense potential. But there are quite a lot of rough patches that we need to smoothen before we pronounce utopia. We must improve our implementation tally before we can score a 100 on the Digital India dream.

     

    Certain basic services like shopping, banking, ordering food, booking flights or hotels, have all gone digital in the past few years. Three clicks and you are done. Similarly, content consumption has increasingly moved to digital media, whether it is entertainment on OTT platforms or news gathering via internet powered devices.

     

    If an average blind or visually impaired person is digitally literate and empowered by a smartphone or a laptop enabled by a screen reading software, what stops him or her from accessing information and engaging with the new digital world?

     

    It’s a one-word answer. Compliance.

     

    There is innovation in technology. There is a mandate to make products and services digitally accessible to all. But who will enforce these rules? Who will hold service providers accountable when they falter? Before you say judiciary, there are fairly detailed legal procedures listed out as well. But the real question is, are we aware of who accesses these numerous services and how?

     

    If I were to take the example of news websites, you’d be surprised how many of these mainstream publications are inaccessible because they don’t comply to the Web Accessibility Guidelines. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has put together a set of recommendations for making Web content accessible, primarily to persons with disabilities. The latest version is called Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, which prescribe the norms in fine detail.

     

    Things like having clearly labeled headlines and buttons, using a CAPTCHA along with a text and audio substitute for deafblind users, et cetera, are all listed and explained in the internationally standardized document. WCAG 2.0 consist of 12 guidelines organised under four principles, websites must be perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust for all users. The latest version of these guidelines also accommodates feedback from accessibility experts and members from the disabled community.

     

    Recently, a Research Fellow at the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy shared with me interesting findings pertaining to the digital accessibility of popular news websites. The author used accessibility measures like dark contrast, large fonts, as well as screen readers to ascertain compliance levels. The barriers in access are categorized as critical, serious, moderate and minor. Some of the websites that report serious accessibility oversights include, The Hindu, Economic Times, Aaj Tak, The Print, The Wire, Hindustan Times and so on.

     

    Under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016, service providers have a legal obligation to make platforms accessible and the deadline to do that was June 2019. Are these news publications purposefully flouting the rules? Or are they unaware of a sizeable user base who are outside the purview of normal and therefore not considered part of the target audience?

     

    Access to information is empowering in the growing digital economy. How can we deprive fifteen per cent of the world’s disabled population from accessing relevant and valuable information, that can transform their lives?

     

    So why are we publishing this column on an A&M site? Well, we strongly feel that the media can dramatically transform the world of persons with disabilities. And this series can help bring forth issues that the media must champion to create a truly inclusive and accessible India. To write this column, we invited Shruti Pushkarna, a former journalist who now works as Director, EnAble India where she heads North India operations as well as media and communications outreach. Shruti writes for MxMIndia every other Thursday. Her views here are personal. To access the archives of all her 70-odd columns, please visit: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/ columns/shruti-pushkarna/

     

  • Sponsors are Google, TV9 Network, MiQ India Commercial and The Times of India

    Emvie Awards lined up for tomorrow (Mar 10)

    By Our Staff

     

    The Advertising Club is getting set for the 2022  edition of the Emvies with over 1469 entries received, which is the highest ever in the history of the event. The Emvies are scheduled to be held in Mumbai on March 10.

     

    Said Partha Sinha, President Times of India group and President of The Advertising Club: “I have always called Emvie ‘the Oscar of media award’ and over the years it has been doing justice to that reputation. The quality of work, the presentations, and the energy around the whole event are improving every year. It is a world-class platform today and is owned equally by the media, marketing, and advertising fraternities. It is a burning example of our overall theme of excellence.”

     

    Added Aditya Swamy, Chairperson, Emvie Committee: “This year we have a record number of entries and that is a reflection of the high quality of work our industry produces and it’s our privilege at the Ad Club to celebrate the best of the best at our favourite awards show – The Emvies.”

     

  • A simple question that requires a profound answer. Here's Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 10 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

    Das ka Dum with Dr Bhaskar Das | Three more weeks in the financial year. How has the year been for the A&M industry?

    Bhaskar DasA simple question that requires a profound answer. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 10 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. Three more weeks in the financial year. According to you, how has the year been for the A&M industry?

     

    A. I can’t give a uniform or homogeneous answer to a question which has both macro and micro elements. One can’t deny the repercussions of the micro environment – both global and local – on the operations of every organisation. The macro-economic factors stem from the geo-political tensions (like the Russia-Ukraine war and China’s bellicosity) affecting global power structure, the shadows of Covid-led health scare and supply chain issues, energy and food crises and the prospect of stagflation looming large for most of the economies.  At a micro level, the A&M industry is not outside the operating realities and as a derived business, it also gets impacted. Having said that, I have to de-average the impact by sector and by organisation. For example, an IT company (they can be the client of an agency) might still experience growth inspite of macro volatilities, but some other sectors like FMCG and automobiles, education might experience tepid or no growth. Simiilarly, the experience in relationships-driven Tier 2,Tier 3 agencies are quite different from the metro players.

     

    The impact is felt in some form or the other by all media formats of delivery. For instance, digital including gaming and fintech apps like PhonePe or Gpay have experienced significant growth compared to the legacy media. Given this background, my observation is that the 2022-23 financial year has seen mixed fortune for most companies albeit at different degrees of tepidness. Even those who have grown, aim for a higher percentage of growth, while others who are trying to get out of a negative growth must have been happy so long as they are neutral in their P&L statements.

     

    In media and entertainment, when client needs (read marketing budgets) get rationalised or fragmented and dominated by performance-based marketing, the two players – viz the media company and the agencies – catch cold, as they say. With the atomisation of options in an omnichannel media amplification, the investments get fragmented and accordingly the practitioners feel that the market has been challenging to maintain a steady momentum of growth.

     

    Hence there is no generic answer to how the financial year has been for the A&M industry. The consensus is, with my market grapevine, that the players wish that the business enviovnment could’ve been more conducive. But as they say, even this will pass and I hope that 2023-24 is not a repeat telecast of the last financial year, subject to Russia and China agreeing to a more peaceful world. Everything else will improve if that one variable could change.

     

     

  • The new identity promises renewed commitment to trust and innovation in cloud-based banking solutions, notes the software firm

    Novopay rebrands as Trustt

    By Our Staff

     

    Novopay Banking, the banking software arm of Novopay Solutions, has announced a new name Trustt. This change, notes a communique, reflects the company’s focus, evolution, and growth over the years and represents a renewed commitment to delivering cloud-based SaaS digital banking solutions to its customers.

     

    Said Srikanth Nadhamuni – Executive Chairman, Trustt:  “We are at the cusp of a transformation journey in financial services through 100% digital journeys be it origination, processing, or servicing various financial products. Our digital lending solutions are being deployed rapidly in our SaaS offering on the cloud. We believe that “Trustt” better represents who we are and what we stand for, and we are excited to share this new chapter with our clients and partners.”

     

    Added Trustt CEO, Gautam Bandyopadhyay:” Over the years, we have continued to innovate and expand our offerings, developing a range of digital banking solutions for banks and financial institutions. Our platform has evolved to include a Digital Lending Platform, Digital Distribution Platform, and Digital Identity Platform, and we have established partnerships with a number of banks and financial institutions. We are excited to build on that foundation with Trustt. We look forward to continuing to serve our customers and partners and to building new relationships with our new identity. Trustt underscores that our Customers can trust us with the Technology that they can Bank on.”

     

  • To be its brand ambassador

    Hardik bats for LenDenClub

    By Our Staff

     

    Peer-to-Peer (P2P) lending platform LenDenClub announced that it has collaborated with star cricketer Hardik Pandya as its brand ambassador.

     

    Speaking on the association, Bhavin Patel, Co-founder & CEO, LenDenClub said: ‘As a company, we have constantly been evolving to provide the best returns to our customers that transcend from understanding the customer sentiments to creating developments that encourage investing in P2P lending. We wanted to team up with someone who can resonate with LenDenClub as a brand. Having an all-rounder like Hardik on board will help us enhance our vision of ‘maximum returns and mitigate risk’ since he is not just an international sports icon, but also an inspiration to many who delivered on occasion when required.”

     

  • He joins Dentsu from KPMG where he is a Senior Partner, responsible for overseeing both Clients & Markets and Consumer Markets, Life Sciences & Internet Business

    Dentsu finally gets a CEO from outside. Harsha Razdan is CEO, South Asia

    By Our Staff

     

    If you remember, Dentsu, the advertising and marketing services network, had a series of exits. Topping it all was the exit of big boss Ashish Bhasin. And then started a massive hunt for a CEO. Almost every biggie in the business was met with.

     

    When they couldn’t find anyone, they called in old warhorse Sunil Lulla to stand in.  Lulla had just moved out of BARC and was busy growing his own consulting gigs. But that was till December.

     

    And yesterday (Thursday), Dentsu Asia Pacific announced the appointment of Harsha Razdan as CEO, South Asia. This is effective May 1, 2023. So we will see him at Goafest 2023.

     

    Said Rob Gilby, CEO APAC, Dentsu: “India has been through the most profound and impressive digital transformation and the future of the digital economy is bright; with new opportunities being generated by the advent of 5G, proliferation of affordable devices, and the development of a new economy accessible to all,” adding: “Harsha is an exceptional leader with a deep strategic understanding of the competitive landscape. His background in brand building, overlayed with deep knowledge of tech-driven transformation brings formidable cross-capability expertise and will drive growth opportunities in creating a new value ecosystem for clients with consumers at the centre.”

     

    Added Razdan on his appointment: “It is a very exciting time to be leading an agency network in India, especially with the significant progress we are seeing in the digital development of our market and what that means for brands. India is leap-frogging other markets in its adoption and development of new technologies, and it’s critical that agencies are capitalising on new opportunities for brands to speak to new consumers. I can’t wait to get started.”

     

    Razdan has worked with PepsiCo and Unilever, and consulting practices including Accenture where he spent four years in the UK. He joins Dentsu from KPMG where he is a Senior Partner, responsible for overseeing both Clients & Markets and Consumer Markets, Life Sciences & Internet Business. He also sits on the Advisory Leadership team as well as the Global Consumer & Retail leadership team.  He will be based in Mumbai reporting to Rob Gilby, CEO APAC, dentsu.