MxMIndia

Category: ADVERTISING

  • Both businesses will be part of WPP’s media investment management company GroupM, but remain independent of its media-buying operations

    GroupM makes ESP standalone agency brand, Mumbai to be ESP Properties hub

    By A Correspondent

     

    Media agency major GroupM has announced the expanding of its sports and entertainment offering under a new global agency brand, ESP.

     

    ESP will be made up of two separate businesses: ESP Properties and ESP Brands. Both businesses will be part of WPP’s media investment management company GroupM, but remain independent of its media-buying operations.

     

    According to a communiqué, ESP Properties will be GroupM’s first company dedicated to serving rightsholders from the worlds of sports and entertainment, including federations, leagues, events, teams, publishers and venues. “It will offer a thorough assessment of their commercial programs, and advise how to grow the revenue they generate through a full range of services across data, digital and content development. It will also offer global partnership sales on behalf of rightsholders, both to existing WPP brand clients and beyond.”

     

    ESP Properties will be formed through new hires, the integration of existing GroupM business units including leading sponsorship agency IEG, and the acquisition of data-driven sports marketing agency Two Circles. It will collaborate with specialists from the WPP network to deliver a full range of marketing services. It will also work with GroupM Entertainment on new programming concepts and, where mutually beneficial, provide direct finance for new projects.

     

    ESP Properties will launch with over 150 staff in hubs across New York, Chicago, London, Singapore and Mumbai, plus additional teams in Los Angeles, Sao Paulo and Dubai amongst others. It launches with a roster of globally recognised clients including the All Blacks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Valencia CF, England and Wales Cricket Board, Pele, and City Football Group.

     

    Said Sir Martin Sorrell, CEO of WPP, in a statement: “There is significant and growing demand on the part of clients to invest more in content and sports but few in our industry have had a serious response to this. Our new ESP Properties will bring creative power and commercial insight to rightsholders for the first time, providing unmatched opportunities to better tailor their offerings to the needs of today’s brand sponsors. ESP will also work hand in hand with our recent investment in Bruin Sports to provide our clients with access to many high-value media and sponsorship opportunities.”

     

    GroupM is also expanding its support for brands to plan, negotiate and activate sports and entertainment partnerships by growing the specialist teams in its individual media agencies. These specialist teams will be underpinned in key regions by the second business within ESP, ESP Brands. ESP Brands will be an evolution of the former partnerships consultancy GroupM ESP.

     

    Dominic Proctor, Chairman of ESP and President of GroupM Global, added: “The global launch of ESP Properties brings leading commercial and creative capabilities to some of the world’s most celebrated names across sports and entertainment. Sport is a driving force in media and we want to serve the market better by assisting rightsholders in optimizing their properties and creating more winning partnerships with leading brands. At the same time we will ensure we work more efficiently on behalf of brands by providing even more resources for the specialist sports and entertainment practices that are embedded in our GroupM agencies, underpinned by a central team in key regions, ESP Brands.”

     

    The new ESP Properties will be led by John Kristick, Global CEO of GroupM ESP since 2011. Kristick is a senior sports marketing executive with nearly two decades of international experience, including being appointed Managing Director for the USA Bid Committee to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and previously working for more than ten years in Europe serving as an Executive Director for Infront Sports & Media from its inception. The business will be led regionally by Jonathan Hill (EMEA), Laren Ukman (North America) and JinWei Toh (APAC). ESP Brands will be managed regionally in North America by Bryce Townsend and through the individual GroupM agencies in other regions.

     

    John Kristick, CEO of ESP Properties, said:  “ESP Properties’ offering is truly unique in meeting the changing needs of the world’s leading federations, events, leagues, teams and other rightsholders. We have brought together a range of experts from across GroupM, such as IEG with over three decades of experience in sponsorship consulting, and our new partners Two Circles who have been leading the way in data-driven sports marketing. By combining this strategic expertise with unmatched understanding of how to navigate potential brand partnerships, we can uncover new revenue opportunities for rightsholders worldwide.”

     

    The launch is part of WPP’s commitment to content, demonstrated by its investments in MediaPro, VICE, Indigenous Media, FullScreen, MRC, and, most recently, Bruin Sports Capital.

     

    Said George Pyne, founder of Bruin Sports Capital:  “ESP Properties provides rightsholders around the world with a very powerful combination of strategic services and sales expertise. The ability to access the group’s unmatched global resources and corporate client base will be very helpful as we create value for the relevant businesses Bruin operates. We also anticipate collaborating with ESP Properties to jointly deploy capital and create new businesses as opportunities arise.”

     

  • Up, close with Rajesh Kejriwal, Founder & CEO, Kyoorius on the inaugural edition of Melt, what he hopes to achieve and his style of doing things

    Ready, Steady, Melt!

     

    Last year, Rajesh Kejriwal, Founder and CEO of Kyoorius, created waves with the slickly produced and D&AD-backed Kyoorius Advertising and Digital Awards. This year, he has extended the offering to a two-day festival called Melt to be held in Mumbai on May 21 and 22. Not unexpectedly, comparisons are being made with Goafest, the three-day event organised by the Advertising Agencies Association of India and the Advertising Club. In a freewheeling interview with Pradyuman Maheshwari, Kejriwal takes pains to explain that there is no rivalry between the two. In fact, as he says, he created his events out of a desire to stimulate and encourage youngsters in the profession. Read on…

     

    A day to go for the inaugural Melt… your thoughts? All set?

    As set as one can be a day or two before the event. There always will be challenges but there are no hurdles or any real surprises, and that is a good thing.

     

    Are you satisfied with the way things are going? The speakers, the arrangements, the registrations?

    Very satisfied with the speaker list and topics being covered, satisfied with the arrangements, just about satisfied with the registrations in the inaugural event.

     

    You appear determined to take on the folks at the AAAI and Ad Club. Last year, you organised the Kyoorius Awards and this year, there’s Melt.

    There are two ways to look at this. First, I think the media is actually pitching us as competitors much more than we ourselves are doing. I don’t think there is any direct competition between the Goafest, Abby or Kyoorius, whether it’s Melt or the awards. I don’t even think the industry says it’s either this or that, except may be to those who have a slight budget constraint.

     

    Everybody has a budget constraint.

    But I’m painting a larger picture here. I don’t think it should be either/or. Goafest does what it needs to do, and we’re doing what we need to do. We’re exploring gaps that exist in the industry, especially for young people.  I’m not saying an advertising award itself was a gap that we’re filling; it was simply a space that allowed us to do something to stimulate the industry, and we did it. It wasn’t to say, ‘hey Goafest is doing badly so let’s do something’. I don’t think Goafest is doing badly. They need to tweak some things and it can come back on track. Like any other country with multiple festivals and award shows, India too can have that. What clearly needs to be defined is, can we make sure that these two festivals are positioned differently? As I mentioned last year, we are more of a critics’ event, while they are more popular. They have a gold-silver-bronze structure, while we have a certain standard that we maintain, and all the best works win. So there might be nine winners in a category, or none at all; it doesn’t matter. There’s a difference in how they view things and how we do, and that difference works for the industry too.

     

    Secondly, if you look at Melt, I don’t think this model exists anywhere in the world except perhaps with something similar at Cannes Lions. Cannes is obviously much bigger, more popular and with much more of everything. Melt, I would say, is a unique convergence of five segments — marketing, media, advertising, digital and emerging technologies. Other conferences have more straightforward sessions. People [in our industry] have a lot of questions but there are no ready answers. Nor are the possible answers all black-and-white, but more in shades of grey. Melt offers everybody an opportunity to look at these shades of grey critically.

     

    Let’s talk about the difference in the awards. First, you mentioned that one is a Critics’ Award, while the other is a Mass Awards event. But the entrants for both these awards are almost the same – it’s the same agencies

    I agree.

     

    Hence the thing of competition, because you’ll are catering to the same set of entrants…

    At the end of the day, I also compete with Cannes; with D&AD globally; with One Show, Clio, Adfest, all of them, because all the money an agency can provide, comes out of only one budget, right? As for Goafest and us, I agree that the universe is the same. The difference is, for instance, between having international and Indian jury members. We have an open jury system. We have an awards night which brings creativity and production qualities into the awards night itself. So there are a lot of differentiating ways in which we do things and those are what we think can stimulate the industry. There must be something beyond winning which motivates an agency.

     

    But you’ve still not been able to convince Lowe to participate.

    Last year was the first year. So if in our first year we’ve been able to convince and get 1,000 entries, I think that’s a great first year. Maybe Lowe will come in this year, or maybe they’ll come next year.

     

    You had Arun Iyer on the jury

    Yes, Arun was on the jury, but that has got nothing to do with the fact that we want him to participate.

     

    Maska?

    No maska.

     

    Give us more on Melt? Was the idea to first organise an awards event last year, impress the world, and give people something to talk about?

    I don’t think Kyoorius, at any point in time, does anything to impress the world. I think the larger goal is to impress the people from a content curation perspective, not grandeur perspective. I think what really kicked off this whole aspect of Melt was an internal discussion. We were talking to a few people, and a few of them said, ‘Next time make it bigger and better’. So my first question to them was, if you’re asking us to make it better, can you please tell me what was wrong with last year? Better usually means there was something wrong, otherwise why make it better? And when people say make it bigger, does that mean I look for an 80,000 square-foot space instead of 60,000, or do I use a larger LED screen? I think for me the more meaningful words were, can we make it more relevant to the industry?  Can we help fill a gap, especially for youngsters in the industry that can help them in their professional life? And can we bring the industry together in some way that celebrates creativity? So Melt, for us, is a festival of creativity.

     

    Are you saying that all this doesn’t exist in Goafest, hence, the gap?

    I’m not saying there’s a gap. I don’t think it exists in Goafest to the extent that we are doing it. Also Goafest happens in Goa, this is in Mumbai, and so more inclusive. I think Goafest also does not have the unique convergence of the five segments that I’m talking about, with something happening for all of these five people at the same time in parallel sessions. So we have workshops, debate sessions, discussions, conferences, installations, interactive Q&A sessions and such. We probably will have a showcase area and are looking at having what we call on-the-flow. People in the audience could think of a subject, go to a room and inform that they’re going to have this discussion in the hall, and invite anyone interested, to join them.

     

    What I’m trying to say is this unique convergence of marketing, media, advertising, digital and emerging technologies — nothing like this is happening in India.

     

    Do you think somewhere associating yourself with media houses could mean that other media companies may not embrace your event. Because once you are associated with a big player, the others just ignore you. For instance, when a Filmfare Awards happens, a Screen does not report about it, and vice versa.

    Which is sad.

     

    Which is sad, but don’t you think that will alienate the others from Melt?

    If you’re looking at it from a sponsor’s perspective, may be yes. But as a rule, Kyoorius does not take on sponsors from the same industry any way. We are very clear that if we take a sponsor from one industry, we normally and we’ve been able to maintain that so far, we do not take on another sponsor from the same industry. It makes no sense.

     

    So you’re not worried about The Times of India group not doing anything about Kyoorius?

    Editorially, the event is open to everyone. It’s not restricted to anybody. So if HT is my partner, editorially they have no exclusivity. None of them have exclusivity, editorially, nor do any of them have any preference, editorially.

     

    But since Zee is the principal partner and it has its name prefixed to Melt, do you think you’ll have a situation where Star will not participate as wholeheartedly, may not send a busload of people for it as it would have otherwise done, if it was neutral.

    I don’t think Star is narrow-minded. Zee also sponsors our Designyatra, Zee is our principal sponsor and we get our largest delegation from Star.

     

    Yeah, but Designyatra is different. Melt concerns the advertising agencies which is the big bad world, which is where all the negatives exist.

    So Melt is not specific to advertising. Melt is at the intersection of marketing, advertising, media, digital…

     

    Changing tracks, how do things work. For instance, is Zee Mindspace being organised by Zee or are you doing it for them?

    We, together with the Zee team, are helping in curation of what Zee is doing, which is the Mindspace conference. So Mindspace is happening at Melt, but it is Zee’s property. We are helping in the curation of speakers.

     

    In case of a dispute, who takes the final call?

    We argue it out  and a decision is taken. But we are very clear that Melt cannot be a platform where the content is not right for the audience. In terms of content for that audience, we take the final call.

     

    So, what if a partner decides to get a certain speaker or a certain panel and you say sorry, that doesn’t work…

    No, it doesn’t work that way. We’ve had one partner who said no, I’m willing to come on board and I want this hall blocked for half a day to conduct a session. We didn’t feel it was right for the audience since it was more of a sales speech for their own business. So we didn’t accept it.

     

    Was this partner paying you?

    Yes.

     

    And you didn’t take it?

    We didn’t take it.

     

    I thought you were a smart Marwari businessman?

    I am, but I have to look at it long-term, because if people are not happy about something, I will have a problem next year. I’d rather have a problem this year than have one next year.

     

    I’ve also heard stories where you’ve had partners or sponsors wanting a speaker slot and you said no. You told another partner that its logo wasn’t creative enough and such. How do you manage to get away with all of this?

    I don’t think it’s a matter of getting away with it. It’s a matter of convincing the other person that what we’re trying to tell you, is good for you. Designyatra is a design conference, Melt is a creative conference. You cannot tamper with the overall look-and-feel visually. It’s a creative conference and if you mess up your own creative output, you’ll become a big joke.

     

    But creativity is subjective right? What seems creative to you could appear tacky to somebody else. How do you manage to convince others about that?

    The convincing point has to do with how I can make sure you get the value that you want to out of this event. Am I making sure you’re seen at all the right places? I can make your logo smaller or bigger and make sure that people engage with your brand in different ways.

     

    Sirji, last year at the Kyoorius Awards, even though Colors was the sponsor, it did not even get any standees…

    Oh, come on! There were standees outside.

     

    Shouldn’t they have been inside the hall?

    There were screens inside with the branding. The standees mess up the décor.

     

    But aren’t all these things a given in sponsorship deals?

    And how much does this spoil the décor of the place? You go to an event, you’ll see some 10 standees on one side in small hall and 10 standees on another side. These are creative awards and you can’t not be creative about your own place. You mess it up because you have 10 sponsors, five from the same industry, all wanting their standees.

     

    And we don’t allow them to bring their own standees, we ask them to send the art work, we print the standees. We make sure that all standees are of uniform size and placed in a way that catches the eyes of everybody who walks in, but not by making it like 40 standees. Even four standees can do the same job, you just have to be creative about it.

     

    It appears you’ve managed to convince people about it.

    Yeah.

     

    By the end of the day, repeat sponsors is an indicator of the fact that they are getting their RoI.

    We’ve always had repeat sponsors. I haven’t seen any time any of my sponsors walk away with a minimum of two years, but mostly all have been there for three years.

     

    Back to Melt, if I were to attend it on May 21 and 22, what would be my takeaways?

    First, irrespective of whether you’re from a creative or planning background, there is something or the other happening that you can attend. At Melt, we have four pillars — learning, showcase, celebration and networking. We are curating things around these four pillars so that you are able to have exposure to all of these four pillars during your time at Melt. You should feel, at the end of either the first or the second day that the event was worth your while.

     

    Will Melt move to other cities or will it stay in Mumbai?

    One of the reasons we didn’t call it Mumbai Fest or something is that we don’t want to tie it down to any one city. For instance, it could go to Delhi next year,. I think for us, the two good locations are Mumbai and Delhi. There’s a huge gap in the way events happen in Delhi. There’s nothing happening in Delhi largely, so we are looking at either taking Melt to Delhi next year, or alternatively, doing another version of Melt in Delhi after six months. It may not be as large as what we are doing here, but will be similar.

     

    There is much anticipation and expectations from Melt. Is that a good position to be in or are you worried about meeting all the expectations?

    I think it’s a position that one always should be in and that becomes the driver to ensure that you meet as much as possible the expectations of the audience. One cannot satisfy 100% of the people 100% of the time but if the majority of the audience come back saying that they benefitted from being at Melt, we would have achieved our expectations. And for the reminder – thats feedback and we learn more from this and be better the next time around.

     

    Does the absence of some key agencies or decision of some adpersons to stay away upset you?

    In the larger scheme of things: not really. The industry is not defined by agencies – rather by the talent. This is our focus. However looking at how the future globally is going to be built on co-creation, co-existence, collaboration, etc – then yes to certain extent – our objective is to be inclusive and we’re sure to work with them and have them with us in the near future. The fundamental question one should ask always with programmes and initiatives like this is: Is it Good for the Industry? And I’m sure the answer is a resounding yes.

     

    A word to those who are undecided and can still register on what they can expect?

    There is a fear in the minds of the people in the marketing communication industry today – am I still relevant? The marketing communication industry is changing furiously and those who do not keep in touch with the changing landscape will face issues where the application of their particular skills can become redundant. Melt helps answers the big question to all stakeholders. Given this, I would say that it’s essential to be in touch with what is relevant today and that means – Be At Melt!

     

    A much shorter version of this appeared in dna of brands on April 27. This interview has been updated with a fresh set of questions asked yesterday (May 19)

     

     

     

  • … and get worked up, says CVL Srinivas, CEO,GroupM South Asia, who has been actively with both events.

    Don’t compare Goafest & Melt..

     

    Media agency heads have always played a key role in India’s growing media services industry. GroupM, the holding arm of a clutch of agencies owned by WPP, has been on the forefront over the years, with CVL Srinivas, CEO – South Asia, now doing that in a quiet, definitive way. So while we were not surprised when Mr Srinivas was actively associated with Goafest, we wondered whether all was well in the AAAI when we first heard that he had virtually turned co-organiser of Melt, a two-day festival of creativity being organised by Kyoorius on May 21 and 22. Here, in an interview with Pradyuman Maheshwari, Mr Srinivas talks about why GroupM supports multiple trade events and the ‘tu tu, main main’ between the supporters of Goafest and Kyoorius…

     

    You answered this question when Melt was being announced, but given that it is happening now, one would like to hear it from you again: How is it that GroupM and you personally are as actively involved with Goafest and the Abby as you are with Kyoorius Melt?

     

    At GroupM, we try to support as many initiatives as our bandwidth permits. Apart from Goafest over the years, and Melt2015, we have been supporting a host of events, be it MMA, Social Media Week or supporting organisations such as IAA. We believe in doing our bit to shape the market and help the industry evolve. One of our biggest challenges as an industry is to attract talent. We see all these events as having a role to play in keeping our industry exciting and attractive for young talent. For us, it has never been a case of either/or (with regard to the events). Having said that, I must confess that if at all we do not support any particular event, it will be more because of time and bandwidth constraints than anything else.

     

    When we first heard that GroupM was actively associated with Melt, our response was one of disbelief. Did this [Kyoorius] in any way impact your association with that [Goafest]?

     

    We have supported Goafest over the years and even this year, be it with speakers, designing the event, or with sponsorships. We continue to send the maximum number of award entries and among the highest number of delegates. When Melt came to us as an opportunity, we found the format interesting. Coincidentally, it came at a time we ourselves were driving a few programmes internally and externally around creativity in technology and media. We felt this would be a great platform for us to energise our teams and learn from the experts who will be taking part.

     

    I know it’s early for you to make a forecast, but what’s your sense on how Melt will turn out?

     

    We have a great line up of speakers and good buzz around the event. Considering it’s the first such event being held in Mumbai, I am sure it will pick up momentum as we go along.

     

    You were at the Kyoorius Awards last year giving away some of the awards, and you were also present at the Goafest Abbys both last year and this year. What, according to you, would be the key differentiators?

     

    Each awards event has its own flavour. There isn’t any need to compare the two and get worked up. Goafest is clearly an industry event, since industry bodies are behind it. Kyoorius awards is run independently. Just to clarify, GroupM has no role in the awards; we are only partnering on Melt.

     

    A slew of media agencies seem to have no problem with any of the awards shows, or even with each other. Why do you think creative agencies have problems with participating in awards shows?

     

    I am not very sure!!

     

    Even agencies from the WPP group have stayed away.

    Well, GroupM hasn’t.

     

    We may not hear it said out loud, but there is a clear ‘tu tu main main’ between Goafest and Melt/Kyoorius Awards. What would you say to the naysayers from either camp?

     

    It’s better to live and let live and not criticise either of them.

     

    And to all those in the industry who may not have made up their minds yet: Since you are one of the co-organisers, why should they register and attend Melt?

     

    It’s an event that combines advertising, media, digital, marketing and technology. In the real world, each of these areas is merging into the other. Melt is bringing alive this phenomenon in a very interesting way.

     

    A version of this first appeared in dna of brands dated May 18, 2015

     

  • GroupM is a knowledge partner at Zee Melt 2015

    Kyoorius announces partner events at Melt 2015

    By A Correspondent

     

    As MELT 2015 approaches, the two-day festival is shaping up with a packed schedule of events including conferences, seminars, workshops, showcases, exhibitions and installations catering to a variety of audiences and disciplines.

     

    Rajesh Kejriwal

    Rajesh Kejriwal, Founder CEO, Kyoorius said, “With MELT 2015, we’re pioneering an exciting new model where our partners co-curate content with us. Together, we have created opportunities to learn and interact in myriad ways, always keeping our partners’ brand goals and vision in mind. MELT 2015 is a chance for them to showcase what they do best.”

     

    The HT Osmosis Conference on 21st May offers insights into advertising as it exists today and a glimpse into what it could be in the future. Speakers include Chris Sanderson (Future Laboratory), Daniele Fiandaca (Creative Social), Bo Hellberg (Brave and HeyHuman) and Hugh Macleod (Gaping Void).

     

    GroupM is a knowledge partner at Zee Melt 2015. Besides powering the event with international speakers, workshops and seminars, GroupM agencies are also showcasing new technology in advertising at ‘FutureReady’ in the Hall of Knowledge. Participants of MELT can expect to see the Loop Room by Mindshare, Moribus- the Behavioral Economics Lab by Maxus, great global work by Mediacom and MECFresh by MEC Global.

     

    Industry stalwarts will battle out the question of whether mobile has taken over TV as the default screen for viewers, at the IAA Debate on 21st May.

     

    Kinetic Future Citizens on 21st May, is a series of seminars that looks at how brands can connect, entertain and understand consumers of the future.

     

    ZEE MindSpace on 22nd May, promises to be a stimulating and eye-opening conference for industry leaders to discuss, debate and reflect on issues and challenges facing the industry. Speakers include Sir Martin Sorrell (WPP), Tom Goodwin (Havas Media), Adam Ostrow (Mashable) and Joshua Black (GroupM).

     

    YouTube takes over the Hall of Vision at Nehru Centre with a series of presentations hosted by YouTube India’s Satya Raghavan along with a select group of YouTube Creators will go in-depth into developing a successful YouTube strategy for brands and creators. Delegates can sign up for a one-on-one consultation with a YouTube expert on how to develop compelling online content.

     

    Metalworks by Maxus helps brands explore the next frontier with creative technology in a series of talks and workshops on both days, designed to help companies generate and execute those really ‘out-there’ ideas.

     

    Madhouse India presents a Madhouse Mobile Masterclass with renowned mobile marketing consultant Tomi Ahonen. This invite-only workshop for brand managers explores mobile-first branding.

     

    Experienced D&AD Trainers Bo Hellberg of Brave and HeyHuman, and Alex Lampe of A+B Studio will conduct hands-on workshops on branding and idea generation.

     

    Hyper Island Master Class Speaker Daniele Fiandaca will lead two workshops discussing the most disruptive trends in digital and the challenges that the changing nature of work holds for modern creatives.

     

    iStock  & Happy Finish have collaborated to create bespoke workshops at MELT 2015. Delegates can learn how to bring a powerful campaign to life with the right imaging tools.

     

    The Other Bookstore will display its extensive collection of design and advertising books and publications.

     

    Augmented reality is one of the hottest technology trends at the moment. Happy Finish’s Global Chairman Stuart Waplington will take delegates behind the lens to create stunning 360-degree visual experiences on screen. A host of augmented and virtual reality tools will also be on display at Nehru Centre during the festival.

     

  • MELT 2015 is a 2-day festival of creativity for the advertising, marketing, media, digital and emerging technologies, developed by Kyoorius in partnership with Zee, GroupM and D&AD

    Kyoorius announces speaker lineup for MELT:2015

    By A Correspondent

     

    Kyoorius has announced the launch of readytomelt.com, a dedicated website for its upcoming festival, MELT: 2015. The site boasts a full lineup of speakers from all over the world, spanning a variety of events throughout the two days.

     

    MELT 2015 is a 2-day festival of creativity for the advertising, marketing, media, digital and emerging technologies, developed by Kyoorius in partnership with Zee, GroupM and D&AD. Each day offers a variety of formats, including conferences, installations, seminars and workshops, which will take place simultaneously at Nehru Centre and DOME @ NSCI, SVP Stadium in Mumbai.

     

    Day 1 of MELT:2015, will feature HT Osmosis, a creative conference curated for advertising and creative professionals. Speakers include Chris Sanderson – Founder, The Future Laboratory, Dylan Berg – Lead Creative, 72andSunny, Huib van Bockel – Founder, The Social Brand and Daniele Fiandaca – Creative Social.

     

    Zee Mindspace, a day-long conference on 22nd May, has been developed specifically for marketing and media professionals. Speakers include Tom Goodwin – Head of Strategy & Innovation, Havas Media, Adam Ostrow, Chief Strategy Officer, Mashable, Sir Martin Sorrell – CEO, WPP, and Parminder Singh – Managing Director, Twitter SE Asia/India/MENA.

     

    A series of workshops and seminars will be conducted across the two days on topics such as mobile marketing, digital strategy, brand experiences, branded content, prototyping ideas, sonic branding, youth marketing, and photography, by the likes of D&AD, The Partners, FITCH, Getty Images, Mindshare, Metalworks, Kinetic, Happy Finish, and more.

     

    FUTURE Tense is another series of seminars focusing on emerging trends and innovations in technology, media and digital. Topics to be explored will include wearable technology, digital storytelling, augmented reality, big data and social media.

     

    Rajesh Kejriwal

    Rajesh Kejriwal, Founder CEO of Kyoorius, said, “MELT has been conceptualized to help advertising, media, digital and marketing professionals learn – through lectures, discussions, case studies and workshops – how to marry their inherent skills and talent with emerging technologies.

     

    Tickets have been priced at INR 5,000 for one day and INR 8000 for both days. Online registrations will be open from Friday, May 8, 2015.

     

  • Zee, GroupM & D&AD to partner the two-day event which will culminate in Kyoorius Ad & Digital Awards which has Colors as presenting sponsor

    Kyoorius launches Melt, 2-day ad, media & marketing festival

    By A Correspondent

     

    Transmedia Fine Papers-promoted Kyoorius has launched Melt 2015, a festival of creativity for the advertising, media, digital and marketing industry in partnership with Zee Entertainment, media services conglomerate GroupM and London-based creativity body D&AD.

     

    The festival will take place on May 21 and 22 in Mumbai at the National Sports Club of India (NSCI) and neighbouring Nehru Centre, culminating in the Kyoorius Advertising and Digital Awards night on May 22 at the NSCI. “We expect over 5000 people over the two days which will be packed with seminars, exhibitions and workshops,” said Rajesh Kejriwal, Founder and CEO of Kyoorius who has curated the event, adding that the intent is to build the event around four pillars: Learning, Networking, Showcase and Celebration. “Our objective is to see everyone carry a key takeaway from each of these buckets,” said Kejriwal. The Kyoorius Awards will continue to have Colors as the presenting sponsor.

     

    Punit Goenka

    Said Punit Goenka, MD & CEO of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL): “Zee is proud to partner with Kyoorius at Melt 2015, which promises to be India’s largest celebration of creativity. Zee Melt offers us a platform to curate and present thoughts and lessons that all of us in the business need to know.“ Zee is also hosting the third edition of its Mindspace series at Melt with leading marketing heads from global and Indian corporations in attendance. “We are also looking at crowdsourcing content ideas, where we will give people the opportunity to put forth their ideas which Zee will then evaluate,” Goenka said.

     

    Added Tim Lindsay, CEO of D&AD in a statement: “Engaging the wider marketing communications industry in a conversation about excellence – in insight, creativity and execution – can only have positive economic, cultural and social outcomes. This is at the heart of what D&AD and Kyoorius are about.” Like last year, the judging process of the event will continue to be powered by D&AD.

     

    CVL Srinivas

    Talking of GroupM’s association with the event, CVL Srinivas, CEO, GroupM South Asia said that while there is a lot of talk about digital media, technology and data, “ultimately, ours is an ‘ideas’ business. We continue to support many initiatives that act as a rich learning ground for the industry. We will be partnering with Kyoorius and Zee to help curate the event and organise some interesting sessions around creativity in the digital era.” GroupM in partnership with HT Media Group and Kyoorius will conduct a print advertising contest, where entries will be invited from not only the creative community in advertising, but from young professionals who have a great print idea to share on the given brief.

     

    While attempts are made to not compare Melt with Goafest officially, the three-day festival held in April in Goa by the Advertising Agencies Association of India and the Advertising Club, industry persons are looking forward to both events. Srinivas believes it’s incorrect to compare the two and said GroupM is actively associated with both events as also with many such initiatives. Said Goenka: “We are confident of what Melt is going to deliver for the industry, and that’s why Zee has chosen to partner it.” And Goafest? “We’ve been associated with it in the past, and will continue our association with it,” Goenka clarified.

     

    Elaborating on the way he has built the festival, Kejriwal said Melt has no sponsors. “We only have partners. So, Zee is a principal partner, GroupM and D&AD are strategic partners, then there are other partners who are bringing in content in some way or the other.” The IP of each of the events at the fest will be owned by the partners, he added.

     

    Partners include Zee, GroupM, D&AD, Hindustan Times, Happy Finish, afaqs, Pepperfry, Future Laboratory, Hyper Island, The Partners, BrandMusiq, One Eyeland, Maxus, Youtube, Google, BARC and many more in the pipeline. Details on Melt can be accessed at readytomelt.com.

     

  • Startup bug bites advertising industry as professionals walk out of their jobs to run their own business

    Is Bobby Pawar quitting Publicis to join Pratap Bose?

    By Pritha Mitra Dasgupta

     

    The startup bug has bitten the Indian advertising industry and Bobby Pawar, chief creative officer at Publicis Worldwide, is set to join a growing list of high-profile professionals walking out of their jobs to run their own business.

     

    Over the past six months, at least 10 senior advertising professionals have left, or are leaving, their top-dollar jobs to launch startups, hoping that the expected revival in the economy under a pro-reforms government and increasing importance of digital and social media will present huge opportunities for specialised and niche service providers. And their number is rising.

     

    Two top industry executives said Pawar will soon quit Publicis to become a creative and equity partner in a new agency being set up by former DDB Mudra COO Pratap Bose.

     

    Pawar and Mandeep Malhotra, who recently quit as president of DDB MudraMax, will be in the top management of Bose’s new venture, they said.

     

    “From business strategy to investors to the branding of the new company, Bobby Pawar is hands on with most of the aspects of the new company and Bose consults him on everything,” one of the executives said. Both Pawar and Bose denied it.

     

    “There is no truth to it. We are just very good friends,” said Bose. Pawar said, “I’m not joining Pratap Bose, therefore I won’t have any stake in his company and my profile in his company will be that of a well-wisher and occasional cheerleader (minus the skirts and pom-poms).” He also denied any plans to quit Publicis in the near future.

     

    Two industry veterans aware of Pawar’s plans said that even if he quits Publicis, he would have to honour a short-term non-compete clause in his contract. “He can formally join Bose once that ends,” one of them said.

     

    The trend of top talent breaking away to start their own venture started last year when O&M’s national creative director Abhijit Avasthi quit along with his colleague Sonali Sehgal to launch an independent agency.

     

    More recently, Kawal Shoor and Navin Talreja quit Ogilvy & Mather to launch an independent venture. Two senior advertising professionals said the surge in entrepreneurship has picked up after the Narendra Modi government came into power with a clear majority, promising growth and development.

     

    “The current economic environment is most conducive for startups,” one of the professionals said. “There is a lot of hope and optimism and that is what is driving the investor community.”

     

    Bose, who quit DDB Mudra last year, is floating his own agency. Several top officials in the know also said that Bose is acquiring some equity in Shoor and Talreja’s agency, and, in turn, he is offering them a stake in his company. Talreja and Bose denied it. “Absolutely not,” Talreja said when asked about the equity partnership with Bose.

     

    While Bose will launch his agency by June 15, Talreja and Shoor will launch theirs by end of June. An industry insider said Talreja and Shoor have already bagged the creative duties of Milton and that Cadbury has given them a project work. “Currently they are on a hiring spree. They have hired two senior creative people from Contract,” the person said.

     

    Talreja denied that too. “We’re still in the process of incorporating our company. So talks about clients are very premature. And specifically on Milton and Cadbury, the news is untrue,” he said.

     

    Top industry officials also said Bose has raised around Rs 40 crore from a group of private investors in Bengaluru.

     

    Bose confirmed that he has raised money but declined disclose the names of investors or the amount he raised. Last week, we wrote about Bose’s new venture, which is being positioned as a communications conglomerate. At least 45-50 of his former colleagues are speculated to have quit DDB Mudra to join his firm.

     

    Sandeep Goyal, who sold his 26% stake in Dentsu India in 2011 and stayed away from the advertising business for five years owing to a non-compete clause, is also set to return to advertising by the year-end. He has started meeting ad industry executives and some are likely to join with equity, industry insiders said.

     

    Bobby Pawar was in the news in 2013 when a series scam advertisements — or, ads created by agencies or individuals solely for the purpose of awards and not approved by clients — became highly controversial for its sexually offensive content.

     

    One of the ads showed Italy’s former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi driving a Ford Figo flashing victory sign as three scantily clad women lie tied up in the trunk. Pawar, who was then JWT India’s chief creative officer and managing partner, and Vijay Simha Vellanki, creative director at Blue Hive, a WPP unit dedicated to managing the Ford business, resigned following an uproar.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2015, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • I can feel the change within the agency; there is a change in the culture… I couldn’t be happier, says the LB APAC boss

    Leo Burnett India is a new place now, happier place to work in: APAC chief Jarek Ziebinski

    By Mukta Lad

     

    Just over a year has passed since Leo Burnett India roped in Saurabh Varma as its chief executive, and found a national creative director in Rajdeepak Das. But Jarek Ziebinski, the agency’s APAC chairman and CEO, says he is more than pleased with the direction, creative and strategic, the agency is moving forward in.

     

    “There was a lot of concern over our move last year,” admits Mr Ziebinski, alluding to the senior management changes. “But today, I can feel the change within the agency; there is a change in the culture and we are a much happier place to work for. In just 18 months, it’s like a new place without changing the name on the door or what we do for a living. I couldn’t be happier.”

     

    For now, Varma’s main focus is to help Leo Burnett evolve from an ‘advertising agency’ to an ‘integrated communications company’. While the network isn’t looking to buy out any new agencies after its acquisition of Indigo Consulting in 2012, plans to start a new shopper marketing division are in the offing. No details about the new venture were divulged, except that the outfit will see light of day only in about two-three months.

     

    With Cannes Lions around the corner, and Mr Ziebinski being on the ‘Creative Effectiveness’ jury, the agency has its eyes set on bringing home Lions. Mr Ziebinski is bullish about India’s chances at Cannes this year. “Our work for Amazon, Kindle, HDFC Life and KBC, to name a few, has gotten me very excited. It is refreshing to see that India’s movie-making culture has penetrated advertising across digital and TV, culminating in great storytelling and long-format ads,” he says.

     

    Leo Burnett does not participate in Indian awards shows, citing politics as one of the main pet peeves that keeps them from being a part of them. However, it will be taking a sizeable contingent to Cannes Lions this year, as it did the last.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2015, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • Spykar’s fashion range includes jeanswear, shirts, t-shirts and youth accessories like perfume and eyewear

    Spykar hands over creative duties to Scarecrow

    By A Correspondent

     

    Following a multi-agency pitch process, the Mumbai office of Scarecrow Communications has been awarded the creative duties for Spykar – the cult jeanswear brand of India.

     

    Spykar’s fashion range includes jeanswear, shirts, t-shirts and youth accessories like perfume and eyewear.

     

    Its products are available at over 900 MBOs across the country. Plus, Spykar Jeans currently has 206 Exclusive Brand Outlets all over India.

    Confirming this development, Sanjay Vakharia, COO, Spykar, said, “Spykar is a brand that is not just synonymous with jeanswear, but is also a voice that resonates with the youth, their dreams and aspirations. By breaking the confines and consistently expanding the horizon, the brand strives to evolve each day with the ever-evolving youth and their fashion needs. Keeping the pace with the fashion dynamics of today, the brand, at every point, epitomises global fashion and is considered as a beacon of effortless style. We partnered with Scarecrow because we found the same passion running in their bloodstreams as in ours. We found the team to be very cued in with the needs and aspirations of the youth of the country and were very sincere in their approach.”

    Manish Bhatt, Founder Director, Scarecrow, added, “Spykar is a truly cult brand among the Indian youth. It can be called the MTV of apparel or the Harley of fashion world. Spykar being a youth heartthrob, it is not only aspirational for a young agency like Scarecrow, but also aspirational for the relatively younger talent at Scarecrow, to work on. After meeting Sanjay and his able team who intuitively understand the pulse of the Indian youth, I am pretty sure that, together we will be able to take this only Indian youth brand to even greater heights and also make the brand stay ever-relevant to the youth.”

     

  • Mudra picks up lone Black Elephant for the Zydus Wellness campaign. Ogilvy gets 15 Blues. Contract next with 5 Blues

    DDB Mudra, Ogilvy win the Big Elephants @ Kyoorius

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    In the news for the right reasons, screamed the T-shirts worn by the large contingent from DDB Mudra as they ran up to collect the only Black Elephant for Zydus Wellness Ltd’s Nutralite The Black Elephant is the highest award presented by Kyoorius and is the equivalent of the Grand Prix at the Goafest Abby.

     

    Kyoorius, in association with D&AD, the London-based body of creative, design and advertising communities, held an awards event to announce the winners of the second edition of the Kyoorius Advertising & Digital Awards at Dome, at the NSCI stadium in Mumbai. Over 1,800 advertising and marketing professionals from across India and abroad attended the event held on Friday evening.

     

    WINNERSPEAK:
     

    Piyush Pandey

    Executive Chairman and Creative Director, Ogilvy India

    I am so happy that we won 15 awards because the young people at Ogilvy are taking the tradition forward and making us look good, making me look good, and the brand Ogilvy look better, and they are making their clients look better. It feels good. I didn’t see much of mainline work today and I would like to see more of it next year. There is a lot of work that we as industry practitioners appreciate, but I would like to see more work that consumers appreciated and was good enough for the jury to appreciate as well. I miss some of that work. I think the jury was fantastic. I know many people on the jury; it was a wonderful jury. But I think the Indian jury should be more balanced, to get the sensibilities a little better. They are much better than I’ve ever seen, but we could get even better in the future.

     

    Madhukar Kamath

    Group CEO and MD, DDB Mudra group

    Good work rises to the top, appreciation is wonderful, the team is happy. Full credit to Sonal and his team for all the work they’ve been doing over the last few years. It is a vindication of the belief — work in silence and let success be your noise. It was good to see the quality of work right across different categories and feel happier that some of your work has risen to the top. It was a good body of work.

     

    (Talking about the jury )Every awards show has its own flavour. Globally, that’s also been the scenario. This is the type of jury that a Kyoorius puts together, which is good. I’ve always thought that as long as there is peer group appreciation, it is good.

     

    In India brands have been built over centuries. That does not mean that we’re not doing great work. I’ve never believed that India has been inferior. Here, you do work for India. Right from the beginning, we’ve built great brands here. Indian advertising has always been culturally contextual and it has been wonderful in terms of building brands for the country, because that is what advertising is all about, in terms of content that builds brands and connects to consumers.

     

    Rana Barua

    CEO, Contract Advertising

    The fact that Kyoorius has kept only one colour elephant is a good and interesting format for now. We’ll have to see in the long run how we can sustain something like this. We at Contract won a lot of awards. The quality of work is good, and clients are pushing us to do better, so that’s the big challenge. The jury is very prestigious, very eclectic, interesting. Only that sometimes you wonder whether they get the whole thing, because there is a lot of international jury judging Indian work. With a lot of Indian friends in the jury, I’m sure they understand what is happening. Maybe we need more Indian presence on the jury, because a lot of unique work happens within our country, because our country is a lot more unique than others. I think India is pretty sorted in the way we work, because it appeals to Indians. India itself is a nation of many countries put together. If our campaigns work for such a massive country, they will work anywhere in the world as well.

    (interviews by Dyanne Coelho)

     

    The next level of awards – the Blue Elephant — was presented for Creative (36 winners, 38 if you consider that two of them were shared by two agencies) and Digital Advertising (12 winners). Ogilvy bagged 13 Blue Elephants in Creative and two in Digital. Two of the Ogilvy creative awards were awarded jointly.

     

    From Times Square-inspired sets, to sound and motion graphics, the entire visual experience for the night was created by Dutch and Malaysian specialists. Hosts Suresh Venkat and Mandira Bedi regaled the crowd with witty banter in the 75-odd minute awards presentation.

     

    A total of 1,419 entries (up almost 40% from the previous year) were submitted across advertising and digital categories. Ogilvy, DDB Mudra, Contract Advertising, Ideas@Work, Scarecrow Communications, Soho Square, BBH, BBDO India, Dentsu Webchutney, Madison, Madison BMB, ITSA Brand Innovations, Experience Commerce, Rediffusion Y&R, BBH, Famous Innovations, Havas Worldwide, Fanatics Viscomm, Grey, Linen Lintas, PHD India, Sapient, Web Maffia, River Advertising, Creativeland Asia, Blink Digital, Whyness Worldwide, and TBWA were some of the agencies who were awarded the ‘Baby Elephant’ trophy as ‘In Book’ winners.

     

    Of the 163 In Book winners, also nominees for Blue Elephants, the advertising and digital juries awarded 36 Blue Elephants in Advertising and 12 Blue Elephants in Digital categories.

     

    In the advertising categories, the 36 Blue Elephant winners included campaigns by Contract Advertising, Ideas@Work, Creativeland Asia, Ogilvy, Early Man Film, DDB Mudra, BBDO, Fanatics, Grey, TBWA and Linen Lintas.

     

    In digital categories, 12 Blue Elephant winners included work by PHD India, Pigeon & Co., Quasar, Quidich, Dentsu Webchutney, Experience Commerce, Leaf Design, Madison Media, Sapient and Ogilvy.

     

    DDB Mudra was awarded the lone Black Elephant this year for the direct marketing campaign, Health Cha Shree Ganesh. The campaign for Nutralite, gave the Ganesh idol a healthy makeover – with a physically fit idol and equally fit priest, accompanied by sugarfree modaks and offerings at a pandal in Mumbai. Devotees could participate in Zumba workouts while waiting in line and ‘donate’ calories while working out on a treadmill.

     

    Said Aneil ‘Andee’ Deepak, Executive Director, DDB Mudra Group and Head of Ideas, DDB MudraMax and who now heads the agency’s experiential business after MudraMax President Mandeep Malhotra move on: “The standard of work that has come in this year has really improved and so have the judging standards. The judging is so top notch that winning here means everything. This is the best award show in India. We feel fantastic. I think the move of keeping only the Blue Elephant award, taking away division between categories of winning is a good move. It makes the hungrier survive. If you are hungry for that one black elephant, you better beat everyone else. It’s a great motivation to win the black elephant.”

     

    Rajesh Kejriwal, Founder-CEO of Kyoorius, said on the awards: “We are overwhelmed by the response. Our association with D&AD guarantees a transparent and neutral platform, with the jury representing the best of international and local talent.”

     

    When asked about the trends this year, he said: “We saw a lot of work around gender equality and women’s rights, reflecting the national sentiment on these issues. Plus, of course, in a World Cup year, loads of cricket.”

     

    Tim Lindsay, CEO of D&AD who is associated with Kyoorius for a second consecutive year (or a third, if you include the Design Awards that he is associated with for three years), said: “The Kyoorius Awards continue to grow in size and stature, and are an important indicator of the world-class standards of the Indian creative scene. But the real heroes are the creatives themselves, who are producing ever more engaging, emotional and beautifully-crafted work  D&AD are proud to partner.”  At the international D&AD awards, which were incidentally also held last week, Indian agencies won some ‘Pencils’, as the Metals?? medals?? are called there.

     

    Alongside the Elephant winners, all nominations will be featured in the Kyoorius Advertising Awards Annual and the Kyoorius Digital Awards Annual – distributed to over 5,000 corporates and creatives across India.

     

    The awards night marked the end of a two-day festival of creativity in advertising, media and marketing developed by Kyoorius in partnership with Zee, marketing services giant GroupM and D&AD.

     

  • Zee Melt 2015 discussed what customer needs and desires would be like, several years down the line, and how brands and agencies could cater to them. Besides an A-list of speakers from across the globe, the two-day event also had some fun, virtual reality experiences culminating in a high-profile awards night

    #ZeeMelt15: Future-gazing, unlimited!

    By Dyanne Coelho

     

    Creativity had an unbridled run at Zee Melt 2015. The two-day festival of creativity brought stalwarts from the fields of advertising, media and marketing — both from across India and the world — together on one platform to share thoughts, insights and plans for the future. A host of seminars, conferences, workshops and exhibitions were put together for some 1,300-odd participants and visitors. The event was organised by Kyoorius, a not-for-profit company, in partnership with Zee Entertainment, GroupM and D&AD.

     

    A conference, held on Day One, saw speakers from all over the world like Chris Sanderson of Future Laboratory, Daniele Fiandaca of Creative Social, Christian Behrendt of Razorfish, Bo Hellberg of Brave and HeyHuman, and many others, drawing attention to the significance of innovation, creativity, uncluttering advertising and zooming out from the ‘billboard trend’. Fiandaca, for instance, pointed out the wonders that erupt when varied talent. even from the finance HR and other teams are included in the creative process. “When margins are being pulled, innovation is the only way forward,” he said.

     

    “What would you do if you could do magic?” Andy Jaspers of Maxus asked at a seminar he shared with his colleague, Unny Radhakrishnan, head of digital for South Asia. Think big, imagine the impossible, and then make it possible he pointed out. “The best people are not the ones with the most knowledge, but the ones who can solve the problem,” Jaspers added. Both speakers stressed the importance of merging creativity with the use of technology. They have to go hand-in-hand, they said. “While a picture says a thousand words, a prototype is worth a thousand meetings,” Jaspers joked.

     

    The consumer of the future was much talked about in the seminar entitled ‘Kinetic Future Citizens’. Consumers’ needs, wants, interests and overall behaviour was discussed in depth by an array of speakers, including Sid Talwar of Lightbox, Simon Gosling of Happy Finish, Satya Raghavan of Youtube and others.

     

    Delegates at the festival thronged in large numbers to the activities at GroupM’s showcase space. The Loop Room and the Purple Box, which explained innovative ways to understand consumer behaviour and patterns, was a crowded space. Participants were taken through the various technologies that the company works with, including Moribus, the Behavioral Economics Lab by Maxus, global work by Mediacom and MECFresh by MEC Global. Happy Finish’s showcase displayed the latest in augmented and virtual reality. A particular favorite among visitors was the Smash it!, a cricket virtual reality experience.

     

    The IAA Debate on the issue of whether the mobile is likely to become the primary screen for news and entertainment in the next three to four years, brought Day One to a close on a dramatic note as speakers Vikram Sakhuja and Raghav Bahl sparred with Arnab Goswami and Rajiv Lochan on whether mobile phone usage is increasingly on the rise in India. Goswami and Lochan were of the view that a period of three to four years is the equivalent of a split-second for this to be a reality, as mobile internet in India – especially the 3G network — is still a luxury enjoyed by a few since fast downloads and buffering videos are difficult.

     

    The Zee Mindspace conference was the highlight of Day Two. Adam Ostrow of Mashable set the ball rolling with an informative take on digital culture. Other speakers included Joshua Black of GroupM, Parminder Singh of Twitter, Sir Martin Sorrell of WPP plc, among others.

     

    The Indian media is constantly evolving to keep up with changing times. While technology is transforming the way content is being delivered to the audience, measurement systems seem to be lagging. The Think BARC India seminar brought together Jose Manuel Olivera of MarkData, Bruno Chetaille of Mediametrie, Erica Boyd of Nielsen Asia Pacific and William McKenna of William McKenna & Associates to talk about life beyond the traditional measurement methods.

     

    The art of great storytelling through advertising and film was delved into in the seminar entitled Making the Cut – Ad Learnings, with speakers that included award-winning filmmakers Vinil Mathew of Breathless Films, Ayappa KM of Early Man Film and Vishwesh Krishnamoorthy or Corcoise Films. “Don’t tell a director how to do his job, just like you don’t tell a plumber how to fix a tap,” Krishnamoorthy explained, while talking about how agencies are sometimes put under great pressure by clients. The trio, in an interactive session, discussed the technicalities of writing, shooting, editing and budgeting as well, in order to create an ad that will engage the end-consumer and also keep the client happy.

     

    Girish Raj of OML took participants behind the scenes of the making of the NH7 Weekender year after year in the session. The ‘Behind the Seen’ seminar concentrated on digital entertainment and experiential marketing. Other speakers included Rajesh Thomas and Vidya Sharma of RocketscienceLab, Shubhradeep Guha of SapientNitro and Saket Saurabh and Ankit Vengurlekar of #fame.

     

    The two-day event concluded with the much-awaited Kyoorius Digital and Advertising Awards night where 48 (+2) Blue Elephants and one Black Elephant were given out.

     

  • As a sequel to its first campaign, the 2nd TVC of Dream series carries forward the intriguing story of the first campaign

    Honda undertakes Round 2 of marketing blitzkrieg for its motorcycles

    By A Correspondent

     

    Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd. (HMSI) has aired its second TVC campaign. With this campaign Honda is showcasing its new and exciting 2015 editions of Dream series motorcycles (CD 110 Dream, Dream Neo, Dream Yuga).

     

    As a sequel to its first campaign, the 2nd TVC of Dream series carries forward the intriguing story of the first campaign. Part II sees Akshay Kumar return with a bang in his triple role odyssey. The TVC portrays 2015 edition of Honda Dream Series as the natural extension for varied customer range – aspirational class, stylish youth or even the classy office goer.

     

    The campaign has been created by Dentsu Marcom. It will be on-air in 100 + channels across all genres till June end.

     

    Objective of the campaign:

    Despite weak sentiments in the 100-110cc motorcycle segment, Honda continues to gain momentum with its Dream series. The first campaign was successful in leading the consumers on higher level of awareness of the Brand’s multiple product portfolio in the segment under Dream series. The sequel is expected to take the desire of the customer to conviction of owning one.

     

    Brief:

    The brief was to create a campaign that attempts to consolidate Honda’s mass product offering under 2015 cosmetic upgrades of Dream Series motorcycles.

     

    The three distinctive propositions from a consumer point of view are:

    Dream Neo – Durable and Sturdy motorcycle

    Dream Yuga – Stylish offering in the 110cc stable

    CD Dream 110 – Value for money variant with an unmatched legacy of ‘CD’.

     

    Approach:

    The communication approach aimed at bringing together dream series for the consumer who has varied needs and motivations through the point view of the users.

    Honda’s brand ambassador Akshay Kumar was used to portray the varied customer range and to personify Dream Series motorcycles as an extension to rider’s image. It is an interesting case study that highlights the need and emotions of a customer that propels them to purchase a motorcycle.

     

    Film Descriptor:

    The film opens with the protagonist’s father (played by Akshay Kumar), who is sitting in a courtyard with an elderly man and a girl. The father is joined by his 3 sons or, the main protagonists (also played by Akshay Kumar) who arrive on their respective Honda motorcycles (Dream Yuga, Dream Neo and CD 110 Dream). The father approves of the girl to be his daughter-in-law but leaves it to her to decide who out of his three sons she would choose.

     

    The first protagonist deemed as ‘Durable and Sturdy’, is an amalgamation of style at the best possible deal. His motorcycle reflects the aspirational class in the tier-2 cities. The second protagonist or ‘the Stylish’, is a reflection of the young audience who likes to flaunt his cool lifestyle through the second Dream Series motorcycle. The third protagonist, is a middle aged office goer who understands the value of money and thus, desires classy motorcycle that is value for money.

     

    The plot unravels beautifully when girls’ father introduces his other two girls and these two look exactly like the girl present there earlier. Amused by the co-incidence of facing 3 identical brothers, one of the girls isn’t able to resist the opportunity and cracks a witty remark which leaves all the siblings in raptures. Finally the film concludes with a shot of the father getting a picture clicked with his sons, who are sitting on their respective bikes behind him with their partners as pillion.

     

    Company Spokesperson:

    “Honda’s Dream series in mass motorcycles has gained immense goodwill of over 10 lac customers in India and the new 2015 new edition of popular Dream series motorcycles is now available in market. Keeping in mind the diverse psychographics and demographics, the 2nd TVC creatively brings out the unique attributes of Dream series that are Damdaar, Samajdaar and Style ka Bhandaar through Akshay Kumar in his 3 avatars joined by their life partners complimenting the respective lifestyles. By doing so, we are emotionally connecting and reinforcing brand Honda to the customers of mass motorcycle segment,” said Yadvinder. S. Guleria, Senior Vice President-Sales & Marketing, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd

     

     

    “The first ad for Dream Series featuring the three motorcycles started as a range ad. But with the success of the campaign we thought we will take it a step forward to show the journey of these three brands into the hearts of the consumers with newness. So we brought in three brides for the three grooms. The bride’s father at the end signs off with the same line we had last time ‘Teeno ek se badhkar ek’ and Akshay Kumar the father completes it by saying ‘par teeno ke ragon mein khoon toh ek hee hai’ which speaks of the Honda DNA. It was fun creating a sequel!,” said, Titus Upputuru, National Creative Director, Dentsu Marcom