MxMIndia

Category: ADVERTISING

  • In a short span, bags A-list clients and goes bullish on hiring to service brands in India and International markets

    Pamita Seth to head Branded Content & entertainment division for Social Street

    By A Correspondent

     

    Pamita Seth

    The Social Street, has launched their Branded Content and Entertainment division with the appointment of Pamita Seth who has been roped in to head the practice. She will be overseeing a team of around 10 people who are already in place.

     

    Pamita brings with her around 13 years of experience having worked in organizations like Radio Mirchi & ABSIL (The Times of India Group).  Her earlier stint was with Mates (Madison). Pamita’s  expertise is in Branded Content, Campaign Creation, Media, Marketing, Brand Solutions, Partner Engagement, Intellectual properties. She has been instrumental in developing campaigns like Mirchi Queen Bee, Mirchi Music Awards, Femina Miss India, Spell Bee and has won awards for her Branded Content work on films like Yeh Jawanni Hai Dewani, Race2, PK & Shamitabh and many more.

     

    Pratap Bose

    Commenting on the launch of the new division, Pratap Bose, Chairman and Founding Partner The Social Street says, “We are looking to offer a plethora of services to cater to the varied needs of clients, which would include among other things In-Film Advertising, Movie Promotions, Intellectual Properties, Telecast and Talent Solutions. The extremely talented team that we have put together have the muscle to service the needs of International and Indian Clients. We are looking to be a truly global one stop shop in the space of Branded Content and Entertainment.”

     

    The Division already has signed up with  a number upcoming film projects. It will be a part of The Festival of Globe – Silicon Valley & San Francisco Global Movie Fest hosted by the Federation of Indian Association. The San Francisco Global Movie Fest is an annual film festival that spans across 10 days and showcases nearly 50 films and includes among other things, workshops, award night  and the legendary India Day Parade of The Bay Area. The Division is also collaborating with renowned film-maker Guneet Monga to showcase her film ‘Monsoon Shootout’ as the Grand Closing Ceremony film at the festival.

     

  • Brand ambassadors Ranveer Singh and Suriya tell us why cars mean everything

    Interface creates new TVC for QuikrCars

    By A Correspondent

     

    Quikr announced that it has gone live with QuikrCars, its vertical with a sharp focus on all kinds of automobiles, i.e. cars, bikes and commercial vehicles. The first of Quikr’s verticals being launched, QuikrCars is a unique one stop destination for India’s car buyers and sellers, combining Quikr’s large transaction flow in the category with everything related to vehicles, including automobile news, reviews, information, tips and tricks.

     

    In this regard, two separate sets of TVCs highlighting the central role cars play in people’s lives have been created. They feature Quikr’s new brand ambassadors; leading Bollywood actor and youth icon Ranveer Singh and critically acclaimed Southern star Suriya.

     

    The theme TVC tackles the fact that cars mean different things to different people and emphasizes the comprehensive services offered by QuikrCars. The two subsequent TVCs individually introduce QuikrCars exclusive features, i.e. Maximum Selling Price (MSP) and Verified Inspection Reports.

     

    The TVCs will be aired across GECs and regional channels and will be supported by print, radio, OOH and digital media.

     

    Pranay Chulet

    Commenting on the association, Pranay Chulet, founder and CEO of Quikr, says, “Ranveer is an innovative, self-made star who stands out from the crowd. These qualities resonate with us and our journey towards market leadership. With his enormous talent and massive popularity, Ranveer’s association with Quikr will give our platform more visibility with a wider audience.”

     

    “As the leaders in the online classifieds space, our task is to expand the market, and as a well-established actor, Suriya has built enormous credibility and trust over his illustrious career. We believe that his association with Quikr will further increase people’s confidence in online buying and selling in India,” adds Chulet.

     

    Joemon Thaliath

    Joemon Thaliath, Chief Operating Officer at Interface Communications, says “People think of cars as more than just vehicles, forming special bonds with them. The fact that cars do mean vastly different things to people is a strong insight that we leveraged strategically in the commercials for QuikrCars. Thus, the TVCs amplify the features and advantages of the platform in an interesting and delightful manner.”

     

  • This TVC made its debut on Star Television Network along with a host of other digital platforms

    Teach For India unveils new campaign with SamaajScope

    By A Correspondent

     

    Teach For India, a non-profit organization working to achieve educational equity in India has launched its latest television commercial celebrating the idea of an excellent education for all children.

     

    The film, produced & directed by SamaajScope, narrates the story of two children from fundamentally different backgrounds who nonetheless converse on both academic as well as contemporary topics as equals – with Shruti Belitkar, a Teach For India student from Sant Vinoba Bhave School Pune, playing the part.

     

    Says Shaheen Mistri, CEO – Teach For India, “We believe every child has the potential to shine, regardless of their economic background, as seen in this film. We just need to give them the opportunity and the right education. We need passionate, driven, committed people to join the Fellowship to bridge the gap of educational inequity.”

     

    This TVC made its debut on Star Television Network along with a host of other digital platforms. Sharing their thoughts on the approach behind the film, Samyak Chakraborty & Shaza Morani, Co-Founders – SamaajScope, say, “Teach for India’s mandate of creating positive and progressive communication for their next Fellow intake resonated with our core ideology. At SamaajScope we are re-inventing the way citizens, corporates, NGOs as well as the government engage with social causes. This project is an important step towards that goal.”

     

    Teach For India’s Fellowship program places outstanding working professionals and college graduates as Fellows – who work full-time for two years in low-income & under-resourced schools teaching under-privileged kids. With operations in Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune, Ahmedabad & Bangalore.

     

  • This first of its kind platform showcased India’s best entries offering diverse mobile advertising solutions

    Madhouse hosts mobile advertising event in Bengaluru

    By A Correspondent

     

    Madhouse India has taken a step further towards galvanizing the mobile marketing ecosystem with a first of its kind event – Madlabs. Madhouse in association with YourStory and MobileSparks provided the perfect platform ‘Madlabs’ for start-ups to showcase their innovative mobile advertising solutions in Bengaluru on 7thAugust 2015.

     

    The event commenced with the screening of entries through applications from over 60 participants, from whom 13 were shortlisted to present at the event. With a predefined pitch format, the shortlisted participants coming from varied background of innovative mobile product technology and applications did their passionate pitches and drill of fierce Q&A with the jury. The esteemed jury who shortlisted 5 as the winner of Madlabs 2015 included Sonia Serrao, Chief Manager, Tata Global Beverages; Brij Bhasin, Principal Investor, Rebright Partners; Preeti Desai, Country Manager, MMA India; Vinod Thadani, Chief Strategy Office, Mindshare-South Asia and Unny Radhakrishnan, Chief Digital Office, Maxus-South Asia. The winning teams were-

     

    1. Greedy Games – An innovative Native ad platform for gaming apps that helps brands to engage with mobile audience while they are playing games

    2. Cook Book – An app that connects foodies across the world by collating global recipes according to their preferred taste and language

    3. WhichApp – A platform that helps people discover new apps that their friends are using

    4. Unlockar – A platform that will advertise on the most premium and under-utilized real estate of smart phone device, the lock screen

    5. SnapShopr – An Image search platform on mobile that will help you locate similar products while making a purchase

     

    Speaking about the initiative, Milind Pathak, COO Madhouse South Asia said, “We have received great response for Madlabs in the inception year itself and look forward to extending this property in the years to come. The creativity showcased by all the participants is inspiring and insightful. Now our expert product team will mentor these startups in product enhancement and the next step from that will be to help them commercialise their offerings with brands.”

     

  • Sniper – The 120 Media Collective's multi-platform commercials & content brand – has already executed the first project for Cheil

    Cheil enters strategic partnership with Sniper and Sooperfly

    By A Correspondent

     

    The 120 Media Collective and Cheil Worldwide have entered into a strategic partnership for multi-platform video content starting July 2015. Its brands Sniper and Sooperfly will produce and distribute a wide range of Digital Content for Cheil’s clients.

     

    Speaking about the development, Roopak Saluja, Founder & Chief Executive, The 120 Media Collective, said, “Producing content in various formats over the past nine years has armed us with a deep understanding of the audience and what strikes a chord with them. Our brands, Sniper and Sooperfly come together to seamlessly provide what is needed to engage at scale with digital-first audiences in 2015. Cheil’s trust in us is testimony to our expertise.”

     

    Shiv Sethuraman, Group President – South West Asia, Cheil Worldwide, added, “Video content is the fastest growing area within the Digital play. Not just the creation but, equally importantly, the distribution of content. Clients are tired of agencies offering them TVCs disguised as Video content and this is because many of them haven’t yet understood that the business model requires significantly different capabilities, resources and platforms. The partnership with The 120 Media Collective is designed to bring speed, economies of scale and quality – yes, all three – to Video Content. We believe they are the right partners and that the market is ripe for such an offering.”

     

  • Prior to Ideo.org, Ektaa Aggarwal was the Creative Director of Landor in India for almost four years

    Ektaa Aggarwal to join Ideo in New York as CD & Office Co-Lead

    By A Correspondent

     

    Ektaa Aggarwal has been appointed Ideo.org in New York as Creative Director and Office Co-Lead.

     

    In the role as Creative Director for New York, she will be responsible for building a multi-disciplinary team. She will plan, guide, deliver, and support multiple IDEO.org initiatives while creating leading-edge ways to demonstrate the value of human-centered design to the social sector. She’ll grow the studio’s creative reputation, nurture client relationships, and network with external audiences and partners to build and promote the New York portfolio.

     

    Prior to Ideo.org, Ektaa Aggarwal was the Creative Director of Landor in India for almost four years. With over 14 years of experience, Ektaa has worked across agencies such Momentum, McCann Erickson, DDB, Spike Lee, Kraftworks, Heller Communications, and Platinum Design, New York. Prior joining Landor, Ektaa ran her own medium-agnostic design studio, 369 Inc in Mumbai.

     

    “We’re thrilled to be joined by Ektaa who brings deep expertise in design, branding, and innovation. Her experience working in the markets we serve will be invaluable as will her leadership skills which will be put into practice running Ideo.org’s new studio in New York.” Jocelyn Wyatt, Executive Director and Co-lead, Ideo.org

     

    On her new role, Aggarwal says, “I’ve been questioning my contribution and my impact on the world as a designer. When this opportunity came along, it felt right. Ideo.org believes that human-centered design can empower communities by creating solutions for the causes of poverty. I am thrilled to be working in innovation for the social sector. Ideo.org’s pioneering approach is something that has always fascinated me.”

     

    Born in 2011 out of the global design and innovation firm Ideo, Ideo.org is a nonprofit design organisation dedicated to applying human-centered design to alleviate poverty. Ideo.org partners with nonprofit organizations, social enterprises, and foundations to directly address the needs of the poor in multiple sectors.

     

  • India's mobile users dance to ‘No Idea, Get Idea' tune and connect with the No. 1 MNP operator

    Idea targets emigrants in new campaign on MNP

    By A Correspondent

     

    Changing one’s mobile connection; finding the network which has coverage everywhere in the country; hassle-free management of multiple connections and bills – are some of the challenges faced by Indians migrating to different cities in a hope of better living, career, and lifestyle. For those who have hassles in dealing with these issues, they can simply take an Idea connection, as is suggested in the new campaign by Idea.

     

    One of the new Idea ads on television shows a young man reaching Kochi from Kolkata and soon after landing at the railway station realizes that his phone has no connection. His quest for getting the best network is answered immediately by the locals who suggest, he ‘Get Idea’. The people are then seen swaying to the ‘No Idea, Get Idea’ tune at the platform.

     

    In another scenario, a young career oriented girl is shown to be shifting base to Delhi from Alwar after landing her dream job. While she is all enthused about making it big in her career, she is faced with the hassle of dealing with multiple bills for her phone, tab and other devices. She has ‘No Idea’ how to get rid of this chore of managing multiple bills, and that’s when her colleagues in the new office suggest her to ‘Get Idea’. The thrill of overcoming this problem gets them all dancing to the catchy ‘No Idea, Get Idea’ tune.

     

    Elaborating on the new campaign, Sashi Shankar, Chief Marketing Officer, Idea Cellular said, “Brand Idea has always believed in enriching lives of people through fresh, innovative, yet simple ideas to solve their daily problems. The brand’s ability to stay relevant has enabled Idea to become an endearing brand for consumers across all categories and the MNP leadership is a testimony for this attribute. The concept behind this ‘No Idea, Get Idea’ campaign is to help mobile phone users get access to superior service when they switch cities, at a time when NMNP is a reality. The new ads have the signature Idea feel of being youthful, with a catchy music, and conveying the message in a simple manner.”

     

    Under this new campaign, Idea has come up with a series of TVCs capturing unique situations that interestingly dovetail into a story and further ensures a solution in the form of Idea’s best-in-class network and customer service. Idea has introduced this new campaign under its award-winning campaign line – ‘No Idea, Get Idea’ – that continues to resonate with the core essence of the brand. In its earlier avatar, the campaign had won the ‘Best Brand Campaign Award’ at the World Communication Awards 2011. It had also won EFFIE Gold in the same year.

     

  • The film talks about the little joyous moments of life through a family reunion

    Tata Tea Premium launches new campaign

    By A Correspondent

     

    Tata Tea Premium has launched its new campaign for Tata Tea Premium that talks about the little joyous moments of life through a family reunion.

     

    The film opens with a doting father enjoying the company of both his daughters. The ‘choti’ &‘badi’ daughters who stay away from home, have been able to visit home at the same time. The overjoyed father takes a sip of the tea and claims that it is extra special today, since both his daughters are home and the family is together. The mother intervenes and brings out the real reason behind the perfect cup of tea – the blend of chotipattiand badipatti in the tea. The film blends the perfect family moment with the perfect cup of tea.

     

    Remarking on the thought behind the commercial, Rishi Chadha, Head – Tea Marketing says, “Beyond offering teas with consistent and superior quality, Tata Tea has over the years deepened its bond with consumers through some impactful messaging and communication. We have a highly differentiated product offering in Tata Tea Premium. It is the right combination of badipatti for swaad (taste) and chotipatti for kadakpan (strength). We wanted to talk about what makes our brand unique to tea drinkers, so that they can make an informed choice when buying tea. We believe that ‘chai kojaanoge to jaagoge’ ”.

     

    Amer Jaleel

    Commenting on the campaign, Amer Jaleel – Chairman | CCO, Mullen Lintas (formerly NCD – Lowe Lintas), adds “As part of its product-based strategy, Tata Tea wants to ‘awaken’ people to the fine touch of its popular tea brand. We wanted to capture this in an equally nuanced manner, telling little stories of family and home.Tata Tea Premium has the challenging job of delivering the ‘Choti Patti Badi Patti’ promise in a refreshing manner while talking to a wide audience. We have chosen the ‘large-hearted family guy’ to make this point. He goes with the flow of gushing emotions to proclaim that the tea is truly special today since he’s in the company of both his daughters. The Missus sweetly begs to differ, and points out that he may probably be under-appreciating the role of the tea leaves in his ‘filmy’ dialog-baazi. The crafting of this brand has reached a higher degree of refinement and we are expecting women to relate to our offerings.”

     

  • The Brand Saloon will help the company in executing the campaign on social media, will be involved in ideation of ideas, SEO, SEM

    The Brand Saloon wins digital duties for Hey Taxi

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Brand Saloon, a digital marketing agency has bagged the digital duties for Hey Taxi, Mumbai’s first bike taxi service operating between Dadar and Colaba. The Brand Saloon has won the entire digital mandate for the company which works on a unique concept and uses an Android-based app to avail the service.

     

    The Brand Saloon will help the company in executing the campaign on social media, will be involved in ideation of ideas, SEO, SEM (various platforms for online and social media) and will also look at creating enagagement with consumers to enhance thir visibility to use their services.

     

    Hey Taxi is a new concept where two wheeler riders are collaborated with commuters and the company has already ferried more than 250 people. The never ending queues and traffic have become a daily part of metro cities and hence Hey Taxi comes as a relief to the urban dwellers where the two-wheeler riders can hook up a spare seat with ride seekers for short distances.

     

    Jayesh Khandor

    On this ocassion, Jayesh Khandor, CEO, TBS, said, “Hey Taxi is a new urban concept which will help commuters and young students cut the queue and traffic. We are pleased to work with a young start-up like Hey Taxi at a time when so many start-up companies are coming up with varied unique concepts to break through the cluttered market. Their concept is pretty unique in India and we hope to do some path-breaking work for them by delivering a robust digital media framework that yields great results for the brand.”

     

    Manoj Maheshwari, CEO, Hey Taxi, said, “We are happy to have The Brand Saloon as our digital partner and our confident on their ability to take Hey taxi to the next level through interesting consumer enagagemnet campaigns. I’m sure the team will be able to leverage their depth of knowledge and expertise in creating rich content for the brand across various platforms in the digital space.”

     

    The Brand Saloon handles clients like Red Bull, Ford, Neeta Bus, Seven Hill Hospital, S.P. Jain Institute of Management, Hub Town, Organic Garden, Sanjeev Kapoor wonder Chef etc amongst others.

     

  • A Soho Square TVC ushers the move to win over rural markets

    Himalaya spreads pimple-free message to hinterland

    By A Correspondent

     

    Leading herbal and personal care firm Himalaya Drug Company has launch a TVC to further drive the consumption of its Rs 5 sachet packs within the low population markets.

     

    The TVC has been conceptualised by Soho Square and directed by Chinar Gupte. Through the TVC, Himalaya speaks to the young girls and urges them to face the world confidently and happily as they sport a healthier and pimple-free skin.

     

    Said Rajesh Krishnamurthy, Business Head – Consumer Products Division, The Himalaya Drug Company: “The face wash category in urban India is pegged at 1400 crore and growing at 15%, whereas the rural face wash market stands at 280 crores but growing at 31%. Growing twice as much as the urban market and with 5% penetration, rural market gives us an opportunity to make our leading brand Purifying Neem Face Wash now accessible to millions of new consumers in an innovative sachet pack. With this communication we expect to bring new users to the category and thereby benefit from pimple-free healthy skin.”

     

    Vineet Jain, General Marketing – Consumer Products Division, The Himalaya Drug Company added, “With our new sachet communication, we plan to increase category penetration by driving trials among non-users via providing an affordable price point of Rs 5 for 5 ml (approximately 3 washes). This will help increase user base of the face wash category and drive overall category growth.”

     

    “From a creative point of view, the film continues to leverage the consumer insight that young women hold themselves back when they suffer from a pimple problem,” said Ganga Ganapati VP & Head of Office, Soho Square.

     

  • Incidentally, the appointments come on the back of the recent client wins such as Maruti Suzuki and Carlsberg

    Dentsu Creative Impact announces slew of senior level appointments

    By A Correspondent

     

    Dentsu Creative Impact has announced a host of new talent acquisitions.

     

    The beefing up of the team has happened across functions, ranging from strategic planning to account management and creative. Incidentally, the appointments come on the back of the recent client wins such as Maruti Suzuki, Carlsberg and a set of soon-to-be announced brands.

     

    In the Creative function, the agency has roped in Sundar Iyer as ECD – Copy. Iyer will form the creative leadership team along with Sumitra Sengupta (also, ECD – Copy, who joined Dentsu Creative Impact about 2 months back) and Deepak Singh (ECD – Art), whose appointment was announced a few months back. Both Sundar and Sumitra join in after their recent stints at JWT, bringing in tremendous energy and expertise from their cross-category experience.

     

    On the Account Management side, Dentsu Creative Impact has roped in Arvinderjit Singh (previously at JWT) as Vice President, who along with Hindol Purkayastha (also Vice President), will bolster the function and bring in greater depth and strength. Both Hindol (previously at Publicis) and Arvinder bring in a wealth of automotive category experience from their previous stints.

     

    Shveta Singh

    In Strategic Planning, Shveta Singh has come aboard as Vice President – Planning. She will work with Kartikeya Srivastava, Senior Vice President, Strategic Planning. Coming from a pure-play digital background, Shveta (ex-Cheil, ex-Havas) brings new age skills to combine with her intuitive understanding of brands and people. Shveta’s take on her new stint is, “For me, crossing over the digital divide was the next logical step because the future will have no such divide. A new approach to strategic planning is the need of the day. And, Dentsu came across as the right place with the right vision and a set of people who are already breaking the mould of traditional agency planning. Looking forward to some exciting work…”

     

    Narayan Devanathan

    Talking about the exciting new additions to the team Narayan Devanathan, CEO, Dentsu Creative Impact Group said “Great work happens when people commit to constantly raising the bar. At Dentsu Creative Impact, we’re doing that by first raising the bar on the talent we’re bringing together, across functions. Across Creative, Account Management, Planning, we have a first-rate second rung in place at Dentsu Creative Impact to sustain the momentum that we have going now.”

     

  • The company is engaged in the manufacture of decorative laminate, decorative veneers, doors, wall clads, wooden flooring and MFC

    Maxus bags media duties for Greenlam Laminates

    By A Correspondent

     

    Global communications consultancy firm Maxus has been appointed to manage the media mandate for Greenlam Industries Limited.

     

    With over two decades of experience in the surface décor space, Greenlam has been the pioneers in introducing the international décor trend, in India and to the international markets. The company is engaged in the manufacture of decorative laminate, decorative veneers, doors, wall clads, wooden flooring and MFC (Melamine Faced Chip Board).

     

    Kartik Sharma

    Speaking about the win, Kartik Sharma- Managing Director, Maxus South Asia said, “We are in the process of evolving strategic long-term plans for the brand. We are delighted to have acquired the media mandate for Greenlam Laminates and are looking forward in achieving higher goals with this association. Using the right media mix, innovative strategies and technologies that we have at our disposal, we are sure to make this association a very successful one. It will be a great experience for the team working on the Greenlam Laminates business as is an exciting category!”

     

    Alex Joseph – Vice president – Marketing & communication Greenlam Industries was equally delighted about handing over the media duties to Maxus. He said, “We have partnered with Maxus as we believe they will bring value to our marketing efforts. We are sure this association will prove to be a rather fruitful one as a media agency, We expect Maxus to go beyond just the traditional way to build the brand “