GroupM has announced the India rollout of its influencer marketing solution, Inca. Inca will connect brands to a wide network of publishers and influencers.
Prasanth Kumar
Said Prasanth Kumar, CEO, GroupM South Asia: “Influencer marketing is now a key element of the marketing mix, and brands today need to take advantage of potential associations and collaborations. Inca is the ideal tool to facilitate safe brand engagement across platforms. We are confident that this tool is the most effective method for Indian brands to reach their audiences with the precise impact they demand.”
Ratan Singh Rathore
Added Ratan Singh Rathore, Business Head of Inca India: ”The tastes and behaviours of Indian customers are changing rapidly as they consume content in a multi-platform, multi-device, data-cheap environment. In this fragmented media landscape, marketers are seeking innovative, relevant and brand-safe advertising solutions. The authenticity of influencer marketing makes it stand out as a highly effective brand solution. Inca’s AI driven content discovery technology, provides the quantitative intelligence to select and optimize influencers, predict outcomes and deliver efficient and effective workflow management. Inca helps clients develop user-generated or branded publisher content, which engages consumers and keeps them loyal to brands.”
Following a multi-agency pitch, White Rivers Media has won the social creative and digital mandate for the Germany-based cosmetic brand Cosnature by Cosmolux Deutschland GmbH.
Commenting upon the association, Nicolas Camci, Director, Cosnature, India, said: “Cosnature carries a worldwide reputation of all-natural, high-performance cosmetics that are ‘Made in Germany’. Our intentions to land a strong footing in the Indian market critically requires an equally strong data-backed digital marketing strategy. White Rivers Media understands our product and marketing philosophies. Together with its creative and technological capabilities, we are optimistic about the brand’s success in India.”
Shrenik Gandhi
Added Shrenik Gandhi, Chief Executive Officer & Co-founder, White Rivers Media: “We are excited to work with Cosnature, as it will be one-of-its-kind proposition for young Indian consumers. The brand has a prodigious reputation globally, in terms of both its products and marketing philosophies. Parallel to that, we shall curate strategies that leverage precision targeting and communication to discover, capture, and engage audiences in India, and then convert them into brand evangelists.”
Publicis Sapient announced that it has wholly acquired Sapient.i7 Ltd, the joint enterprise it launched with Tquila Ventures in March 2018. Over the past two years, Sapient i7 has offered an extensive set of services leveraging Salesforce technology to enable digital transformation for large companies in Europe.
Sapient i7 will join Publicis Sapient to form a new global practice expanding Publicis Sapient’s Salesforce expertise and strengthening its alignment to the technology. The Global Salesforce practice will be led by Jason English. Stephen Aitken, the current CEO of Sapient i7 will lead the UK, Europe, and APAC Regions.
Said Jason English, SVP, Global Salesforce Practice Leader, Publicis Sapient: “The acquisition of Sapient i7 enhances the value Publicis Sapient brings to its clients. Publicis Sapient has been delivering large scale digital business transformation for a number of years and the acquisition of Sapient i7 enables the company to offer digital business transformation on a truly global scale.”
Publicis India has won the integrated communications mandate of UPES, a multi-disciplinary and specialisation-focused university. Earlier known as the University of Petroleum & Energy Studies, UPES is a private university located in Dehradun, the capital of Uttarakhand and would specialise in fields of petroleum, energy and power. The university – now promoted as UPES – has broadbased its offerings and offers a variety of pro.
The agency would be providing full-service responsibilities including advertising, strategy, experiential, and other suitable offerings. The account will be managed out of the New Delhi office of Publicis India.
Bharat Kharbanda
Commenting on the appointment, Bharat Kharbanda, Chief Operating Officer, UPES said: “UPES has grown exponentially since its inception and we are constantly expanding, with the recent inclusion of three new schools. Our excellent student outcomes, strong focus on research and pedagogy and multiple new initiatives at the university level are impactful stories that need to be told. We are happy to have Publicis India as our partner agency because of their enthusiasm towards our vision and purpose and their years of expertise in this industry.”
Sridharan Iyer
Speaking on the partnership, Sridharan Iyer, EVP and Head of office – Publicis Delhi said, “UPES is a truly forward-looking university in India. It is a privilege to partner with them in their endeavour to raise the benchmark of higher education by offering students an edge that will not just give them a head-start in their careers but will see them playing a pivotal leadership role in their chosen field of specialisation as well as society at large. As an agency the challenge was to underline the uniqueness of UPES’s offering and differentiate it from the run of the mill promises that institutes make which is common in this category.
Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund has launched a three-month investor education campaign. The campaign covers two films to highlight one key aspect each of investing in mutual funds.
Commenting on the choice of theme, Ajay Kakar, Chief Marketing Officer – Aditya Birla Capital said: “This integrated campaign is an attempt to reach out through various touchpoints and appropriate the relevance of SIP as the right instrument for any market environment. It educates investors about the nuances of investing and assists them to take informed financial decisions. We are going beyond the ‘what’ to explain the ‘how’ with a listen and learn approach. This proposition is especially relevant in today’s volatile market environment where many new investors and fence sitters are beginning to wonder if money not invested is money saved”.
Added A. Balasubramanian, MD & CEO, Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC Limited: “We believe #WINWITHSIP will help to demystify some of the fundamental concepts of mutual funds that will be beneficial for the investors’ understanding and long term financial goals. There is still a huge scope for Mutual Find penetration in this country and engaging with the masses in a relevant manner will increase their affinity towards this asset class. Knowledge is power, and through this investor education initiative our attempt is to empower people with the information that will raise their awareness on how to benefit from their mutual fund investments.”
Directed by Soaeb Mohammed, the TVC has been created by Taproot Dentsu India with Early Man Film.
Teamwork Communications Group is celebrating the completion of 10 years, during which the organisation says it has grown and diversified to serve an array of clients. The organisation marked the milestone by honouring its long-established clients at a glitzy event in the national capital. No, we weren’t invited for it.
Said Nikky Gupta, Co-founder and Director, Teamwork:“It has been a highly eventful journey for us as an organisation which originally started as just a two-member team of co-founders and has grown significantly to become a formidable force in the industry today. Today, we are servicing clients across various industries, sectors and cities, which reflects the fact that our capability and resources have diversified considerably. We have always believed in crafting campaigns that raise awareness about pertinent issues and touch the hearts of people. Going forward, we are planning to set up offices and hire talent in additional cities particularly in south India, to grab a larger pie of business in the region,”
During the month of November 2019, ASCI investigated complaints against 408 advertisements, of which 137 were withdrawn by advertisers on receipt of communication from ASCI. The independent Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) of ASCI evaluated 271 advertisements, of which complaints against 248 advertisements were upheld. Of these 248 advertisements, 159 belonged to the education sector, 44 belonged to the healthcare, eight to personal care, four to the food & beverages sector, and 33 were from the ‘others’ category.
While most ads were evaluated for making misleading claims, the CCC also upheld complaints against a couple of advertisements for encouraging disregard to safety. A TVC showing a pillion-riding barber shaving a policeman in uniform on his way to work was considered to be inappropriate, contravening ASCI guidelines for advertisements depicting automotive vehicles. Complaint against a drama serial promo indicating the protagonist doing self-harm by stifling her neck with a cloth (duppata) was also upheld.
Also, a TVC for a popular pain relief gel claiming ‘#1 Doctor recommended active for acute pain relief’ was considered to be misleading as the terminology was ambiguous. It omitted a key word ‘ingredient’ which would be understood by general consumers. Also, a visual presentation of a claim by a popular roll-on deodorant product of dramatically changing dark underarms to fair in five days was considered to be misleading.
Several advertisements featuring celebrities were caught on the wrong foot for making misleading claims. Advertisement of a popular diagnostic company featured a Bollywood actor who endorsed their claim of the diagnostic lab being ‘preferred by most doctors’, which was considered to be misleading by exaggeration and implication.
Shweta Purandare
Said Shweta Purandare, Secretary General, ASCI: “Consumers are exposed to a significant amount of advertisements on a daily basis. Children and youth are thereby greatly influenced not only for the product choices, but also by what is being depicted in the advertisements and celebrity endorsements. Responsible advertising means depicting safe practices and not encourage negligence. It is also the responsibility of celebrities to check authenticity of the claims they endorse and serve their role of informed influencers.”
Valentine’s Day 2020 is just another day. For a majority, this templated festival of expectations, the celebration of love and care would come and go like the other such days, Rose Day, Proposal Day… associated with it.
It was Valentine’s Day, and the prices of roses expectedly hit the circuit-breaker around February 14. In the era of proximity, floating or fleeting loyalty, the app-led search for love and commitments, high cost of expression and permanence of tattoos, it was templated.
It was celebrated because the marketing community had put peer pressure for you to celebrate it. The ritual of love, roses, gifts and dining were performed. It was no longer about what you wanted to do but about what you should be doing.
For the brands addressing young adults, It was an opportunity to stand apart, be quirky, cheeky and leverage the festival mood.
In my timelines, WhatsApp was full of silly jokes around love, sex, wife, girlfriend ex or otherwise, commitment and future relationships.
For me, the evening was spent with wife dressed in Valentine colours at the St Andrew’s College Auditorium, Bandra. Ad Club COO Bipin Pandit and his group of specially talented singers and musicians under the banner of Khumaar, a celebration of love and romance kept one entertained with songs of love and romance.
BRAND AND VALENTINE’S DAY.
One of the regular readers of my blog (thanks) sent me two clips. In her view, they were a great example of brands attempts to remain relevant. The brands were willing to innovate within the constraints. And that made me think.
VALENTINE AND AFFECTION
Oh, Yes, the nation again saw some groups disturbing couples in a few cities. The self-proclaimed extra-vigilant valentine social regulators took upon themselves to draw the line according to their ill-defined interpretation of culture and social expectations.
Brand Manforce after having burnt their fingers during Sunny LeoneNavratri hoarding some year back recognised this unbridged gap in the era of video traping. It urged young couples to exercise caution during Public Display of Affection (PDA) and digitally capturing their moments of intimacy. It was purpose-led safer sex. #YouAreNotAlone follows their earlier campaign #ShutThePhoneUp. Lovely, to see a brand continuing to focus on the same idea.
Durex, the other condom, moved towards 365 days of love, care and sex. Three years back, the brand asked couples to connect on Valentine’s Day and give your mobile a rest. The brand has been slowly evolving. And if you see their international work, you will realise they are at different point of evolution across countries.
So, Durex now sees the redundancy of Valentine’s Day. Who needs it when every day could be Valentine’s Day. It seems to talk the language of the current generation, always-on, curious, and questioning traditional relevance.
Valentine’s Day is here and we’re NOT excited! Because let’s face it, with Durex everyday is a celebration and hence #EverydayIsValentines! So, select the most boring gifts you have received on this day from the options below and we will gift you something super exciting instead!
— Durex India (@DurexIndia) February 11, 2020
OTT GOES OVER THE TOP ON VALENTINE DAY.
Netflix, on the other side, has a finger on the pulse of young adults. Their message ‘We are sincerely and terribly sorry for all the drama we’ve caused before. We promise to be better’ was definitely beautiful and relevant. Netflix apologised for all the fights it has started. It silently made the point of its high viewer engagement and involvement. It is a nice cheeky way to leverage the festival with strong product service association. It was treated like a Netflix original and starred ‘Maskaby’ cast, a Netflix original to be released later this year. I hope the audience loved it.
BURGER KING BRILLIANT TAKE ON VALENTINE’S DAY.
The Burger King and McDonald’s rivalry is well-known and documented. The brands have given us many moments of wow. This one is no different.
This year, way Burger King looked at Ronald (the McDonald Clown Mascot) and branded it as the most lonely person on earth, it is just superb. The script remains true to the valentine ethos while refocussing on the competition.
The communication is cheeky. The loneliest man in the world has always been in front of their eyes. Burger King asks customers to go ahead give company to the loneliest man on earth, take a picture or two and tag @burgerkingindia to get a free Whopper this Valentine’s Day. #LonelyNoMore. Must compliment the team that saw this opportunity.
PEPSI SOLO LOSES THE PLOT.
Now compare Netflix, Manforce with a brand like Pepsi using an overexposed fifty-plus star for Solo Swag. The timing absolutely bang on. The message and brand ambassador choice questionable. The spot has high visibility and attracted millions of viewers. Hope, the brand does not misinterpret views with brand affiliation.
https://youtu.be/MOVM4757i-Q
BOROSIL FAILS ON VALENTINE METER.
BOROSIL in the changing societal environment tries exploring the first Valentine Day for the same-gender couple. The idea is excellent. The curtailed expressions of the same-gender couples in the earlier era have been well-captured. ‘I hated Valentine Day, not because I did not have someone to share, but because I did’ is brilliant and powerful.
The brand missed because of a weak product association. And whatever was left was destroyed by adding the end-super about Supreme Court’s favourable verdict on section 377 in 2018! Should it be the first or the second Valentine’s Day? The subtlety was lost, and the forced brand integration is fragile. It happens when brands search for a purpose and find one that is constrained.
BRAND GRAVEYARD ON VALENTINE’S DAY.
Few brands remained functional, so they played safe with their communication on Valentine’s Day, neither gaining or losing. Brands like, Hide and Seek, KFC (Bucket bae), and Platinum Bands.
Kalyan Jewellers tried to play the patriotic card to align with the feelings of women missing their husbands who are on duty at the border.
Don’t forget ‘The Man Company’ trying to make it simple for all kinds of love. ‘Love knows no age, religion or gender’. Very stereotyped expression.
MELORRA RUINED SOMETHING.
Here is the one I loved until it exposed itself as a pure selling tool. Upping the game fell flat when it got down to giving brand items as a gift. Melorra campaign was was bubbly, strong, confident, cheeky, empowering and full of attitude and then it was just about sales. #UpYourGiftingGame
THEY DON’T MAKE THEM LIKE THIS ANYMORE.
The one that I would rate highly is SBI INSURANCE Valentine’s Day ad. Watch it to know how it touches the chord. It is an excellent example of emotion and product linkages. ‘Hira Kya Zane Tumhari Umar’.
Leave it, if there are no dots, stop connecting them. If you have a real purpose that is brand linked and allows you to leverage an opportunity- go right ahead. Otherwise, it is a waste to do forced integration.
Now, it is rare for a brand to come with two exceptional executions in succession. May be it is the rivalry between the two big brands; Burger King and McDonald’s that have made it possible. Personally, I wish for a hattrick.
THE FIRST WIN FOR BURGER KING WITH THE LONELIEST PERSON ON EARTH.
Recently during the Valentine’s Day week, Burger King made one relook at Ronald, the McDonald’s mascot as the loneliest person on planet earth. One was still admiring the way they did the Valentine’s Day communication when one was rattled with the MOLDY BURGER- celebrating no preservatives.
IMMORTAL MCDONALD’s BURGER.
Before, the Burger King- Moldy Whooper, let’s talk of the immortal McDonalds burgers. Time to time reports of McDonald’s burgers that seem to defy time has been flooding the internet. There have been reports of people having 10-12-20-year-old McDonald’s Burgers that have hardly shown any change. They seem to be fresh. The internet even offers the explanation for such a phenomenon- but then life is all about Perceptions adulterated with reality.
A few of these immortal McDonald’s burgers were recently featured on the internet. One could presume that it may have something to do with the other brand. If it did, then Burger King’s Moldy Whooper campaign becomes that more exciting.
So what is Burger King MoldY Whooper?
Moldy Whooper is a simple demonstration. A Burger King’s Whooper deteriorating with time, because there are no preservatives added in any component of the Burger King’s Whooper. As per reports, this is Burger King’s way to move towards more natural ingredients and food. Currently No preservative is a claim across 400 outlets in the USA, soon to be the fact across all US outlets and then take on global sales.
https://youtu.be/oSDC4C3_16Y
Frankly, it is unappetising to look at. There would be debate among brand strategists and creative teams if this was the best way forward to make the point.
We must remember, marketing is all about sacrificing and not merely choosing what to present. I frankly have huge respect for the Burger King’s team. They have taken a disruptive way forward to use such a powerful demonstration. Most of us would love to be a part of a Brand team that does such work.
Moldy Whooper, a creative winner too!
In India, some well-known creative heads have tweeted the possibility of Moldy Whooper winning big time at Cannes. The timing is just right, and most likely, the statements will come true. I, on the other side, am waiting for a hattrick.
Ustraa, the men’s grooming brand from Happily Unmarried, has launched its ad campaign titled Ustraawale.
Highlighting the objective behind the campaign, Rajat Tuli, Co-founder, Ustraa said: “Ustraa’s brand personality is playful swagger. In our communication we wanted that to come across very strongly. The agency managed to do just that.”
Adding his views, Rahul Anand – Co Founder Ustraa said: “This is our first brand campaign and a start of Ustraa 2.0, we are super excited about the way the ads have turned out.”
Commenting on the thought process behind the campaign, Ajay Gahlaut, CCO & MD – Publicis India said: “Over the years I’ve realised that great work more often than not begins with a great set of clients. The rest is just semantics. In this case, we started the brainstorming session a couple of days before the presentation. We sat in my beautiful hotel room overlooking the Aravalli hills where we talked about everything under the sun except the brief! And despite our best efforts, an idea or two managed to sneak in and we had to cut short the partying and start typing some scripts about one Ustrawale!”
The 10th Anniversary of the International Advertising Association (IAA) Olive Crown Awards will be held in Mumbai on March 3. Environment, Tourism and Protocol Minister Aditya Thackeray, WPP CEO Mark Read and Headspace founder Andy Puddicombe are scheduled to be present.
Punit Goenka
Said Punit Goenka President IAA India Chapter: “The Olive Crown Awards are very important because they are the only awards to celebrate creative excellence in communicating sustainability. And we have spared no effort to make the 10th Anniversary of these prestigious awards very special.”
Megha Tata
Added Megha Tata, Chairperson Olive Crown Awards: “This year the response has been very good – both from agencies as well as corporates. The Olive Crown Awards have always been run as a cause, so there were no entry fees charged and the attendance to the awards function is also strictly by invitation.”
Publicis Sapient has announced a collaboration with Elder Research and Tquila to launch Publicis Sapient AI Labs (PS AI Labs). The newly formed consulting company will offer an extensive set of data science services to enable digital transformation for large enterprises in North America and Europe.
Commenting on the collaboration, Thomas Kracz, CEO, Americas of PS AI Labs said: “The joint venture with Elder and Tquila enables us to make AI mainstream for our clients and extends our rapidly growing AI and Data capabilities globally. As organisations struggle to apply data and AI solutions to complex operations, PS AI Labs will play a significant role to solve such client problems and enable us to deliver on our value proposition of being one of the fastest growing digital business transformation service providers in the world.”
Said Gerhard Pilcher, Chairman at PS AI Labs, CEO at Elder Research: “Elder Research has had a great partnership with Publicis Sapient for five years, and this Joint Venture further solidifies the combined strength of our teams. Our rigorous machine learning models will quickly be turned into enterprise level solutions by Publicis Sapient’s experience in driving transformation at scale, thus enabling clients to overhaul their business processes.”
Added James McHugh, CEO and co-Founder at Tquila: “Tquila’s mission is to leverage our talent acquisition capability, to scale at speed, how the JV sources, attracts, trains and retains the best talent in a resource short market. Additionally, our operational oversight required to scale these start-up businesses will bring discipline to a start-up environment. The combination of all three partners will be game changing for clients seeking to derive value from Data Sciences.”
Teamwork Communications Group is celebrating the completion of 10 years, during which the organisation says it has grown and diversified to serve an array of clients. The organisation marked the milestone by honouring its long-established clients at a glitzy event in the national capital. No, we weren’t invited for it.
Valentine’s Day 2020 is just another day. For a majority, this templated festival of expectations, the celebration of love and care would come and go like the other such days, Rose Day, Proposal Day… associated with it.
