Category: ADVERTISING

  • Rules of creativity rewritten at Cannes

    By Ravi Balakrishnan

     

    As the week progresses, it’s become obvious that you need to ‘friend’ social media if you’d like to win atCannes. Almost every single award case study this year in the more functional result- driven categories like Direct, Promo and Activation and Creative Effectiveness came complete with a laundry list of social media successes.

     

    Indian agencies and the smattering of marketers who continue to lament the country’s performance atCannesthis year would do well to heed some of the new rules of creativity. According to Manish Bhatt, founder, Scarecrow Communications, and a jury member on Direct: “The definition of creativity is changing. Everybody is now talking about making a difference to the world. It’s a tall claim we all know, but creative effectiveness alone cannot get you to a Grand Prix.”

     

    A few jury members go so far as to say creativity is almost playing second fiddle in some cases to ‘earned media’ – getting spontaneous mentions in news sources – the more global, the better and being widely shared across social media. And in rare cases, an endorsement from the president of the United States Barack Obama who tweeted about Small Business Sunday, a campaign from American Express that won both in Promo and Activation and Direct and is said to be a close contender for the highly prized Titanium category.

     

    Even this year’s press winner for Benetton, ‘Unhate’ which featured photoshopped images of notoriously antagonistic political leaders kissing, was a news and social media success long before it reached the jury. It’s not thatIndiadoesn’t do socially relevant advertising; it’s just missing a trick in viewing such campaigns as ‘awardworthy.’

     

    Prasoon Joshi, president – McCann Worldgroup,South Asiasaid: “If Team Anna had entered their campaign that would have been a Grand Prix in my book. It was well managed in social media and everything. But in our country that consciousness is not there: that social movements and social good by brands is a big thing.”

     

    The serious exception to the rule of corporate ‘good’ winning applies to work that takes a radically different view of the possibilities a category represents; never mind if it seems almost too bizarre for their own good. A global brand like Mercedes lost the Grand Prix on radio to an entry fromBrazil’s Go Outside magazine from Talent,Sao Paulofeaturing a radio station with allegedly mosquito repellent properties.

     

    Source: The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2012, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

     

  • Mindshare & Google launch ‘Mobile Garage’

    By A Correspondent

     

    Mindshare and Google have announced the launch of ‘Mobile Garage’, a unique venture designed to use Google’s best in class mobile expertise to supercharge the use of mobile by Mindshare’s global client base.

     

    Mobile Garage will see the setting up of mobilehubs around the globe – initially New York, London and Singapore – where Mindshare clients will gain access via dedicated teams to mobile strategists and product experts. The hubs will consist of a mix of Mindshare and Google employees and will work across all aspects of the mobile eco-system, from search optimisation and app development, to strategy, planning and creative optimization.

    Nick Emery, CEO Mindshare Worldwide said: ‘We designed Mindshare to be open source and to work with the best partners for the benefit of our clients. It’s about trial, experimentation and speed to re-design our business. Working with Google on mobile will give our clients a competitive advantage in a key battleground both now and for the future.”

     

    Mobile Garage will give Mindshare clients a unique advantage in the race to harness the growing global trend of mobile device usage. Mobile search traffic has increased 400 per cent over the past 2 years, and its potential goes even further. The GSMA, the industry body for mobile operators, and research company Machina, predict there will be 24 billion connected devices by 2020 creating an industry worth $4.5 trillion and covering innovations such as connected cars, building automation and traffic management. In addition the venture will also give Mindshare clients competitive advantage in emerging markets, with KPCB’s Mary Meeker recently showing that mobile internet usage had surpassed desktop internet usage in India.

    Matt Brittin, VP, Sales and Operations, Northern and Central Europe at Google said: “We have adopted a ‘mobile first’ philosophy at Google to keep pace with the rapid acceleration in consumer mobile usage. We are delighted to team up with Mindshare on a similar strategy for their clients. Mindshare have already shown strong momentum in the mobile marketing space, and have a great opportunity to lead their clients to win on mobile in the future.”

     

    Mobile Garage will complement Mindshare’s existing relationship with WPP’s mobile agencies Joule and H-Art.

     

  • Gaana.com launches music streaming app on Win 8 tab

    By A Correspondent

     

    Gaana.com is the first full-fledged music streaming application for India’s store of Windows 8 Release Preview. It is also the first music serving application for Surface in India. With a vast repertoire of popular Bollywood, Hindi, regional and international music, it is currently available in 38 markets worldwide.

     

    The Gaana.com application in the Surface store has the slick Windows 8 metro-style tiled interface with intuitive interactions and fluid navigation. The application offers users a smooth browsing with the latest and most popular albums, artists, genres and songs. Users can easily browse through the entire database of music, and choose from curated music charts or filter music based on language preferences. Gaana.com also offers music suggestions, based on the album that a user is listening to, further enhancing the overall experience.

     

    Gaana.com is one of the most popular music websites with over 10 million songs to choose from. It has a user base of more than 3 million unique visitors. Satyan Gajwani, CEO of Times Internet Ltd said: “We want gaana.com to be as accessible to users as possible. The Windows 8 Surface tablet is an exciting innovation, and a fantastic new way for users to experience music on demand. The Gaana app is now available in the Surface store for users globally to listen, compile, and share the music they love.”

     

  • Audi Q3 ‘Start Young Music Movement’ showcases young talent

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Audi Q3 ‘Start Young Music Movement’ launched by Creativeland Asia has been successful in providing Audi fans with a platform to showcase their creativity and has encouraged them to start young towards achieving their dreams.
    Created by Creativeland, the microsite www.audi-q3.in enables Audi fans to create their own music video in 4 simple steps and submit it to win exciting prizes.

     

    On the online editing timeline, participants can simply pick pictures from their Facebook page and mix them up with the clips already created by Audi, or they could even record their own footage. The video can be then edited to the ‘This Is Our Time’ soundtrack created specifically for this. The videos then can be shared with friends and people around the world. Twenty videos with the maximum number of likes will be shown to the jury selected by Audi for this purpose.

     

    The music video ‘This is our time’ has been created by Creativeland Asia exclusively for the Audi Q3 ‘Start Young Music Movement’.

     

    [youtube width=”400″ height=”225″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-SmBSFPq8k[/youtube]Credits:

    Creative agency: Creativeland Asia
    Record Label: Creativeland Records
    Production Company: Pixel Tonic Films
    Director: Deb Medhekar
    Music: Mikey McCleary
    Vocals: Nikhil D’Souza

     

  • Anil Thakraney: Yes, We Cannes!

    By Anil Thakraney

     

    I have been to Cannes just once, and this was in the year 2000. To represent the ad mag I was editing at the time. I have many interesting memories of that trip, but the one that stands out is this: While I did run into quite a few eager desi ad men and women, India did not win a single award. In fact, the scenario was so bad, global ad gurus and the fest organizers would treat Indian journos with the same degree of respect as those from Eastern Europe. Okay, perhaps slightly better. And this made even a simple thing like obtaining interviews with the ad biggies a Herculean task.

     

    I am happy to discover that in the interim period a lot has changed. While India may still not be setting Cannes on fire, our creative directors do return with a decent number of trophies. This was inconceivable in the year 2000. I am particularly pleased that the Mumbai Mirror TV commercial scored a Gold. Not only because I have worked for that newspaper in the past, but also because I recall giving the ad very high marks in the review I did for mxmindia. This is a clear indication that the ad frat must take my ad reviews very seriously… the Cannes jury gets influenced by them, hehe.

     

    So then how did India turn the corner in the last decade? I would say there are three reasons: In the last few years, thanks to the economic boom and the efforts of some filmmakers (most specifically, Sir Danny Boyle), the India story has become interesting for the goras. They want to know more about us, we excite them now. This also means that the jury members now pay more attention to the Indian approach to advertising, they try hard to get our culture. Plus having more desi judges out there helps. All this then results in a better strike rate.

     

    Second, the quality of our ‘creamy layer’ work has gone up in the last ten years. And I use the phrase creamy layer because 90 per cent of the mass advertising continues to be bollocks, and this is the case with the rest of the world too. But we have significantly improved on our good work. I also think some of our creative directors and ad filmmakers are paying a lot more attention to execution, a very important reason behind our increasing medals tally.

     

    But most importantly, the clients have evolved in the last decade. Many of them want to push the envelope, they want to innovate; they don’t mind taking risks. This has naturally helped matters a lot. This was not the case in the past. Back in the bad old days, one was paid to do safe work, and risk takers used to be punished.

     

    Maybe I will visit Cannes next year, it’s the right time. Think I will be given as much bhav as the American and the Brit journos. 🙂

     

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    PS: Interesting blogpost on the biggest advertising lies. Lies that get bandied around so often, they become truths. Here’s exploding some popular myths.

    Link: http://adcontrarian.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/advertisings-5-biggest-lies.html

     

     

  • Cannes Lions Grand Prix JurySpeak

    By A Correspondent

     

    A diverse set of Grand Prix Lion winners were announced at the 59th International Festival of Creativity, Cannes Lions 2012 over the last week. It was a hectic week for judges with an interesting array of campaigns and creative projects being thrown up to dig out the Grand Prix awards.

     

    Four agencies won two Grand Prix each, Creative Artists Agency for Chipotle; R/GA for Nike; and Crispin Porter + Bogusky and Digitas, who teamed up on American Express.

     

    Nick Worthington

    The Outdoor category saw Jung von Matt’sInvisible Drive for Mercedes honoured along with Ogilvy Shanghai’s Cokehands posters. Coca-Cola was a double winner in Outdoor for a student-designed poster and in the inaugural Mobile Lions contest for its role in Google’s Project Rebrief. In the PR category JWT’s musical-based campaign for a Puerto Rican bank and BBH won Creative Effectiveness for its Even Angels Will Fall campaign for Lynx/Axe.

     

    The Promo & Activation Grand Prix was won by Crispin Porter +Bogusky’s ‘Small Business Gets an Official Day’. Jury President Nick Worthington, speaking about the winning campaign, said: “It’s just an extraordinary piece of work. It’s so audacious, it kind of breaks the boundaries of what advertising is, what promo and activation is…It’s very easy to do the stuff that comes and goes but these guys have achieved a legacy.”

     

    Bruce Duckworth

    This year’s Design Lions Grand Prix was awarded to ‘The Solar Annual Report 2011’ by SERVICEPLAN. President of the Design Lions Jury, Bruce Duckworth said that one of ways you know a work is great enough is when you wish you would have done that work. Speaking about the winning entry, he said: “It’s got a great idea. It’s taken a client which is a solar powered company and it’s the annual book for that. You take it out in the sunshine and magically from a blank book, the information appears. It’s like magic, it made the hair on the back of my neck stand up and it wasn’t just me, it was the whole jury.”

     

    David Jones, President of the Creative Effectiveness Lions Jury explained why the jury selected BBH London’s Axe Excite for American Express as the Grand Prix winner: “It won for a few reasons. First, they did a fantastic job of proving the contribution of advertising and the tangible business results associated with that. And they also did a great job of discounting the other facts, showing that it wasn’t a bad price or increased distribution or a massive increase in media spends.

     

    David Jones

    The case they made for RoI was very powerful, also we were impressed by the fact that it had some great consumer insights. And finally it was the best proof of what we all know, which is – in today’s world where you can’t buy attention anymore, you have to earn it – a brilliant creative idea that engages and cuts through is the best way of driving effectiveness, and we thought it was a fantastic idea that was bigger than the product…”

     

    For more insights from the jury on what went into picking the best and how the selected winners stood out from a clutter of entries, MxMIndia put together a video playlist where Jury presidents and members discuss and explain the reason for choosing the Grand prix winners in the respective categories.

     

     

    MxMIndia gets you an assortment of videos where Jury Presidents and members speak to Cannes Lions TV to explain why they chose the winning entry for the Grand Prix in different categories.

     

     

    1. Nick Worthington on the Promo & Activation Lions Grand Prix 2012: Jury President Nick Worthington talks to Cannes Lions TV about the 2012 Promo & Activation Grand Prix, which was won by Crispin Porter + Bogusky’s ‘Small Business Gets An Official Day’ for American Express. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VueDxGaCgA[/youtube]
    2. Gideon Amichay on the Direct Lions Grand Prix: Jury President Gideon Amichay explains why his jury selected Crispin Porter + Bogusky’s ‘Small Business Gets An Official Day’ for American Express as the 2012 Direct Lions Grand Prix winner. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jt5tvuTobaw[/youtube]
    3. Gail Heimann on the PR Lions Grand Prix: Jury President Gail Heimann explains why ‘The Most Popular Song’ by JWT San Juan,Puerto Ricowas awarded the PR Grand Prix – the first in the country’s history. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8t3HIi49v0U[/youtube]
    4. Lo Sheung Yan on the Outdoor Lions Grand Prix: Jury President Lo Sheung Yan explains why ‘#Cokehands’ and ‘The Invisible Drive’ were both awarded Grand Prix at Cannes Lions 2012. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTNNgv-hzdY[/youtube]
    5. David Jones on Creative Effectiveness Lions Grand Prix: Jury President David Jones explains why his jury selected BBH London’s Axe ‘Excite’ for American Express as the 2012 Creative Effectiveness Lions Grand Prix winner. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFGN5gqZNWg[/youtube]
    6. Mainardo de Nardis on the Media Lions Grand Prix: Jury president Mainardo de Nardis, OMD Worldwide’s CEO, explains why the ‘Google Voice Search’ campaign by Manning Gottlieb OMD London picked up the 2012 Media Lions Grand Prix. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZydFdfA9hE8[/youtube]
    7. Rob McLennan on the Radio Lions Grand Prix: Jury president Rob McLennan, the Executive Creative Director at Net#work BBDO, explains what set ‘Repellent Radio’ by Talent São Paulo apart from the other entries and earned it the 2012 Radio Lions Grand Prix. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEcalIah40w[/youtube]
    8. Bruce Duckworth on the Design Lions Grand Prix: Jury president Bruce Duckworth explains why this year’s Design Lions Grand Prix was awarded to ‘The Solar Annual Report 2011’ by SERVICEPLAN Munich. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=706cGnjT44Q[/youtube]
    9. Tham Khai Meng on the Press Lions Grand Prix: Jury President Tham Khai Meng explains why his jury selected United Colors Of Benetton Apparel’s campaign for the 2012 Press Lions Grand Prix. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlck0BMSCyE[/youtube]
    10. The Jury On The Cyber Lions Grand Prix: Three members of the Cyber Lions jury, including president Iain Tait, discuss the two winning Grand Prix pieces. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGPF9nkpavU[/youtube]
    11. Tom Eslinger on the Mobile Lions Grand Prix: Jury president Tom Eslinger explains why Google’s ‘Hilltop Re-Imagined For Coca-Cola’ was awarded the first-ever Cannes Lions Mobile Lions Grand Prix. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOqjRbjgE-s[/youtube]
    12. Avi Savar on the Branded Content & Entertainment Lions Grand Prix: Jury president Avi Savar explains what set the first-ever Branded Content & Entertainment Lions Grand Prix apart from the rest of the entries. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6z380OGlyRg[/youtube]
    13. Espen Horn on the Film Craft Grand Prix: Jury President Espen Horn explains more about the Film Craft Grand Prix, indicating why it stood out from the crowd. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PiPgwTtAZfU[/youtube]
    14. Rob Riley on the Titanium & Integrated Lions Grand Prix: Jury President Rob Riley takes a moment to give us some more information about why made the Titanium Grand Prix so special and worthy of the prize. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NSmpkR6Ap8[/youtube]
    15. Tham Khai Meng on the Film Lions Grand Prix: Jury President Tham Khai Meng takes a moment to reveal the 2012 Film Lions Grand Prix and explain why it picked up the prize. [youtube width=”300″ height=”169″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mA8OxP0gpNA[/youtube]

     

     

     

     

  • Debrief: Britannia Bourbon Cappuccino: Power of insight

    By Anil Thakraney

     

    Britannia has launched Bourbon Cappuccino biscuits. And the key ingredient, also the USP, is the coffee flavour. Nothing really exciting about this, but the advertiser has used a cool consumer insight and this helps inspire good creative work.

     

    What they have done is to give ‘coffee’ a sexual touch. As in, after a date, when the guy is dropping his partner home, and if he’s really lucky, the girl invites him in for a cup of coffee. Naturally, this is less about coffee and more about some rocking fun on the couch.

     

    The TVC plays on this angle, adds in a little twist, and the ad works out pretty nicely. What is just another biscuit brand now gets wings, and along the way the coffee USP gets suitably highlighted. Mission accomplished.

     

    [youtube width=”400″ height=”225″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hjbkkut1dKY[/youtube]

    Yes, good work. The young gen, at who Britannia Bourbon Cappuccino is targeted at, will connect with this stuff. It’s simple, entertaining and effective. And most importantly, the product attribute is smoothly communicated, without ramming it down our throats. A good example of how critical consumer insight is to the advertising business.

     

    Rating: (On a scale of 1-5): 3.5. Good insight. Entertaining ad.

     

  • Bang in the Middle is Veen’s communication partner

    By A Correspondent

     

    Veen Spring Waters has appointed Bang in the Middle as its official communication partner. Bang in the Middle will help Veen enter newer luxury markets of Asia and also consolidate their already strong presence in European, Middle Eastern and Chinese markets. Bang in the Middle will henceforth be responsible for managing the brand’s health globally.

     

    “I am thrilled to find a like-minded partner in Bang in the Middle. The market for premium water is growing rapidly, and this growth is a potent opportunity for a young brand like Veen. Together with their expertise, we would be looking at entering various new markets including India,” said Aman Gupta, Director, Veen Waters.

     

    “For a world thirsty for gourmet experiences, Veen is an extremely special offering. I believe that we have been very fortunate to be considered as Veen’s global communication partner. At Bang in the Middle, our focus, work and thinking aren’t going to be limited by geography, and Veen is a brand that fits our plans to a brilliance,” said Prathap Suthan, Managing Partner, Bang in the Middle.

     

  • Dinesh Singh Rathore is COO, Madison Media Omega

    By A Correspondent

     

    Madison Media announced that Dinesh Singh Rathore has been appointed as COO of Madison Media Omega, based in Bangalore. Mr Rathore joins Madison from Starcom MediaVest Group, where he was Head,  MediaVest, Mumbai & Delhi offices.

     

    Mr Rathore has over 17 years of experience in media, working with media agencies like Starcom MediaVest Group and Mudra. He was the head of FutureWorks, the specialist unit of SMG that handled the Future Group business. Across his career, Mr Rathore has worked on interesting brands including Zydus Wellness, Emirates, The Mobile Store, Tata Housing, Novartis, World Gold Council, Wipro, Toyota, SabMiller, Essilor, Hitachi, Rasna, Only Vimal.

     

    Gautam Kiyawat, Group CEO, Madison Media said: “I am delighted to have Dinesh join our Leadership team and am sure he will add a lot of value to our clients in Bangalore.”

     

    Mr Rathore, on his joining Madison said: “I am looking forward to this new role and contributing to an enviable list of clients.”

     

    Madison Media was recently in the news for winning the Crompton Greaves, Enamor and Dixcy Textile’s Media AOR.

     

     

  • A Jagannath joins LinkedIn to head trade marketing

    By A Correspondent

     

    LinkedIn, the professional network with over 15 million members in India, has appointed AL Jagannath as Head, trade marketing for India.

     

    With over 18 years of experience in marketing, Mr Jagannath’s immediate focus will be to drive existing and new initiatives for LinkedIn’s Marketing Solutions and Hiring Solutions portfolios.

     

    As part of LinkedIn India’s leadership team, he will be responsible for widening awareness about LinkedIn’s array of customized solutions that are available to advertisers and recruiters in the Indian market.

     

    “Being the second-largest member base for LinkedIn, we see tremendous potential for growing our business in India. We have built a strong and viable platform for the business over the last two and a half years. Our focus, moving forward, will be to build off this platform and continue to give the best value to our advertisers and recruiters. Jagannath brings invaluable experience in building up large businesses and his addition to the India leadership team will help us accelerate our growth in the market, strengthen our operations and associate with even more businesses in India,” said Hari V Krishnan, Country Manager, LinkedIn India.

     

    Based out of Bengaluru, Mr Jagannath joins LinkedIn from VMWare, where he was director, marketing for India and SAARC. Prior to VMWare, he also held leadership positions at some ofIndia’s largest IT companies like Satyam Computers, Reliance Infocomm and Mudra Communications. Having worked with these companies, Jagannath comes with holistic experience in business and consumer marketing.

     

    LinkedIn India is headquartered in Mumbai with offices in New Delhi and Bengaluru.

     

  • Bharti Airtel gears up to present Super Singer 7

    By A Correspondent

     

    Bharti Airtel, a leading global telecommunications company, has launched Airtel Super Singer 7, aimed to entertain music lovers of Andhra Pradesh. The launch took place in the presence of Sharlin Thayil, CEO – Bharti Airtel, Andhra Pradesh along with the jury members of the show, singers Sunitha and Kouslaya along with lyricist Chandra Bose.

     

    Airtel Super Singer 7 – The Spicy Series brings famous singers to a common platform. There will be 2 teams in this series – Warriors and Chargers and the show will have the singers showcasing a variety of music genres.

     

    Speaking on the occasion, Mr Thayli said: “Airtel has always taken the lead in associating with events, shows and initiatives that showcases the talent of today’s youth. It gives us immense pleasure to be associated with this youthful and entertaining show. We would like to wish the participants all the very best for a fantastic show.”

     

    Airtel Super Singer 7 – The Spicy Series will be aired every Wednesday on Maa TV.

     

  • RK Swamy Media wins Khazana Jewellery account

    By A Correspondent

     

    RK Swamy Media Group has won the media account of Khazana Jewellery, a leading jewellery retail chain from South.

     

    Sandeep Sharma, President, RK Swamy Media Group said: “We are extremely delighted to partner with Khazana Jewellery. We are confident of adding  disproportionate value to their media investments. We also believe this is a testimony to our passion to deliver the best for our clients. Our team under the able leadership of K Satyanarayana, VP (west & south) will spearhead this partnership.”

     

    Kishore Jain,MDof Khazana Jewellery said: “We welcome R K SWAMY Media Group as our media partner and look forward to their superior media solutions in helping build our brand value further. We are poised for the next level of growth with major expansion plans and we are confident that R K SWAMY Media Group will add value in achieving our goals”.

     

    Khazana Jewellery is a Rs2,600 crore jewellery retail chain with 20 stores across South India.