MxMIndia

Category: MARKETING

  • Sports emerged as the most preferred marketing tool, over celebrities, events and product placements in movies, music or art, according to a study conducted by SportzConsult, India's premier sports management company

    India Inc opts for sports as preferred marketing

    By Tuhina Anand

     

    Sports emerged as the most preferred marketing tool, over celebrities, events and product placements in movies, music or art, according to a study conducted by SportzConsult, India’s premier sports management company. The study encompassed over a hundred senior marketing professionals across sectors such as FMCG, Automotive, Telecom and BFSI . Of this group, 83 percent have already used sports in their marketing campaigns and 72 percent have seen positive results. Of the brands that have not yet used sports as a marketing tool, 77 percent have affirmed it as a course of action in the near future.

     

    The study was designed to demonstrate the trends and perceptions in the use of sports as a marketing tool among brands in India, including the primary reasons to engage sports in marketing, the channels of engagement, key audiences and evaluation of such campaigns.

     

    Commenting on the findings, Jitendra Joshi, Co-Founder and CEO of SportzConsult said, “Sports has the power to mobilise and motivate. In coming years, brand managers have the huge opportunity to leverage the positive attributes of sports and earn better ROI on marketing spends. The growing adoption of sports for marketing among corporate India will be a win-win for both brands and consumers,”

     

    Key findings of the study

    Passion, and not iconic sportsmen, drive brands to sports

    Passion, youthfulness and the association with active lifestyle came up as the top attributes for choosing sport over other options. Nearly 75 percent of the respondents favoured one of these attributes as the key driver for a sports engagement. Only one quarter of the respondents cited iconic nature of the sportsmen as the key reason for associating with sport. Given the fact that over 50 percent of the population are under the age of 26 years, marketers believe that sports is the most attractive platform to engage their target audience.

     

    Future of ‘other’ sports looks bright

    Marketing campaigns are using niche sports events to address niche audiences.

     

    While popular sports like cricket & football are still the top choices for marketers but they are realizing that they may not always provide the real bang for buck especially if you want to concentrate on niche audience. For many brands ( more than 40 percent of the respondents) an exclusive sport like Golf or a traditional sports like Kho-Kho & Kabaddi is a much better way to engage the relevant TG. Moreover, the heightened need for a healthy and active lifestyle among working professionals is making marathons more and more popular among brands. 24 percent of the brands prefer marathons as an ideal marketing opportunity.

     

    (Passion, and not iconic sportsmen, drive brands to sports)

     

    Sports is a strategic and long term commitment among Indian marketers

    More than half the respondents looked at their association with sports for brand-building as strategic and long term, indicating the growing relevance of sports in the marketing mix. Of this group, 67 percent of the respondents considered using sports as a strategic long term decision rather than a tactical approach.

     

    While over 70 percent of respondents count TV advertising spots as the main component of their engagement with sports, almost 95 percent cited professional event sponsorships as the best option for brands looking at stepping up their reach among the TA. While over 85 percent of the brands used existing sports properties, 45 percent of them had also created their own properties around sports as part of their marketing campaign. However, the survey also revealed the perception that creation of sports properties is risky, as against investments in popular properties.

     

    ‘Number of participants and spectators’ emerged as the most important criteria brands use while evaluating a sports program. ‘Opportunities to leverage brand with the event’ and ‘media promotion & impressions’ were the next two important factors while evaluating a sports program.

     

    Sports is a strategic and long term commitment among Indian marketers

     

    Spend on sports sponsorships to go up

    Over 65 percent of the brands that were part of the study have spent over Rs 1 crore on sports-led marketing campaigns, while 35 percent of the group has spent over Rs 5 crore. 60 percent of the total respondents have confirmed an increase in their investments in sports in the coming years. However, despite this buoyant interest in sports as a marketing tool, around 30 percent of the respondents still spend less than 10 percent of their marketing budget on sports, citing the nebulous nature of sports sponsorships in India.

     

    Current year:

    (Spend on sports sponsorships to go up)

     

    Next One year:

    (Spend on sports sponsorships to go up)

     

    Leveraging sports sponsorships

    The study revealed that while sports sponsorships are popular, Indian marketers, have not mastered the art of leveraging sponsorship programs for continued and long-term marketing success. While sponsorships help brands attain reach and visibility among TA, leveraging the sponsorship is generally more crucial to meeting one’s marketing and organisational goals. In India, only 7.2 percent of the brands have invested 100 percent equivalent of the sports sponsorship investments in leverage programmes( which is a norm in more advance markets like US and Europe), while nearly 38 percent of the brands invested an equivalent of less than 25 percent of the sponsorship spend on these programmes.

     

    Effectiveness of sports-led marketing campaigns tied to sales and customer perceptions

    As much as 82 percent of the respondents measure perception changes owing to the sports-led campaigns, while 62 percent of the group preferred tangible results such as direct impact on sales as the top criteria for evaluating the success of a sport-led marketing campaign. Yet, over 50 percent of the group believe that the need of the hour is a more effective evaluation toolkit to measure the impact of sports-led campaigns.

     

    SportzConsult has been working with leading marketers and media networks to help them meet their objectives through sports strategy, sponsorship consulting and event management services.

     

  • Wrigley, a subsidiary of Mars Inc, has appointed Deepak Iyer as the Managing Director of its India operations effective January 3, 2013

    Wrigley India appoints Deepak Iyer as managing director

    By A Correspondent

     

    Wrigley, a subsidiary of Mars Inc, has appointed Deepak Iyer as the Managing Director of its India operations effective January 3, 2013. This appointment follows the departure of Gautam Sharma, the former Managing Director of Wrigley India who resigned from the company to pursue a new career.

     

    Mr Iyer will be based in New Delhi and operate out of Wrigley India’s headquarters located in the National Capital Region (NCR). In his new role as the Managing Director of Wrigley India, he would be responsible for developing the business strategy to drive growth across various functions and brands of Wrigley India.

     

    Commenting on the appointment, Michael Yeung, President of Wrigley Asia Pacific, said, “India is one of the top 20 geographies of Wrigley globally and India has got a huge potential as an important growth engine to fuel the growth of our region. We are excited to have Deepak join Wrigley India. Given his extensive experience and solid track record, I am confident that our India business will achieve new heights under Deepak’s leadership.”

     

    A seasoned executive, Mr Iyer brings with him a wide spectrum of experience in Sales, Marketing and General Management functions with leading global companies, in both Manufacturing and Corporate sectors. Before joining Wrigley, Deepak spent 16 years in PepsiCo where he handled a portfolio ranging from sales and general management functions. His most recent assignment with PepsiCo was in the capacity of Senior Franchise Director for Africa based in Beirut, Lebanon.

     

  • Location-based mobile advertising platform AdNear has raised Rs 35 crore in its first round of funding from venture capital firms Canaan Partners and Sequoia Capital

    AdNear raises Rs 35 crore in its first round funding

    By Biswarup Gooptu

     

    Location-based mobile advertising platform AdNear has raised Rs 35 crore in its first round of funding from venture capital firms Canaan Partners and Sequoia Capital, signaling the growing attractiveness of the sector for risk capital.The funds will be used by the Bangalore and Singapore-based startup to expand its presence across the Asia Pacific region, including Australia and New Zealand, as well as towards building its team.

     

    “We decided to participate in the mobile advertising eco-system, and picked AdNear, because it has built technology to provide target advertising on mobile phones,” Rahul Khanna, partner, Cannan Partners, said.

     

    The four-year old startup, promoted by Anil Mathews, has developed its own platform that does not require Global Positioning System (GPS). It also works on both feature and smart phones. Within a year of launching its service, it has picked up multinational customers, such as Nokia, Toyota and Samsung.

     

    Sequoia and Canaan declined to state their exact holding, only saying they would hold minority stakes in the company.

     

    “It’s a technology play after a very large market of mobile advertising that has not been explored in this part of the world,” Mohit Bhatnagar, managing director at Sequoia Capital said on the AdNear transaction.

     

    The investment comes soon after Bangalore-based InMobi, an independent mobile advertising company announced that it was shutting its operations in Africa and Russia.

    The global mobile advertising market is dominated by Google’s AdMob, with growth coming from markets where smart phones dominate, including, Japan Korea and the US.

    In September last year, InMobi raised $200 million – till recently, the largest deal in the global mobile internet space – from Japanese telecommunications and media corporation Softbank.

     

    Mojiva raised $7 million earlier in the month, while Jumptap raised $27.5 million in July, prior to its public offering.

    On the mobile side, Canaan Partners had earlier invested in interactive mobile content manager Cellcast in 2007, and has also invested in mobile gaming company Kabam.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

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

     

  • In just four years, India has emerged as third-largest market for the lighter giant

    Zippo to expand offerings in India

    By Tuhina Anand

     

    For Zippo, which is known for its windproof lighters, India has emerged as the third-largest market in the world. This has happened in a short span of four years where India has gone from being a minor market to being second largest international market for the brand after China. Seeing the exponential growth the company too has increased its India focus. Recently, it concluded its Harley Rock Riders rock music festival in Bengaluru where the company has partnered with Harley Davidson.

     

    Interestingly, Zippo across the world  especially in the US, Western Europe, Korea and Japan among others, associates with close to 250 music events and has been driving brand communication via these events.

     

    David Warfel

    Talking about their growth plan in India, David Warfel, Director, Global Marketing Zippo Manufacturing Company, said, “In the last four years, our business has grown tenfold in India and we see this as a big opportunity. We have been focusing primarily in Delhi and to some extent in Mumbai but there is a whole lot that’s left to be tapped in this country. We are making efforts to have an increased focus on developing our retail distribution and trade development.”

     

    He added, “Our distributors have taken a much more aggressive distribution position and there have been an overlay of corporate marketing activities. We have introduced online social media, paid placement and as the market continues to grow and give us resources to reinvest in the market. As time goes on you will see an increased presence of Zippo in India.”

     

    He also disclosed company’s plan to introduce other products from Zippo be it the fragrances, wrist watch and even a men’s clothing line. Mr Warfel said, “Our core product remains the Zippo windproof lighter but we have moved to a lifestyle marketing company and diversified products in our portfolio which will also be available in India. The men’s clothing range should be available by 2013-14.”

     

    As far as the positioning is concerned, Zippo sees itself in the premium segment but not in the luxury or ultra luxury segment. The company is focusing on developing its e-commerce site too.

     

    On the online business, Mr Warfel, said, “We have seen that through online we have gained new customers and it doesn’t really cannibalize our retail sales at all. These are business we would have not got otherwise.”

     

    He concluded, “Our focus is to build loyalty and engage our consumers with Zippo products throughout their lives hence the stress on diversifying our product portfolio.”

     

  • A new identity and packaging for Britannia's Tiger Glucose and Creams by Elephant Design reinforces the brand's growth promise

    Tiger partners with Elephant Design

    By A Correspondent

     

    Premier design firm Elephant Design has conceptualized and designed the new brand identity and packaging for Britannia’s Tiger Glucose & Creams range of biscuits with a strong proposition of growth nutrients. Elephant Design has conceptualized and designed the new brand identity and packaging.

     

    Ashwini Deshpande

    “When redesigning a large popular brand like Tiger, one has to layer the packaging communication in a way that announces the new story delightfully, and yet does not alienate existing consumers.” says Ashwini Deshpande, Founder Director, Elephant.

     

    Elephant has managed to do a fresh take on “growth promise” through a mnemonic and dynamic arrow that clearly connotes visible growth, informed Ms Deshpande.

     

    For a brighter and smarter appeal, Elephant team fine-tuned the Tiger palette of red, blue and white. The product promise of 25% Daily Growth Nutrients was picked up and amplified on the pack through a mnemonic that was supported by RTBs of Iron, Calcium, Folic Acid and Vitamin A & D.  The brand identity has been revamped to look cleaner and contemporary with 3D white letters encased in blue. Since Glucose biscuit is a well-known product format, it is showcased on the pack only to retain the familiarity. However, for Tiger Creams, product shots are used as an opportunity to appeal to kids with taste & fun quotient.

     

    Talking about the design strategy, Mayuri Nikumbh, Principal of Packaging Design practice at Elephant said, “We tried to probe what mothers look for when they are making important everyday decisions towards growth of their children. Our insight led us to communicate the fact that a simple Glucose biscuit could actually play such a positive role in growth and with proper choice, one could derive significant benefit for a growing child.”

     

    Said Anuradha Narasimhan, Category Director (health and wellness), Britannia said about the Tiger relaunch: “It was a challenging brief that we gave our design agency. To bring in credentials and nutrition to a brand design that used to stand for fun and energy, while maintaining continuity and recognition. I am delighted that Elephant Design brought in the growth story with the right confidence and credentials and managed to carry it through the entire portfolio of Tiger Glucose, Krunch and Creams. I am sure the brand will come together and stand out in a crowded retail space”.

     

    Britannia has partnered with Elephant since 2006 as its primary packaging design agency for brands like NutriChoice, Marie Gold, Treat, Tiger, Bourbon, Pure Magic, 50-50, TimePass, breads, cakes dahi and flavoured yogurt.

     

  • Footwear retailer Bata has appointed DDB Mudra Delhi as its dedicated integrated marketing and communications agency. DDB Mudra will be responsible for strengthening the Bata brand and highlighting its contemporary and youthful product range

    Bata India picks DDB Mudra Delhi for integrated marketing and communications

    By A Correspondent

     

    Footwear retailer Bata has appointed DDB Mudra Delhi as its dedicated integrated marketing and communications agency to shoulder marketing communication responsibilities starting December 2012. DDB Mudra will be responsible for strengthening the Bata brand and highlighting its contemporary and youthful product range.

     

    Bata India continues to maintain an aggressive momentum on retail expansion, having added 168 new stores so far this year and is resolute in its plans to launch new and exciting styles for the entire family. The recent growth in business is testimony to Bata’s commitment towards providing consumers the best quality footwear.

     

    Speaking on engaging DDB Mudra Delhi,  Rajeev Gopalakrishnan, Group Managing Director, Bata India Limited said, “DDB Mudra’s robust experience in Media, OOH, Retail and Experiential lifestyle retail has positioned them as our preferred choice. Their understanding of our brand integrated seamlessly with our foreseeable plans. Given the complexities of the retail marketplace and our diverse portfolio of products, it was crucial to select a creative and passionate team to partner Bata in our growth endeavour.”

     

    Said Madhukar Kamath, Group CEO & Managing Director, DDB Mudra Group, “I am elated about this new win for DDB Mudra Delhi. Bata is one of the oldest and most respected brands in India and represents a very special addition to our list of clients. I am confident that our team in Delhi, consisting of Vandana Das, Talha Mohsin, Mahesh Parab, Xavi Bech and Radhika Das will do an excellent job partnering and building brand Bata.”

     

    Expressing both excitement and commitment, Vandana Das, President DDB Mudra Group said, “Bata is one brand we all have grown up with. Needless to say that it’s a prestigious business and it delights us even more to win it particularly at a time when the brand is going through an evolution. There are a host of new offerings planned for the year ahead and we are all geared up and excited.”

     

  • The engagement is aimed at adding traction to the multi-media Corporate Campaign

    Innocean devises ‘Moments of Brilliance’ for Hyundai

    By A Correspondent

     

    Hyundai Motor India has recently launched the second phase of its corporate campaign under the umbrella concept of ‘Live Brilliant’. To add an experiential edge this campaign uses digital media innovatively via new cross-media digital activation and engagement titled ‘Moments of Brilliance’.

     

    Live Brilliant is Hyundai’s global corporate campaign theme and highlights the inextricable nature of the brand with the happiness and brilliance in its consumers’ lives. This activation brings to life this strategic premise that true moments of brilliance in one’s life can happen anytime anywhere and deserve to be shared with one’s loved-ones and friends. So, Hyundai’s communications agency Innocean Worldwide India decided to engage their audience by devising a mobile phone app.

     

    The application enables the user to scan the messages across media -print, dealer posters, outdoor or even on social media using his smart phone which serves the Live Brilliant TVC followed by the contest page.

     

    Using this application, the user can share their own moment of brilliance on-the-go, whenever and wherever they experience it. They can submit freshly clicked images using their camera-phones or share a previous image from their phone gallery. Shankar Narayan Head of Digital practice at Innocean Worldwide, said, “It’s a first-of-its-kind; on-the-move contest enabled using a Mobile AR application. It brings the tacit imagery of the brand in the real world through real people.”

     

    Elaborating further, B Sridhar, Group Director Media & Digital Services at Innocean Worldwide India said, “This initiative underlines the importance of digital technology and media in amplifying the brand ideas in a user friendly manner. Moreover the relevance and delight factor is ensured all along. We see in this instance a clear force multiplier to our media efforts and brand outreach.”

     

    For the audience not using smartphones, this engagement devised by Innocean for Hyundai Motor India has an application on their official Facebook page to enable online entries for the contest. Along with the contest, this innovative application gives a remarkably personalized experience to its user by showcasing the Live Brilliant concept video via a collage of the user’s own images which are dynamically picked in real-time from the user’s Facebook album. The intent is to make the user feel related to the brand and the Live Brilliant motto. Users can even download this video collage and share it with friends. To reward and delight the consumers, from the total entries received, across platforms, 50 lucky winners will be chosen to win exciting prizes courtesy Hyundai Motor India.

     

    Vivek Srivastava, Joint MD, Innocean Worldwide India, said, “This campaign is a living testimony to the agency’s strong digital capabilities and their leverage for client’s benefit. In times to come it will imperative for brands operating in high consumer involvement space to offer memorable and relevant experience to their patrons using the Digital medium. Moreover with this initiative our valued client Hyundai Motor India has proved yet again that its campaigns are more about relevantly designed consumer-centric experiences and not mere taglines.”

     

  • Its new brand campaign themed 'Always in fashion' in India is to complement its international signature 'Where Fashion Gets Personal'

    Harper’s Bazaar launches new brand campaign

    By A Correspondent

     

    Harper’s Bazaar, the fashion magazine with 29 international editions, has introduced its new brand campaign themed ‘Always in fashion’ in India to complement its international signature ‘Where Fashion Gets Personal’. The magazine has kicked off a new 360-degree brand campaign, which will see lifestyle malls such as Select City Walk in Delhi being branded with Harper’s Bazaar Campaign. ‘Always in Fashion’ – a tri-series outdoor ad campaign with Sonam Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Priyanka Chopra will cover print, online, outdoors, events & PR.

     

    Targeting the luxury clients, top socialites, HNI consumers, fashion segment and trade, the campaign will run across several lifestyle magazines and trade newsletters apart from digital amplification through trade e-mailers and banners, social media amplification through various Lifestyle Brands with the campaign promoted on social media accounts of major lifestyle magazines such as cosmopolitan, Women’s Health & Harper’s Bazaar India.

     

    The India Today Group also announced the appointment of a new team at Harper’s Bazaar India led by Nishat Fatima as Editor and Ami Patel as the Creative Director.

     

    Sharing her insights on the new brand campaign and welcoming the new team at Harper’s Bazaar India, Mala Sekhri, Chief Operating Officer, Lifestyle Group, India Today Group said, “The new appointments comes at the right time as we unveil the new campaign for Bazaar India. We are happy to welcome Nishat back to the company. Her background and experience make her the perfect editor for Harper’s Bazaar India. We are confident that she will be able to lead the team and help the magazine retain its position as the must-read magazine for the latest fashion, beauty and lifestyle innovations.”

     

    Ms Sekhri added, “We are very excited about this next chapter for Bazaar India!”

     

  • Retailers like Spencer's, Future Group and others exit loss-making regions, focus on potential growth markets

    Big retailers exit loss-making markets

    By Rasul Bailay

     

    Spencer’s Retail shuttered all its nine stores in Pune, a city with one of the highest densities of modern retail presence in the country, last month; Aditya Birla Retail left financial capital Mumbai, Jaipur and Coimbatore earlier this year; and Future Group’s eZone electronic chain closed operations in several cities including Delhi, Indore, Surat and Ahmedabad last year.

     

    Big retailers are now exiting loss-making regions altogether and focussing on their strongholds and potential growth markets to improve their efficiency and profitability to cope with a slowdown in consumer spending and squeeze in margins due to increasing competition and rising costs.

     

    “Every retailer has to see what works for them and what not and if things don’t work out in any city, it is better to exit,” Rajan Malhotra, president of retail strategy at Future Group, said.

     

    eZone, the electronics chain of the country’s largest retailer, exited about a dozen cities last year and is now focused on six cities including Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Bangalore, Chennai and parts of the National Capital Region.

     

    Mr Malhotra said eZone has improved efficiencies after the restructuring and is doing better business than before in the cities where it is present. “Instead of 20 cities, if you are doing well in ten cities, then why not,” he says.

     

    By exiting Pune, Spencer’s Retail has almost packed off from western India, having just two hypermarkets in the region – in Mumbai and Baroda. A spokesperson for the Kolkata-based retailer said the company currently focuses on West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, eastern Uttar Pradesh and NCR and will mostly open newer stores in these states in the next two years.

     

    Focusing on growth potential markets means efficient supply chain, especially when many Indian retailers are still trying to concoct a winning business model.

    Managing costs is another big reason driving retailers to exit certain regions. Aditya Birla Retail, for example, left Mumbai bag and baggage because of high rentals.

    “The food and grocery retail is a thin margin business. The right rent-to-revenue ratio is critical for the success of the store and the business,” Pranab Barua, business director for retail and apparels at Aditya Birla Group, said.

     

    Over the last several months, Aditya Birla Retail has closed 25 stores in Mumbai, 10 in Jaipur and about 20 outlets in Coimbatore and left those cities to focus on its growth areas.

     

    Mr Barua cited unduly high rentals for exiting Mumbai and “strategic reasons” for closing stores in Jaipur and Coimbatore.

     

    Retailers say rentals in Indian cities, particularly metros, are much higher than in cities elsewhere. KS Raman, director at Videocon’s electronic chain Next Retail, said rentals as percentage of revenue in India is anywhere between 7-18% compared to global average of 3%. “The cost of operations in the metros is very huge,” he said. Retail executives say closing of stores is as cumbersome and expensive as opening stores.

     

    A senior executive at Aditya Birla Retail executive said the company on an average spends Rs 25 lakh while closing any store in employees, infrastructure and other liquidation costs.  The person said the company has closed all those stores which were not profitable or where there was no hope of making profit. Aditya Birla Retail now operates only one store in Mumbai, at Navi Mumbai.

     

    Source: The Economic Times

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

     

  • Maximus Events are conducting a two-week-long programme at High Street Phoenix and Phoenix Marketcity to disseminate the idea of the Pinkathon and raise awareness about breast cancer

    Pinkathon raises breast cancer awareness with the 10km marathon and other programmes

    By A Correspondent

     

    Maximus Events, the agency behind the 10km special women’s marathon Pinkathon 2012, has collaborated with two of the most high-profile malls of Mumbai in order to spread awareness about breast cancer – which is the cause that Pinkathon is officially associated with.

     

    As part of the programme, they have lined up an array of exciting active and passive events which offer a unique edutainment experience to the mall visitors. While women can directly pledge support to breast cancer by registering for Pinkathon 2012 at the mall, others may passively contribute by way of writing on the Post-it wall or pinning a pink ribbon on the Pinboard of Support.

     

    On Sunday December 2, 2012, High Street Phoenix mall witnessed a unique, never seen before Treadathon event; where 20 men ran on a treadmill, non-stop from 10 am till 9pm, thus covering 200kms in this activity. The runners were extremely enthusiastic about the cause and encouraged the women at High Street Phoenix to come, register for Pinkathon and be more aware and alert.

     

    In order to make the events more interactive and involve the women personally into the program, Phoenix Marketcity will host a Treasure Hunt on the December 8, 2012, where 20 participants will be chosen from the women who have registered for Pinkathon. These women will be divided into 10 Teams and then sent to different stores for a treasure hunt. This activity will be repeated three times in the course of the day making it a total of 60 women being engaged in the activity.

     

    The two week extravaganza culminates with a true “grand” finale, The Pink Carnival at Phoenix Marketcity on December 8 and 9. It will be a carnival of sorts where the mall will be decked up in pink balloons and ribbons, zumba performances, bib distributions and stalls where women can indulge in a shopfest.

     

    Commenting on this activity, Reema Sanghavi, Managing Director, Maximus Events said: “We are happy that we are being able to offer such a fun-filled extravaganza for all the ladies around. The on-ground activation has commenced from 26th November, and we have received an overwhelming response from the women. Even if they aren’t able to register for Pinkathon, they still contribute via post-its or ribbon tags and it is this enthusiasm and awareness which was the main idea behind the mall activation.”

     

    Pinkathon 2012 is an initiative by event management company, Maximus Events, led by avid runner and fitness enthusiast Milind Soman along with Reema Sanghavi. It is India’s first ever 10km run for women named “Pinkathon – Run to Lead” with an aim to spread awareness on breast cancer and educate people about the causes and prevention of this hugely under-publicized ailment.

     

    Maximus Events has joined hands with the Women’s Cancer Initiative led by Deveika Bhojwani and the Tata Memorial Hospital for this unique initiative. Leading Bollywood actress and fitness aficionado Bipasha Basu officially launched the registrations for the event for participants from across the country on the November 9, 2012.

     

    The 10km run scheduled in the business hub of Bandra Kurla Complex will be held on December 16, 2012 in Mumbai. This will be the first of the planned 10 city series across India in the coming years.

     

    The official website for Pinkathon is http://pinkathon.co/ through which online registrations can be done. Participants can also log onto to https://www.facebook.com/Pinkathon and https://twitter.com/pinkathon2012.

     

  • WATMedia's annual event will witness participation of prominent visionaries discussing topics that contribute to the growth of digital and advertising space

    WATSummit ’13 to discuss new era of digi mktng

    By A Correspondent

     

    WATMedia has announced its annual event, WATSummit that brings together eminent personalities to confer the evolving facets of social and digital industry. In its third edition, the theme of WATSummit 2013 is ‘A New Era of Digital Marketing’. The annual summit that is scheduled to take place on 15th Feb, 2013 at The Orchid Hotel, Mumbai, will also host WAT Awards 2013, wherein, thought leaders of Web, Advertising and Technology will be awarded.

     

    WATSummit 2013 will witness participation of prominent visionaries discussing topics that contribute to the growth of digital and advertising space.

     

    A panel of experts will be seen highlighting the prominence of social media with ‘Social Media Marketing – Making sense of jibber-jabber by brands’. The evolution of ‘Digital Media Marketing – Can it build a brand on its own?’ will be discussed extensively by a panel comprising Digital Agencies and Brands.

     

    The summit will also bring to light the E-commerce industry and the upspring of mobile marketing with in-depth discussion on topics like ‘Ecommerce Market build brand V/S build business’, ‘Mobile Marketing – Promises of reach V/S Actual Impact’. The final panel will be seen conferring the do’s and don’ts and the challenges of ‘Startup Marketing – Breaking the cluster and creating a Brand’.

     

    Sharing his views on the third WATSummit, Rajiv Dingra, Founder & CEO, WATMedia Pvt Ltd said, “I am pleased to announce WATSummit 2013. The response to the earlier summits has been encouraging, which brings us to its third edition. This year, at WATSummit 2013, we aim to emphasize on the new era of digital marketing. The medium has grown exceptionally over the past few years and brands and consumers across the world consider the digital medium a dominant tool. I am delighted with the participation of renowned speakers who will share their profound knowledge. With WATSummit 2013, our endeavor is to embark on a digitally successful journey.”

     

    The keynote speakers for the event include dignitaries such as Suresh Reddy – Chairman & CEO, Ybrant Digital & Neville Taraporewalla – Country Director, Advertising and Online- Microsoft Corporation.

     

  • It's a myriad mix of cultures. In good old diverse India, localization is the only way to make it work, says Rahul Kumar

    The Anchor: 5 reasons localization is important

    By Rahul Kumar

     

    1. Localization is becoming paramount and extremely important in the Indian market.

     

    2. India is a country of many sects; each sect represents different communities. For the food Industry it is very important for an international brand like us to have extensive market research to determine what assortment is the best fit for Indian culture.

     

    3. Localization is essential as it demonstrates a brand’s commitment to its consumers and builds a strong connection with them.

     

    4. A diverse product range can also increase customer satisfaction.

     

    5. It is also important to localize in the Indian context as there are seasonal changes, various festivals, and to attract consumers we need to adhere and revolve as per these changes. It’s essential for a brand like us to keep reinventing and customize or localize flavours as per our customers’ demands.

     

    Rahul Kumar is CEO & Principal Owner, Red Mango India