MxMIndia

Category: Digital

  • Varun will oversee marketing strategy across channels covering online, offline, mobile and strategic alliance partnerships

    ShopClues appoints Varun Jha as Senior Director, Marketing

    By A Correspondent

     

    ShopClues has announced the appointment of Varun Jha as its Senior Director, Marketing. Varun joins ShopClues from PayU India where he was a core team member and the Head of Marketing. In his new role, he will work directly with Nitin Agarwal, AVP Marketing at ShopClues. In his new role, he will oversee marketing strategy across channels covering online, offline, mobile and strategic alliance partnerships.

     

    Speaking on his appointment, Varun said, “I am super excited to be a part of India’s largest managed marketplace – ShopClues. In a short span of time, ShopClues has established itself as a dominant player in the e-commerce sector through rapid growth in both merchant and consumer base. What excites me more is the fact that it operates at an immense scale and this will open up a new set of challenging opportunities for me. As a new-age marketer, I will be looking at further scaling the business through innovative marketing solutions and aligning marketing channels with the path of profitability.”

     

    Radhika Aggarwal, Co-founder and Chief Business Officer said, “Varun has 8 years of solid experience through which he has demonstrated his expertise in result and profit-oriented marketing activities. He is extremely analytics-oriented and is a great communicator, all prerequisites of a great marketing professional. His agility and acumen is precisely what ShopClues needs at this strategic point in its growth curve.”

     

    Varun has also worked with multinational organisations like Cummins Inc (Fortune 500) and Micro-Star International Co-op in various marketing roles. He has diverse industry experience from spheres like consumer electronics, IT and E-commerce and has expertise in digital strategy, performance marketing and online payments.  He has a management degree from IIT Bombay and a B.E. in Electronics and Telecommunications from Mumbai University.

     

  • Hansa Cequity will work as a Business Level Partner of Adobe to provide digital marketing solutions and integrated technologies to its pan-India customers

    Hansa Cequity joins Adobe Solution Partner Program

    By A Correspondent

     

    Hansa Cequity has announced it has joined the Adobe Solution Partner Program as a Business Level Partner. This will allow Hansa Cequity to work more closely with Adobe to provide digital marketing solutions and integrated technologies to its pan-India customers.

     

    Hansa Cequity will use Adobe Marketing Cloud solutions such as Adobe Audience Manager (a data management platform), Adobe Analytics (a leading marketing analytics solution), Adobe Campaign (for multi-channel campaign management), to provide integrated customer marketing solutions to its clients in retail, automotive, banking and travel and hospitality domains. In strengthening its relationship with Adobe, Hansa Cequity will receive greater levels of support from Adobe and in turn be able to pass that along to its clients.

     

    “Hansa Cequity is excited to build our relationship with Adobe, and in signing this enterprise agreement, we will have a great Digital Technology partner in Adobe as we continue to expand as a full service Customer Experience Management Company,” said S Swaminathan, CEO and Co-Founder, Hansa Cequity.

     

    “With customer centricity gradually becoming an integral part of organisational thinking, marketers are looking to partner who can provide integrated services for enhancing their customer’s experience. And that is what we aim to achieve with this partnership,” added, Ajay Kelkar, COO and Co-Founder, Hansa Cequity.

     

    Commenting on the partnership Umang Bedi, MD – South Asia, Adobe Systems said, “Hansa Cequity has been one of the pioneers of data-driven marketing in India. This partnership will enable customers to act on the insights to deliver differentiated customer experiences in this rapidly changing digital world.”

     

    The Adobe Solution Partner Program is designed to create a successful relationship between Adobe and digital marketing companies to help build customer experience solutions and facilitate exchange of resources and support.

     

  • The forum was especially relevant in the context of the digital revolution that the country is undergoing and the resultant impact on the financial sector

    ‘Financial Services Forum’ unravels new frontiers in digital

    By A Correspondent

     

    The ‘Financial Services Forum’, an event jointly hosted by Facebook and Publicis Groupe in India, had many key learnings for brands in the banking, financial services and insurance categories (BFSI).

     

    The event included leaders from Facebook and Publicis, as well as marketers from the BFSI segments, and there were discussions on how to best leverage Facebook as a powerful tool in performance marketing, segmentation of consumers and extrapolation of data, personalized marketing, creative and visual storytelling and effective use of Facebook’s ad serving platform Atlas.

     

    This forum is especially relevant in the context of the digital revolution that the country is undergoing and the resultant impact on the financial sector. There are over 200 million internet mobile connections in India – estimated in June this year, over 150 million in last October. There will be over 600 million smart phones by 2019. Every avenue remains transformed for the BFSI sector, be it transactions or marketing or creation of new products or channels and distribution.

     

    Kirthiga Reddy, Managing Director, Facebook India said, “We are pleased to partner with the Publicis Groupe for the first ever Financial Services Forum. The financial services ecosystem has always been at the heart of economic growth and one of the first in adopting digital and CRM platforms in the country. This conference is about “growth” and how Publicis Groupe and Facebook can work together to help business in the segment grow, in the wake of the consumer’s shift from desktop to mobile.”

     

    Anupriya Acharya, Group Chief Executive of  ZenithOptimedia Group says that in the context of the Indian government‘s call for financial inclusion coupled with the fast transforming consumer journey, the given mobile revolution and now the Digital India initiative, the time to hold a seminar such as ‘Financial Services Forum’ made perfect sense.

     

    Acharya states, “The BFSI sector is set to undergo complete transformation in the next few years. Facebook, with its tremendous mobile reach and equity is not only a great platform for Social and Display but also a powerful tool for Performance marketing. And hence, holds great potential to accelerate growth and business for the BFSI clients. I think that the forum was quite successful in highlighting this and answered a lot of key questions for the marketers. We hope it will help our clients to reflect on their digital assets, on whether they are fully mobile ready for the many millions of addressable consumers on boarding, and how data driven insights can drive thumb stopping content.”

     

    Hanley King, Chairman, Starcom MediaVest Group, feels that Facebook’s immense reach, frequency of usage, deep mobile penetration and advanced targeting options, make it a platform like none other for the BFSI sector for driving both performance as well as brand awareness objectives.

     

    Speaking on the sidelines of the first ever “Financial Services Forum” King remarks, “The question in everyone’s mind was how do we unleash the unique features of Facebook to drive tangible business results, especially in a category like BFSI which cannot purely depend on relevant exposures. What everyone took away from today’s event is that, in the context of the BFSI sector Facebook is not just a potent source for new customer acquisition but a powerful tool for driving customer retention, engagement and cross-sell opportunities.”

     

    King further added, “I am sure that the case studies, new product features and tools that were showcased helped our clients see Facebook in a new light and they were able to walk away with a road map on how to translate the platform’s reach, along with its precise and deep segmentation of audiences to achieve their business goals. It has always been our endeavor to bring forth to our clients the best-in-class in digital and we are committed to partner with our clients in their journey to exploit the potential of platforms like Facebook to enhance their business.”

     

  • This win is among many that the agency has enjoyed this year, including Future Group, Welspun, Subway, Bose, Urban Ladder and SAB Miller to name a few

    MediaCom to handle media mandate for Koovs.com

    By A Correspondent

     

    MediaCom has been awarded the media planning and buying duties for the online fashion brand Koovs.com. The appointment is ahead of the launch of the brand’s first 360 degree ad campaign later this month. MediaCom India will be responsible for media planning and devising efficient media mix for the new campaign.

     

    This win is among many that the agency has enjoyed this year, including Future Group, Welspun, Subway, Bose, Urban Ladder and SAB Miller to name a few.

     

    Mary Turner, CEO, Koovs.com said, “MediaCom was an obvious choice owing to their out of box ideas and their credibility in the industry. The team has a clear understanding of our target customer and this we believe is a must to attain the right media mix. Their in-depth experience in building and strategising for young companies in the emerging sector was also one of the key factors of this choice and we look forward to a great partnership.”

     

    Speaking on the win, Debraj Tripathy, Managing Director, MediaCom said, “Koovs has a unique offering and we feel privileged to partner them. My team and I look forward to working together in making Koovs a huge success in the fast evolving Indian e-commerce market.”

     

  • Mint announced the kick-off of this initiative by opening grounds for the Innovators under 35 -India competition

    Mint, MIT announce launch of EmTech

    By A Correspondent

     

    Mint in collaboration with Massachusetts (MIT) Technology Review has announced the India chapter of EmTech – an iconic global platform that has been inspiring innovation in the field of technology through the years.

     

    Mint announced the kick-off of this initiative by opening grounds for the Innovators under 35 -India competition – a search for the top 10 from India who exemplify the spirit of innovation in business and technology.

     

    Organized by MIT Technology Review since 1999, the prestigious Innovators Under 35 Global competition has honoured some of the world’s most brilliant minds like Mark Zuckerberg, JB Straubel, Larry Page and Sergey Brin.

     

    The India chapter of this international platform will recognize innovators from India who carry the highest potential to lead the future of technology. The nomination window for Innovators under 35 -India competition is open from October 29ththrough Dec 31st 2015.Anyone who is under the age of 35 as on 1st October 2016 and has a brilliant idea on technological innovation and applied research can be nominated. Categories span across biomedicine, computing, communications, health, education, digital, energy, materials, cyber security, fintech, wearables, robotics, web and Internet, transportation, and more. The jury for this competition includes acclaimed names like Amit Phadnis, Brian Bergstein, R Sukumar, RaghavNarsalay, Rajesh Janey,Prof. Amitabha Chattopadhyay, Ravi Narayan and Deepti Doshi. The winners of this competition will also qualify as finalists for the Global Innovators Under 35.

     

    Unveiling the launch of the Innovators Under 35 nominations, Rajan Bhalla, CMO, HT Media Group , said, “In keeping with Mint’s philosophy of providing cutting edge insights to its readers and being at the forefront of introducing the best of global practices to India, we are excited about leading this iconic technology platform in partnership with MIT Technology Review. Through EmTech India, we will unravel path-breaking technologies that are changing the face of business in India. The nominations are now open for the 1st leg of this initiative – Innovators under 35, and we are confident that this platform will showcase the most promising innovators who will lead this technological disruption in the country. It is our vision to evolve this into a one-of-a-kind marquee platform that will integrate the best of minds and companies to write the next chapter of technology transformation. The event is planned for early next year, and we are committed to making the India chapter a huge success.”

     

    The mission of MIT Technology Review is to equip audiences with the intelligence to understand a world shaped by technology,” states editor in chief and publisher, Jason Pontin. “Our goal is to extend this mission around the world, explaining the technologies that matter–those that will have lasting impact on our lives. We’re proud to work with Mint to identify young innovators and showcase their talents at EmTech India.”

     

    The final 10 winners will present at EmTech India– a platform where the world’s most influential leaders and innovators will come together to unravel cutting-edge technologies and take a glimpse at the future. This high profile event will be held on 18th and 19th March 2016 in New Delhi, bringing together a convergence of technology, business and culture. The event will be graced by the presence of business leaders, innovators, entrepreneurs, and change makers who are passionate about addressing major international issues by turning ideas into solutions. The India chapter promises to continue the legacy of this globally acclaimed platform, presenting a remarkable opportunity to get inspired from those who are driving the next generation of technological breakthroughs.

     

  • The Internet usage among males has been growing at a rate of 50 per cent while it is growing at 46 per cent for female users

    Internet user base to zoom past 400 mn by Dec’15, notes study

    By A Correspondent

     

    The number of Internet users in India is expected to reach 402 million by December 2015, registering a growth of 49 per cent over last year, according to a report ‘Internet in India 2015’, jointly published by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and IMRB International. While Internet in India took more than a decade to move from 10 million to 100 million and 3 years from 100 to 200 million, it took only a year to move from 300 to 400 million users. Clearly, Internet is main stream in India today. And the large internet users base is definitely a good news for the overall growth of the digital industry.

     

     

    In October 2015, there were 375 million internet users in India. Currently, India has the third largest internet users’ base in the word but it is estimated that by December, India will overtake the US as the second largest Internet users’ base in the world. China currently leads with more than 600 million internet users. This makes India the second largest internet user’s base in the world behind China, but is ranked first as the largest internet users in a free market democratic setup.

     

    According to the report, 71 per cent male and 29 per cent female are Internet users in India. The Internet usage among males has been growing at a rate of 50 per cent while it is growing at 46 per cent for female users. However, in Urban India, the ratio between male to female Internet users is 62:38. Significantly, Internet users among females are growing at a rate of 39 compared to 28 per cent among males.

     

    Among the Rural Internet users, 88 per cent are males. The Internet users among females are growing at 61 and 79 per cent among males. 75 per cent of the rural internet users belong to the age group of 18-30 years. Another 11 per cent are in the age group of <18 years, while 8 per cent belong to 31-45 years age group.

     

     

    Significantly, there has been a huge spurt in the number of people accessing internet on a daily basis in Urban India. As on October 2015, 69% of Users are using Internet on a daily basis. This daily user base has gone up by 60% from last year. However, the high frequency usage is not restricted to only the youth and the College going students; this habit of accessing the Internet daily can be seen among other demographic segments as well including Older Men and Non-Working Women. 75% of the Working Women access Internet daily. 37% of the male internet users are daily users whereas only 23% of the female internet users are accessing internet daily. 75% of internet users among both genders access internet at least once a week.

     

     

    The findings of the report further reveal that in Urban India, Mobile Internet user base has grown at a rate of 65% over last year to reach 197 million in October 2015. The Mobile Internet Users have surged to 80 million by October 2015 growing at 99% over last year. The user base of Mobile Internet users in Rural India is expected to reach 87 million by December 2015 and 109 million by June 2016.

     

     

    Interestingly, the report also reveals that out of all the Internet non-users surveyed in the 35 cities as part of this study, 11.4 million Non-Users are willing to access the Internet in the next one year and over 2/3rd of them intend to do so through mobile phones.

     

  • Dentsu Webchutney will partner the FFT in promoting its recent initiatives to further the sport in India

    Dentsu Webchutney wins the digital mandate for Roland-Garros French Open Grand Slam

    By A Correspondent

     

    The French Tennis Federation (FFT) has appointed Dentsu Webchutney as their digital agency in India for Roland-Garros, the premier clay court tennis championship. The agency won the account following a multi-agency pitch.

     

    Speaking about the association, Sam Primaut, director of development – Roland-Garros said, “We wish to share worldwide the unique and amazing French Open atmosphere and to bring our Grand Slam closer to its worldwide fans. India being among the most promising countries in terms of tennis potential around the globe, Roland-Garros is now looking at engaging with the Indian tennis fans on the digital platforms. We really are looking forward to this cooperation with Dentsu Webchutney in the hope to have an impact for the development of tennis and red clay courts in India”.

     

    Tanvi Jain

    Commenting on the win, Tanvi Jain, VP- Dentsu Webchutney, said that it underlined the agency’s credentials as the leading 360-degree digital marketing solutions provider in India. “We are honoured to partner with a sporting event as prestigious and global as the French Open.”

     

    She added, “The recent success of Indian players notwithstanding, tennis viewership is still in its infancy in India. We look forward to enabling Roland Garros to own the category in India with innovative technology and ideas that will take tennis to the masses.”

     

    Dentsu Webchutney will partner the FFT in promoting its recent initiatives to further the sport in India. These will include programmes such as the cooperation agreement with the All India Tennis Association (AITA) to develop clay courts, and Rendez-Vous à Roland Garros in partnership with Longines, a worldwide under-18 tournament for boys and girls that will culminate in wildcard entries for the winners to the Roland Garros Junior tournament.

     

  • SocialCRM247TM tries to encourage brands to invest in digital media by providing security with social crisis management

    WATConsult launches SocialCRM247TM for digital crisis management

    By A Correspondent

     

    WATConsulthas created a state-of-the-artsocial media command center for real time social monitoring and social crisis management. To be called SocialCRM247TM, the command center has been set up inside the agency’s Mumbai office. SocialCRM247TMwill not only track web conversations around brands but also measure sentiments and impacts of the same. SocialCRM247TM tries to encourage brands to invest in digital media by providing security with social crisis management.

     

    SocialCRM247TM works with keywords and hashtags which are already pre-set for a brand within an online tool. A set of 6 screens monitor the most intricate details of every tiny conversation that takes place around individualbrands and if the conversation exceeds the average level, a notification is sent to the brand’s social media manager. This gives the brand an opportunity to respond to the thread of conversations before it becomes unmanageable, thereby preventing any kind of social media crisis.

     

    Speaking on the need for developing SocialCRM247TM, Rajiv Dingra, Founder and CEO, WATConsult said, “Social media management is a 24 X 7 job. Our social media managers keep an eye on all the conversations happening around all our clients. SocialCRM247TMis a command center that ensures that the best talent in social CRM istracking, analyzing and replying to social chatter in realtime. We believe in the era where Social Media Crisis or insights can make or break a brand. SocialCRM247TM is a much needed service across all brands.”

     

  • Popular items including lifestyle products such as electronics, ethnic and fashion apparel as well as household products that received most visits contributed to the vast majority of total page views

    E-commerce traffic during Diwali surged 75.5%

    By A Correspondent

     

    UCWeb, India’s leading mobile browser with an over 54% market share, said e-commerce traffic during the Diwali shopping season surged a whopping 75.5% this year.

     

    “The number of users who visited e-commerce sites Flipkart, Amazon and Snapdeal via UC Browser in the month leading to Diwali 2015, increased over 75% compared to last year,” Kenny Ye, Managing Director of UCWeb India, said Thursday.

     

    Parent UCWeb Inc, which is a leading provider of mobile internet software and services, is a business within Alibaba Group’s mobile division.

     

    “Indians are increasingly embracing shopping on-the-go, splashing out on various items through mobile shopping during festive sales. There’s no doubt m-commerce is prospering,” he added.

     

    A big portion of users eventually placed orders on Amazon via UC Browser through the campaign, the company said in a media statement.

     

    Popular items including lifestyle products such as electronics, ethnic and fashion apparel as well as household products that received most visits contributed to the vast majority of total page views.

     

    According to UCWeb India, the traffic upsurge reflected the public perception of Diwali in the age of e-commerce. “As e-tailer giants rolled out sales promotions to usher in the festive season, UC Browser and Amazon India also joined hands distributing coupons and vouchers to users through a #HarGharUCDiwali campaign launched exclusively on UC Browser,” the company said.

     

    The two-week long shopping carnival eventually saw over 17 million users coming on board trying their luck for coupons and vouchers.

     

    According to latest reports by IAMAI and IMRB, mobile Internet users in India are roughly at 306 million, up from 276 million in October this year. The number of mobile users who shop via their smartphones has also seen a steady rise, with 75% increase in e-commerce traffic throughout Diwali shopping season.

     

  • Accroding to an MMA-Warc APAC study, consumer appetite for content will drive spends

    Content, not display ads to rule on Mobiles

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    As more mobile consumers across Asia-Pacific embrace practices like multi-screening and video watching, marketers expect an eventual shift away from display advertising towards innovative content.

     

    Annual research conducted by Warc in association with the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) – State of the Industry: Mobile Marketing in Asia survey – found that while 70% of marketers currently use display advertising, only 44% plan to use it in five years’ time. Content, in contrast, is set to speed ahead during this period and take the pole position, with adoption rising from 33% today to 49% expected in 2020.

     

    This corresponds with the marketers’ perception of video’s rising significance in mobile platforms. The study found that watching video was now considered by 51% of respondents as an important mobile consumer behaviour, up 15 percentage points compared to 2014 and 23 percentage points from 2013. Multi-screening, meanwhile, continues to be seen as the most significant consumer trend for the second year running, with 68% indicating its importance.

     

    Rising consumer expectations present emerging challenges

    Given mobile consumers’ increasing sophistication, more marketers now see content and consumer concerns over privacy as critical challenges, at 31% and 33% respectively – about the same proportion as those who are concerned about budgets (32%) and reliable metrics for measuring success (33%). The latter two concerns were ranked higher than the former in previous years, with budgets being the chief concern in 2013.

     

    “Confidence in the channel’s importance continues to rise and the investments speak for themselves,” said Edward Pank, Managing Director at Warc Asia Pacific. “The ongoing challenge now is that today’s consumers expect much more of their mobile content and experience. So in order to keep up, marketers need to hone their skills further and innovate strategically.”

     

    While more attention is being paid to consumer-focused issues, the biggest barrier to the growth of mobile marketing in Asia-Pacific remains the skills gap and lack of understanding within the industry, as identified by 40% of the respondents. Although this proportion is slightly lower than last year (45%), the consistency indicates a sustained struggle to deploy the appropriate advanced capabilities to engage consumers through mobile in such a fast-moving landscape. This is despite the fact that the number of marketers assigning over 10% of their budgets to mobile has risen from one in five (20%) in 2013 to one in three (34%) now.

     

    Conducted between March and May 2015, the study involved 287 respondents from 17 countries in Asia Pacific. This is the third iteration of research designed to gauge the attitudes of clientside advertisers and marketing services agencies towards mobile marketing.

     

    In the study, Singapore was named the most innovative market in mobile, with 41% of respondents highlighting it as such. Appropriately, the 2015 study’s findings were released at the 2015 MMA Forum in Singapore, taking place at the Grand Hyatt today. The definitive industry event brings together technology pioneers, business leaders and experts to discuss new capabilities in the mobile toolbox – programmatic, location, video – and new ways to acquire and reach consumers.

     

    “The increasing focus on the consumers and what they want – which is compelling, refreshing content on the go – is important because mobile’s distinct advantage lies in its immediacy and proximity to the consumers. It puts power in the consumers’ hand wherever they go, giving them the choice to be social, to share, capture, augment, and purchase – all at the touch of a button,” said Rohit Dadwal, Managing Director, MMA Asia-Pacific. “The findings from this third study with Warc signal that brands and marketers must continue riding on the momentum of mobile by sustaining an integrated approach and challenging creative boundaries.”

     

    The previous iterations of the survey showed that despite rising awareness of the power and potential of mobile, brands and marketers had been grappling with rapid technological changes, budget considerations, and measurement of outcomes, struggling to develop cohesive mobile strategies. While these challenges remain to varying extent, the latest study indicates that more attention is being paid to consumer-focused innovation.

     

    Among the study’s other findings:

    • Mobile wallet and location-based marketing set to play key role going forward

    o While only two in five (40%) plan to use mobile wallet technology this year, this adoption rate is expected to rise strongly to 64% in 2020.

    o Location-based marketing is shown to be well entrenched in mobile marketing strategy in the region, with a significant majority of marketers (84%) planning to use the technology this year and 85% in 2020.

    • Programmatic buying of ads is gathering pace

    o Programmatic adoption appears to be improving: 79% of respondents have some familiarity with the buying mechanism, a sharp increase from 48% last year

    o The importance of real-time buying is also well-recognised, with 62% expecting it to be ‘very’ important to their marketing strategy in 2020

    • More attention is being given to mobile strategy

    o Half of brand owners (54%) state that they do have a formal mobile strategy, up from 44% last year

    o Just under a quarter (24%) of the agencies surveyed said that the majority of their clients had a formal mobile marketing strategy this year, up from 20% in 2014

    • Mobile is well integrated with other marketing initiatives

    o Overall, 88% of mobile marketing strategies in Asia-Pacific are connected to wider marketing activities. 40% of respondents use mobile to measure interest and/or engagement in ad campaigns across other media

    o 84% of respondents currently find social media to be a good complement to mobile marketing, with online search following closely at 60%, a 12 percentage points increase from 2014. Traditional media – print, outdoor, radio – seem to have lost out as a result

    • The top mobile innovators

    o Travel, Transport and Tourism was recognised as the most innovative product category for mobile marketing in Asia-Pacific for the second year running

    o Unilever, recognised for its scale across the region, is also regarded as the most innovative brand in Asia-Pacific, a risk taker in the mobile world. Samsung, which had been at the top in 2013 and 2014, came fourth this year, lagging behind Apple. CocaCola, meanwhile, took the second position, with favourable comments on its engaging mobile content.

     

  • The campaign through a new TVC urges consumers to upgrade their mindset and not give up on their dreams as there is always a good bargain on OLX

    ‘Upgrade’ takes a new meaning in OLX’s latest ad

    By A Correspondent

     

    A step forward in life is usually symbolized with an upgrade in physical goods that come at a price. But often an upgrade in mindset brings about a change which reaps benefits without compromising on your dreams or your wallet. This is what OLX’s new TVC depicts – live a contented and independent life without compromising on your dreams by borrowing snippets from everyday life situations of modern working couples in mid-level corporate jobs. Giving its successful campaigns, ‘Bech De’ and ‘Keemat Bhi, Kuch Keemti Bhi’, a new outlook, OLX has released a television Ad, ‘Aadhe Tere, Aadhe Mere’ continuing with the successful punch line “keemat bhi, kuch keemti bhi, OLX pe Bech De”.

     

    Said Amarjit Singh Batra, CEO, OLX India, “As a consumer-to-consumer (C2C) platform OLX believes in bringing people together for win-win exchanges, and improving their lives. The ‘used car’ segment on OLX witnesses exceptionally fast transactions and offers great cars and value for both  buyers and sellers on making us the most preferred platform for used cars. The desire to upgrade comes most naturally to consumers making selling of used cars relatively more established as a behavior. Through this TVC we are trying to highlight how OLX plays a role in the daily life of people, allowing them to take decisions that bring loved ones even closer and also make their lives easier. Since car is a big-ticket purchase, we try to make the experience stress free. Thus we took the lead in offering inspection of cars which is a value-added service for the buyers.”

     

    Conceived by Lowe Lintas, the TVC depicts the story of a modern working couple getting ready to leave for their respective offices. While the husband’s getting ready, the wife is waiting outside their car looking at her watch since she is getting late for work. He drops her off at her office and reminds her that he will pick her up at 6.30 in the evening. After a hectic day at office, she gets a text from her husband saying that he will be late by an hour. She waits for him while the rest of her colleagues have left. Finally she gets a text saying that he won’t be able to make it and she should grab a taxi and head home. While she is pondering over the day’s events, the husband reaches home and they have a conversation where she expresses her concern. She tells her husband that she used to be more independent before she got married compared to what she is now. The husband thinks about it and decides to sell his car. He uploads an ad on OLX app and sells the car after meeting the buyer. The next scene shows the wife leaving for office, when she is surprised to find two smaller cars instead of the previous sedan of her husband. The husband then asks the wife to choose her own car which leaves her happy and surprised. The TVC ends with the tagline, “keemat bhi, kuch keemti bhi, OLX pe Bech De”.

     

    Said Shayondeep Pal, Executive Creative Director, Lowe Lintas, “Under the umbrella of Keemat Bhi, Kuch Keemti Bhi, OLX has managed to blend in seamlessly the societal issues and behaviors that people can relate to. Our task was to take the thought forward and strengthen the proposition with a new lens. The story is about a modern working couple who have mid-level corporate jobs. It challenges the traditional aspects of an upgrade, and talks instead of an upgrade in mindset. The idea was to resonate with young couples, for whom self-reliance and independence are important aspects in relationship building.”

     

  • India is only country where platforms outside of Android and iOS support a relatively strong monetization model, reports Opera-MMA study

    India Shining in in mobile ad $$s & traffic

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    Asia Pacific (APAC) and Oceania are showing a clear and rapid transition to smartphones, according to a Q3 State of Mobile Advertising study from Opera Mediaworks and the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA), released recently. In India, 75 per cent mobile users have smartphones. Even in markets where the transition from feature phones to smartphones has been slower (Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines), about half of the mobile user base has moved to smartphones.

     

    A study of mobile users on Opera’s global mobile-ad platform in six select APAC countries found that Android is the leading OS for smartphones, with 67.1 75 per cent of impressions being served to those mobile devices. India is the only country where platforms outside of Android and iOS support a relatively strong monetization model, with platforms other than Android and iOS having a share of revenue that is nearly twice their share of impressions.

     

    “The ability to serve high-impact – and therefore high-value – rich-media and video ads on smartphones is what is truly powering the monetization potential of the region,” observes Vikas Gulati, Managing Director for Asia, Opera Mediaworks. “These ad types are effective at attracting, engaging and ultimately converting mobile consumers. India leads in over all traffic and the top three categories for ad impressions are Mobile stores and career portals, social networking sites and apps, and sports.”

     

    Below are the key findings from the study of the APAC “P6” – India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam – plus Australia.

     

    Key highlights from the APAC SMA Q3 report:

     

    Mobile-device market share and ad types:

    >> While Android market share in the P6 is similar to the global average (65.4 75 per cent), its share of revenue is higher – 54.9 75 per cent vs. 44.4 75 per cent globally. This is likely the result of Android being the go-to OS for smartphones and thus the chosen platform for high-value brand campaigns.

    >> India leads the region in overall revenue and traffic, accounting for more than half (53 75 per cent) of impressions. It falls lower, however, in terms of monetization potential, due to the relatively high (25 75 per cent) share of feature phones. Still, compared to other feature-phone-dominated markets, its share of revenue is equitable to that of impressions, indicating a relatively strong monetization model on “other” platforms.

    >> Mobile video ad formats command higher eCPMs than rich-media display and even native ads in nearly all of the countries in the study.

     

    Top publisher and mobile-app categories:

    Mapping content trends by country, Opera Mediaworks and the MMA found that while each country demonstrates a unique profile in terms of audience interests, there were some patterns:

     

    >> Mobile stores and carrier portals are the most popular category in most of the countries, the result of feature-phone owners needing to access content and apps through these channels. In fact, 88.5 75 per cent of unique users to mobile stores and carrier portals are visiting from feature phones.

    >> Social Networking is the most or second-most popular category for five of the seven countries. It is noticeably missing from the top three in Australia, which is instead dominated by Entertainment, Sports and News & Information.

    >> In three countries (India, the Philippines and Vietnam), nearly 8 in 10 impressions are served to the top three categories, indicating highly condensed interest areas. Malaysia and Thailand, on the other hand, show traffic going to a wider set of categories.

     

     

    “Asia Pacific is a truly diverse region, and the growth and maturity of mobile marketing has seen the region’s power markets grow from four to six,” says Rohit Dadwal, Managing Director, Mobile Marketing Association APAC. “Collaborating with Opera Mediaworks on this report allows us to make all this data available for marketers, advertisers and publishers and ensure that the industry can adapt and evolve to ensure the region continues to create industry-winning mobile campaigns.”