Category: MEDIA

Provide your TG the special interest content they yearn for

By Kevin Vaz

It has become increasingly important for networks to come up with offerings exclusively meant for a certain target audience. That’s been a trend for the past few years now and what we’re seeing today is the industry taking rapid strides towards that direction. The 15+ male audience, the core TG for Star Network’s English cluster is extremely passionate about movies and English entertainment besides other interests such as sports and news.

We have made significant investments in strengthening our offering for this consumer segment. We launched Star Movies Action this year replacing Fox Action Movies with the thought process that there is a great demand for action movies in India. And we’re really passionate about the growth happening in the English movies genre. India is a country where action movies do exceedingly well at the box office. Sample this: out of 100 top-rated movies, 83 are action movies.

This statistic clearly indicates that there is a big market for action movies in India. Our attempt is to bring world-class content – the best in Hollywood. We have a library of more than 300 exclusive movies. How do I see the consumer segment evolve in the next five to six years? I believe we will see a significant increase in the viewership of HD channels. In fact, already, we’re seeing a lot of traction on Star Movies HD. Yes, there are other channels in the English movies space targeting the same consumer group, but the trick lies in differentiating the content offering.

Differentiation and innovation is key

By Saurabh Yagnik

In my opinion, a viewer is neutral to genres and consumes content that addresses his need state. In the English movie space, nearly threefourth of the viewership is driven by males and nearly three-fifth of it is driven by the age-group 16-29 years. By nature, the audience set we deal with is and likes to be spoilt for choice – his options are television, malls, multiplexes, hangouts, coffee shops etc. A viewer would feel “claustrophobic” in case they were told that there is only so much that you can get.

Choices of content consumption for males and particularly young males are driven by elements like talkability, recency, topical themes, current affairs and what appears to be cool. Coupled with it is the inherent need for speed, thrill and adrenaline rush. All the genres in some form or the other serve this need, but in my view genres like movies, sports and news tend to cater to this need more than the others. As a trend we have also seen there is an overlap between various genres as well.

There is a sprinkling of movies and of Bollywood/ Hollywood in sports and also in news. Equally some movies are themed around sports and sports stars which are extremely popular. Such blend increases talkability and interest in the content. While dealing with creating loyalty the trick is giving more rather than restricting choice. The inherent desire is to experiment before settling for anything specific. Also, for the younger male, the concept of “badge value” and a “cool hangout” are important to make anything a destination of choice.

Apart from English movies and entertainment, Indian men also consume a lot of crime and infotainment content. Star World offers content that is liked by both men and women and it caters to a wider audience as compared to FX which caters to a slightly evolved audience as far as English content is concerned.

All of Star Network’s English channels – Star Movies, Star Movies Action, Star Movies HD, Star World, FX, Fox Crime, Fox Traveller and National Geographic – all have a clear differentiation while catering to the same SEC A 15+ male and female viewers. I believe that the industry has already moved ahead in creating special interest content and will continue to move in the same direction for many years to come.

It is accordingly, our constant endeavour to be a companion of relevance to the viewer. Equally important is differentiation and innovation. This is exactly what we considered while planning our new positioning. When we did a scan of the category and looked at each of the channels within the category, we noted that the whole category was more or less focussing on establishing the credentials around Hollywood. That did not really differentiate one channel from the other. This was also reflected in the fact that during our viewer studies we found that there was only around a 10 percent correct association of a title or property to a channel.

This gave birth to our new positioning of Stay Amazed which explores what “Hollywood” viewers like and our endeavour now is to provide entertainment which makes our viewers feel “Wow”, “Cool” and provides “Entertainment with a Twist”. Since talkability is important, we have focused on conversations around social media in a strong way and believe that an active and differentiated social media strategy helps build a channel as a destination of choice. The challenge therefore is in being a part of a viewer’s ecosystem rather than target to make him a part of your system. This we believe is the only way to break clutter and have a lasting engagement with our viewers.

Do we or don’t we need a list of do’s and don’ts?

By Prathap Suthan

At first it struck me as embarrassing that I have to write this. I mean just how silly are we? Are we so bad as an industry that we need people to actually sit down and write this? Are we so bad and so out of whack that we need to course correct, and we need to sanitize our heads, and flush vermin from our minds? Are we getting it all wrong, are we irritating and insulting women consumers day in and day out, and is the nation up in arms against the lot of us? Of course not. As an industry, barring a few exceptions, I think most of us are sensible and sensitive to everything this country is all about.

Including safe guarding dignity, driving respect and taking advertising to half a billion female consumers. Most of the people in advertising instinctively know that we need to get the balance between entertainment and communication right. Provocative, yet tempered to our diverse cultural reality. After all, the work that we do are the ambassadors for brands and companies and services. We cannot afford to be irresponsible. Our business is linked to our ability to coerce with grace. We are trained to be correct by instinct and experience. We don’t have a choice not to. We too have bills to pay. Besides, our work gets whetted internally.

Considering that in many agencies, women create advertising for women. And even if they don’t create all the communication, they do act as filters within the agency. Our women are competent to understand themselves, both as creatives and consumers. Or fight against what they think is wrong communication, both as strategists and consumers. I would actually say that some of the better minds in advertising and marketing belong to women. The checks don’t end there. Let’s not forget that there are enough women in the brand teams of the clients who spend the money that makes advertising visible.

They are possibly tougher than any other safety net one can think of. Only if their compasses permit, does a script become a film. Forget about telecasts. Then there are the women in film-making, research, media, and even mothers, sisters, daughters, and wives who sort of approve or disapprove the creative work before it actually breaks in public space. Somewhere in all that, flaws get picked up, corrections are made, and every rough edge is smoothened. It’s almost impossible to do a rogue commercial aimed at female consumers.

Evolution of the Indian woman in the last decade

By Gautam Talwar / Kavita Kailas

The representation of the Indian woman in the media has undergone three major thematic evolutions over the years. And in a sense, all three of these themes closely relate to each other for their changing influences. First, the judgment on the woman’s physical appearance has distinctly shifted.

When only a few decades ago, women who showed skin on television or exposed her mid-riff were seen as loose and lascivious, today the same archetype is perceived as edgy, progressive, aspirational, powerful, and modern. Consequently, the “good-girl” archetype is now dead.

Being sexy and edgy are positive and desirable brand cues instead of the homely girl. Today, we showcase the girl who rides her own bike with her hair open, and we downplay the girl with the plaited, oily hair.

So, what used to be considered aspirational as far as a woman’s physical representation is concerned has switched sides: the cues are the same, but the evaluation has changed. Another shift has occurred in the dynamics of power in representing women in the media. Earlier, a powerful woman was typically represented as the highly sexualised vamp character.

The positive representations preferred to showcase women in meek, humble, and gentle avatars. Typically, this was also accompanied by a desexualisation and hyper-emotionalisation of the female character. Now, we are beginning to see positive representations of women who wield power not just sexually: we see the headstrong mother of the Bournvita campaign who does not let her son beat her in a race.

We have the “Tiger-moms”who want the best for their children and family. The mother-wife figure has become far more dominant and assertive, and we see that in the Tanishq campaigns, Jabong Online Shopping ads, and more. Despite these two major shifts, the focus on a woman’s body has not waned.

So instead of pointing the needle of blame at advertising, maybe it’s a good idea to look around. Because advertising is not the only segment in the overall communication and creative industry. We are not the only influence medium. Look at the gigantic Hindi and vernacular cinema. I am not sure those movies have plots, scripts and gyrations that will pass muster at the prim ladies club. What about the lyrics of our music industry? Most of which aren’t just simple double entendre. They have meanings that will covertly and overtly make birds giggle and bees blush.And I have seen SEC A++ families and corporate India wiggle and jiggle to these lusty lyrics at parties, weddings and even at office gettogethers. What about those maudlin serials on television? Plus the raunchier variety of Big Boss and what else. Just what kind of thinking drives and mass-produces these to our people across the country? If you are looking for breaches in our system, these are those uglies that bash women down, pin them down into roles, cramp them into definitions, reduce them down to objects, talk down to them, and treat them without grace and equality. Advertising at best is just a fleeting 30 seconder. Or a small print ad.

Are they so powerful to destroy our society and disrespect women for all time? I have a feeling that we take ourselves too seriously, and self flagellate for things that we aren’t responsible for. We are just the barnacles. We aren’t the whale. Most of us, men and women in our business, work and think right. We already know our do’s and don’ts.

We still require women to pay lip-service to the preordained framework of beauty. What has changed is the metrics of this beauty: earlier it used to be the fair and voluptuous damsel; today it is the fair, tall, and thin model. And perhaps this final aspect of focusing on the woman’s body may never change – regardless of the fact that the highest number of graduates from B-schools in India are women according to a study done by India Today; regardless of the fact that industry stalwarts like Narayan Murthy and Tarun Das prefer women employees far more than male employees; or even regardless of the fact that the recent Kangana Ranaut interview on Front Row showcased a modern woman who was far more perceptive, sensitive, and intelligent than was initially perceived.It is still the woman’s body-and our judgments about it-that captures our collective attention as a national pass-time. Overcoming this frontier might perhaps be the most formidable challenge we may encounter as professionals in the business of advertising and media communication. – Gautam Talwar is Chief Strategy Officer at Rediffusion-Y&R and Kavita Kailas is Head, Strategic Planning, Rediffusion-Y&R.

Are we witnessing an era of the “new, redefined teens”?

By Balu V

There used to be a period in the mid eighties and nineties in a media brief where most brands used to define the TG as “women 25-34 etc.” Available consumer researches also were pointing more towards this group. The housewives at that time were big decisionmakers in brand purchase decisions across households. Thus most of the communications, content wise also, as you may recall, were focusing on this opportunity group. All of a sudden we witnessed a new emerging group running in the front. Yes the teens! This group has become the darling of marketers and the group is now surrounded by targeted brand communications.

While we all acknowledge the fact that this group has grown in size across many markets and they contribute a major proportion of the overall population, it is worthwhile to explore if there exists any further rationale on why this group has taken centrestage. The answer is partly yes and partly no. It’s a well known fact that compared to their predecessors, this group has become more affluent and now takes individual decisions in brand purchase not only for own self but also for the household. This group has become a big influencer in the household purchases, thanks to the exposure to technology.

It has also been an accepted fact that this group is a major catalyst for exposing the household members to new technology. Increasing exposure to the new environment is one of the major drivers that’s a cause for the emergence of this “new and redefined” group. Naturally, this leads to greater knowledge of the brands, more matured gauging on the need and benefit and seeking for more and more credible benefits of brands whether it’s fashion-based or mobile phones. Thus, an assessment and understanding of this group’s purchasing behavior will be of utmost interest to marketing practitioners.

It is widely known that this group interacts with technology more than any other demographic group; key implication thus is the power of peer influence. Research carried out worldwide has shown that teens text more than they talk. According to eMarketer analyst Tobi Elkin, who authored the report Teen girls always on a social shopping mission, “Peer influence is the key driver in teen girl shopping behavior”. Although more than 4 million US teen girls purchased items online last year, shopping in the bricks & mortar context is still a major element of teen consumer behavior, as Elkin writes in her report: “Teen girls are intrepid social shoppers who eagerly embrace digital and mobile tools.

They enjoy hunting for clothes and accessories online and offline. Most thrilling, however, is the experience of shopping and buying in physical stores with close friends by their side…While they are priceconscious and driven by a great deal, teen girls weigh these factors against the all-important consideration of whether peers will approve of their purchases.” This trend though seen and researched for the US market, can safely assume similar significance in India as well. Thus opinion seeking contributes a major element in the purchase process for the “new, redefined teens”.

This leads to two major implications for a marketing practitioner:

1. The social and collaborative nature of digital media becomes the determining factor in the decision making process and thus “zero moment of truth” becomes a very important factor (Lecinsky 2011 “Winning the zero moments of truth”). In the early years, as in accepted purchase path process, stimulus or trigger would lead to consideration then search then purchase followed by experience. The zero moment of truth starts after stimulus in this new age, especially for this “new, redefined group”. Mass media plays a major contributor in creating stimulus or trigger, and once stimulus is created sharing of experiences from the peers takes the lead. This phase, called as zero moment of truth is the most crucial phase that is succeeded by consider and purchase (first moment of truth). Connecting with teens at this stage is a major challenge for the new age marketer.

2. The second implication which is the most crucial is the measurement of cross interaction between these connect points and its impact on the brand purchase. Traditional connect points not only induces stimulus directly but also through digital in an indirect manner. For eg. TV could influence search clicks or online video or website visit which could add as a catalyst for purchase or could influence positive opinions before purchase. Thus capturing the right data and measurement of cross media impact is crucial for any marketer who targets a product to this group.

As mentioned earlier, this group may be partially “new, redefined” because the final decision on the brand purchase remains similar to the same groups of pre-digital era. The need benefits evaluation. That is the common line that travels across time period!.