MxMIndia

Category: NEWS

  • Tata Motors, Tree Design, White River Media win

    Indian entries shine at Montreux

    Indian companies won four Golds and nine Finalists at the 35th Golden Award of Montreux Switzerland Festival held recently..

    The Tata Motors in-house agency won teo Golds, “Ramadan 2024” in the Category Creative Use of Media and “ Hero Stories from Bangladesh” won Gold in the Category Digital/ InteractiveTree Design won Gold for “Tata Tea Premium Independence Day Packs” in the Category of Design.White Rivers Media won Gold for “Daughters of Piplantri” in Corporate Film“ category.

    Indian companies won nine Finalist Certificates which is notable as Montreux does not award Silvers and Bronzes only Finalists. Tata Motors won three Finalist Certificates for “Tata Ultra FE+ South Africa Launch Campaign” in the Categories Creative Use of Media, Design and in Digital /Interactive. “Tata Motors Ramadan 2023” won a Finalist Certificate in the Category Digital / Interactive.

    Tree Design won finalists for Toblerone Tiny’s Special Edition Range” and “Tata Tea Premium  Independence Day Tea Table Book” in Design category while“ “The Greatest Entertainers” won a Finalist in Direct Marketing. White Rivers Media won a Finalist in Digita/Interactive.

    Musemakers won a Finalist for “Singapore Tourism Board AR Postcards” in Digital /Interactive BETC Paris was crowned Agency of the Year for 2024, and Havas won theemerging Network of the Year.

    Said veteran advertising professional and part of the fest’s internal jury Ajay Chandwani “Montreux Festival has now become one of India’s more sought after award festival along with Cannes, One Show and D&AD as we are seeing more participation and recognition for Indian work. The last few years has witnessed some great Indian work winning at Montreux Festival.”

  • The Cred-isation of Advertising. But not everyone gets it

    The Cred-isation of Advertising. But not everyone gets it

    Sanjeev KotnalaCred has evolved from its previous style of communication, which was often misunderstood but has been effective. Though forced, there has always been an attempt at being humorous and there is a storyline that delivers the message. Here is the recent ad, sharing the longer version of the Rajamouli ad. The other ads featured Illa Arun and Leander Paes.  The Cred way of advertising indeed has a history of consistency.

     

     

    Learning from Cred

    TheCcred way of advertising has a history of consistency. Remember Govinda  and other star auditions, the Goof for Great, Cred bounty and even something I just discovered and had not watched earlier- typical Cred- the claw  (is that really Cred?!).

     

    Meanwhile, many brands have learned from the Cred Institute of Advertising and are attempting to make advertising simple.

    Have a message.

    Maybe have a celebrity.

    Create communication that repeats what you want to say.

    Say it simply enough.

    In the name of creativity and humour – try a condescending tone.

    And most likely, there will be enough consumers who will try you out.

    If you have the budget, you can attempt multiple edits or celebrities. However, that is not an essential requirement.

     

    Make My Trip

    Have you seen the Real Hero campaign of Make My Trip, where celebrities are hinted at but don’t show their face? It is where Cred was ages back. I am surprised at the campaign- which keeps spraying bullet point statements from a PowerPoint presentation – and even has to point out that Make My Trip is the real hero. So they have their Moves Don’t Lie, Breathless, Steamy and  Bhidu Shakespeare- Jackie Shroff. Why, when you have such a great pair of Alia and Ranveer Singh doing a great job? Not that I liked their latest ad for first international travel. But every brand is allowed some goof-ups.

     

    HDFC PayZap

    HDFC is one of these advertisers that uses the Cred strategy of plain, iterative, repetitive, simplified, and no-storyline advertising. I must agree that Cred always had a storyline holding its creativity, and hence, the HDFC PayZap act with Virat for its payment platform is an innovation. However, one can cite the various restrictions one faces while using IPL association for advertising, and really making a good ad is sometimes difficult.

     

    MRF ZLX

    Talking of Virat, MRF, another brand endorsed by the celebrity, has recently made some friendly additions to the message, but it is still MRF ZLX or whatever that is supposed to meet.

     

    Many brands have believed that the punch line- an end dialogue that can be repeated sticks and makes the brand memorable. Well, the SBI ads are trying to do the same – ‘I will upgrade to Cred’ with ‘Janata hai uska Bank kaun hai’ almost like ‘Mera baap kaun hai’.

     

    Net-net 

    Now, before you get me wrong, the ads may be working, or the metrices must be showing them to be working. Maybe Cred-isation is the need of the hour in the shortened attention span and fragmented media reach. I am not sure, but I would love to know your point of view. However, I must say that the excitement, the humour, the smile and the aha moments are missing from these communications- maybe that is not what advertising is expected to do anymore.

  • To support the hospitality group through strategic communications

    Minor Hotels appoints BrandsWeLove for PR

    Global hospitality group Minor Hotels has selected BrandsWeLove (BWL) as its public relations agency ahead of the debut of its modern luxury brand Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas in Jaipur, later this year.

    Said Marion Walsh-Hédouin, Global Head of Public Relations & Communications for Minor Hotels, said: “India is becoming an outbound travel superpower as more Indian travellers broaden their horizons by heading overseas. India is one of Minor Hotels’ fastest-growing international source markets, and the country is an essential piece of our global expansion plan to capture a portion of the expanding domestic travel market, too, with the target of 50 new openings in India within the next decade. BrandsWeLove joins our team at a significant time for Minor Hotels as we gear up for the opening of the Anantara Jaipur Hotel, the first of many of our flagship brand in India. We are excited to tap into the agency’s luxury hospitality experience and the team’s strategic and creative thinking to tell authentic stories that build upon strong recognition of our brands among Indian travellers.”

    Added Deepa Harris, Founder of BrandsWeLove: “Our focus will be to build on their already strong and differentiated positioning with brand narratives that command deeper affinity and desire.”

  • To drive future growth

    Havas India elevates key leaders across creative network

    Havas India has announced a leadership transition across three key agencies under the Havas Creative Network India umbrella, including Havas Worldwide India (creative), Conran Design Mumbai (brand design), and Havas CX India (customer experience).

    Kundan Joshee, Managing Partner, Havas Worldwide India, has been promoted as Managing Director of the India operations. Anupama Ramaswamy, Chief Creative Officer, Havas Worldwide India, will also mantle the additional responsibility of Joint Managing Director along with the CCO profile.  Geet Nazir, Managing Partner of Conran Design Mumbai, has been elevated to Managing Director of the agency. Prashant Tekwani, Managing Partner, Havas CX India, has been elevated to Managing Director of both Havas CX India and Ekino (technology) India.

    While Joshee, Nazir and Tekwani will be based out of Mumbai, Ramaswamy will continue to be based out of Gurugram. All four along with others in the leadership team will continue to report to Rana Barua, Group CEO, Havas India, South East Asia & North Asia (Japan & South Korea).

    Said Barua: “Over the past few years, our focus has been on enhancing our expertise and solidifying our position as the most progressive communications network in India. While our Media Network, under the leadership of Mohit Joshi, Uday Mohan, R Venkat, and Shibu Shivanandan, has thrived, Havas Creative Network India has grown exponentially both organically and inorganically and has built the creative repertoire of Havas India.”

  • To manage digital, creative, and performance marketing for the engine oil brand

    Experience Commerce bags mandate for Savsol

    Experience Commerce (EC), a digital agency within the Cheil Network, has won the digital mandate for Savsol, the engine oil brand of Savita Oil Technologies

    Said Sibasish Guha, Head of Digital Marketing at Savsol: “We’re thrilled to join forces with Experience Commerce to elevate our brand presence and engage our audience effectively. With a legacy spanning over five decades, preserving and advancing our heritage is paramount. Recognizing the rapid growth of the digital landscape, we’re committed to fortifying our online footprint across social media and e-commerce platforms. EC’s alignment with our values positions them as the ideal partner to help us achieve this goal and foster business growth.”

    Added Meera Ghare, Vice President and Business Head at Experience Commerce: “We are pleased to welcome Savsol to our brand portfolio. As our agency expands, we seek partnerships with brands that share our values and methodologies. Our extensive industry experience enables us to curate content and creative strategies tailored to resonate with the client’s target audience, ultimately aiding Savsol in building a robust digital community. We are grateful for Savsol’s trust in entrusting Experience Commerce with their digital responsibilities. With our team’s expertise, we are confident in surpassing client expectations.”

  • Fostering informed voting via Educational Comic Strips

    ABP News rolls out ‘Adarsh Voter’ campaign

    ABP News has unveiled the ‘Adarsh Voter’ campaign, a series of educational comic strips designed to promote informed voting and active citizenship. This initiative follows the network’s successful ‘Jeetna Aapka Zaroori Hai’ campaign, which urged Indians to exercise their constitutional right and make their voices heard in the ongoing 18th Lok Sabha Elections.

    Notes a communique: “The ‘Adarsh Voter’ comic strips aim to further empower citizens by highlighting the significance of voting, resisting misinformation, and seeking clarity amidst the chaos of electoral campaigns. Through engaging visuals and compelling narratives, these comics will guide viewers in navigating past sensationalism, promoting transparency, and grounding their voting decisions in factual realities.”

  • These include media strategy and planning & media investment

    Wavemaker retains mandate for Luminous

    Wavemaker India has successfully retained the integrated mandate for Luminous Power Technologies. Wavemaker has been entrusted with the brand’s traditional and digital media responsibilities since 2021. These include media strategy and planning, media investment, media activation, and content creation. Wavemaker’s Delhi office will continue to oversee the execution of all services for Luminuous Power Technologies.

    Said Neelima Burra, Chief Transformation Strategy and Marketing officer, Luminous Power Technologies: “Our association with Wavemaker has been since 2021 and it is an exciting time to extend this partnership. As a brand that gains massive consumer appeal and recall value in consumers’ minds, we need an agency partner that would further strengthen Luminous’ presence in offline and online mediums at all stages. Our partnership has helped us create that relevant engagement value and we look forward to further building the brand’s growth in the future as well.”

    Talking on the retention Ajay Gupte, CEO – South Asia, Wavemaker added: “Our partnership with Luminous has flourished over the past two years, and our continued collaboration is a testament to the remarkable results we have achieved together. We have successfully demonstrated exceptional capabilities in enhancing the brand’s image, and our joint efforts have yielded innovative media strategies and campaigns.”

  • To co-produce two films – an action comedy and romcom

    Lionsgate, Abundantia & Efar Films join forces

    Lionsgate, Efar Films and Abundantia Entertainment have come together to bring two movies. The first is an action – comedy motion picture, the other film is a romantic comedy. Scripting is underway for both projects.

    Said Rohit Jain, President of Lionsgate Play Asia: “We are delighted to collaborate with Abundantia Entertainment and EFAR Films on two exciting upcoming projects. The projects underscore our commitment to delivering innovative and culturally resonant films to audience world over, and we are thrilled to bring this to life for our audiences in India. This is a testament to the power of gripping storytelling and the creative vision of our partners.”

    Added Vikram Malhotra, Founder & CEO of Abundantia Entertainment: “At Abundantia Entertainment, we are committed to producing high-quality and engaging content that is uniquely Indian and resonates with audiences globally. The two upcoming films perfectly align with this vision. We are delighted to collaborate with Global Major Studio Lionsgate and with EFAR Films to bring these stories to life in India.”

    Said Kavita Sharma Gandhi, Founder & CEO of Efar Films: “We are delighted to be part of this exciting development alongside Lionsgate and Abundantia Entertainment. Our aim is to tell stories that are rooted in Indian ethos and culture with a universal appeal. We look forward to working together to create a memorable cinematic experience through these creative projects and this unique partnership.”

  • The media remains as culpable as these other compromised arms of the system as long as it cannot break free, writes Ranjona Banerji

    Ranjona Banerji: Both-sides-ism masquerading as journalism

    Ranjona BanerjiIn these most fractured and fractious election, how is the media to be fair in its coverage? You may laugh, because if it is one thing you can be sure of, it is that the media has not been fair. The how is very glaringly obvious to anyone who understands a modicum of journalism, that all we have to do is concentrate on the “how not”.

    You do not for instance give even more traction to a man who has brazened out the most terrible accusations of sexual assault and harassment from a number of women, some of them award-winning athletes. That is not journalism so much as cowardly both-sides-ism masquerading as journalism. Certainly cover Brij Bhushan Singh if you want to, but if you release a photo of both of you posing and smiling in a pretend arm-wrestle, that is legitimization of a man accused of crimes against women.

     

    You do not for instance scrutinise in minute detail every apparent and imaginary transgression by opposition parties while giving a free pass to shameless demonisation, dehumanisation and divisiveness from the ruling party.

     

    You do not for instance allow misinformation and disinformation to be allowed into the public sphere by campaigning politicians, without exposing them for their lies and for their attempts to manipulate the electorate.

     

    And most of all, for instance, you do not accept the total capitulation to the ruling party by all democratic and state agencies. These agencies report to the people of India not individual politicians or political parties and the media must hold them to the highest standards possible.

     

    Yeah, by now even I’m laughing.

     

    But more seriously, the refusal of the Election Commission to release exact number of the two completed rounds of this general election is unacceptable. And also unacceptable is the media’s general inability or reluctance to directly ask the Election Commission why. Instead the 10-year-old trend of shooting from the shoulders of opposition parties and civil society continues.

     

    Massive scandals remain, from the parole granted to convicted criminals connected to the BJP so that they can campaign in these elections, but elected chief minister who are battle unproven accusations cannot get bail. Once again, the media falls short here.

     

    This is a media which went out of its way to demonise and target a young actress for having an affair with an actor who died tragically, without any evidence or any concern for her own privacy. But the same media is tongue-tied and tied up in knots when the electoral process is India is compromised by those is power, those in charge and those who are irresponsible with the powers vested in them.

     

    We are now close to the middle of this questionably long election season. We see no signs that the ruling party is willing to follow any rules at all and we definitely see the bureaucracy falling over backwards to play along with the ruling party and the cult status of its star campaigner.

     

    The media remains as culpable as these other compromised arms of the system as long as it cannot break free. Whether it is an outright adorer or a both-sides pretender.

     

    Ranjona Banerji is a senior journalist and commentator. She writes on MxMIndia on Tuesdays and Fridays. Her views here are personal.

  • For their latest technology ventures Ziki and Sirrus.ai

    The Chatterjee Group (TCG) appoints key leaders

    First Livingspaces Private Limited (FLS), an enterprise of The Chatterjee Group (TCG), has onboarded Kashyap Mehta and Prashant Gagneja as key leaders of its new technology ventures — Ziki and Sirrus.ai. FLS has positioned its new businesses in two core domains. Ziki focuses on crafting technology-enabled communities, both online and offline. Sirrus.ai is an experience ecosystem with AI-first principles, catering to the real estate industry.

    Mehta, an e-commerce specialist with over 25 years of expertise in multiple industries, has joined FLS as the Chief Product Officer (CPO), while Gagneja, a seasoned strategist in Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) and Fintech industries, has assumed the role of the Chief Growth & Revenue Officer (CGRO).

    Welcoming the two leaders, FLS spokesperson Sovon Manna said: “We are delighted to have the two visionary achievers joining us. Their experience, exuberance and unique approaches will be instrumental in propelling our businesses towards greater heights of success.”

  • Net-Zero and The Diffusion of Technology

    Net-Zero and The Diffusion of Technology

    Ashoke AgarrwalClimate change, the most pressing issue of our time, is manifesting unprecedentedly. The erratic weather patterns, marked by prolonged droughts, devastating floods, and uncontrolled forest fires, underscore the need to achieve net zero emissions swiftly and subsequently reduce greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

    There are four broad routes to reaching net zero (and then continue on the path of reduction):

    • Reducing the average carbon footprint of each human through lifestyle changes – mainly through consuming less electricity and fuel and changing to more eco-friendly diets
    • Technology that a) enables humans to consume less electricity and fuel beyond lifestyle changes and b) lowers the carbon footprint of economic and industrial activities like agriculture, manufacturing and computing.
    • Increase the natural green cover that absorbs greenhouse gases from the atmosphere and
    • Create, build and run technology systems that absorb and sequester greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.

    Decades of grappling with the problem of climate change have made it clear that getting humans to change lifestyles to reduce their average footprint is challenging, if not impossible. The reason is that fundamental human nature prevents humans from sacrificing individual comfort to attain community goals.

    Preserving and increasing the green cover runs into a geopolitical logjam engendered by the uneven development of countries worldwide.

    The above reasons make the development and diffusion of new technology critical to meeting the world’s net zero and beyond goals.

    These technologies range from low—to zero-carbon footprint power (wind, solar, nuclear fission, and someday perhaps nuclear fusion) to greener mobility (biofuels, hybrids, hydrogen and electric) and industrial processes (grey or green Hydrogen).

    Each of these new technologies faces multiple challenges in meeting its full potential.

    Take electric cars, for instance. The market opened at the high end, and pricey Teslas became symbols of a woke lifestyle. In the process, Tesla solved tricky technical problems, including batteries with enough juice to support viable range and life and reliable and fast charging systems.

    The Theory of Product Form Strategy (PFS) postulates every innovator of new technology faces a product-form decision at an early stage of building a business out of his innovation. The innovator company has three choices: Market the Know-How, Market a Component, or Market A System.

    In a pre-print manuscript submitted to the Journal of Marketing titled “A Theory of Product-Form Strategy: When to Market Know-How, Component or Systems.”, Frias, Ghosh, Janakiraman and Duhan, have an interesting illustration of the PFS Theory. For example, consider an innovator who has developed a technology that tracks the mechanics and dynamics of a baseball bat as it meets the ball, allowing coaches to refine a batter’s ability. As a result, the innovator can decide to sell the technology to a party that determines how to market it. Alternatively, the innovator can develop the technology into a component that fits on a bat and market it to bat manufacturers.

    The third alternative is for the company to get into bat manufacturing and build a bat brand based on its advanced technology.

    Tesla, the pioneer in the EV market, decided to go the “Market A System” route.

    This decision has impacted the very structure of the EV market globally. Today, the EV market is a positioning and pricing battle between traditional auto brands and newcomers.

    In an alternative scenario, if technology pioneers had developed and marketed know-how and components in the battery technology, charging, power electronics and drive train areas (including hybrid), the structure of the green mobility market would be very different. It would be akin to how the PC industry developed with Windows and the smartphone category with Android.

    Over the past year or so, the EV category has experienced a slowdown, with many people wondering whether hybrids will be the future of green mobility. As a result, the green mobility market might evolve with standard batteries, charging systems, power electronics and drive train components, releasing economies of scale in capital costs and end pricing. In such a scenario, a brand like Tesla could be the premium walled-garden brand, much like Apple is in smartphones.

    Green Hydrogen has a more extensive remit than EVs or Hybrids, as it can impact broadly and deeply, as illustrated below.

    The Product Form Strategy that pioneers the Green Hydrogen revolution will have a seminal impact on the global economic and industrial framework over the next few decades.

    Green Hydrogen is at an early stage of evolution; given its distributional nature, it is likely to mature into a Big Oil-type category–“Big Hydrogen,” so to speak.

    The penetration of Green Hydrogen will follow the Technology Adoption Life Cycle as stated in Geoffrey Moore’s “Inside the Tornado”.

    “Big Hydrogen” must adopt “The Bowling Alley” strategy to release The Tornado to build tomorrow’s hydrogen economy.

    I explained “The Bowling Alley” strategy in some detail in my MxMIndia column of February 16th, 2023, titled “The Diffusion of AI: What do the marketing models predict?”.

    AI, Green Mobility, Green Hydrogen, and their offshoots will be important marketing and communication categories for tomorrow, and marketing and advertising people should invest in closely following their development and diffusion.

     

  • Interestingly, the communique was emailed to us by Value360, and not the Omnicom group’s PR arms in India

    Omnicom announces 4 Centres of Excellence in India

    Omnicom, the global marketing services conglomerate, has announced the expansion of its Global Solutions Centres of Excellence with the opening of three new campus locations in Bengaluru, Chennai, and Gurugram. A fourth location will be opened in Hyderabad in October.

    Notes a communique: “Designed to accommodate Omnicom’s expanding footprint and global client solutions capabilities, these centers of excellence will house a diverse talent pool of over 5,500 colleagues. The newly built, state-of-the-art offices will provide best-in-class collaborative environments for Omnicom’s talent in India. Through their expertise in media, data and analytics, creative, digital commerce, marketing technology, and AI, Omnicom’s Global Solutions Centres will support our agencies around the world, driving more value and efficiencies for our clients.”

    Said John Wren, Chairman and CEO, Omnicom: “India is a country of creativity and technology with diverse, dynamic and talented people… Our India operations are helping us transform from within, improving our client offerings and providing operating efficiencies. We are rapidly scaling and will continue to increase the number of colleagues in Omnicom’s Global Solutions Centres over the next few years, making them a key component of Omnicom’s growth.”

    Interestingly, the communique was emailed to us by Value360, an independent communications agency which has been rising in business and stature in recent years. Note: not FleishmanHillard or the soon-rumoured-to-shutter (but yet in existence) KetchumSampark that are part of Omnicom’s Communications Consultancy Network that in turn runs the Omnicom Public Relations Group. And not even some of the others in the group who frequently disseminate news and info to the media.

    We don’t whether we should read more into this engagement of Value360 for an Omnicom release, but we’ll leave that to speculation and announcements, if at all.