MxMIndia

Category: GOAFEST 2012

  • Mr Love talked about how language is a technology and how we have underestimated the effect language has on human misunderstanding

    Goafest 2012: Innovation is the magic of ideas: Tim Love

    By A Correspondent

     

    Tim Love, CEO, APIMA, Vice Chairman, Omnicom Group talked about how the world we live in today has become interdependent especially because of technology during his address on ‘The Magic of Ideas – Our Language Impediment’. He was of the opinions that one thing the financial crises have taught us is that we are all inter-dependent.

     

    Mr Love spoke about how “Digital is not a channel but, the air we breathe and communicate with each other,” giving the example ofIndiabeing the fourth largest internet user population despite its internet penetration being merely 8 per cent. He also talked about how language is a technology and how we have underestimated the effect language has on human misunderstanding.

     

    Besides talking about the importance of verbal communications, Mr Love also spoke about the importance of nonverbal communications. He said that just as verbal or spoken communications, nonverbal communications like sign language, although universal, differs from culture to culture; but no matter what the stream of communication, technology will always flow through.

     

    During the Q&A session moderated by Ms Kainaz Guzdar of P&G, when asked to give a few suggestions or advertisers and marketers on how to come with great ideas on language impediment, Mr Love explained that one must be more cognisant in languages, and show some sensitivity to different languages verbal or nonverbal. He added that ideas are best communicated from individual to individual. He also pointed out that one needs to be careful with languages in different cultures, as it could have different meanings in different cultures, and how we have always minimised the importance of language.

     

  • Start a video advertising campaign online, and you will be surprised to find how people are passionate about participating with the brand they love, says Lucas Watson, Global Vice President, YouTube

    Goafest 2012: Net better RoI with online video ads: Lucas Watson

    By A Correspondent

     

    In just six years since its launch, YouTube has garnered over 8 million users and billions of videos have been uploaded on the site. At Goafest, YouTube demonstrated how consumers can be used to build a brand by conducting a flash mob. Mr Lucas Watson, Global Vice President, YouTube further added to the brand’s insight by sharing his views on how ‘Magical Ideas Come When You Harness the Power of many People’.

     

    Mr Watson put across his point when he cited how Lady Gaga has built up her brand through a passionate group of fans who have played a vital role in building the Lady Gaga brand. Mr Watson explained that nowadays it has become very easy and inexpensive to build a brand by starting a video advertising campaign online, thanks to the Internet. He said that a brand need not be big to come online and start a video campaign, all it needs is to gain the trust of its consumers. “Start a video advertising campaign online, and you will be surprised to find how people are passionate about participating with the brand they love. The magic of YouTube is available for all as it allows everyone to participate. Besides online video advertising allows a brand to run its advertisement in a cost efficient manner, delivering better RoIs.”

     

    During the Q&A session moderated by Mr N Rajaram of Airtel, when Mr Watson explained his views on the rapidly changing role of advertising agencies: “Being creative and coming up with new ideas is a skill which not everyone has. So we need creative directors to nurture young talent to build brands. Unlike television, where consumers have a dedicated time slot to watch their favourite programme, in the online world it is the consumers who decide when to watch what and for how long.”

     

    Talking about if there is scope for co-existence between television and online video, Mr Watson said that there is no win-win situation but, there will be either winners or losers. “Like many industries even we are going through a transformation scenario. There are brands which are afraid to disrupt their way of functioning and there are brands which are keen to reach their consumers in newer forms of media platforms and thus rapidly build their brands. Therefore, I believe there could be some co-existence but, there will also be winners and losers.”

     

  • Competition organized to encourage self regulation in advertising huge success

    ASCI, Goafest announce winners of ‘ASCI Mobile Movie Challenge’

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Advertising Standard Council of India (ASCI) announced the winners of the ‘ASCI Mobile Movie Challenge’ during the closing event of Goafest 2012, the Creative Abbys. The competition, conducted to promote responsible creativity, and to encourage self regulation in Advertising, under the theme of ‘Creativity with a conscience’, garnered huge public support during the 3 day ad-fest.

     

    The winning entries came from team Leo Burnett consisting of Nikhil Pai, Abhineet Agarwal & Almas Ahmed and team O&M consisting of Parth Gadhiya, Harshad Salian, Aishik Sengupta. All the six winners received an iPad sponsored by media house, Rajasthan Patrika.

     

    The competition received a total of 120 registered entries through 41 mobile movies, from across the country. Of all the movies registered, 8 were shortlisted by a jury of eminent ad-makers and 2 were chosen as winners.

     

    As per the contest, teams of 3 young professionals, under the age of 30 years, were asked to create a short film (between 30 and 60 seconds), using their mobile handsets. Each team was assigned a mentor film maker who guided the team members on the nuances of film making. The teams were asked to create the art forms on one of the four briefs provided by ASCI which were based on the four tenets of ASCI’s code of self regulation: Honesty & truthfulness in advertising; Decency in advertising as per generally accepted societal norms; Safety & avoiding exploitation of vulnerable sections of society, especially children and Fairness in competition

     

    Mr Subhash Kamath, ASCI Board Member, said: “Through this competition, we wanted to inspire young professionals to abide by the guidelines set by ASCI and implement the same in their work. We’re extremely happy with the kind of response we’ve received and thankful for all the support. Next year, we hope to make this initiative larger and stronger by reaching out to many more media, advertising professionals.”

     

    The films were showcased at Goafest 2012 and uploaded on youtube.com and select online portals, so as to inspire professionals to understand the importance of self-regulation in advertising. The entries were judged by a jury of top creative directors and film makes of the industry.

     

    Advertising Standards Council of India is a self regulatory voluntary organization of the advertising industry. The Role and Functioning of the ASCI & its Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) is in dealing with Complaints received from Consumers and Industry, against Advertisements which are considered as False, Misleading, Indecent, Illegal, leading to Unsafe practices, or Unfair to competition, and consequently in contravention of the ASCI Code for Self-Regulation in Advertising.

     

     

     

  • There should be a PR award that enables entries to compete in the global arena. There is a major vacuum that needs to be filled and no one can help us on this but ourselves

    Amith Prabhu: PR frat needs a Goafest-like event

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    Goafest has become the annual jamboree for the advertising folks in India. And nothing wrong with that if it serves the purpose of those organizing and those attending. It is an expensive programme, especially for younger people. The cost to attend Goafest for a person varies from as low as Rs12,000 (if a person under 30 from Mumbai travels by road or rail and lives in very simple accommodation for 2 nights) to Rs40,000 (if a person over 30 from Delhi flies low-cost and lives in decent three-star accommodation).

     

    The point is that in all this effort and investment or spending (depends who pays the bill) very little is achieved for the industry in terms of learning. Most high profile speakers either use the opportunity to make a sales pitch or are not effective enough to make an impact (I have been to two events and seen for myself).

     

    The few who are impactful and are not making a sales pitch have few takers because they are either not well known, haven’t got the right publicity in advance and therefore those who should be listening to them are either on the beach or in their luxury rooms or sightseeing.

     

    The real achievement is for those who want a break and get it (most often fully or partially company sponsored), great work done in the year gone by gets rewarded (sometimes with controversy), people seeking a job change get to meet their potential employers and those who want to catch up in a non-work environment with former colleagues and buddies get to do that.

     

    Some PR professionals attend because they are involved in some way with the organizing and some others are connected with the ad agency that has a big role to play.

     

    But most inspiring of all the achievements is that all the big boys and girls in creative and media agencies who fight it out like bitter rivals in new business pitches and industry awards between May and March come together in April to celebrate the profession. And this to me is remarkable. No doubt there are a handful of boycotts that happen each year, but those are bound to happen and frenemies come and go.

     

    Cannes, around which part of Goafest is modelled, embraced PR a couple of years ago by including a separate category for PR and having a full-fledged PR jury. I’m not saying Goafest should do that. I’m here to seed the idea of a gathering of PR professionals from around the country. Head honchos of PR firms can collectively do a lot for the industry and the young and mid-level professionals. The three things they should do at break neck speed is put together a forum for PR professionals modelled on PRSA, create an industry award that is transparent, world-class and the gold standard for younger professionals to gain inspiration from and plan a gathering of PR professionals over a weekend to learn from each other. Networking is no longer a major need in the age of Facebook, Twitter and frequent after hours parties in the metros.

     

    There are several forums that function formally and informally in the PR space. But none that brings together corporate communication executives and public relations professionals, at all levels and of all ages, under one umbrella. It is time for a body that works closely and learns from PRSA. There is so much it does through several chapters for the betterment of the practitioner. With almost 15 of the Top 20 global PR firms present in India there is scope to even be handheld by one of the well-established forums.

     

    Thereafter, this organization should establish a PR award that enables entries to compete in the global arena. There is a major vacuum that needs to be filled and no one can help us on this but ourselves.

     

    Finally, the PR fraternity of India needs an annual event where PR professionals get together, listen to experts fromIndiaand around the world and celebrate the profession keeping aside differences for 48 hours at least, if not more. Maybe this could be called PondyPoweR and be held at Pondicherry on the east coast ofIndia. Symbolically, a quaint town with a rich heritage, near the beach for those who want to mix learning with fun.

     

    Hope this happens sooner than later, so public relations people can ponder on how to do some Public Relations for themselves, their firms and most importantly for the profession.

     

    Amith Prabhu is a public relations professional who spent a large part of his career in India and is now based in Chicago working for a PR major. Views are personal and do not reflect that of the writer’s employer. 

     

  • Awards are just another recognition for marketers and agencies to do more better says Ajay Kakar, CMO-Financial Services, Aditya Birla Group

    We’re here 2 get inspired & celebrate: Ajay Kakar

    Ajay Kakar, CMO-Financial Services, Aditya Birla Group shares his idea of the changes spotted this year at Goafest and the inspiration it has on the youth of today.

     

    What’s there for clients at Goafest?

    Goafest 2012 is a boiling pot for media, marketing and advertising industries to come together and think, discuss and get inspired. And I think 2012 was no exception.

     

    Key takeaways from sessions…

    Takeways remain the same: whatever you do, whoever you are there is so much more that you can do, there is so much work for you to get inspired and learn from. You go back thinking that whatever I have done, I have not done enough. We need to tap the real potential.

     

    Emphasis on digital…

    Digital has been given due focus for many years now. My one request or regret is that we should stop calling it digital and new medium; it is the medium of today and it will be the medium of tomorrow. How do we bring the potential upfront with the many success stories, I think that should be the focus going forward.

     

    Recognition through awards…

    Awards are just another recognition for marketers and agencies to do more better. This year, the number of entries, the number of agencies from which these entries came and the quality of entries have really done us proud. I think that’s the important part – it’s the work that we are here to get inspired by and celebrate. That’s been a great reality this year.

     

  • Digital is the flavour of the year, it is because digital is a new medium, it is an evolving medium and it is very fashionable these days to talk about digital, says Ajay Chandwani, Director, Percept

    We hope digital could translate into more benefits to clients: Ajay Chandwani

    Ajay Chandwani, Director, Percept talks ton MxM India on what shone and clicked at Goafest 2012 and spells out his expectations for 2013.

     

    What were the key takeaways from Goafest 2012?

    Even though I may have missed some of the sessions at Goafest 2012 since I wasn’t there at that time, however, I was told the sessions were very impactful and that it had covered every length and breadth of the subjects. I was also told how the 3D’s i.e. Design, Direct, and Digital stole the limelight at the day one of Goafest 2012 awards. In fact, it is no longer just the media awards, but the day one awards cover the media and the 3D’s, so I am happy that it has reached that point. Besides, I also found Professor John Philip Jones’ session very interesting and insightful.

     

    On the emphasis given to digital this Goafest:

    Digital is certainly the flavour of the day, may be flavour of the year or the last few years. If you look at most of the seminars, digital has been the talking point, it is because digital is a new medium, it is an evolving medium and it is very fashionable these days to talk about digital. We are hoping that it could translate into more benefits to the clients because today it is still a television and print led economy as far as advertising is concerned. Ironically, not more than 3 or 4 per cent of clients’ money is actually going to digital. So I am hoping that this would change, I am also hoping that through these seminars it will enlarge the digital complementary, it will create interest in the mainstream creative people to enter digital and when this happens then the medium will expand.

     

    Has there been an improvement in digital creatives over the years?

    Yes, there has definitely been an improvement in the digital creative which was not so until two years ago because it was a new medium, it is still not attracting the top talent of, say, the mainstream creative, but when this happens, only then we will see the real growth of digital happening in India. However, the fact that we won a grand prix in digital in itself is a very good trend.

     

    Expectations from Goafest 2013…

    We expect Goafest 2013 to be even better and even brighter and smarter in terms of selection and more participation from companies is also expected.

     

  • The original idea of a business conclave is for a few industry leaders to sit together in a roundtable and discuss the issues of business of advertising says Sam Balsara

    Need for industry leaders to deliberate on biz of advertising: Sam Balsara

    Always the one with the questions, Madison’s Sam Balsara was his usual self at the sessions as he questioned a few ideas and provided his solutions on the same. MxMIndia got Mr Balsara to briefly share his stance on the sessions this year and sought his recommendations for Goafest 2013.

     

    What would be the takeaways from the sessions over the three days?

    I think the sessions this year have been excellent; the quality of speakers has been high this year. I think it’s all credit to the growing brand equity of Goafest that we have been able to attract so many international speakers of repute. There have been some good broad learnings; it’s not that we didn’t know about them but these speakers of stature have reinforced the belief that advertising is moving from one to many – from conversations to stories. Clearly digital seems to be the mantra of today. The sessions were woven around the magic of advertising, I think John Philip Jones came out with a refreshing and different quantitative view on how not to get carried away on what you think and I think are the required numbers. His basic message of not having share of voice or a good share of the market means that you are getting into a dangerous area. I think it is pretty important for many brands inIndiato take note of.

     

    A word on the Media Abby awards held this year…

    Though we did emerge a big winner, I think the enthusiasm among the crowd was low compared to the earlier years. This possibly may be due to the awards being distributed far more in quantity this time – but this is a good thing for the industry and will encourage more participation.

     

    What are your recommendations for 2013 to the Goafest committee?

    A significant recommendation that I have is more related to the Business Conclave, which I feel needs to be relooked at. The original idea of a business conclave is for a few industry leaders across the spectrum of advertising, media agencies and so on to sit together in a roundtable and discuss the issues of business of advertising and how to make it profitable. Also, we need to invest more in talent and learning. Right now I think it has become an extension of the sessions and we need a sharp a dividing line between the business of the advertising seminar and the knowledge seminar. I think we need to bring that back.

     

    Click here to view all Goafest 2012 stories

     

  • They should have got some speakers from television and print too, as they need to be told what are they doing to sustain in these mediums because they are also growing, says Joy Chakraborty, CEO, TV Today

    Don’t ignore TV & print: Joy Chakraborthy

    Joy Chakraborthy, CEO, TV Today gets candid as he talks with MxM India about the quality of sessions that were held at Goafest 2012 and what the committee needs to consider for 2013.

     

    How would you rate the several sessions that were held this year at Goafest?

    It’s good to see some good speakers at the sessions this year, but I would still suggest that they should have had some sessions on media because we are talking about future technologies while we are also talking about existing technologies like television and print – that is what I found missing. It’s always good to come back to Goafest because you get to meet all your friends, interact and network with them and partake of the nostalgia. So it’s great place to network, party and go back.

     

    Is digital receiving too much of a prominence at Goafest?

    Digital is getting prominence everywhere but people should not forget that all existing mediums are going to coexist; nothing is going to replace anything. The focus should also be on television and print and they should have got some speakers from these mediums too, as they need to be told what are they doing to sustain in these mediums because they are also growing. I have already put forth these recommendations to the committee. If you see, all sponsors are from print and broadcast, so they need to make these mediums inclusive in their plans.

     

    What are your views on the awards that were held this year?

    I think the awards got a little boring towards the end. Till Media Abbys were given it was good, but once it got to digital and other verticals it became boring. A few moments at the awards were interesting like the laser presentation made by Google.

     

    What are your travel plans for Goafest 2013?

    I think it’s always good to come here but I hope they accept our recommendations. I felt a bit let down this year, as you are setting standards of Cannes, you cannot afford to have technological glitches (as it happened on the first day at the Conclave); it reflects badly on us Indians. Such issues need to be addressed better.

     

  • So while the focus till now was to get the event going, the plan going forward would be to plan three years' ahead and see what can be planned for the future, says Shashi Sinha

    Special to MxM: Shashi Sinha on Day 2

    By Shashi Sinha

     

    The good thing about the last day at Goafest was the quality and number of gold and silver metals that were given out this year. A number of members came on the jury this year and there were much more metals that were handed out this year compared to last year.

     

    As for the sessions, the big one for me was the one by John Philip Jones, which was media-based and I really found it interesting. It must have been a complex thing for the students and youngsters gathered at the venue, as it was based on investments and so on, but it was a good one for those in upper hierarchy. It was all about how one can spend clients’ money smartly; in fact I am going to do a detailed presentation for my team later on.

     

    While that was about sessions, the event had its share of fun too. Rain dance was an occasion that was enjoyed to the fullest by the young adlanders. It was good to see so many youngsters revelling together. Unfortunately for me, again I was stuck up with a press conference and had to give it a skip. But that said, I think the Creative Abbys were the highlight of the evening. Compared to Media, Creative Abbys had more Grand Prix on offer and were bagged by deserving candidates, including Ogilvy and Creativeland Asia.

     

    As the president of AAAI and we were discussing that if we had ten thousand to spend, how would we spend them. So while the focus till now was to get the event going, the plan going forward would be to plan three years’ ahead and see what can be planned for the future. But having said that, the event will continue to remain big and will continue to stay as relevant going forward.

     

    So it will not be only about 2013, but about the next 3-5 years because right now we have attained the critical mass and the focus would be to maintain the success levels going forward.

     

    Click here to view all Goafest 2012 stories

     

  • Ogilvy was the clear #1, but runner-up Taproot showed the Big Boys the might of the small…

    @Goafest, Taproot emerges tall. And how!

     

    By Tuhina Anand (with inputs from Robin Thomas)

    Photographs by Shailesh Mule/Fotocorp

     

    When Big Dad of Indian advertising Ogilvy pockets 51 metals at Creative Abbys at the Goafest 2012, it is something that one expects, so no surprise here really. But when a three-year-old agency goes on to become the runner-up, leaving behind the much settled Leo Burnett, DDB Mudra, Grey and JWT, it is indeed a proud moment for Indian advertising. It says that all is not lost and what still matters in the advertising business is creativity and if you have the ingredients right then there’s no one to stop you from writing your success story. Taproot India and its founders Agnello Dias and Santosh Padhi have shown the industry the might of small and given hope to many aspirants on the same path.

     

    Talking about Taproot’s success, Agnello Dias said: “It’s been great, a satisfying feeling, but it is also slightly scary because we have got to do even better than last year as expectations have gone up, but as of now, we are just happy that we have performed well at the awards.”

     

    On Taproot missing out on the Grand Prix as there were huge expectations from Airtel campaign, Santosh Padhi said: “Yes, a lot of people said that our Airtel or Pepsi campaign would win us a Grand Prix, so I think that itself is a Grand Prix for us. Therefore, we have no grudge and we are happy with the way things have turned out for us. And definitely there were two strong competitors against us for the Grand Prix.”

     

    The victorious Ogilvy team

     

    The most awarded work at the Goafest was for  brands, including The Times of India, Volkswagen India and Airtel. Even for Ogilvy India, the work that fetched them maximum awards was for Fox Crime. Also the work that got CreativeLand Asia its Grand Prix in the Integrated category was for Audi 8L 3D.

     

    TOI’s ‘Wake Up Chennai’ (that fetched accolades at Goafest) has been embroiled in controversy as it spoofed its rival, The Hindu. the ad showed how reading the old player (read The Hindu) puts people to sleep and the readers should wake up to something more exciting – The Times of India. The ad was crafted by Taproot which also created Airtel’s Har Friend Zaroori Hai that fetched many awards for the agency across various categories. In fact, Har Friend… can be dubbed among the most popular campaigns of the year.

     

    A happy Creativeland Asia team

     

    Ogilvy’s work for Fox Crime titled The Photographs case, made by Good Morning, is in keeping with the genre of the channel and creates a mini thriller for its audience, building anticipation for what to expect on the channel. Talking about the wins, Abhijit Avasthi, NCD, O&M said: “It’s been a great year as always and I think the best part is that we have done well in every category, from design to direct to digital to integrated. Obviously there are some works where one wishes we had got more recognition, like the Cadbury in home campaign, but, overall, we are very happy. I think we have got the best clients who allow us to do really some very interesting work.”

     

    “It’s very reassuring that we have managed to win the Grand Prix back to back and this year I hold the digital grand prix to a greater importance, simply because it demolishes the myth of lots of clients that digital is something big network agencies cannot do,” he added.

     

    Volkswagen, which brought awards to DDB Mudra, Grey India and Nomad Films, is a brand that has caught attention because of its innovative use of media since its launch inIndia. While the fraternity may not have lauded all the innovations that Volkswagen did, but it cannot be disputed that the work did catch the attention of the people and fraternity.

     

    However, if one were to look at the Creative Abbys 2012, it will be remembered for Taproot India, which carved a name for itself among the behemoths, only because of its creative supremacy. More power to all those who want to chart their own path and keep in mind that great ideas zaroori hai and the rest will follow. Right, sirji?

     

    Click here to view all Goafest 2012 stories