MxMIndia

Category: THE ANCHOR

  • The primary role of marketing is to drive sales and bring in revenues, writes Lloyd Mathias, as he lists the six vital lessons marketers learn on the job

    The Anchor: Lloyd Mathias on the 6 things every marketer learns on the job

    By Lloyd Mathias

     

    1. No matter how good your campaign is, it won’t work till you have your team fully aligned with it. So, as much as you spend time on zeroing on the consumer insight, researching the proposition, fine tuning the communication – it is important to “sell” the campaign to your internal constituents.  Hence the need for internal communication – point-of-sale material for trade, detailers for the sales force.  It is also critical to align campaign breaks with availability of field materials and widespread distribution.  The best campaigns don’t succeed without product in the shelves.

     

    2. The past is no guarantee to the future. Most marketers believe if it’s worked well in the past, it will work again. The fact is consumer tastes change over time. Even more importantly, the market dynamics change. Also, most consumers need fresh stimulation.

     

    3. Treat your agency as an integral part of your marketing team.  It is amazing how many marketers have near adversarial relationships with their agencies (creative, media, digital PR).  Your agency is the co-custodian of your brand – the more they know about your business and the issues facing it – the richer will be their input. Treat them as co-owners. Give them the freedom to do the occasional over the tip creative.  Long term they won’t let you down.

     

    4. Marketers tire of their campaigns much faster than consumer do. Remember most consumers see a whole lot less of your brand than you do.  Refresh if you need to, don’t revamp.

     

    5. Meet real consumers as often as you can. An hour with consumers is worth many hours of pouring over research data. Consumers today – more than ever – have a strong point of view and want to be heard. Some of the finest ideas come from immersing with your consumers. And remember – don’t confuse your sales force or trade partners with REAL consumers. No, not even analyzing the brands’ Facebook page responses or looking up the Twitter handle can beat real consumer face time!

     

    6. Always keep the larger business objective in mind. Remember the primary role of marketing is to drive sales & bring in revenues. Everything else comes next. So try not to be overly protective about the marketing budget – especially if the business needs cuts.  In the long run if business wins – marketing wins.

     

    Lloyd Mathias is Director, GreenBean Ventures. He was President & CMO, Tata Teleservices until late last year and was Sales & Marketing Director of Motorola India prior to that.

     

  • Thankfully, I didn’t have to invent any of the reasons why Mango will reign undisputed. They have always existed. I just had to put them in no particular order, says Prathap Suthan

    The Anchor: Prathap Suthan on 7 reasons why mango is the Emperor of Fruitland

    By Prathap Suthan

     

    Honestly, I am yet to stumble on to someone who doesn’t rage after this fruit. In fact, if I do meet him or her, it just might be a fickle pretense.

     

    Take lush mango away from the menu of pleasures, and you’d dread the emptiness that stares at you from the fruit bowl.

     

    I mean everything that’s left inside, including moldy grapes, obese melons, and squishy jackfruit, is one mediocre disappointment after another.

     

    You’d be truly blessed if you ever had an orgasmic experience with a guava. One errant seed raking up screaming havoc in an old dental cavity notwithstanding.

     

    In all my years as a devoted single fruit pilgrim, no one really asked me if any other fruit deserved the altar. But now that I have to defend my icon, allow me 2 non-noodle minutes.

     

    Thankfully, I didn’t have to invent any of the reasons why Mango will reign undisputed. They have always existed. I just had to put them in no particular order.

     

    1. Mango, the great Equalizer

    No matter who you are, where you live, or what you like, you are a subject of this awesome fruit of plenty. If you aren’t an eternal slave of its yumminess to the nth degree, dude you have no clue what you are missing. Regardless of our faiths, beliefs, geographies, physical differences, skin colours, hairstyles, fashion skews, cultural peccadilloes, bank balances, and even sexual orientation, the mango is not mere king.

     

    It’s a great leveler. We are all equal victims. Unless some of us are lashed by daily nightmares of man-eating mangoes, snorting rhinos can’t wrench most of us away from slobbering over its spell. It’s worthy of leading a new age religion. Or at least a dozen political parties aligned along gourmet tastebuds.

     

    2. Mango, the winning Politician

    I am often pushed into vague corners by sour men and women who poke holes at India Shining. But then, little do they consider the mango side of it. If it wasn’t for that campaign, aam aadmi as an expression wouldn’t have been brought to the fore. The ordinary men and women of our country wouldn’t have found such a powerful public idiom. Come to think of it, there nothing else unites us so tastefully across all socio-economic definitions. Considering that we grew up in a country where every neighbourhood has at least one mango tree, and every one us would have either plucked or thrown down a mango. Centuries from now, mango people will be linked to the history of the 2004 elections. As the little big people who torpedoed a government’s feel good carrier.

     

    3. Mango, the giver of Words

    I am yet to lick an apple, salivate over a plump orange, drool at a spiky pineapple, or go anywhere oral near a banana. Yuck. On the other sticky hand, I can’t wait to get cozy with a juicy mango, unpeel its skin, and allow my tongue to plunder its curves. Every word that’s been designed to bring out osculatory pleasure makes ample sense and effective relevance. Go on, close your eyes. You can bite a mango, you can slurp a mango, you can nibble a mango, you can kiss a mango, you can moan a mango, and oh yes, you can suck a mango. I doubt if there’s a wildest word you cannot do to a mango.

     

    4. Mango, the Cultural Fountain

    Undoubtedly, inspiration isn’t just limited to pushing and expanding the frontiers of vocal expression. The mango has undoubtedly aided the growth and profusion of our aesthetics. If it hasn’t stimulated us enough, I think we have been fools to overlook the cornucopia it unleashes. From paisley that makes huge contributions to the clothes of men and women – neckties to sarees, I am sure mango has pandered itself to aspiring writers of novels and poetry. There’s much hidden in the gush of its juices, the allure of its nectar, the softness of its body, and the blush of its colours. I certainly cannot see glorious muskmelon or splendid kiwi goading me to spill my ink. I might suffer from permanent drought. If I am not entirely mistaken, the fertile mango has already spawned fashion, books, taxis, beverages, radio stations etc. There’s so much more possible.

     

    5. Mango, the natural Aphrodisiac

    Here’s a quickie. Whenever you two decide to bathe each other’s teeth, grab a nice handful of Alphonso. Or any common mango from the fridge. With so much of passion held inside its ripe and near gossamer thin skin, it does give human chemistry a bit of a goosebumpy spur. Add a little dose of imagination, and the humble mango could be quite an experimental grenade while rolling in the hay. While there could be unexplored magic potion and endless ginseng within pears, peaches, and pomegranates, I’d still bet that they offer precious zilch to help you better Vatsya’s magnum opus. The mango is the undoubted king and queen in bed – as much as it’s on the dining table, in the living room, under a moonlight night, in the bathroom, under the staircase, and just about everywhere both of you want to come and go.

     

    6. Mango, the sensitive humanist

    Mango may have a large nut. But maybe there’s a thumping heart inside. Perhaps that’s the way one should read that.Look at it this way. Why do you think mangoes come in all sorts of shapes? And sizes. And colours. And even price ranges? They mirror us. They do their best to become like us. They understand us better than most other fruit. Unlike plebian chikoo, jamun, plums, and even rambutan which have negligible variety. Almost one size fits all. On the other hand, consider the benevolence of the Gods. The great mango has just as many rich variations as us – tall, short, squat, stocky, beautiful, small, lean, thin, overweight and so on. Long mangoes. Short mangoes. Big mangoes. Small mangoes. Pointy mangoes. Round mangoes. Fat mangoes. Thin mangoes. Green mangoes. Red mangoes. Blue mangoes. White mangoes. Sweet mangoes. Sour mangoes.

    For every distinct physical and even mental trait, there are mangoes that have evolved to characterize people. Just how more awesome can this true monarch be?

     

    7. Mango, the incredible Indian

    With so many different varieties that you might know, here are a few you wouldn’t have heard of. All harvested across the corners of our country. Kishenbhog, Jamadar, Fazli, Gulabkhas, Badami, Raspuri, Zardalu, Pairi, Malkurad, Beneshan, Bangalora, Jehangir, Suvarnarekha, Mulgoa, Himayuddin and Samar Behest Chausa. Ignore them if you like to lead a poor life. While all of them represent the mosaic India is, with the hottest summers giving you the sweetest mangoes, the mango is no longer a seasonal protege. With the koel as its raucous herald. Today, science and ingenuity has helped mango mutate into anything you think of. And most of them brim with the essence of its inherent mischief. You can have them as shakes, aam ras, aam panna, sherbet, squashes, nectar, juices, drinks, candy, jams, jellies, preserves, chutneys, curries and achaar. Until civilization declares similar lust for any other fruit from the planet’s orchards, the mango will remain raja. And me and you its besotted praja.

     

  • The Anchor: Rajesh Mehta on 5 highs for a marketer winning a Gold at Cannes

    By Rajesh Mehta

     

    1.  Winner at a global level:

    It was a campaign that was conceptualized and visualized by the team and received laurels globally. The appreciation that we received was absolutely exciting. The admiration that we got withWestern Unionwining at such a global platform was thrilling for our entire team.

     

    2. Not expected from financial services:

    Western Unionmoney transfer, being a financial services company, is associated as the category from which cutting edge creative work is not expected. But to break the standard belief that the category can also be innovative was an achievement in itself. The entireWestern Unionmarketing team, along with McCann (creative agency), worked together to develop the campaign, that enabled us to cut through the clutter.

     

    3. It’s a Gold:

    There couldn’t be a better feeling than winning a Gold at the Cannes. And apart from that, it was the first Gold win forIndiaat the Cannes 2012. Western Union accomplished two victories with one Award – won the Gold at Cannes and the first gold forIndiafor 2012. There couldn’t be a greater feeling for us than winning these accolades in one night.

     

    4. Befitting to theWestern Unionbrand:

    As a marketer, it is a thrill to know that the ad campaign has captured the essence of the brand and has reached out to the right audience. The win at Cannes not only proves the creativity behind the campaign but the spot on messaging captured through it. The out-of-the-box thought process of our creative agency, along with theWestern Union’s internal marketing team’s insights, made this campaign an award winning one.

     

    5. Stood out among all the entries:

    For all of us, standing out in a crowd matters more than anything else and that’s exactly what we achieved with this win. There were 4,843 entries from 87 countries sent this year in the OOH Category which was higher than last year. This clearly indicates thatWestern Union’s win of the Cannes Lion Gold stood out and it certainly speaks volumes about the brand.

     

    Rajesh Mehta is Director-Marketing, Western Union India

     

  • Since the last Olympics, a lot of Indian sportspersons have come to the fore. Apart from gold medals, I think our chances of winning a larger number of medals are higher than ever, says Prasana Krishnan

    The Anchor: Prasana Krishnan on 5 things to watch out for in the 2012 Olympics

    By Prasana Krishnan

     

    1. Indian contingent: The Indian sportspersons have only improved since Beijing 2008. Apart from gold medals, I think our chances of winning a larger number of medals are higher than ever – meaning more silver and bronze medals too – leading to a larger overall tally of medals.

     

    2. Individual performances: Since the last Olympics, a lot of Indian sportspersons have come to the fore. Our boxers and shooters will do us proud this time as well. And, so will the badminton players.

     

    3. Team spirit: Controversies might have outshone them. But I do feel that Indian tennis team’s performance will be worth watching. The players are in great form.

     

    4. Hockey: It’s our national sport and hopefully they will make us proud. The hockey team’s performance is definitely something to look forward to.

     

    5. Usain Bolt: Don’t be surprised if he smashes his own record. After all, he is ‘Lightning Bolt’!

     

    Prasana Krishnan is COO, Neo Sports Broadcasting Pvt Ltd

     

  • Digital Media advertisers end up creating metrics which are not 100 per cent aligned to the business goals, which they wish to achieve, with campaigns being driven via digital media planned, says Siddharth Puri

    The Anchor: 5 reasons why advertisers don’t get desired ROI from Digital Media plans

    By Siddharth Puri

     

    1. Advertisers inability to identify right metrics to evaluate media plan performance

    Digital Media advertisers end up creating metrics which are not 100 per cent aligned to the business goals, which they wish to achieve, with campaigns being driven via digital media planned. For example, e-commerce advertiser looks to advertise and drive more transactions, but instead deploys money on media and optimizing media plan for a metric such as number of visits received on the e-commerce store front, instead of owning up to all metrics in the funnel till business objective of transaction. Lot of advertisers end up treating metric like on-site conversion ratio as black box instead of demystifying up to product searches, carts created, number of users reaching closer to end metric of transaction and optimizing media plan on deeper in sales funnel metrics.

     

    2. Cross Digital Media Channel Attribution Management

    Digital Channels have evolved from being a single channel to a medium with multiple media channels like social, search, display, mobile, affiliate among many others. With advent of multiple channels and ability to measure via technology, it is important that the advertiser doesn’t make a mistake in establishing, not only channel which leads to last content before conversion of customer in campaign, but the medias which lead user down the funnel.

     

    Performance channels like Search and affiliate networks sit lower in funnel and closer to conversion, but study of users’ path before conversion reflects strong display activities with correct frequency and media placement on media plan reflected as high as 50-60 per cent work done to influence conversion.

     

    3. Digital Media plan created with over-dependency on single creative format type

    To create 360 degree impact, it’s important that all formats, including Mailers and Text Ads, beyond Display should be used effectively to capture the user intent created. What’s required is the ability to synchronize communication across formats to deliver higher ROI than single creative format type plans.

     

    4. Measuring of Google as single property/channel on media plan

    Google is made up of multiple line items for an advertiser for instance:-

    1. Brand Keywords – Users search for your branded products and are captured via Google text ad words advertisers at the cheapest cost. The ROI should compete with your SEO/organic traffic metrics as there is no effect of advertising but ability for technology to funnel direct demand for you. 30 per cent is the ideal spend for a brand advertiser.

    2. Non Brand Keywords – Spend done on this bucket is for placing your ads in front of category specific searches happening and trying to influence or win SOV – 40 per cent spend for an advertiser

    3. Google Content Network – Spend done on this bucket is to place your ad in contextually relevant environment basis audience targeting driven from content on page taken as input or measurement of relevance. This category constitutes approximately 30 per cent of an advertisers spend

     

    From a ROI cost perspective, the above channels have been listed in order of their cost to return ratio, indicating clearly that the average ROI delivered by Google is lesser than ROI metric achieved on non brand keyword due to averages from brand keywords making other channels on digital media plan look ineffective in meeting goals. If, as an advertiser you treat all the three as different channels, you will be able to increase ROI efficiency on your media investments by 30-40 per cent.

     

    5. Ad Network buys which constitute 20 per cent of the media plans are bought on price with comparison of channel against Search than Display Properties

    Ad Networks are fundamentally Display Format Publishers and hence inherit strengths and weaknesses of Display. Their performance and optimization which can be achieved is similar to display properties. One uses Ad Networks over display properties due to the technology which brings along additional optimization capability beyond creative and placement optimization. Digital Media plans are being developed as operations plan rather than strategy plans. If brands marketers/advertisers change their approach to Digital Media plans, they will be able to generate desired ROI since the Demand being less than Supply scenario still exists on digital media.

     

    Siddharth Puri is the Business Head, Tyroo Direct

     

  • Marketers should define their category by the way their customers see it, rather than the way the industry sees it, says Suman Srivastava

    The Anchor: Suman Srivastava on 5 Reasons why Marketing is a Creative Business

    By Suman Srivastava

     

    1. The marketer has to define the category he is in:

    Marketers should define their category by the way their customers see it, rather than the way the industry sees it wrote Theodore Levitt in Marketing Myopia. This is true even today. One can argue that a discount airline and a full service airline operate in different categories, even though they both fly planes.

     

    2. Pricing has become an art and not an accountancy exercise:

    Cost plus pricing is dead. Today consumers live in a “free” economy. Musicians give away their music for free from their websites and then make money on the concerts and the merchandize. Printers in the USA cost less than a full set of cartridges in them. Go figure.

     

    3. Marketers increasingly sell augmented products:

    You never just buy the car. You buy the car and the service and the resale value. As products become more commoditized, the pressure is on the marketer to differentiate the product in some other way. Hyundai offered to buy back cars from people who lost their jobs in America. That ensured that it increased its market share in a declining market.

     

    4. In India, creative distribution ideas can truly disrupt markets:

    Cavin Kare changed the rules of the game by launching shampoos in sachets. They started a revolution that has extended from personal care products to telecom (prepaid cards). Sachets could be placed in the smallest of stores and be within reach of the poorest of customers.

     

    5. Advertising doesn’t work as well as it did before, so marketers need to think of unique brand experiences:

    Smirnoff is not allowed to advertise, so it created a series of events where consumers were taught to make cocktails. These were fun events where the consumers left after not just having a few drinks, but also learning the right way to make and serve cocktails. Beats a 30 sec TVC any day.

     

    Suman Srivastava is Founder & Innovation Artist at Marketing Unplugged, a firm that helps firms create marketing innovations

     

  • An ideal balance between expenditure and investing on the future of your company is vital and rests on your vision, says Zubin Driver

    The Anchor: Zubin Driver on 5 things to keep in mind while launching a creative co

    By Zubin Driver

     

    Choose the right people!

    It is very important that every team member is hand-picked, because he or she should have exceptional qualities that compliment other team members. A strong team with diversified skills is of utmost important in a creative agency.

     

    Have a clear vision…

    It is essential to have a clear vision and make sure you live up to it every day in word and deed. Make sure your visions are clear, concise and specific. Your vision needs to be a clear message which has the ability of keeping you and your team inspired along with keeping you focused when you face obstacles and come across challenges.

     

    Practical and Reasonable Goals

    Make sure your business goals are practical and achievable. It’s better to be prudent and grow steadily than over promise and crash out of the game. Also keep in mind that your goals should be high enough to inspire you to push yourself even more but at the same time it should be grounded too.

     

    Value your people

    In a start up or in any creative agency, people are your biggest asset. The work force of a start up is its best resource. You have to keep them charged up and motivated to get the best out of them which in turn helps them grow as well.

     

    Think big, spend small and invest in the future

    One should keep an eye on the bottom line and the horizon line. An ideal balance between expenditure and investing on the future of your company is vital and rests on your vision. A profitable present will carry you into a fantastic future.

     

    Zubin Driver is the Founder & CEO of Pundalik

     

  • There's a lot that's hotting up in the Capital, writes Asif Syed

    The Anchor: Asif Syed on 5 Things that are getting hotter in New Delhi

    By Asif Syed

     

    1. Manmohan Singh – Will the sardar become asardar?

    For a while now, many observers of the Delhi durbar have felt that the real Prime Minister wasn’t Manmohan Singh, (no, not Sonia Gandhi, she’s the super PM) but Pranab Mukherjee. Whether it was with government work, party work, troubleshooting for the UPA sarkar or heading 13 Groups of Ministers that deliberate on government policy, Pranab was the man. The joke is that the PM (Manmohan) spoke so little is because the real PM (Pranab) didn’t let him.

     

    Now with Pranab on his way to becoming President of our republic, many ministers in the Union Cabinet have found some additional breathing space, but none so much as Manmohan Singh. So much so that the very day he took over the Finance Ministry, the sardar ordered the government to go looking its lost “animal spirits!”

     

    So will the sardar become asardar or will the real number 2 – P Chidambaram, who was second only to Pranab in the GoM count with 12 in his kitty – muscle in and fill in the vacuum.

     

    2. The Summer of 2012

    The venerable Times of India has reported that Delhi has had the hottest summer in the past 33 years with the average temperature frizzing the mercury to an average of 41.25 degrees. Interestingly, and what is probably a sign of the times, the data for this investigative story was sourced not from the Metrological Department of India but from the website of the National Climatic Data Centre (NCDC) in the United States.

     

    Unlike Bombay and (ahem) some other parts of the developed world that have uninterrupted power supply, Delhi seems to have introduced the new concept of uninterrupted power cuts. Add to this the severe water shortage – basically no water at all from the MCD – and one gets situation where residents who are out on the streets to protest the lack of bijli get into a scuffle with each other over tankers delivering water.

     

    Of course, Lutyens Delhi, home to national level politicians, bureaucrats and businessmen has no bijli or paani problems. The air conditioners in the MPs homes are humming and sprinklers keep their lawns achingly green.

     

    There is fervent hope that the monsoon rains will bring some respite but they too seem to be avoiding Delhi and are stalled somewhere over central India. Maybe the ToI can talk to the NCDC about what to do…

     

    3. The most modern thing in Delhi

    Not all is bad in Delhi and the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation is the best thing going on the ground, below the ground and above the ground. It has changed the face of Delhi for the better like nothing else and with every phase of expansion it is bringing the spread out city of Delhi and the other parts of the National Capital Region closer to each other. It is the one thing that works in the city of a thousand hindrances and works very well.

     

    With two phases completed and almost 200 km of track laid and services running, the DMRC has commenced Phase III which it aims to complete by 2015 and Phase IV by 2021. By then the Metro will have more than 400 km of track and will reach every corner of the megapolis. It is already one of the most advanced metros in the world and soon will also be one of the largest. (check out this map – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Masterplan_of_Delhi_Metro.png)

     

    Like Vicky the eponymous sperm philanthropist of the move Vicky Donor says to his nani, “Dill mein sirf do cheezein modern hain, ek hai metro aur ek tu.” I can’t vouch for the old lady, but he is bang on with the metro.

     

    4. News Capital

    For a city where the large majority of the people have at best only a passing acquaintance with the English language (or as they say in Delhi – bus sirf hi/hello hai), it is home to more English language newspapers, magazines and television news channels than any city in India.

     

    At last count there are more than 15 mainstream general and business daily newspapers being published from the city in English. The Millennium Post was the latest of the blocks and a couple more are reportedly in the pipeline. At this rate we run the risk of soon having more English newspapers than readers who read English.

     

    Throw in Hindi and other language publications and Delhi is probably host to the largest print news industry, with more print journalists than any city in the world. And in no other city can one find such a large number of journalists that speak, report and write in such a range of Indian languages.

     

    Sucking in all the content produced everyday and spitting it out in a physical form is a robust contract printing industry that is centred largely in neighbouring Noida. The printing industry there probably has the distinction of having not just the largest number of printing presses of all shapes and sizes of any city but of also printing newspapers not just in English in Hindi but also a number of other languages. For example, Vibha Printers (in NOIDA obviously) print newspapers in six languages.

     

    Never mind the lack of revenue, let alone profits, the news business inIndiais growing faster than ever before.

     

    5. Rahul Gandhi – naram but still garam

    As ever, Rahul Gandhi remains the hottest politician in India and with talks of an impending Cabinet reshuffle he is hotter property than ever.

     

    There is now talk about him finally finding a seat in the Cabinet as the Deputy Prime Minister, no less. The logic goes that this will be a suitable post for him to make his entry into the government as it won’t be decried as nepotism at its most obvious and it will still be a prominent enough to position him as the next leader of the party and the government. Party pundits feel the results of the next general election in 2014 will be determined by the ‘Youth Vote’ and who is better to capitalise on this demographic dividend than the youthful Rahul Gandhi.

     

    His middle-of-the-road pragmatism and firm resolve to stay away from the politics of caste and religion give him a universal appeal. And that, the thinking goes, will lead to a windfall of young urban and rural votes for the Congress and its allies.

     

    Though it would be wise to recall the ‘Rahul Effect’ in recent elections. Beginning with Bihar and followed by Pondicherry and most recently Uttar Pradesh, the last three assembly elections where he has played a significant role, it has become clear that Rahul’s presence alone does not bring in electoral results for the Congress party.

     

    However, the party, and specially dye-in-the-wool Congressmen, can’t stop gushing about him like schoolgirls with a crush on Ranbir Kapoor.

     

    Asif Syed is Editor and Publisher of Current and www.CurrentNews.in. He toggles between New Delhi, Mumbai and Buenos Aires

     

  • If the economy grows, middle class internet usage will increase, which will lead to consumption of Indian language content, says BG Mahesh

    The Anchor: BG Mahesh on 5 reasons why the future is regional language internet

    By BG Mahesh

     

    Diversity of India is the main factor:

    Official data related to literacy is 74.04 per cent. Now internet is used only by the upper middle class, slowly penetrating to the huge middle class sector, which is the largest in India. The upper strata of this middle class is moving to the upper middle class category and their aspirations are high.

     

    The Economy Factor:

    Indian internet penetration will double in coming years. Upper strata of the internet users may not understand Indian language but others, which is the majority, is going to outnumber this upper strata. If the economy grows, middle class internet usage will increase, which will lead to consumption of Indian language content.

     

    The changing in media consumption:

    One can see the phenomenal growth of Hindi language newspapers circulation during last five years, soon news papers will see stagnation in circulation and readership – users will be depending other media channels like Internet and Television.

     

    The increasing demand for mobile internet access:

    There are 898 million mobile subscribers in India, 292 million of these living in rural areas. The same data showed that 346 million Indian mobile users had subscribed to data packages. Telecom operators are already activating GPRS by default as they realize their users want mobile internet access. We need to recognize the fact that mobile internet (and possibly desktop internet) is not a luxury anymore but a necessity.

     

    Regional language internet involves masses:

    Unless there are content and services out there in a language the masses can understand why will they use the internet? Regional languages will bridge this gap. Advertisers are not for or against any language. Once they see there is a huge user base of regional language users, they will jump onto the advertisers’ bandwagon on the language sites.

     

    BG Mahesh is the Founder & MD of Oneindia.in

     

     

  • There was a time when people were into advertising for love of advertising now this is purely business and means of earning bread and butter, says Naved Akhtar

    The Anchor: Naved Akhtar on 5 things that have changed in advertising

    By Naved Akhtar

     

    1. Advertising has become a business:

    The pressure to perform is so high that many times creativity is given a miss. There is a role reversal – earlier the creative people were held in high esteem, now the client has become the one leading the show. Advertising has become a business with roles being changed.

     

    2. Work for awards v/s real work

    There are two different kinds of work that has emerged. The work that is done to purely win awards and then there is real work that is done to drive the product in the market. Twenty years ago one would see the same ads that were have worked for a business also winning awards but now there is just no connect. I think that now the award winning works are more like fine arts and done for self-exultation.

     

    3. The aura gone from advertising

    In the earlier days, the creative fraternity had an aura around themselves; and were respected for their creative genius. Now advertising is seen as just any other business and the appeal that people emanated who were a part of the business has gone.

     

    4. TV has become important

    Today television has become ‘the’ medium for advertising unlike earlier where press was given more due.

     

    5. Fun is low

    I think the fun has gone out of advertising because of pressure of work, win new businesses and remain ahead of competition. There was a time when people were into advertising for love of advertising now this is purely business and means of earning bread and butter.

     

    Naved Akhtar is the Founder at Shop Design and Advertising

     

  • When in an ad, one is resorting to technical claim, it should be backed by a clinical research study, and not consumer studies, says Alan Colaco

    The Anchor: 4 steps to stay away from misleading advertising

    By Alan Colaco

     

    1. Backed by a scientific study

    Ads should be truthful and honest. Before making any claim in an ad, there should be a scientific study in support of the claim. This scientific study should be preferably done by an independent government-approved laboratory.

     

    2. Support by consumer media research company

    If in an advertisement, one is relying at consumer data for an opinion, then the same claim should be supported by a related consumer media research company.

     

    3. Use clinical research

    When in an ad, one is resorting to technical claim, it should be backed by a clinical research study, and not consumer studies. Suppose a toothpaste brand is claiming that it cleans 99 per cent germs then don’t ask 100-200 consumers their opinion on the claim, but use a clinical research to support the claim.

     

    4. Disclaimer should be legible

    If there is a disclaimer that has to go along with the ad, then it should be legible and on television it should appear for at least 4 seconds. The disclaimer should also be on a clear background.

     

    Alan Colaco is the Secretary General of ASCI

     

     

  • Taking your brand to the emotional level involves cutting through the clutter to link the 'soul' of your brand with the 'soul' of the people, says Veetika Deoras

    The Anchor: Veetika Deoras on 5 highs of being a marketer

    By Veetika Deoras

     

    1. It’s a ‘soul-to-soul’ job

    To build deeper and richer connections with customers, brands must arise above the rational benefits and build emotional bridges. Taking your brand to the emotional level involves cutting through the clutter to link the ‘soul’ of your brand with the ‘soul’ of the people. This necessitates reaching out to your right brain, as much, if not more, than the left brain. And more often than not, this ends up being a very fulfilling and heartwarming experience.

     

    2. Thinking out-of-the-box

    Overload of communication, multiple media vehicles and an ever-evolving customer, necessitate out-of-the-box thinking and innovation, in both the planning and execution of marketing campaigns. This makes a marketer’s job challenging and ensures that there’s never a dull moment.

     

    3. Proximity to customers

    With customers, brands and the environment changing constantly, there is a critical need for marketers to be in constant touch with their customers. To reach out to customers, and observe and understand their behaviour, with a view to garner deep insights is a highly fruitful and enjoyable experience.

     

    4. The debates

    In some interesting way, marketers have always had the dual challenge of selling their ideas, first to internal stakeholders and then to external stakeholders. The debates make the job most invigorating, the output superior and the victories, sweet.

     

    5. Satisfaction of creating an ‘intangible’, which yields results better than most tangibles.

    How often does one get the chance to say – I have created a ‘perception’, a ‘bond’, a ‘genuine promise’ and this perceptual bond, based on a genuine promise is worth a billion bucks! This probably is the biggest high for me as a marketer.

     

    Veetika Deoras is Head – Brand Marketing & Corporate Communication, Tata Capital Limited