MxMIndia

Category: THE ANCHOR

  • Mitrajit Bhattacharya has a few guidelines for big-ticket names looking for the right avenues.

    The Anchor: 6 pointers for luxury advertisers when choosing a magazine

    By Mitrajit Bhattacharya

     

    #1 Whether the magazine caters to the right TG of the brand, not the TG that the planner/ advertiser belongs to, which may not necessarily be the same.

     

    #2 Most luxury brands in this country are consumed by the wealthy, so an income profiling is often better than SEC. The business community scores over the salaried class, who often simply cannot afford luxury (unless they are a rich banker). So, choose your vehicle accordingly.

     

    #3 Often a multi-brand distributor/ company has the same magazine list for all their brands. Decide for individual brands and not for the group; consumers finally see them individually.

     

    #4 Frequently check how the layout of copy/ edit pages is coordinated with that of advertisements. Many luxury magazines go to the extent of designing facing edit pages with relation to the ads and that really helps noticeability/ engagement.

     

    #5 Do not lose sight of sales; maintain the right balance of image-building (which is so critical for a luxe brand) without losing sight of the real impact on sales.

     

    #6 Be sure of the strengths of the medium and use it the best possible way, and not necessarily have the ‘same size fits all’ ad strategy across all media.

     

    Mitrajit Bhattacharya is the President & Publisher, Chitralekha Group & Vice President, AIM.

  • Just a week to go for Christmas, A N Chorrea makes his wishlist for Santa

    Anchor: 6 wishes for Santa for the media biz

    By A N Chorrea

     

    1. Blow away Slowdown blues

    Will Santa please bring in some cheer to the world struck by slowdown. Don’t get fooled by the launch of the new channels and publications and all the executive movements in media and markeing. It appears the slowdown is for real. And we want Santa to blow it away.

     

    2. May we have a Clean election

    There’s going to be plenty of political action in the coming months, and we want Santa to ensure the media doesn’t play favourites by way of paid news.

     

    3. Need differentiated content on entertainment television

    A new GEC was launched yesterday. With content that was differentiated. Quite like the way Colors was when it was launched. But look at many of the GECs around. Switch channels on any evening, and you’ll find similar content across. Santaji, please help on this score.

     

    4. And Clean news too?

    News ought to be clean and not without any biases, but many of our news channels tend to exaggerate and sensationalise news. And if they are partisan, then don’t say it upfront. Santa, we don’t want the government to regulate content, but can you please give the erring channels a piece of your mind?

     

    5. A hands-off government please?!

    Dear Santa, please give a chillpill to Madame Ambika Soni. She (and her ministry and its various constituents) have been flexing their muscles way too much off late. She wants to regulate everything: our advertisements, the content on entertainment and news television, the way the business is conducted. Etc etc.

     

    6. Better talent needed

    Where is the talent in our industry? Are arms of the media attracting best talent to be able to match up with the talent amongst marketers? Dear Santa, this is tough for you to achieve, but if we are able to create that awakening in the way the media business is run, we could achieve results. The competition in the business has led to very reduced margins and as a result the business can’t really afford top quality talent.

     

    Do you have any more wishes for Santa? Mail them at editor@mxmindia.com with the subject ‘Dear Santa’ and we’ll feature them on MxMIndia

     

  • Monica Nayyar Patnaik's end-of-year wish list for FM – players and listeners too.

    The Anchor: 6 wishes for Santa Claus from the radio industry

    By Monica Nayyar Patnaik

     

    #1 No ambiguity in FM Phase III:

    There has to be absolute clarity on phase III, and it must happen soon because every time there has been a delay for some or the other reason. I also hope the number of bidders is high and that it is easy for everyone in the industry to pitch in.

     

    #2 Music and copyright issue resolved:

    There is still a question mark on music royalty and copyright issues. It must be sorted out soon, not just with one or two major players, but with other players as well, big and small.

     

    #3 Ad pie of radio should increase:

    Radio is a mass medium, we are reaching out to a lot many people and now with mobile phones the FM radio penetration has only grown further.

     

    #4 Better technology:

    We need to be very clear on the technical aspect in terms of frequencies; it would be helpful for the listeners in getting a variety of niche programming and so on.

     

    #5 Improved listenership survey:

    It is very important for the entire radio industry. RAM is present in only four metros today, it must be extended to other cities as well.

     

    #6 More talent:

    Better training, their awareness running on air, behind the scenes in production. We need to give more opportunities to the production and technical talent pool as there is a lot of scope with more channels and frequencies coming in.

     

    Monica Nayyar Patnaik is Joint Managing Director, Eastern Media Limited.

  • Arvind Sharma's end-of-year wish list for the ad industry – agencies, creatives, clients… oh, and the consumer.

    The Anchor: 6 wishes for Santa from the advertising industry

    By Arvind Sharma

     

    #1 A year of bountiful growth for the economy: We really need Santa’s intervention on this. Only if the economy is good will clients put money into new launches. And support their current businesses with confidence. And help the advertising industry thrive.

     

    #2 Many dozen outstanding campaigns across categories: These become tougher to sell in a tight economy, which I anticipate.

     

    #3 Hundreds of high-quality young people joining the industry next year: Talented young people are the lifeblood of our industry. We need lots of them.

     

    #4 Emergence of a real alternative to cricket:  There is just too much of cricket. Audience interest in it is flagging, and so are returns from it.

     

    #5 Penetration of high-speed broadband internet across the length and breadth of the country: After the cellphone revolution, this can be the next big driver of growth for the country and the advertising industry.

     

    #6 Many more global campaigns out of India: Global recognition for Indian advertising talent has been growing. This should now convert into India becoming a major centre that MNC clients regularly look to for their global campaigns.

     

    Arvind Sharma is the Chairman of India Subcontinent at Leo Burnett.

  • More people looking for more jobs, more positions demanding more skilled hands. Never before, perhaps, has Human Resources been of such significance.

    The Anchor: 5 things that tell you this is the Hour of HR

    By Gaurav Hirey

     

    #1 The changing industry

    The media planning and buying industry is a new industry for HR. Managing people in this industry has been highly difficult and challenging. There are still people and skill shortages, structures are still being created and talented people are in short supply.

     

    #2 Gen Y on the march

    A generation of employees who were pampered by their Baby Boomer parents have now taken our workplaces by storm. Their numbers have jumped from previous years and are growing every year. They bring pluses and minuses to our workplace. So, not only are we trying to absorb these offspring of the Baby Boomer generation, who bring special challenges, but we are also dealing with helping three generations of employees who are happily co-existing to serve our customers as a team.

     

    #3 Recruiting and networking online

    This decade has brought about the transformation of employee recruiting and social and media interaction and networking. From the big job boards like Monster we have seen a transformation in how people find each other for networking and jobs.

     

    Social media networking is the new way to find employees, find jobs, get answers to questions, build a widespread, mutually supportive network of contacts, and keep track of colleagues and friends. Social media and online recruiting bring the employer new challenges. Developing social media and blogging policies, deciding whether to monitor employee time online, and checking candidate backgrounds online, are just some of the things that we have started doing. The power of online media is something that cannot be ignored by HR.

     

    #4 Made-to-order employment relationships

    Perhaps it’s the push from the Gen Ys, and definitely it’s the availability of technology that facilitates the customization, but the made-to-order work relationship has become a dominant force for us in GroupM. Customized talent initiatives have taken workplaces by storm.

     

    Flexible anything has now become the new norm. Flexible work hours, flexible work weeks, flexible time off for appointments, and the most important trend of all: Paid time off which allows employees to take time off when they need it, as it consolidates sick leave, personal time, and vacation time into a bank of days for employees to use.

     

    As employers we don’t need to police employee time but this demands increase openness in the new way of working. We have had to make work and communication more transparent and measurable so the flexibility yields results. Our employees are more motivated and engaged, and less stressed out about family and life issues, because they have the necessary time to address work-life balance issues.

     

    #5 The Big Blur

    Online, all the time, and availability via technology, has blurred the line between work and home. Employees work at home in the evening on collaborative reports and email. They shop at work and take brief breaks by playing online games. Employees do their banking at work and their work accounting at home. Almost no one goes on vacation without their smartphone and laptop. Instant messaging is now a part of our lives!

     

    No generation has ever been this connected, and for good and bad, some employees never stop working. As employers we need to make sure this degree of connectivity does not burn them out. At the same time we too must back away from old rules about what an employee is allowed to do at work. Our policies and processes need to reflect this and that in itself is a challenge.

     

    Gaurav Hirey is HR Director – South Asia at GroupM.

  • Wide acceptance and understanding of the digital medium within the fraternity will lead to better returns

    The Anchor: 5 wishes for Santa to augment Digital growth in the country

    By Sameer Pitalwalla

     

     

    #1 Cheap android tablets taking off
    The first generation of Android 2.3+ tablets between $35 – $100, that feature 3G + Wifi and hopefully LTE radio’s by the end of the year. If that happens, the market will open like the way it has for smart-phones.

     

    #2 3G to mature and the first leg of LTE to roll out across major metros

    3G has plenty of issues, including price and connectivity, but hopefully it will grab more share from the current Edge/GPRS data market as it matures. The much awaited rollout of LTE services should begin in metros later in the year.

     

    #3 YouTube to continue its dominance

    With three media companies working on their own hulu’esque product intended to rival Youtube, Youtube itself will continue to grow in traffic and revenue as it gobbles up more premium content, Live TV and events.

     

    #4 Facebook to emerge as a platform for premium content

    Facebook has already done this with music (Spotify) and being the second largest destination in the world for video after Youtube, one would expect they will begin pushing towards leveraging their platform for content owners to distribute and monetize their content. They certainly have the reach and the ecosystem to pull of what could be an incredible media experience.

     

    #5 More Ad Money

    With 120 million internet users, it’s about time we breach the 1-2% of all ad money being allocated to digital. Even if the ad industry grows 50% on its current base in this market scenario, it will open up a lot more innovation in the digital media landscape.

     

     

    Sameer Pitalwalla is Senior Vice President, UTV Interactive and Business Head, Celebrity and Video

  • Why is desi advertising talent so popular? The argumentativeness of the Indian tops Prashant Kumar’s list.

    5 reasons why Indian ad talent is doing so well in Asia

    By Prashant Kumar

     

    #1 We can talk: It’s only when you work outside India, especially in the East, that the benefits of having been born in a by and large free democracy stands out more starkly. The culture of debate, rooted in our ancient dialectical tradition and honed by our democratic upbringing, means we communicate well, and have the analytical ability to deconstruct complex problem scenarios into rational components, solve and put them back together into one cohesive, integrated whole and strike a good balance between macro and the micro.

     

    #2 We are hungry: Coming from a nation of a billion-plus people, and having fought hard every step of the way to belong to the privileged few millions, Indians have an innate drive to stand out and stay at the top of the line. This results in relentless passion, a craving for new learning, hardworking attitude and the courage to persevere, which for many a comfortable people of relatively affluent countries is less common. In the backdrop of a rising India, increasingly confident of its place in the larger world, there is a manifest destiny many subconsciously believe in.

     

    #3 We can count: Even our qualitative researchers can do a few good numbers, thanks to our indomitable dads and their fanatic fascination with mathematics. This faculty inculcates in us a more objective view of life, problem scenarios and decision making. To an average Indian talent, getting under the skin of the data to reveal the underlying story and seek the conceptual bridge with the intuitive insight into reality is the crux of good management. That doesn’t come so naturally to others.

     

    #4 We plug into the big picture: While Indians are not well known for operational efficiency and reliability, their diligence and attention to details, and a perfect alignment between the promise and the delivery, they sure get the big picture much better. Their ability to think beyond their narrow job briefs and their strong urge to figure out how the world around them works helps them develop a more holistic perspective earlier, helping them transition to leadership roles easier.

     

    #5 We can survive: The versatile challenges of growing up in India, encountering personalities and assumptions from a dozen parallel worlds in a regular day, and holding our faith into the perfect despite living with deep imperfections all around us, makes us highly adaptive, at least in our work set-up, if not in terms of food habits. At some level, our ability to go back to zero base and reframe our approach is probably better, sometimes out of need and necessity, but often out of sheer instinct.

     

    Prashant Kumar is the CEO at IPG Mediabrands in Malaysia.

  • 11 developments in media and advertising that 2011 will be remembered for.

    The Anchor: 11 noteworthy happenings of 2011

    By Tuhina Anand

     

    #1 The Dentsu deal. This was one of the earliest developments of 2011, creating a buzz when Sandeep Goyal made a fortune after selling his 26 percent stake in Dentsu India. Denstu Inc, the Japanese company which had a JV with Goyal’s Mogae Group became the sole owner. This development later saw some senior appointments like Rohit Ohri moving out of JWT to be the Executive Chairman of Dentsu Group India and much recently appointed Divya Gupta as the CEO of Dentsu Media.

     

    #2 World Cup comes home. India gave a stupendous show of its cricketing prowess when it lifted the World Cup. The series was a great opportunity for advertisers to get maximum eyeballs while ESPN Star Sports got the status of the official broadcaster of the series. Captain Cool, MSD walked away not just with the cup but also was given the title of the most influential Indian in Time’s list. Not to forget all the endorsement deals that the Indian team got post the win.

     

    #3 UTV-Disney deal. This was the mother of all deals when Walt Disney declared to buy stakes of UTV Software Communications. The deal is valued to be around Rs 2000 crore. Walt Disney already had a majority stake in UTV. The former will launch an offer to delist shares of the latter which will begin early next year.

     

    #4 Tough time for Kalaignar TV. The DMK run Kalaignar TV was in the news albeit for the wrong reasons. It got dragged in the 2G spectrum license episode and the brand took a further dip with its MD Sharad Kumar behind bars. This was one incident that Kalaignar would like to forget but its easier said than done especially because its taxpayers money that has been misused if the paper trail is proved correct.

     

    #5 Appointments and Dis-appointments. Ashish Bagga was elected President of The Indian Newspaper Society for the year 2011-Uday Shankar of Star India for was re-elected as the President of the Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) for his second term. Also Shashi Sinha of Lodestar was elected as the President of Ad Club Bombay. After being with TV Today Network for almost 16 years, G Krishnan, the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director quit. Haresh Chawla, the CEO of Network18 Group too decided to call it a day. Meanwhile Raj Nayak filled in the place left vacant by Rajesh Kamat when he took over as the CEO for Colors.

     

    #6 Justice Katju’s policing. Press Council Chairman, Justice Markandeya Katju had earned the ire of media by constantly trying to police media and gag the freedom of press. His suggestions to bring media under strict government purview and his thoughts on objectionable content had many in media being vociferous in their protest.

     

    #7 Rise of independents. The year marked the rise of independents in the advertising agency business who did well and earned name purely on their talent be it Taproot India with their fabulous work on Airtel and Pepsi or Creativeland Asia winning applauds at international awards arena.

     

    #8 AdAsia in Delhi. Delhi became the place to be for the advertising folks from around Asia who gathered for AdAsia. It was in 2003 that AdAsia was held in India in Jaipur and it came back only in 2011. The lineup of speakers was enviable and the number of delegates impressive. Thus a stimulating conference for all present.

     

    #9 Omnicom stake in Mudra. The Omnicom Group that has been trying to gain greater foothold in India managed to do so by taking a majority stake in Mudra. Post this Mudra also made its first structural change where it would be known as DDB Mudra and have DDB, Mudra, and Mudra Max under its umbrella.

     

    #10 Bobby and JWT shake hands. Bobby Pawar declared his intention to move out of Mudra soon after the Omnicom deal, thus giving enough fodder to the media to speculate on. His next destination is JWT and promptly Colvyn Harris took the opportunity to set his agency in order and went appointing three NCDs and a CCO at the helm. They sure will have their hands full in the New Year.

     

    #11 Anna Hazare’s magic. Who would have thought that a septuagenarian clad in Gandhi topi would become the most recognized face of 2011 and maybe even scoring more than Salman Khan in his meteoric rise to popularity? Not to mention that his fasts and LokPal Bill has taken enough of newsprint and debates on TV and has become a trending topic on the social media.

  • Pradyuman Maheshwari lists (and comments on) the 12 media organisations worth watching out for this year

    The Anchor: 12 media conglomerates to watch out in 2012

    By Pradyuman Maheshwari

     

    It’s the season for lists and as one who enjoys making (and reading) them, I couldn’t help volunteer to write this one. There were other contenders too for the 12, but these came out top, and not without reason.

     

    Here goes (in alphabetical order):

    1. BCCL:

    If this were a brands’ list, Bennett, Coleman and Company Limited’s products would make for at least five in the Top 12. There are various reasons why I am going to watch BCCL very closely.

     

    1. The editorial stand taken by flagship Times of India and Times Now in the election season. It was after TOI’s belligerent stand that Suresh Kalmadi came under fire and later the Anna Hazare movement gained much legitimacy.

    2. How TOI publications takes on regional superpowers: in markets like Chennai, Kolkata and Hyderabad with The Hindu, Telegraph and Deccan Chronicle respectively (they haven’t been able to outwit them), their entry in Kerala and managing markets like Maharashtra where competition will get stiffer.

    3. Times Now: Times Now = Arnab Goswami. He can disrobe any political leader on his day and asks the tough question like few others, but it’s not that the channel is invincible in the ratings game as there have been weeks when we’ve seen it trailing.

    4. Paid Content. The Times of India model of paid content may be the most aboveboard, and it has indeed put a line under the mastheads of Bombay/Delhi/etc Times that each of them is an ‘Advertorial, Entertainment Promotional Feature’, but that’s not enough. An announcement to that effect must be made on and off on the first page of the main paper which carries a pointer to the supplement.

    5. The new leadership team: Their vision and ways have been much discussed outside the portals of the Times offices. (One of the many reasons why I am going to be attending ad-tech Delhi next month is to witness director Satyen Gajwani’s keynote).

     

     

    2. Dainik Bhaskar

    If there’s a newspaper group in the country that continues to surprise all with the rapid strides it is taking in publishing, it’s decidedly Dainik Bhaskar. From the time it started the Jaipur edition a decade and a half back, there’s been no looking back for Bhaskar. The group has been diversifying aggressively over the last few years, given that it achieves much strength from its publishing ventures, its face-off with rivals will be watched closely.

     

    3. Dainik Jagran

    Publishers of the largest daily newspaper, the Kanpur-based group has its eyes set on some big things. The acquisition of Mid-Day saw the expansion of Inquilab and a clumsily handled shutting of two English Mid-Day editions. But its war chest is intact and expect some big announcements of acquisitions from the stable this year.

     

    4. Government of India

    What’s the government doing in a companies to watch out for list. Well, that’s because one can’t really do without in almost everything a media company does. Last year, we saw the ministry of information and broadcasting flexing its muscles way too much. Regulation, wage structure, renewals of licences and, of course, stray to outlandish comments from the various powers that be. Note: the DAVP which routes all ads to papers could play a crucial role in an election year.

     

    5. HT Media

    It publishes two newspapers I enjoy reading – Mint and Hindustan Times, but there’s more reason for it to be featured here: the group has been growing steadily across its various markets, and especially Hindustan which has seen a phenenomenal rise in certified readership over the last two years.

     

    6. MSM

    Its three big GEC rivals – Star, Zee and Colors – won’t let it breathe easy, but 2012 could see a golden opportunity for the Multi Screen Media to outshine the big ‘uns. Some of Sony’s fictions are doing remarkably well, the Sab TV magic continues, it’s IPL time soon and other channels aren’t just bystanders. Could MSM be the numero uno by this time next year? It’s tough, but not impossible.

     

    There are six more in the list. But as they do on entertainment television, read about them in the second part tomorrow (as part of Mediaah! which I plan to write more regularly from now on).

     

    Buzz me if you have a story to tell and gossip to share. Confidentiality assured. Andar ki baat will stay under. There are various ways you can reach me: pradyumanm[at]mxmindia.com, BBM @ 23050B5D, Whatsapp/Gtalk pradyumanm[at]gmail.com, @pmahesh, 98338 76278.

     

    Disclaimer: Although Pradyuman Maheshwari is CEO of MxMIndia other than being editor-in-chief, he chucks those hats while writing Mediaah! So, the views expressed here are entirely his own and not those of the website and the team that runs it (especially the National Sales Head!).

     

  • When is an agency not an 'agency'? When it wants to be a magnet for talent, observes Partha Sinha.

    The Anchor:6 ways ad agencies can attract top talent

    By Partha Sinha

     

    By abolishing the term ‘agency’ : Nobody, absolutely nobody from Harvard or Rhode Island School of Design would like to join an ‘agency’. Anything, even if it is as vague as a brand house or a communication company, sounds more respectable than an ‘agency’.

     

    By not behaving like an ‘agency’: The term ‘agency’ was born because advertising companies represented the media owners as their agency. Today the creative agencies don’t do that, but they represent another lot – the film producers. Today ad agencies are the agents for filmmakers. More time and energy goes into pushing a producer to the client than anything else. Again, no talent wants to come in to help producers buy very expensive cars and apartments.

     

    By changing the agency business model : By behaving like true middlemen, agencies never kept any IP with them. So today, the agency valuation is a joke. Again great talent will never join an industry whose current and future valuation is worthless. The advertising industry should be ‘valued’ for the assets they create, and that calls for IP-based remuneration.

     

    By getting rid of agency fears : Today, the confidence level of agencies has hit rock bottom. Fear is the primary driving force for the functioning of an agency. Agencies are afraid of not only the clients but of film producers, hoarding contractors, research agencies and all other sundry people. No young talent would work in an atmosphere like this. Agencies can become a bit more confident by shifting the conversation from ‘I think’ to ‘I know’. Young talent would love a place that’s more confident of its creations and not just based on hunch and judgment but based on knowledge.

     

    By restructuring the agency organisation : There are people in agencies whose primary job is to second-guess the client . They are clients’ agents inside the organisation (and they can come from any discipline, even creative). No self-respecting talent wants to work for a client, he/she wants to work with a client. Agencies need to rethink their organisation and put emphasis on creation rather than managing expectations. This will increase the inflow of talent.

     

    By discarding some of the agency presentations : There are many occasions where the senior agency types cut a sorry figure in front of a young audience with their sepia-tinted presentations and dead thinking. Even some of the advertising and brand talks that happen on TV shows can scare young talent off. For their own good, ad agencies need to change their thought pieces and representatives. Otherwise young talent will soon start referring to advertising in the past tense.

     

    I know that all 6 of these are virtually impossible to achieve. But then, who said attracting great talent was easy?

    Partha Sinha is the Managing Partner at BBH India.

     

  • Beautifully stringed words that touch the heart and superb play on words are some reason when Prasoon Joshi selects his favourites

    The Anchor: Prasoon Joshi on 5 songs he wishes he had written

    1. Ye dunia agar mil bhi jaaye to kya hai
    from the movie Pyaasa. This is a legendary song and the kind of work that I like doing. The song has a philosophical bent and is almost cathartic. It reflects the feeling of people and a song that has a social impact. This is Sahir Ludhianvi at his best.

     

    2. Bird on the wire by Leonard Cohen. The lyrics present a compelling imagery. Like a worm on a hook, Like a knight from some old fashioned book… It is a brilliantly written song and I admire the whole construct of the song.

     

    3. Mora gora rang laile from the movie Bandini. This is one of the first compositions of Gulzar Sahab and the lyrics are sheer poetry. In India where fair complexion is revered, here the request is to make her dark-skinned just like Krishna so that she can hide in the darkness and meet him. Beautifully stringed words that touch the core of your heart.

     

    4. Jyoti kalash chhalke from Bhabhi ki Chudiyaan. Again it presents a powerful imagery and a superb play on words. Huye gulaabi, laal sunahare, rang dal baadal ke, jyoti kalash chhalke/Ghar aangan van upvan, karti jyoti amrit ke sinchan, mangal ghat dhalke. Writing poetry is different when it has to be set on music as one has to ensure that while the song is written well it must also sound well. This is a perfect example of such a work.

     

    5. Mr Tambourine Man by Bob Dylan. I love the lines – I’m ready to go anywhere. I’m ready for to fade. Into my own parade, cast your dancing spell my way. I promise to go under it.

     

    Prasoon Joshi is the Chairman & CEO McCann Worldgroup India, Executive Creative Director of the Asia Pacific region and Chairperson, McCann Global Creative council. He is also an awardwinning lyricist.

    Photograph courtesy Shailendra Pandey/Tehelka

  • Suresh Srinivasan believes there is no alternative to the IRS – and it doesn't need one.

    The Anchor: Suresh Srinivasan on 5 reasons IRS is an effective measurement tool

    By Suresh Srinivasan

     

    #1 The only indicator. Currently IRS is the de facto gold standard for measurement of newspapers and magazines. IRS is based on continuous study with fairly large data base. More importantly there is no other indicator and it is the standard used by the industry.

     

    #2 It’s not about just absolute numbers, but also gives the trend of the industry over the years. The trends are a valuable resource for media planners, publications and advertisers. These are not volatile numbers but have been slow and steady indicators of changes in the industry. This gives a meaningful picture of what’s happening in the industry.

     

    #3 Considering that we are a large nation, IRS proves to be a cost-effective, valid and timely method of assessment of consumption of media. The sheer magnitude and scale of collecting and collating this data involves lot of work but IRS makes this possible and a valid data is available its users.

     

    #4 Besides the readership data available on frequency and demographics, IRS has become a vital source of comprehensive information. It has become a repository of data that can provide information on various other parameters like intent to purchase.

     

    #5 With technology coming in IRS is poised to become much more robust and will take research to higher level. It is a continuous journey to present better data to its users.

     

    Suresh  Srinivasan is the Vice President (Advt) of The Hindu Group of Publications.