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Tag: Amith Prabhu

  • Everything is not about learning at work, writes Amith Prabhu. From time to time one needs to take time off to learn with different people and from different people

    Amith Prabhu: A quest for higher education in Communications

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    What connects the following three communications professionals – Samir Kapur of Adfactors, Lavanya Wadgaonkar of Nissan Motors and Mukund Rajan of Tata Group? They are the three communications professionals in India that I know of, who hold a PhD degree and have Dr prefixed to their name.

     

    It makes one feel proud that in a community that is barely about 3000 people strong there are three who are Phds. What stops other communications professionals from pursuing higher studies and researching on a topic within the field ranging from mergers and acquisitions, employee engagement, ethics, corporate governance, community relations, crisis management and the like?

     

    Well, I can speak from experience that I chose to invest an entire month’s salary to spend on a short programme in marketing strategy at Harvard while I worked in the United States. Many other colleagues did that. But here in India that is not common. Earlier, the opportunities were few but now that opportunities have increased people do not avail them.

     

    I’m part of several Whatsapp groups that comprise the community of PR professionals. Barring one, which is definitely interesting most are shallow ponds of intellectual mockery. It is painful to read the discourse taking place on some of these. And what is even more alarming is there is no visible sight of anything being done to solve this problem which will plague the community in the near future.

     

    Even free education or deep discounted education has no takers at the highest levels, at times. Everything is not about learning at work. From time to time one needs to take time off to learn with different people and from different people. My column is about a hope I have. A hope that in the next five to seven years we will have at least 30 PhDs in India working in communications.

     

    This is not impossible. With new age universities emerging the possibility of pursuing higher education is optimum. Let’s consider taking up the pursuit of a doctorate seriously and aim to add renewed vigour to our profession.

     

  • Honest communications is at the forefront of good public relations, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: Why brands get it wrong?

    Amith Prabhu

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    I would not like this column to focus on brands that create problems. But I will break that rule to write about three brands that I have personally felt slighted by and share what I think they can do to get their Public Relations act together. Moreover, there is learning for other brands from these stories that can help them stay guarded.

     

    The brands that generally create disappointment among consumers are service brands. Generally, banks, airlines, hotels and the like. I’m going to write about three brands, what they did and what they could have done. I will also write about two brands that have gone out of the way to make amends and earned the respect of their customers.

     

    First, is an airline company for which I have had great respect because of the way the brand has been built in the last decade, for its impeccable service and for its overall brand imagery. I accumulated several thousand points by choosing this airline 8 out 14 times I flew from India to the US or vice versa. However, when it came to redeeming my miles for reward flights the airline played games to avoid giving me what was my right because of what they claimed was an error at their end. The error still shows. The airline has lost a loyal customer in the process.

     

    Next, is a hotel booking aggregator. I used the site to book 300 rooms couple of months ago. However, they messed up in their algorithms and oversold couple of properties forcing me to cancel some rooms leading to a loss of close to a lakh of rupees. They finally attempted to make amends by compensating me with one tenth of my losses and therefore letting me give them another chance.

     

    Lastly, a Gurgaon-based builder sold me an apartment with the euphoria that was not called for. However, a 20 month delay in handing over possession has literally been made to seem like nothing at all. In all these three instances lack of honest communication has been the cause of disappointment more than the monetary loss incurred. I am choosing not to name the brands as the intent is not to shame them but to share instances of how brands as larges at the airline or the builder do not give importance to communication to set right part of the damage they have done.

     

    On the other hand three brands that stand out for correcting mistakes at their end need to be saluted. The first is Disney and its Beauty and the Beast which got cancelled last Sunday due to a technical problem. The organisers not only assured ticket holders that their money would be refunded but offered to play the musical free of cost for them the following Sunday. Highly admirable.

     

    Uber on the other hand trusts its customers. Everytime a driver has inadvertently overcharged me or committed a fault of cancelling a ride Uber has taken steps of communicating with me that they will pull up the driver. Yes! Uber drivers sometimes ask that the toll be paid despite the brand offering cashless experience and then the toll gets charged on the account. Something the brands has refunded duly on being intimated.

     

    The difference between the first set of three brands and the second set of two is honest communication. It may not be a coincidence that the first set of three are Asian and the second set of two are American. All in all brands and their handlers in India need to learn that the power of public relations lies in honest communications.

     

  • Amith Prabhu on how one can apply the three elements of newness, sweetness and togetherness to our lives as Public Relations professionals

    Amith Prabhu: What can our Festivals teach us?

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    We are at the fag end of the year. It is festival time. We are in the week between two of the most celebrated festivals. There are holidays galore. What do these festivals teach those of us in Public Relations? Dassera is the festival where the triumph of good over evil is celebrated and Diwali is the celebration of victory of light over darkness.

     

    They almost signify the same thing and are usually celebrated a few days apart. The logistics aside there are few things that stand out in these festivals. First, newness – new clothes, newly done up houses, new start to the calendar and new reasons to get together. Second, is an exchange of sweets to mark celebration and third is coming together of families and friends to have a good time.

     

    How do we apply these three elements of newness, sweetness and togetherness to our lives as Public Relations professionals? Newness is about innovation. About bringing freshness into the things we do for the organisations and brands we work on. Sweetness is in how we make our work stand out to bring a smile to the end consumer – our clients’ customer and Togetherness is about how we use our various networks to deliver the best thinking to the product and service we ideate on.

     

    There are a few young professionals who are trying to do this all the time. Before the year end I will try and feature 15 of them. If you think you are one of them or know someone who constantly tries to innovate, stand out and bring people together please let me know.

     

    The question that I keep asking is that why are there very few among us who innovate, or stick our neck out or do things to make a difference to our profession? Is there a lack of encouragement? Is there an inherent absence of inertia? Or is it just lack of interest and desire to the new like we would do during the festival time? Why cannot we carry the festival spirit to our professional world?

     

    I have interacted with more public relations professionals in 2015 than I have in the previous years. I have met with people across multiple organisations and across all levels. I still can’t think of more than a handful who write a regular blog on the profession. I cannot think of more than two who are outstanding public speakers. I cannot think of more than the usual pioneers who can be role models beyond the four walls of their organisation. I don’t think there is dearth of talent. I feel it is just the absence of a spirit to go out there and showcase the newness, the sweetness and the togetherness beyond that rare annual occasion.

     

    I hope this Diwali marks a period of fresh thinking and renewed vigour for the professional community in the country. And we hope to see that in a couple of Cannes Lions coming home for the PR category next year. Until then, enjoy the celebrations and watch what you eat.

     

  • Mark Schaefer is a 'Top 50 Social Media Power Influencer of the World'

    SCoRe to host Mark Schaefer in New Delhi

    By A Correspondent

     

    Mark Schaefer

    The Indian School of COmmunications & REputation (SCoRe) is hosting the globally renowned social media guru Mark Schaefer who will conduct a day-long learning session on Digital Marketing and the Content Code. The workshop targeted at communications professionals will be held on 17th November in New Delhi.

     

     

    Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu, Dean, SCoRe said, “SCoRe is the first independent school in India that is dedicated to the development of education and research of the Public Relations business. We live by our word and continue to do new things in the profession that have not been done in our country before. By hosting a globally renowned social media marketer for the Indian audience, we hope that the community of communicators benefits by learning from one of the world’s leading lights in content marketing.”

     

    Mark Schaefer blogs and is also the author of five best-selling books that are used as text books across more than 50 universities. He   will take participants through 6 masterclasses through the day. The masterclasses will include:

    • Five foundational principles of social media marketing
    • Determining a social media strategy
    • What social platforms to use for what businesses?
    • Aspects of measurement and ROI
    • Budgeting and resourcing
    • ​Inbound marketing concepts
    • The three critical types of content and how they relate to strategy
    • Content as a source of power and influence on the web
    • Strategies to win in a world of information density
    • The future of social media marketing
  • The Sudheendra Kulkarni episode and the launch of Piyush Pandey’s memoirs are events from last week that that Public Relations is about common sense, clear purpose and creating stories, comments Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: Public Relations learnings from the week that was

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    Two stories that have a direct connection to Public Relations. Both from Mumbai and both from last week. It goes to show that Public Relations is about common sense, clear purpose and creating stories.

     

    No one would have missed online images and the same being displayed on news television and newspapers the next day of a man in black. Sudheendra Kulkarni was smeared with black paint by protesting Shiv Sena activists before the book launch he was organising of the former Pakistan foreign minister. He used the incident to his advantage by calling a press conference and remaining in the same way without cleaning the muck on his face.

     

    He knew that there was merit in going in front of cameras and making a point. The book may not have sold more copies but people who did not know Sudheendra Kulkarni and Kasuri’s book were aware of both. The Shiv Sena helped the book get undue publicity.

     

    Talking of books, I was in Mumbai for the book launch of Pandeymonium which has Anant Rangaswami as its curator. The book was released by Amitabh Bachchan in the presence of over a thousand guests including Sachin Tendulkar. I watched in admiration as the hour-long programme progressed.

     

    Admiration for how an ordinary man called Piyush Pandey became an institution over the last 30 years and has used it to the advantage of the profession of advertising. The Public Relations machinery that has created a demi-God status of this Advertising Guru is certainly well thought out. There is so much to learn from Piyush and the book is a great read for those in Public Relations because ultimately both crafts tell stories and build brands.

     

    Both these gentlemen who are subject of my column can teach Public Relations professionals a lot of lessons. Three that stand out are:

    a) Timing is everything – if Piyush wrote the book five years ago or five years later, it may not have made as big an impact as it is doing a year after he helped in the marketing of Narendra Modi. Similarly, had Sudheendra cleaned himself up there would have been no media output of the magnitude we saw?

     

    b) Storytelling is key – Pandey’s book is full of stories told in a simple and interesting way. Kulkarni also told a story through the image, a story of intolerance that is gripping the country.

     

    c) Building an image and then using it to stand up for something – in Piyush Pandey’s case he has brought greater respect to the profession. In Sudheendra Kulkarni’s case he gave free speech a new meaning by going ahead with the launch.

     

    Amith Prabhu is a PR practitioner-turned-trainer based in Gurgaon.  He also heads a recently set up school for PR and corporate communications education and skill development. PR, etc appears every Monday on MxMIndia. The views expressed here are his own.

     

  • I hope each of us will be embrace it with passion and make it our individual war cry and code, writes Amith Prabhu on a manifesto for communications professionals

    Amith Prabhu: The Pirate’s Manifesto

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    Thanks to Tushar Panchal, a fellow traveler in the profession I discovered this fascinating manifesto on an interesting website last weekend. I thought it was worth dedicating an entire column to this cause. And letting the wider world know of this endeavor.

     

    The manifesto starts with a war cry – “It is time to declare a war. A war on the empty message”. I reproduce from www.pirate.pr.co below:

    This is a call to arms for all communication professionals against messaging sans-substance. Against the lame PR we are requested to perform. To oppose spin-doctoring and to loathe spamming. We be no lazy ones that send masses of meaningless buzz words. We stand against the fake bullshit that corporations ask us to swallow hook, line and sinker.

     

    We be heading back to the core. Back to communicating with a purpose and messaging with meaning. Back to hustling honestly to be heard through the noise. We will listen to customers, have a conversation. To be ourselves, to let our passions drive our communication and to take no hostages. Yet have the spine to admit when we be wrong. We care about our craft and will defend it to the death. That’s what our pirate hearts beat for: the truth behind the message. We be going back to real communication, to PR driven by a purpose.

     

    It then goes on to share eight steps to a meaningful message which it creatively calls the Code of Conduct for Pirates. A) Have a Purpose B) Make a Plan C) Focus on Resonance D) catch the Current E) Be Real F) Cover all Bases G) Start a Conversation and H) Collaborate

     

    I found this one of the coolest thing for PR professionals in a long time. I hope each of us will be embrace it with passion and make it our individual war cry and code. The world of PR would be a better place.

     

  • Several smart individuals did not learn the characteristics they possess in a Business or Communications school, writesAmith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: 7 things they don’t teach you at C school

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    The period after Praxis is time for reflection. Time to think of what’s right and what’s not in our community. On my flight back from Bangalore I was pondering on what attributes are found in the brightest and the best professionals and I realised that several of the smart individuals did not learn the characteristics they possess in a B-School or C-school (C for communications). I listed some of these attributes and thought of sharing them here:

     

    Agility – The ability to be flexible with limited lead time. An interesting example for this is on how we managed to deal with the proposed Bandh in Karnataka on the second day of Praxis. We ensured we reached out to the police to handle any eventuality and detailed planning led to a flawless Day 2.

     

    Brevity – The skill to be concise and precise in communications. This is an art that can be mastered only through practice. There are umpteen examples of this quality. However, Twitter is the best place to learn this skill.

     

    Mindfulness – This is a combination of having an eye for detail, a strong presence of mind and immense amount of alertness. While this portal mentioned in a news article on how the founder of a PR firm was discreet about selling his firm to a global firm until three days prior to the announcement. What very few know is that Rishi Seth was thoughtful to inform the organisers a month prior to the event in Mysore that his firm would not be independent around the time of Praxis and it would not be proper for him to be on a panel.

     

    Discretion – Deciding what to share and what not to. For this one timing is everything. A case in point is this new handle on Twitter called @Praxisian. While I neither know who is behind it nor do I want to know, the fact that someone has been able to create a handle is in itself intriguing. How the person behind the handle uses discretion while being anonymous will be interesting.

     

    Enthusiasm – What separates good and not-so-good professionals in today’s day and age is enthusiasm. An example for this is a gentleman called Vikram Kharvi and his passion for the profession that very few display. Follow him and you’ll know what I’m referring to.

     

    Fairness and Fearlessness – These are life values that are essential in the PR profession. They are not taught but have to be learnt. I have been fortunate to have four mentors in my four Indian jobs from whom I have learnt these two characteristics. Fairness from Amit Misra and Ravi Kiran. Fearlessness from Ashwani Singla and NS Rajan. If you know them you will know what I mean.

     

    Goodness – In a cut-throat world this is rarely an attribute we come across frequently. For a lady to have started a PR business in the early 90s and later create a Foundation to give back to underprivileged children takes a lot. If one has to learn goodness Prema Sagar is a solid example.

     

    You can learn strategic thinking, campaign planning and good writing in a C School but the seven attributes mentioned above only will come from experience and exposure.

     

  • And with this edition every PR firm from among the Top 30 has witnessed at least one of the four summits, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: A Praxis like no other

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    The weekend that went by witnessed the largest gathering of public relations professionals in one place, both consultancy based and in-house. Four hundred fifty professionals gathered in Mysore for the fourth edition of Praxis in what has come to become a signature event in the annual calendar of Indian communicators. As someone who has a small role to play in the co-creation of this summit it I’m thrilled with the outcome.

     

    Getting together 35 speakers, 30 partners and the Who’s Who of Indian PR from Madan Bahal, Dilip Cherian and Ashwani Singla to Radha Roy, Papri Dev and Archana Jain to the global communication heads of Infosys, Arvind, Biocon, Suzlon, Aptech to Indian comms heads of Vodafone, Kellogg’s, GSK, Omidyar Networks and more it was the coming of age of Indian Public Relations. Almost every Indian ecommerce player was present. And with this edition every PR firm from among the Top 30 has witnessed at least one of the four summits.

     

    What stood out was the overwhelming response from the community of senior professionals. Three keynotes representing three continents and a panel of young leaders. Rajdeep Sardesai’s session was certainly the icing on the cake. World renowned percussionist Sivamani performing live had the audience spell bound.  Startups such as Astrum and Value 360 and established players such as Adfactors and MSLGroup supporting the event along with 25 others added vibrancy.

     

    The corporate communications panel chaired by Aparna Jain with corporate communications from Yahoo, Coke and Quintles was a hit with the audience. So were the keynotes by Shonali Burke and Andre Manning. The special address of Creativity by Kiran Khalap and on Analytics by Mike Ziviani had a lot to offer the young professional.

     

    An important aspect of Praxis is the celebration of talent. Honouring young professionals has become a tradition. Two pairs of individuals have come forward to be generous donors of the prize money. I wish more professionals institute prizes to encourage exceptional younger professionals. Seema Ahuja and Shravani Dang have instituted the prize for the young in-house professional, which was won by Abhishek Mahapatra of Ford Motor Company. The consultancy-based prize went to Prasidha Menon of Edelman India. This year a lifetime achievement award was given to the indomitable Jayoti Lahiri of PRCAI.

     

    The student volunteers make a big difference and this year students of St Joseph’s College put their best foot forward. The summit has grown since its inception in 2012. Having been part of the previous editions I can proudly say that we have come a long way as the largest gathering of PR professionals in the country and the only event of its kind that is neither organized by a trade association nor by a media outlet. But by a community of volunteers who spare time to bring this event alive.

     

     

  • An open letter to Nitin Mantra on ten things he can do during the remainder of his term that are innovative and refreshing

    Amith Prabhu: What the new PRCAI President ought to do?

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    It’s five months after the new PRCAI President took charge and his first event the Sabre Awards was a grand success. Over a two-year period there is a lot one can do to leave a mark. Here’s my open letter to Nitin Mantri on ten things he can do during the remainder of his term that are innovative and refreshing.

     

    1. To innovate and create a new category of Awards. The campaign awards are great. But the Indian PR community needs more

     

    2. To create a young professionals council and let the association gain insights from a different generation

     

    3. To create events in mini-metros such as Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kochi and inspire the world-class talent that is mushrooming in Middle India

     

    4. To build a platform that can foster talent at the undergraduate level. Maybe, a good starting point could be to introduce a Communications Aptitude Test. The score of this test would not only enable budding professionals to see if they are cut out for a career in PR but could also be a great way for PR schools in the country use these rankings to offer admission.

     

    5. To involve younger professionals in panel sharing and have a policy to retire a set of speakers who have been there, done that

     

    6. To commission books on the profession that PRCAI publishes that will enable professionals to become better at what they do

     

    7. To ensure every PR firm in the Holmes Report list of 250 PR firms that has a presence in India becomes a member of the association before the end of the year

     

    8. To hire another younger staff member to assist the Secretary General in order to plan succession better

     

    9. To revamp the website and give it a new lease of life so that it is as modern as majority of the staff of its member firms are

     

    10. Lastly, to create either on its own or in collaboration with another organisation a magazine (bi-monthly or quarterly) for the benefit of thousands of professionals, especially in consultancies

     

    This letter is in no way trying to say PRCAI is not doing enough. The aim of these ten points is to infuse new thinking and kick start a programme of renewal. Nitin is a friend and we need to strengthen him with our support.

     

  • It is important to understand that the first step to Public Relations is to be transparent Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: Public Relations is about honesty, no matter what!

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    I enjoy writing columns that are connected to personal experiences. The past month has been harrowing in terms of organising the annual communications summit that is now in its fourth year. I have had a tougher time organising this one compared to all the previous three editions put together. The first two happened when I lived thousands of miles away.

     

    Well, this time around every category of people ranging from vendor, partner and sponsor have gone back on their words making the effort to put the event together all the more harder. The good thing is, there are angels who come to the rescue, but they come at a price. While I will not get into details and won’t name the organisations or individuals involved, it is important to understand that the first step to Public Relations is to be transparent.

     

    The first problem began when one of the sponsor who made a commitment to be in a certain category backed out and wanted to move to a lower category. That is understandable as revenue management can be a hindrance to marketing efforts. Just as that issue was being sorted, the band that had agreed to perform and to who a cheque with full advance called to bail themselves out and then took five weeks to return the payment which they had thankfully not cashed. As we were focusing on the content of the summit, one of the five hotels began to play truant and put up some inventory online on a third party website. They had a clear understanding that we, as organisers had the first right of refusal of any rooms. But the misery of dealing with this issue has led to several man hours wasted and an unhappy feeling.

     

    The point I’m making with all these examples is how the three organisations in question may have had genuine constraints but they never came across as genuine. They came across as issues that emerged because of bad organisation or planning. Public Relations is about honesty, first. When organisations do not stand up for what they promise there is a problem. Fortunately, for these organisations I was the customer at the other end. They were let off easily.

     

    We keep making plans for our organisations and for that of our clients’ organisations. The bottom line of every plan should be “Honest first”. We have to be honest to ourselves, so that all stakeholders experience the outcomes of our honest words and deeds. On the other hand, there have been organisations that have filled-in when some dropped the ball. And they do so because they believed in Honest and Transparent dealings. We have the power to create. We need to create more responsibly.

  • A ready reckoner for any PR professional who wishes to get a grip on event management and all that goes into it

    Amith Prabhu: 21 steps to a bloody good event

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    A PR professional spends a large chunk of his or her time planning, ideating, strategizing experiences which are usually in the form of stunts, events and gatherings. One of the most fascinating facets of Public Relations to me is the ability to bring an experience to life. I have had the privilege of creating many an event in my decade long career. The annual gathering of communications professionals which is round the corner is closest to my heart because it touches all the four elements of a PR exercise – Building Credibility (of the profession), Strengthening Relationships (with various stakeholders), Offering Experiences (to delegates) and the option of Creating Advocacy (for the profession). This column is a ready reckoner for any PR professional who wishes to get a grip on event management and all that goes into it.

     

    1.     Finalise date and venue including the reconnaissance (recce)

    2.     Draw up list of speakers/performers/presenters/panelists/moderators

    3.     Reach out to event partners, essentially the sponsors

    4.     Form a dream team. This has to be cherry-picked and should be a core group

    5.     Make announcements and launch an event website, so potential attendees make plans

    6.     Open registration, so people set aside monies

    7.     Plan sub-events that create ‘talk-ability’ and buzz for the main event

    8.     Follow up like crazy with everyone from point 2 and 3 (speakers and sponsors)

    9.     Prepare for any eventuality – a crisis can hit anytime

    10. Negotiate with various vendors – event technicians, swag makers, band etc

    11. Start designing collaterals – emailers, backdrops, standees, handbooks and the like

    12. Close on the event producers

    13. Decide kits and lanyards styles – attendees take these home so they better be good

    14. Connect panelists and moderators with each other

    15. Get all payments in and organise advances

    16. Registrations need to close so people look forward to a packed house

    17. Communicate with attendees on email, social media

    18. Draft emcee script

    19. Prepare a final checklist

    20. Ensure good food and punctuality – these two can be bummers at an event

    21. Offer great experience and good memories so people come back

     

    These elements are critical for a good event. Each one can be elaborated but they are self-explanatory. I call them the 21 steps to a bloody good event.

     

  • The client base is increasing, newer PR firms are mushrooming but retainers are not changing and quality of talent is not improving, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: Where is our talent coming from?

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    In the last few months, three firms appointed chief operating officers who neither rose from the ranks nor came from a rival PR firm. They came from outside the world of Indian PR consulting. One came from an overseas conglomerate where she headed corporate communications, the other is on his way from a business daily where he holds a fairly senior position in editorial and the third who holds a fairly differentiated designation came almost from retirement after a long stint in the corporate world. All these positions in reputed, large firms.

     

    The story at other levels is no different where every month half a dozen journalists are joining in-house or consultancy jobs with just one or two strengths of content creation if they come from print journalism and some great contacts in the world of media most certainly. None have skills in campaign planning, strategy mapping or crisis counselling. Some learn on the job, most don’t care because the client just wants some content drafted and some journalists engaged with.

     

    So, how is the need for 500 freshers at the entry and middle level going to be fulfilled? This is a million dollar question. Some head honchos say they hire from Tier 2 MBA schools. Unless one is fortunate, the quality of talent from Tier 2 B Schools tends to be just about average and a lot of time and energy is spent training them for the PR consulting job which requires a good mix of writing skills, brand management and marketing concepts, digital understanding and common sense.

     

    The client base is increasing, newer PR firms are mushrooming but retainers are not changing and quality of talent is not improving. This is a real problem that needs to be addressed. CEOs of consultancies are constantly on the look for bright sparks and when they think they have found him or her and trained the person for the role the individual decides to move on. This will get interesting as the first true blue PR professionals evolve to be leaders.

     

    Currently, most PR firm leaders are either CEOs or immigrants from other domains who moved to PR and grew into leadership roles. In couple of years there will be native PR specialist emerging as consultancy firm leaders and they will increasingly look for talent that is well-rounded and will find it hard to get the specialists. The question we need to ask then and now is where is our talent coming from and what are we doing to up the level of service across the board?