Tag: Bhaskar Das

A serious, straightforward question, and a serious, straightforward response. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the July 26 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

Q. As a vehicle which reaches a smaller but decidedly relevant audience for marketers, do you see the AVOD pie increasing to vie for ad spend budgets in the coming years?

A. The overall size would certainly grow for some more time but the distribution across formats of delivery would continue to get redistributed, depending on where the relevant audience for a product/ service or idea is getting aggregated and engaged. This is of course the usual grammar of media planning and buying. What would be different would be the (if not already being experimented) way communication would be crafted and delivered in as much as personalised manner and AVOD won’t be a dominant route of survival for any media per se. In other words, as delivery formats multiply, many monetisation routes would emerge. Over-dependence on one route (AVOD), seems, as of now, to be a sure threat to a business model of an enterprise.

If you thought the response by our Wizard with Words would be a ‘yes’, you must read the response here. Without further ado, here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the July 25 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

Q. We’ve seen a frenzy in the recent past with the marketing of some big banner Hollywood titles. Do you think movie marketing could be a worthwhile career choice for true blue CMOs in India

A. Frankly speaking, as a student of marketing myself, I would not fantatise about building a career through movie marketing and going up the ladder in corporate hierarchy in that space. This is not to say that the task would be boring but with Covid and the rising popularity of OTT platforms and the array of content options they offer, the sheen and attraction of a career in movie marketing is withering away fast.

A provocative question to start the last full week of July. And the answer from Dr Bhaskar Das in the July 24 edition of Das ka Dum is a must-read for every A&M mediaperson. Read on…

If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

Q. From your interaction with all the digital advertising folks in India, do you think they really understand Artificial Intelligence? Or is their awareness all artificial?

A. I don’t claim to have exhaustive interactions with so-called digital folks specially focused on the kind of query you have raised. But with my finite knowledge on AI, I may try to share a few top-line macro points on the subjects, irrespective of the level of understanding of the practitioners of the industry.

1. AI can meet the creative industry’s need for accentuated imagination (AI in another expansion of acronym)

2. As hyper-personalisation demand goes up, AI can rise to the challenge if one knows how to leverage it.

3. AI can create exciting and engaging new formats for storytelling and embodied experiences for consumers

4. Embracement of the various tools of AI (augmented intelligence – again another expansion of acronym) to increase performance,  efficiency and improve output

5. AI can Improve creativity and create elements for any storyboard more impactfully.

6. AI, creativity, and learning are interlinked and will form part of mainstream learning.

Net-net, progress  in AI and ML will enable brands to move at the speed of consumer/ country specific culture and get ahead of shifting sand of consumer tastes and preferences.

Practitioners need to see the writing on the wall rather than pooh-pooh the same as artificial. As they say, jhuk jao, ya toot jaoge. And that’s official.

A Friday question, a Monday answer. Presenting the one and only Dr Bhaskar Das in the July 21 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

Q.  Myntra is using an AI-generated image of actor Rekha as Barbie. After wax structures at Madam Tussad’s, Barbie dolls be the next big thing for actors.

Your view?

A. That films in India has a memetic impact on the escapism-seeking (even bordering on obsession) Indian audience is stating the obvious. The look of some of the leading heroines lend themselves to Barbie’s current preference for inclusiveness of multiple cultures (eg brown skin) and other society specific nuances to intensify its brand appeal.

But to predict the aforementioned trend as the next big thing appears at this stage is an exaggeration. A topical subject may not sustain as a trend — fad and style may not be synonymous.

We thought we could provoke our Wizard with Words to give a controversial response. No such luck. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the July 20 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

Q. What’s your view on Amitabh Bachchan on signing on just about any brand/service that wants him?

A. I think the question is unkind to Big B. We know which brand he endorses. But do we have visibility of how many offers for endorsement he rejects? Secondly, Big B is a cult brand himself and organisations feel that an endorsement from him would add gravitas and higher salience to their brand. Big B isn’t forcing any organisation to offer him endorsement as a favour or as a pro bono gesture. And if one goes by the theory of demand-supply as an important variable for pricing a product, I would like to imagine that Big B’s endorsement would not come cheap.

Brand-owners aren’t irrational enough to invest in any promo tools that don’t justify their ROI. So it must be win-win for both the sides.

All said, one has to admit that Big B’s aura, even after more than five decades of dominant presence in the film industry, is exemplary and he is an epitome of smart work, commitment, discipline and passion. Brands wants to get rub-off from that halo. One blame him for that! He is the Roger Federer or should it be Carlos Alcaraz of the tennis world. The only difference is that even they fade at some point of time , but Amitabh Bachchan as a phenomenon is still shining bright.

Straightforward question, straightforward answer. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the July 19 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

Q. Are CMOs too focussed on market share of a product/service as a measure of sucesss? Or should the primary focus be on profit?

A. I feel market share is a key indicator of a company’s market (read segment/ category) competitiveness. When a company increases its market share, this should automatically improve its profitability. This is generally expected to happen as companies increase in size, they can also increase their scale. This, in turn, enables a company to offer optimal prices that balance profit, profitability and growth, thereby limiting the possibility of competitors’ growth.

In essence, I mean a profitable market share growth should be the dominant objective of a CMO.

The question was meant to generate a provocative answer, but we couldn’t manage that. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the July 18 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

Q. July 16 was observed as AI Appreciation Day. That someone celebrated a day as that indicates artificial intelligence as in vacuousness. Right?

A. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been transforming the way we live, work, and interact with technology. With a view to recognising  and appreciating the impact of AI on human  lives, celebration of Artificial Intelligence Appreciation Day happens every year on July 16. This special day provides an opportunity to reflect on the achievements of AI and its potential to shape our future. Hence it can’t be a reflection of AI’s vacuousness.

While on the subject, I would love to add artificial Intelligence is hardly artificial (literally though) and more about intelligence. As the so-called homo sapient, human beings quite often act artificial for socially accepted projection. Also, as ChatGPT can be misused by a user with malevolent or deviant intentions, so can be AI. Then it becomes a different story. But these side-effects are unavoidable hazards as machines have no role to play in it. It serves the master. Do you think Oppenheimer even dreamt of what’s happening to his nuclear invention? But that’s another story, for another day.

What’s your view on the issue? Read the response by Dr Bhaskar Das in the July 17 edition of Das ka Dum and decide for yourself. Read on…

If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

Q. Former Hindustan Unilever boss Sanjiv Mehta has said his successor is going to face stiff competition from homegrown players (Reliance, Adani and numerous smaller players). Would you say that hyper-competition will only improve life for us consumers? Or will it get more complicated?

A. I agree with Mr Mehta’s observation. In fact it’s true for every FMCG category. One the one hand, there is intensification of regional players, both at price level and substitute/ alternative level. On the other, there is the entry of new players with deep pockets and staying power (read more and sustained ability to absorb loss and deeper understanding of Indian market).

Coming to your second point, there are two possible ways of looking at it which you have included in your question ie yes too many options might demand/ compel a more calibrated engagement on the part of consumers. Note: the intensity of competition would compel organisations to focus on innovation, brand-building, leveraging technology to improve services and continuously engage with their stakeholders through both analytics and ethnographic insights.

A serious question for a Friday, but it was important that we asked. So here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the July 14 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

Q. There is a growing movement in the UK for advertisers, marketers, and PR professionals to cut ties with companies involved with fossil fuels. Do you see this happening in India as well? And if it does, will the various players pay heed?

A. I can’t argue against businesses and brands that have the responsibility to contribute to building a better world. And millennials and GenZs are pretty concerned about some such issues, as all public domain research suggest so.

But, in many ways, we as human beings aren’t as sapient as we project our behaviour in a socially acceptable manner. My intention doesn’t purport to be pessimistic. I am observing all around me (not necessarily a representative sample) dominant behaviour patterns that are not necessarily always environmentally conscious. I am conscious that one can’t expect 100% of humanity would shift to a socially and environmentally behaviour overnight. In fact a snowball effect usually happens for any shift in behaviour when the new generation becomes the harbinger of an attitudinal metamorphosis.

Coming to behaviour of Indians (both consumers and marketers), I don’t see any behavioural shift would happen in the near term. There are economic reasons of course. We have not seen such a big shift in case of the advanced economies who are allegedly responsible for a socially irresponsible behaviour for anything to do with climate change, poverty, war etc. I feel it would be a slow burn for any impactful behavioural shift , but as a beginning, I wish, such a shift towards responsible corporate behaviour starts forthwith.

It was a pointless question to ask, given that the choice of Threads over Twitter is purely a personal decision. Be that as it may, we asked the question, and here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the July 13 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

Q. Is switching to Threads a wise thing to do?

A. It’s too early to give a judgment on the question with certainty. It’s one thing for a big tech company like Instagram (read Meta) with billions of users to introduce a new social network, leveraging its popularity and large user base. It’s another thing to ensure its instant success through fast user adoption in the faddish and fickle social media market.

The strategic intent behind the launch of Thread is not only to leverage Meta’s large user base, but also , I presume, to torpedo/ squash a leading competitor’s brand (unarticulated though but Elon Musk’s tweets reveals such a possibility). It’s a usual marketplace practice. Collateral damages are a normal phenomenon.

What does history says though is that one can’t extrapolate past to future. But, as they say, one who doesn’t learn from history is bound to repeat it. Let’s go back to 2011 when Google (now Alphabet) rolled out a social network app called Google+. It was discussed in the business circle that it was a possible move to destabilise Facebook (now Meta). Come 2018, Google+ was relegated to history though the marketer did everything to win allegiance of its large consumer base. Using scale, especially in case of tech companies, is a standard practice of leveraging built-in advantage. But is size always a competitive advantage in the loyalty fragile social media market? That’s a million or billion dollar question. Would Thread enable its users to find friends and influencers that Twitter has managed to accomplish, so far? How does a tech giant ensure to keep spams and grifters from flooding the new app.

I have no answer to that. You and I can try to be an early adopter and start threading but the real answer to your question is hidden in the wombs of the future.

It was meant to provoke a reply that would rest on marketing philosophy, which we got. Without further ado, here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the July 11 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

Q. It was World Chocolate Day last Friday and one often wonders why some of the best advertising has been done for products the over-consumption of which is  potentially unhealthy. Your view?

A. To comment on a brand category that advocates ‘kuch meetha ho jaaye’ is a task to be bitter about it. Every doctor has a unique opinion about the consumption of chocolates. Someone says it’s good for the heart, someone says it’s good for a burst in the dopamine level while others it’s bad for cholesterol and diabetes. Secondly, there is no conclusive evidence that elasticity of demand and consumption has a perfect ‘corelationship’ with the quantum of advertising. For, alcohol or cigarettes have only surrogacy as the route or discouraging warnings of product consumption, yet, their consumption is still going up. Having said that, I also believe the whole theory of advertising being hidden persuasion amongst consumers for what they don’t want is no longer valid as today’s consumers are much more discerning and question every claim of the marketer. So we need to attribute intelligence to the consumers to take their own call, and am sure they will decide judiciously. Hence advertising as an economic engine for stoking demand for products should not be denounced as a counter to consumer interests. There are many factors that influence consumers decision-making process for consumption otherwise by that logic the rate of failure of new launches and blitzkrieg communication wouldn’t have been a reality.

Amongst the large community of active A&M practitioners in India, our Wizard with Words would count among a handful who could give a response to a question like this with some authority. Without further ado, here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the July 6 edition of Das ka Dum. Read on…

If you wish to access the archives, please go to the Das Ka Dum tab on the website’s top navigation bar or click here: https://www.mxmindia.com/category/columns/das-ka-dum/

Q. It’s wise to think of terms like Gen Z, Millennial, Gen X and Baby Boomer as general reference points instead of scientific facts, notes Pew Research Center. People born near the boundaries of these generational groupings can feel particularly uncomfortable being lumped in with those much older or younger than them, and for good reason. Your views?

A.Since Pew Research has come to the conclusion as mentioned in your question, I don’t have the audacity to question without getting the finer details. At the generic level however, I may comment that the understnding of this segmentation based on generations are only for deeper understanding by thinslicing the context of each consumer set/ cohort. And the cohorts are not necessarily watertight compartments. The latest generation like Gen Z also influence the previous generations, the way millennials influenced Gen X and Gen Y. I strongly believe that consumer behaviour doesn’t change. What changes is the context. For instance, children born post 2000 will be very different from Baby Boomers and Generation X because their context has significantly changed due to a technological progress and their ease with the level of comfort with tech-led behaviour both at the core level and the adjacent lifestyle level.

And this generational shift can be observed although at different degrees across regions and economic strata. In view of the above, I feel it’s more a marketer’s tool for hyper-personalising their messages towards relevant generational cohorts.

Incidentally the changing behaviour of Gen Z does not have demographic limit. I have seen even people who are Baby Boomers in the financial sector and investment banking to be as prolific and comfortable with the pace of digital and lifestyle adoption. Hence aspirations and the ease of usage and economic affordability can cut across the generational divide. A simple soul like me though would not be able to challenge a research agency’s conclusion as mine is more based on empirical observations and listening.