Tag: Bhaskar Das

Now we couldn’t ask a more pointed question than this one. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 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. Dentsu has finally found a CEO for India in a person who is not from within Dentsu or from Indian A&M? What does this speak of the talent that exists in our media ecosystem?

A. You sure have a penchant for digging up a controversy when there’s possibly none. I have heard that Dentsu did look around extensively for someone to occupy the top job for South Asia, and I am sure they were looking for someone to fit their requirements and not necessarily gladden our hearts by choosing someone from within the current A&M ecosystem.

Would it be right for one to ask why the World Bank chose an Indian as its leader? Or why did Microsoft, Google and several other global giants choose Indians?

We may have not had non-A&M CEOs in advertising agencies, but several FMCG seniors have been successful captains of broadcast and news media companies. Harsha Razdan has all the makings of being a gamechanger. This is no commentary on talent in our media world. The world is changing, the requirements require a different mindset and Harsha could provide be the man to rule the New World.

In fact, an outside industryperson can also offer a new perspective and generate a new lens to evaluate emerging challenges for a business and for an organisation. Cross-pollination of ideas can leverage intersectionality of wisdom.

A simple question that requires a profound answer. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 10 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. Three more weeks in the financial year. According to you, how has the year been for the A&M industry?

A. I can’t give a uniform or homogeneous answer to a question which has both macro and micro elements. One can’t deny the repercussions of the micro environment – both global and local – on the operations of every organisation. The macro-economic factors stem from the geo-political tensions (like the Russia-Ukraine war and China’s bellicosity) affecting global power structure, the shadows of Covid-led health scare and supply chain issues, energy and food crises and the prospect of stagflation looming large for most of the economies.  At a micro level, the A&M industry is not outside the operating realities and as a derived business, it also gets impacted. Having said that, I have to de-average the impact by sector and by organisation. For example, an IT company (they can be the client of an agency) might still experience growth inspite of macro volatilities, but some other sectors like FMCG and automobiles, education might experience tepid or no growth. Simiilarly, the experience in relationships-driven Tier 2,Tier 3 agencies are quite different from the metro players.

The impact is felt in some form or the other by all media formats of delivery. For instance, digital including gaming and fintech apps like PhonePe or Gpay have experienced significant growth compared to the legacy media. Given this background, my observation is that the 2022-23 financial year has seen mixed fortune for most companies albeit at different degrees of tepidness. Even those who have grown, aim for a higher percentage of growth, while others who are trying to get out of a negative growth must have been happy so long as they are neutral in their P&L statements.

In media and entertainment, when client needs (read marketing budgets) get rationalised or fragmented and dominated by performance-based marketing, the two players – viz the media company and the agencies – catch cold, as they say. With the atomisation of options in an omnichannel media amplification, the investments get fragmented and accordingly the practitioners feel that the market has been challenging to maintain a steady momentum of growth.

Hence there is no generic answer to how the financial year has been for the A&M industry. The consensus is, with my market grapevine, that the players wish that the business enviovnment could’ve been more conducive. But as they say, even this will pass and I hope that 2023-24 is not a repeat telecast of the last financial year, subject to Russia and China agreeing to a more peaceful world. Everything else will improve if that one variable could change.

Yet another question that’s a tad tricky, but not so for our Wizard with Words. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 9 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. When you see an ad around Women’s Day, what’s your first response: “good work” or “yet another case of tokenism”?

A. I know that you have a reason to ask this question: while we celebrate Women’s Day with all the appropriate and inspiring buzz, the empirical happenings at the ground level throughout the country and perhaps the globe are quite contrary to the sprits of the special day. We should actually celebrate it every day of the year with the same ethos and conviction. An age-old gender bias in different strata of society, both economic and social levels, has been prevalent from eons and it can’t evaporate overnight or by celebrating one day in a year. Besides, what we see as statements in various media vehicles or social media handles or advertisements, eulogising women on International Women’s Day, may not be even known to the occupiers of the bottom end of the pyramid of society.

Having said that, I would hasten to add that some beginning is important for any major societal transformation. I am optimistic that someday the light of awareness would gain momentum and the disparity and discrimination among genders would blur and we would celebrate the rise of an equitable and just society. When I watch a WPL match or women getting entry and excelling in traditional male-dominated domains, I feel optimistic about the future. On that day, your apprehension of tokenism through celebration of a day, needn’t arise.

Not an easy question to answer, but not so for our Wizard with Words. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 8 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. Do you think that while recruiting, the creative/ writing/ editing teams in media must be truly representative: people from all strata, parents, divorcees, etc etc. That this will ensure content is more inclusive?

A. Ideally inclusivity presupposes that all the categories of the population need to be included as a proof of moving beyond platitudes. However, the concerned categories of the population need to be appropriately skilled to cater to the organisational need of the recruiting company. The other route could be to recruit them with some basic intelligence and train them for a specific role, through a combination of structured modules of training and on-the-job exposure. If we want inclusivity to be real and move beyond lip service and wishlists, organisations have to walk the talk in the same way as I proposed (other routes can also be explored , so long the end objects met). It would a long journey, but it would be worth it and it would open up new sources of talent acquisition.

As we said upfront, an unfair question. Let’s read Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 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 an unfair question, we know. Are you watching WPL with as much earnestness as you would watch IPL. Please give reasons for your answer

A. Your question isn’t unfair at all. In fact, it’s fair and I loved it. For your information, I have been watching the women’s T20 World Cup matches and saw how our players played so well with Pakistan and I felt the same level of excitement as the Men’s World Cup contest with Pakistan. We lost to Australia, unfortunately. But I was deeply impressed by the commitment of all the players. And I am confident that with the WPL, our bench strength of skilled players would go up significantly.

But most importantly, WPL would create a new level of empowerment and confidence amongst women about economic and cultural freedom. In both these counts, women have been suppressed for ages. I am excited that WPL would be the harbinger of women’s liberation not only in India but would also be an example for the rest of the world to emulate.

Now this isn’t a regular A&M industry-centric question we ask. But it concerns all of us. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das in the March 3 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. According to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) annual report, the internet subscriber base in the country stood at 824.8 million, as of March 31, 2022. The number denotes a decline of nearly 0.5 million subscribers in FY22. As per the report, the telecom industry’s overall subscriber base decreased by 34.27 million y-o-y. Reason for worry?

A. When a report on internet subscriber base indicates a decline, it may not be an indication of its directional permanency or even a reconfiguration through inter-category migration of media consumption. A one-off blip in the growth curve of digital medium can’t alter the trend of an inexorable reality..

We aren’t taking names, but we were surprised to see this happening. So we asked Dr Bhaskar Das a question for the March 2 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. One can see a broadcaster who hasn’t got digital rights of a  sporting event deselling digital. One also hears of some print majors doing the same for digital. What’s your view on this practice? Are our legacy players scared of advertisers deserting them?

A. In a hyper-competitive marketplace, competition-bashing is considered to be a normal practice. But media experts might consider the behaviour to be myopic and distracting. Fundamentally, advertisers are rational enough to decide what works for them to advance their marketing and business interests, irrespective of claims and counter-claims of the owners of various delivery formats. Those claims would not also stultify the growth of accelerated technology or evolution of consumer behaviour of various demographic cohorts. Hence, one needs to concentrate on their audience as access point and their engagement with their respective formats of delivery. In a platform agnostic/ omnichannel media planning and buying environment, a media company doesn’t lose business to a competitor, but to their inability to deliver an advertiser’s addressable market in a cost-effective manner. Getting paranoid is no solution or tomtoming the superiority of one medium over another cannot be a survival model in a complementary media environment.

If you are unsure about paying Rs 6800 for the blue tick, let’s read what Dr Bhaskar Das says in response to our question in the March 1 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. Twitter Blue has taken off in India. Do you think it’s worthwhile to pay Rs 6800 per year to get the blue tick?

A. According to me, I am sure no one is being forced to pay unless the VFM is in sync with consumer’s value perception. Secondly, a lot has been written and talked about the advantages and disadvantages of the verification process, its possible credibility tag and badge value, specially for elites in various fields. Thirdly, if Twitter Blue gains traction/ acceptance in India (at least at a reasonable critical mass level), it could potentially be a source for organisations in targeting prospects in a cost-effective way (I can’t help thinking about business model for any media platform). This might, in turn, result in various innovative collaborative alliances, as it happens in case of other social media platforms, for shoring up the sagging financial fortune of Twitter globally. Having said that, it is needless to say that the advertisers would also evaluate the ROI of such partnerships/ alliances.

The monetisation model managed through steps like charging like Twitter Blue appears to me a step towards a hybrid model, where SVOD and AVOD would co- exist simultaneously, albeit at differential ratios, depending on how the platform delivers experience to various stakeholders. From the above (seeing the impact of Twitter Blue in India) , it seems the initiative would be a success in India.

These are early days of Twitter’s new avatar and I am sure the picture would be clearer in the coming days in terms cost- benefit ratio of Twitter Blue in Indian market.

There are days when we feel sheepish about a question after getting the answer from our Wizard with Words. Today is one such day. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das with his response to our question in the February 28 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. Almost three quarters of marketers in the UK are aged under 45, a study finds. Assuming it’s the same for India, do you think that’s a good thing. Or bad?

A. I have never been impressed by an average data without knowing the sample size and the sampling method. One gets a confirmation bias. I am sure you have done your own research. Yet…

However, if I answer the question as it is, I don’t see any good or bad trend in it. Business sagacity, acumen etc are not a function of one’s age. Youth or young mindset are reflected in the attitude and adaptability of an individual towards an external environment. There are unicorn organisations where the owner may be below 30 years. Mabappe is good (23-year-old). But so is Messi (36-year-old). Both are great players inspite of belonging to different age cohorts. The moral of my POV is that one can’t arrive at a generic conclusion on the basis of some research findings. This ignores individual ingenuities to make an impact.

A few years back, a leading family associated with the film industry decided to boycott a film award because of some negative comment in a group publication. It’s the same with news media dealing with political personalities. Here’s Dr Bhaskar Das with his response to our question in the February 27 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. Since the presence of well-known people is critical for the success of conclaves, do you think news media organising these compromise their editorial integrity by doing so? They can’t be too critical of a political leader for at least a month before an event…

A. Not necessarily. There are two key issues in your question:

1. Should mews media organise conclaves,

2. whether their success has the built-in risks of compromising the editorial integrity as during the pendency of the conclave, the news media has to ensure that they don’t rub the celebrity speakers in the wrong way, thereby affecting their keenness to attend the conclave.

The issues, albeit connected, have to be addressed separately.

Conclaves are organised for strategic reasons like getting closer to various stakeholders and addressable markets, geopoliticaly and psychologically for micro-market penetration and going beyond one to many studio-based shows/ reporting to one-on-one engagement. It also helps generating revenue as branded experiences complement regular FCT business.

I agree that market whispers confirm your alleged possibility. But whispers are whispers without any factual evidence. There might be a tacit reciprocal gesture/ agreement in that direction, but there needn’t be any empirical evidence of it that interferes with editorial policies. Since I am no longer an active practitioner of media/ news channels, my observations may not be contemporary, but if I go by past experience, I have no evidence of the same. Having said that, there might be some coverage that are high on congeniality quotient (as the high profile speakers also show a positive gesture by giving their valuable time (mostly pro bono), but that needn’t interfere with editorial protocols, as per my understanding.

Another excellent response to what could’ve been a delicate question. Presenting Dr Bhaskar Das in the February 24 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. When you see an article tagged ‘Marketing Initiative’ or ‘Promotional Feature’ or some such, do you trust its content?

A. It all depends on how a topic is treated. If it smacks of just a propaganda or public relations exercise, I don’t engage with it. We can’t take our addressable audience as unintelligent and gullible. Hence, trust and credibility must be at the core of such content creation. If one treats such content as ‘Native Content’ as in digital space, not always though, the engagement becomes better. Promotional content per se needn’t have a pejorative perception. The creator of such contents is responsible to give it a negative tag. In the age of active Earned Media, one needs to treat promotional content with as seriousness as other edit content, if one wants engagement/ immersion in the content.

Another excellent response to what could’ve been a delicate question. Presenting Dr Bhaskar Das in the February 23 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. Over the course of a year, P&G’s USA-based fabric care brands saved roughly $65 million in adspends by bringing media planning and buying inhouse, it’s CFO said. Should our media agency captains be sweating?

A. The debate on merits of an in-house media buying agency has been going on for quite some time. An inhouse or outsourced model has its own merits and demerits. I don’t want to elaborate on the subject, but the jury is out about any definitive answer on the subject.

I think you’ll see more situations where the Marketing Head would prefer a hybrid of nimble agencies to complement their in-house capabilities (eg social media, influencer marketing, real-time data tracking etc ) with a traditional agency of record (AOR) model. I know one size doesn’t always fit all organisations. Many CMOs like to get their hands dirty and break down the walls between various functions and manage the various aspects of marketing operations in a symbiotic way. There are other CMOs who feel an outside-in perspective from an agency with all their capabilities across industry categories could be a useful learning experience for managing the function. Hence, there is no best way to approach a subject just because one organisation has been following a practice. Every corporation has to find what works best for them, given the operating challenges.