MxMIndia

Tag: Brian Tellis

  • The Texperiential Labs will be located in Fountainhead MKTG's facilities and be headed by Balesh Bhatt, Vice President – Technology

    Fountainhead Digital Mktg unveils experiential technology lab

     

     

    Fountainhead Digital Mktg has launched ‘The Texperiential Labs’ – an experiential technology focused innovation centre. The labs will feature latest technologies across virtual, augmented and mixed reality, robotics, multi-platform user experience design, web and mobile technology experiences, social experiential applications, internet of things and experiential analytics.

     

    Commenting on the launch, Thapas Joseph, President, Fountainhead Digital Mktg said: “The Texperiential Labs is a result of years of capability development across different technology domains. Our team has built a strong in-house skill set in being able to deliver complete technology-driven brand experiences from Strategy to Shipping, with a focus on bringing the best practices of both the creative and technology industries together. The Texperiential Labs will be a space for our clients to come and experience first-hand, the pivotal role that various technologies can play in their brand experience strategy.”

     

    Added Brian Tellis, Co-founder abd Group CEO, Fountainhead Mktg: “The consumer is demanding deeper, more accessible and more engaging relationships, and a very large aspect of this engagement is driven through digital communication. Given consumers’ heightened awareness of what’s happening around the world, they also increasingly demand more immersive experiences. For effectiveness in engagement it’s essential to know your consumer as well as you possibly can, hence data and its various derivatives is a huge facilitator.”

     

    The Texperiential Labs will be located in Fountainhead MKTG’s facilities and be headed by Balesh Bhatt, Vice President – Technology. It will also be a space for collaborative development and will be opened for the academic and student communities in future.

     

     

  • With this development, the agency will focus on designing exceptional brand experiences that are even more immersive, interactive, and emotionally compelling

    Fountainhead | MKTG unifies digital and activations verticals to create integrated experiential marketing offering

    By A Correspondent

     

    Fountainhead | MKTG has unified its activations vertical in the West region with Fountainhead Digital | MKTG, its digital marketing and creative technology vertical.

     

    With over 200 people across offices in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru, the agency operates across four specialist verticals – Fountainhead Events, Oranjuice Entertainment, Fountainhead Corporate Journeys and the newly unified Fountainhead Digital & Activations.

     

    With this development, the agency will focus on designing exceptional brand experiences that are even more immersive, interactive, and emotionally compelling. It will aggressively venture into new areas of marketing innovations that will orchestrate the customer experience across all channels to be seamless, integrated, and consistent. Further, this will leverage their strong in-house Creative Technology and digital expertise to drive even more campaigns using new media, virtual and augmented reality, analytics, interaction design and internet of things innovations.

     

    “In today’s rapidly changing marketing topography, it is necessary to consider the need of integrating brand experiences beyond the digital and physical spheres, and combining communication media to ensure completeness and consistency across various marketing touch points,” said Thapas Joseph, President – Digital & Activations at Fountainhead | MKTG.

     

    “We are truly excited about this blend of Digital and Activations that will prove to be a great platform for promoting true mastery and excellence in the experiential marketing industry,” said Brian Tellis, Group Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Fountainhead | MKTG.

     

  • PALM Sound & Light Awards2016, recognises and honours outstanding service in the field of stage, sound and light

    Fountainhead Mktg wins top honours at Palm Sound & Light Awards

    By A Correspondent

     

    Leading experiential marketing agencies, Fountainhead MKTG has been conferred with the ‘Outstanding Agency of the Year’ award at the 6th edition of PALM Sound and Light Awards 2016, recently held in Mumbai.

     

    PALM Sound & Light Awards, as part of the PALM Expo 2016, recognises and honours outstanding service in the field of stage, sound and light. With over 22 technical categories manifested this year, the awards ceremony honoured individuals and organizations for their unparalleled contribution to the industry by rendering remarkable services in the live events arena in the Indian market.

     

    Fountainhead MKTG, a 21-year old experiential marketing agency which is now a part of Dentsu Aegis Network, has over 250 employees with the offices in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru. Due to industry innovations and significant client wins, the agency has witnessed a rapid growth driven by strong financial performance.

     

    The agency recently conceptualized and managed some of the prestigious events such as Royal visit to India of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, the global programme ‘Shakespeare Lives’ featuring Sir Ian Mckellen’s Masterclass with Aamir Khan, Mint Luxury Conference, Hello Hall of Fame Awards and many others.

     

    In addition to the Agency of the Year award, the agency has also bagged 4 Golds at the Indian Brand Convention’s BAM awards for the projects – Mahindra Imperio campaign, Piku and Kayam Churan association, Microsoft Knockout Café and Philips – Lakme Fashion Week.

     

    Commenting on the achievement, Neale Murray, Co-Founder & Group COO of Fountainhead MKTG, said, “It’s been a dream run for us this year with a stream of accolades that recognize our effectiveness in experiential marketing. This award reaffirms our philosophy of building brands by creating memorable experiences using state of the art technology and out of the box creative inputs. I thank the PALM officials for the trust they showed in our work and also our clients who’ve partnered us in making this achievement possible.”

     

    Brian Tellis, Co-Founder and Group CEO of Fountainhead MKTG, said, “Being a creatively-driven agency, we always believe in building brands through cutting-edge experiences and setting benchmarks in delivery. This achievement is indeed a testament to our strengths in producing innovative experiences at the events. I congratulate each and every member of the team for all their hard work and commitment.”

     

  • What they bring to the table perfectly complements advertising and marketing's offerings, writes Brian Tellis

    Why adland can’t do without Experiential

     

    By Brian Tellis

     

    The only constant is change. This may be terribly clichéd, but it continues to ring true. Change – or, contextually, managing change – is about acceptance and adaptation. It is never one without the other. You either accept and go with the flow, or get left behind.

     

    At Fountainhead, I firmly believe that to be relevant to us – now, more than ever. In this technology age, change is forcing itself upon virtually every industry; but, I suspect, to an alarming degree in the world of advertising and marketing.

     

    1. Evolve to Survive

    In the past decade or so, one has seen a remarkable change in the way marketers are pushing their business. The marketplace is teeming with brands that are constantly jostling with each other for the consumer’s mindspace. There can be no let up, because marketing is war. The battle lines are drawn and the writing is on the wall: Evolve and stay relevant, or step aside and perish.

     

    2. Touch-feel Marketing is King

    This has thrown up an interesting situation. The consumer is now looking for a ‘touch-and-feel’ experience. Just seeing and hearing isn’t enough. The paradigm has shifted beyond mainline advertising. Enter experiential marketing, whose time has clearly come.

     

    And come it certainly has. Just look at the numbers – It is already a Rs 5,000-crore industry, and happily growing at 15 per cent CAGR. No longer is it advertising’s country cousin. Experiential marketing is now a law unto itself.

     

    3. Engage the Consumer

    This growth is being fuelled by three pipelines. The consumer’s demand for live interaction; sports, music and festivals growing exponentially as mediums of engagement; and, most importantly, brand marketers increasing their spends on live consumer engagement.

     

    4. Blurred Boundaries

    These elements of change are making experiential an eminently essential part of the advertising and marketing mix. Its importance and relevance is growing by the day. It stands tall as a confirmed marketing vertical – and proudly so. The lines between ground and TV events are blurring fast. IPL is a prime example in consideration – is it a ground event or TV content? Likewise, game shows and awards nights…

     

    Corporate entities have come to appreciate the importance of rewards and recognition programmes for their employees and dealers. Creating interactive intellectual properties like sports tournaments, music festivals and cultural celebrations are the order of the day.

     

    The doubts have evaporated. Today, it’s apparent that for any advertising and marketing campaign to be effective, it has to embrace the experiential quotient. It isn’t even the case of tail-wagging-dog. Experiential marketing is getting to be top dog in its own right. It’s exciting days for the experiential industry ahead. What it brings to the table perfectly complements advertising and marketing’s offering. This symbiotic cross-leverage makes available to the client a truly complete and comprehensive bouquet of services. It’s a scenario where everybody wins.

     

    Brian Tellis is Chairman, Fountainhead Entertainment. Last week, Dentsu Aegis Network acquired the leading events and activation company.

     

  • DAN acquires Fountainhead Entertainment to further bossman Ashish Bhasin's quest to be #2 agency network

    Biggest ever Experiential Media buy as Dentsu Aegis acquires Fountainhead

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    It’s being touted as the biggest ever buy of an experiential agency in India. Okay, okay, there was Encompass bought by WPP not long ago, but that was in a different era. If all milestones are achieved, the deal size could get the six Fountainhead owners richer by some 400 crore. In INR.

     

    So here’s the news: Dentsu Aegis Network has announced the acquisition of Fountainhead Entertainment Pvt.Ltd, one of India’s leading event and experiential agencies.

     

    Established in 1994 and now with more than 205 experiential specialists, Fountainhead is headquartered in Mumbai and has offices in Delhi and Bengaluru. Founded by Chairman Brian Tellis, Managing Director Neale Murray and Director Otis D’Souza and  later joined by co-directors, media honcho Pradeep Guha, V G Jairam and Owen Roncon,

     

    Post-acquisition, Fountainhead will continue to be led by co-founder and CEO Brian Tellis. The current management team will also continue as is. Tellis will report into Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia. Some time next year (2016), the existing experiential offering of psLIVE, with 86 people in India, will be merged with Fountainhead, making the combined agency India’s largest experiential and activation agency business.

     

    Nick Waters, CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network Asia Pacific said, “Fountainhead’s reputation in the event and activation market, and their extensive experience in both music and sports marketing, complements and strengthens our experiential offering in one of the region’s most exciting markets. This move represents a further step in our continued investment programme in the Indian market.We welcome Brian and the wider team to the network.”

     

    Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia said, “As the fastest growing network in India, we are continuing to expand our portfolio of diverse specialisations available to our growing client base. Fountainhead’s creative quality and reputation in the market make it the perfect addition to Dentsu Aegis Network India. Our unique ‘One P & L’ philosophy will help us bring their expertise to all Dentsu Aegis Network clients. This is another big step forward in helping us achieve our mission of being the second largest agency group by end 2017 in India, overturning for the first time the existing ranking which has historically been in place for over 80 years in India.”

     

    Brian Tellis, Co-founder and CEO of Fountainhead said, “Our vision is to deliver world class experiences to our stake holders. To set benchmarks in delivery through cutting-edge creativity, innovation, value pricing and practices and processes.  We are thrilled to join Dentsu Aegis Network. The sheer dynamism of the group will open up opportunities for us. Our values are well aligned and the potentially combined entity of Fountainhead and psLIVE will become the most comprehensive experiential offering in India. We are very excited about this opportunity and the growth potential it offers. Fountainhead, a full service experiential agency, will now start to align with an enviable spectrum of brands through the Dentsu Aegis Network.”

     

    Fountainhead boasts a client base of more than a hundred on all types of events, digital initiatives, product launches, brand activation and meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions. The five brands within the growing business are: Fountainhead Events, Oranjuice Entertainment, Fountainhead Activations, Fountainhead Corporate Journeys and Fountainhead Digital. Together, they deliver in excess of 350 events annually, a communiqué noted

     

    Fountainhead will retain its identity and branding, working alongside the other specialist Dentsu Aegis Network brands locally: Carat, iProspect, Isobar, Posterscope, Vizeum, Amnet, Dentsu media, Dentsu branded agencies (Dentsu Creative Impact, Dentsu Marcom, Dentsu Communications, Taproot Dentsu, Dentsu Webchutney), WATConsult and Milestone Brandcom.

     

  • 57 per cent of the surveyed respondents feel that the share of the total marketing spends attributed to BTL activities is expected to grow around 10 per cent

    EEMA-E&Y report predicts 25% growth for Event & Activations in 2 years

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Indian event and activation industry in the organized sector is expected to grow at an average rate of 25 per cent from its current size of Rs2,800 crore to Rs4,375 crore in 2013-14. Out of Home (OOH) and radio segments are said to be one of the key growth drivers of the event industry over the last three years. The next phase of growth in activations is expected to come from ruralIndiaas the metros are said to have reached a saturation point; hence the need to tap the large consumer base in the rural belt. These are some of the findings from the EEMA (Event & Entertainment Management Association) and E&Y (Ernst & Young) white paper on the ‘The Business of Experience – The Indian Events and Activations Industry’.

     

    In addition to these findings, 57 per cent of the surveyed respondents are of the opinion that the share of the total marketing spends attributed to BTL (Below the Line) activities (including events and activation) is expected to grow around 10 per cent over the next two to three years to reach nearly 20 per cent of the total marketing spends. The respondents also believe that on the road ahead, profit margins of the events and activation companies will grow at an average of around 15 per cent.

     

    The respondents were also asked to list five most critical issues they expect to face over the next few years. Inadequate event infrastructure; Talent acquisition and retention; Poor image/ Lack of transparency; High competition levels and Inability to demonstrate ROI’s were the top five issues that were a cause of concern for the respondents.

     

    In conversation with MxMIndia, Brian Tellis, President, EEMA talked about the two areas of growth for the event and activation industry in the near future. According to Mr Tellis, the unorganized part of the industry is estimated to be as large as the organised sector, if not larger: “The industry will grow from two areas. First, the industry will start getting a larger share of the existing marketing pie. The existing marketing budget of the brand is estimated to grow by 10 per cent as far as experiential marketing is concerned. The second area of growth will come from the bits of the unorganized sector which will become organized. So yes, it is time for high growth.”

     

    On the takeaways for the industry from the white paper, Mr Tellis said that the industry should first start developing its own Intellectual Properties (IP’s) because the ROI on Intellectual Properties is very high. He also pointed out the need to develop a calculation matrix and ROI matrix as this would enable marketers to confidently spend more money on BTL or experiential marketing.

     

    Talking about the challenges and opportunities for events and activation industry in the long run, Mr Tellis said: “There is a need to convert the unorganized sector into organized sector and the to develop Intellectual Properties (IP) because that will ensure sustainable revenues in the long run.”

     

    MxMIndia also spoke to other industry players and marketer for their views on the challenges and opportunities facing the event and activation industry and its effectiveness in brand building.

     

    According to Mr Girish KJ, vice president-Wizcraft International, over the years as the economy expanded rapidly, so did the need for brand activation, and experiential marketing has become a key value driver in the marketing mix: “In certain sectors, we find that  experiential marketing is what delivers high value to brands. We find a lot of first time clients simply being overwhelmed by the value they derive from investing in brand activation. Eventually, brands that invest in creating meaningful experiences will have a much better reason to be in the customers’ consideration set. In terms of engagement with communities, branded experiences deliver the best return on investment. We have seen that branded events and activation delivers among the highest return with a carefully thought out strategy and a well planned and executed branded experience.”

     

    On the challenges and opportunities facing the events and activation industry, Mr Girish KJ said that investing in and creating experiential marketing professionals for tomorrow; and attracting and retaining the best and the brightest talent will always be a challenge. “To today’s digitized, desensitised, over-communicated customer, the power of the brands experience cannot be over-emphasised. Globally, customers are shunning main stream, talk-down communications and clamouring to be involved with their brands. That is the opportunity for our industry to embrace.”

     

    Yogesh Nambiar, Head, Events Operations, TransStadia felt that events and activations industry is expected to grow in the future, but the real growth is however expected only post January 2013: “Currently we are witnessing a downslide from the event management side of the business, because most of the marketers are more or less looking at the Intellectual Property (IP) side of the business and not the event management companies or agency. Today marketers are looking at events and activations as an extension of their marketing arm, so you have to have good ideas to increase ROI’s for brands. From an ROI basis, I believe activation or BTL plays a large role for marketer or brands.”

     

    Kamal Nandi, Executive Vice President (Marketing and Sales), Godrej Appliances observed: “With more and more brands give experiential experience to consumers, I believe events and activations are only going to increase because that allows consumers to experience the products. Yes, marketers are spending more on activations. But, if you compare ATL and BTL spends, you will find that BTL spends have been constantly increasing over the years, and more money is being spent on experiential marketing. In our industry, events and activations are gaining momentum; however more and more spends are increasingly shifting towards BTL activities. So we definitely see this as an effective way of connecting with consumers and therefore as an industry we are spending more in this area.”