MxMIndia

Tag: Creativeland Asia

  • Creativeland Asia was chosen after a round of multi-agency pitch held earlier this year

    Creativeland wins full-service digital mandate of Mercedes-Benz India

    By A Correspondent

     

    Creativeland Asia has been signed on as Mercedes Benz’s Digital Agency on Record. The leading independent  agency will be the auto-maker’s full-service digital agency handling the creative and media mandate. Creativeland will work closely with the team at Mercedes Benz to develop a fresh digital strategy for the brand, notes a communique.

     

    Said Eberhard Kern, CEO and Managing Director, Mercedes-Benz India: “We look forward to Creativeland partnering us in our various digital initiatives. We are confident that they shall be able to deliver seamless and integrated digital solutions for our brand.”

     

    Sajan Raj Kurup

    Added Sajan RaJ Kurup, Founder & Creative Chairman, Creativeland Asia: “We are immensely excited to partner with Mercedes Benz. To work with a brand that exudes ‘Excellence’ is prestigious and closer to our DNA.”

     

  • The co-founder of Kyoorius and the co-creator of Kyoorius Designyatra will be responsible for design and technology-led initiatives at Creativeland. He will continue his association with Kyoorius

    Creativeland Asia hires Kay Khoo as Chief Innovations Officer

    By A Correspondent

     

    Kay Khoo

    Creativeland Asia has appointed Kay Khoo as Chief Innovations Officer. Mr Khoo comes in as a part of the senior management team and his role within the organization will encompass leading design- and technology-based initiatives, a communiqué noted.

     

    Said Sajan RaJ Kurup, Founder and Creative Chairman, Creativeland Asia, “I was looking for someone who is not jaded by traditional advertising. In Kay, I found this person who is as passionate as me about the ability of design and technology to influence the future of brands.”

     

    On the appointment, Kay Khoo, Chief Innovation Officer, Creativeland Asia says, “I’m excited by the prospects of being able to influence change. Since inception, Creativeland has been nurturing a brilliant creative culture and is an exciting place to be at, where the young creative culture is all ready to create meaningful changes to brand conversations of the future. I see the opportunity to strengthen this further through design and innovations within the culture.”

     

    Sajan Raj Kurup

    Prior to joining Creativeland, Mr Khoo was co-founder of Kyoorius, where he was responsible for numerous projects that were launched, including one of the world’s top annual design conferences, Kyoorius Designyatra, the Kyoorius Awards and the widely circulated design industry magazine – Kyoorius Magazine. Kay has also been part of Addikt (Amsterdam) Mumbai office, and Figtree Design (Malaysia).

     

    Acknowledging the role that Kay Khoo played in various Kyoorius initiatives, Rajesh Kejriwal, CEO and founder of Kyoorius, told MxMIndia that Mr Khoo will continue to be associated with Kyoorius. “Kay is family, and he will always be part of Kyoorius Designyatra, the awards etc,” Mr Kejriwal said.

     

  • The fomer Creativeland Asia partner and ECD and JWT VP and Senior CD join hands to form a new agency

    Vikram Gaikwad, Vistasp Hodiwala join hands to launch new agency Underdog

    By Ravi Balakrishnan

     

    Vikram Gaikwad, former partner and executive creative director at independent agency Creativeland Asia and Vistasp Hodiwala, VP and senior creative director at JWT, have combined forces to launch a new agency named Underdog.

     

    The agency principals represent a classic art and copy structure. An art director by training, Mr Gaikwad has an impressive track record with stints at Grey and most recently Creativeland Asia to his credit. He’s worked on brands like Bajaj Appliances, Mercedes, Mahindra and Parle Agro.

     

    Mr Hodiwala has been associated with Lead India and Teach India as well as the Godrej corporate brand campaign.

     

    This is quite literally the first time Messrs Gaikwad and Hodiwala will be collaborating. Mr Hodiwala says: “We have been in the same industry for two decades, even been to Cannes the same years but our paths never crossed.”

     

    On meeting via a mutual friend, the duo found they shared a high level of compatibility and a desire to strike out on their own. Mr Gaikwad says: “We would have earned more had we joined networks but there’s a joy to creating something.” He has previous entrepreneurial experience, leaving Grey to found Creativeland Asia with Raj Kurup. He wryly says: “This is my second innings.” It’s a first for Mr Hodiwala, who says: “There comes a time when what the agency expects from you and what you expect out of life are different.”

     

    The agency will be self-funded and for the moment has no servicing or planning partner in place. The goal according to Mr Gaikwad is: “To grow with brands, no matter if they are small or big.” The duo are in conversations with three or four brands at the moment.

     

    The one thing Underdog is sure it’s not going to be is a boutique. Mr Hodiwala observes: “No agency would be caught dead doing that. The time when that was in vogue was possibly 10 years ago. People want to be responsible communicators now and stand for a certain amount of honesty and serious originality.”

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2014, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • Given L&K's stake sale to Publicis, Sajan Raj Kurup (Creativeland) and Santosh Padhi (Taproot) talk on independent creative agencies aligning with big networks

    Independent or align with a global network?

     

    While the advertising industry has been abuzz with rumours on Law & Kenneth selling a majority stake to Publicis Groupe since last year, there are mixed sentiments on yet another independent agency (that is not a part of an global media services network) succumbing to the pressures. We asked two agency heads – Sajan Raj Kurup who continues to be an independent and says he will never sell stake to a international superpower and Santosh Padhi whose Taproot aligned with Dentsu two years back for their views.

     

     

    Sajan Raj Kurup, Founder & Creative Chairman, Creativeland Asia

     

    While each agency will have its own reasons, how do you react to one more independent agency getting aligned with a big network?

    Every agency has its reasons to sell. To each his own. As long as they are happy who are we to judge.

     

    Is this something that you at Creativeland are also looking at now or eventually?

    If I wanted to start a place to one day sell it as an advertising agency and cash out, I would called it adland. Fortunately or unfortunately, I am not adland. I am Creativeland. And I have a plan 🙂

     

    In fact with each passing day I am lesser and lesser of an advertising agency. And I still enjoy what I am doing. There is a good chance I may fail and what an epic failure it would be. There is also a good chance I may succeed. But I am not thinking about it.

     

    Some of the reasons why L&K decided to sell stake was to increase scale, get better funded and increase its set of clients. Is that something that’s a huge pull as the agency size grows?

    Obviously scaling up and investments are a part of any business. Mine is no exception. I am not averse to conversation for strategic investments. But I am reluctant to talk with advertising networks. They are myopic. They don’t invest. They buy to kill and devour. Not to grow. That is not my game.

     

    		  

    Santosh Padhi, Co-founder and Chief Creative Officer, Taproot India

     

    Santosh Padhi

    While each agency will have its own reasons, how do you react to one more independent agency getting aligned with a big network?

    Different people have different needs and priorities, but in most cases coming together means strengthening your strength. Since I ran the recent Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon, let me put the same analogy here :). On a long run you can decide to maintain a speed and decide to run the same speed throughout or you decide to speed up but run out of energy and momentum when you are pushing beyond your limit, where you need the right energy drink to add to your momentum and achieve the goals faster, without getting tired. It’s completely up to an individual or the agency to decide how fast one wants to finish the game.

     

    Some of the reasons why L&K decided to sell stake was to increase scale, get better funded and increase its set of clients. Is that something that’s a huge pull as the agency size grows? Were these the reasons why Taproot sold stake to Dentsu?

    While someone from L&K can address the issue of why they sold stake, we at Taproot joined hands with Dentsu for 2-3 reasons:

    a.Management control, a creative agency should always have this as that reflects in your output. Other department support as we were only focusing on creative product and limited to just Mumbai, but at times clients do look for many necessary support and we did not want to lose business just because of the lack of it. Dentsu’s multiple offices and departments have been very handy for us.

     

    b.Globally, Dentsu is an innovator when it comes to digital and sooner or later we all will be in this sea, and they will be of great help when India gets into such action.

     

    And, most importantly, c. We felt comfortable at a human level and that’s very important in a people’s business

     

    If there’s one advantage that you think Taproot has derived post Dentsu, what would it be?

    It has been a wonderful two-year journey. We have worked together on many projects like Nurishco, Dulux, Himalaya etc. We complement each other very well.

     

     

  • Creativeland Asia engages with 'internet generation' for the new campaign of Canvas Blaze by MTS

    Creativeland’s new campaign of Canvas Blaze by MTS

    By A Correspondent

     

    Sistema Shyam TeleServices Limited (SSTL), which provides telecom services under the MTS brand, announced the launch of Canvas Blaze, a Dual SIM CDMA + GSM Smartphone preloaded with data and voice benefits for six months. Creativeland Asia conceptualized the communication campaign of Canvas Blaze Dual SIM for television, print and the  digital media.

     

    The campaign is targeted at young smartphone users and intenders. ‘The Internet generation’, as Creativeland has branded them in this campaign, believes that their power comes from their connections and therefore, increasingly spends more and more time online. They constantly hanker for connectivity and speed. These youngsters have a sense of entitlement that makes them not just Smart but Smartass.

     

    The film opens with a young man making a bold statement, “It’s all about me.” He goes on to talk about the various reasons he is online like networking with friends and friends-of-friends, constantly updating himself with information about people and facts and spending time searching and stumbling.  Said Sajan RaJ Kurup, Founder and Creative Chairman: “The film is an eclectic character-sketch of an emerging behaviour code we call the ‘Internet Generation’. The film is a first step towards establishing MTS as the network designed for a whole generation that uses a phone as everything but a just phone.”

     

    Said Leonid Musatov, Chief Marketing & Sales Officer – MTS India, “An exciting Dual SIM, CDMA + GSM Smartphone – Canvas Blaze comes packed with data and voice benefits for six months. The launch of Canvas Blaze is supported by an integrated communication campaign including TVCs, print and social and other BTL activities.” The film is directed by Bharat Sikka.

     

  • For the national marketing campaign of Appy Fizz, Creativeland Asia has used brand ambassador Saif Ali Khan's dream as the new hangout spot for the drink

    CLA creates dream sequence for Appy Fizz with Saif

    By A Correspondent

     

    For the national marketing campaign of Appy Fizz, Creativeland Asia has used brand ambassador Saif Ali Khan’s dream as the new hangout spot for the drink.

     

    In the TVC, which released on the official brand YouTube channel, Appy Fizz walks into Saif’s dream of a dance sequence on the hit number ‘Mein Khiladi, tu Anadi’. Midway through the dream when Saif realizes Appy Fizz is in his dream, he is miffed at him. Nonetheless, they continue to enjoy the limelight together, jumping around doing funky dance moves to the peppy Bollywood track.

     

    The campaign opened on social media platforms; Twitter and Facebook. #SaifNFizzhangout trended constantly on Twitter both in, India and worldwide. Thus, increasing the base of consumers for engagement in real-time for remainder of the year.

     

    This year, Creativeland has redesigned the packaging of the can variant of Appy Fizz to provide fresh content for its young and loyalist consumers. The can highlights the witty and fun ‘can’ jokes in a graffiti-inspired font.

     

    Says Nadia Chauhan, Joint Managing Director & CMO, Parle Agro, “Since the launch of Appy fizz, we have year after year launched highly differentiated creative and marketing strategies. While we launched the sparkling fruit based beverage category in India, many brands soon followed.” Speaking on the brand, she further added, “Our unique approach towards the brand is what has resulted in us having a 99.9% market share and has resulted in the brand growing by a triple digit growth rate year on year. Our 2013 campaign is particularly very exciting because our own Appy Fizz does a Bollywood number. And this has already shown us huge results in creating scale and cut-through, making the brand larger than ever before.”

     

    Commenting on the campaign, Sajan Raj Kurup, Founder and Creative Chairman, and who is also the director of the film, said, “Appy Fizz films are always delightful to do. They are funny, crazy, and very Appy Fizz. I particularly enjoyed this one since this is the closest I have got to do a Bollywood item number. It was great fun working with Appy Fizz and Saif Ali Khan. They both behaved well on the sets.”

     

    The campaign has been conceptualized by Creativeland Asia. The film has been directed by Sajan RaJ Kurup himself and has been produced by ESTD (Easier Said Than Done) films. The visual effects and the animations are created by MFX in Kuala Lumpur.

     

    On this continuing association, Actor Saif Ali Khan says, “I’ve been hanging out with Appy Fizz for two years now and this is our fourth cool commercial. I can’t put in words how much I enjoyed shooting with my buddy. So I danced. Ok, we danced. But really, working with Appy Fizz and Parle Agro has been awesome. The premise of this new TVC is the coolest by far. (It’s like my dream come true!) The music is something I’ve been a part of before. Reliving something like that after almost 19 yrs was really special.”

     

    This campaign also marks the addition of new content on the brand microsite www.appyfizz.com. The new content involves a fresh website design including witty one-liners, a cool new interactive chat window, where consumers can talk and ask as many questions to Appy Fizz online. There will be two new digital elements that include a blog ‘Fizzy logic’ and a ‘Fizz’ video channel.

     

    This year, the campaign activities also include making available to consumers Appy Fizz branded merchandise and accessories. These branded products can be bought on the brand microsite.

     

  • Madison Media wins Cafe Coffee Day Media AOR as Creativeland Asia creates TVC for the coffee chain

    There’s a lot brewing at CCD, Madison wins Media AOR, Creativeland creates TVC

    By A Correspondent

     

    Gautam Kiyawat

    Madison Media has been appointed as the media AoR (Agency on Record) Cafe Coffee Day. The account size is estimated to be approx Rs. 40 crores and will be handled by Madison Media Omega in Bangalore. Said Gautam Kiyawat, Group CEO, Madison Media,”We are delighted to have India’s premier and leading Cafe chain, Cafe Coffee Day, to our roster of clients and are confident of helping it grow and gain further market share in the country.”

     

    CCD today has over 1,450 Cafes across over 185 cities and as a brand has never advertised in mass media in the last 16 years of its existence. It has been built solely through marketing initiatives, coffee category building activities, public relations, social media, engaging the ever-aspirational Indian consumer.

     

    K. Ramakrishnan, President Marketing, Cafe Coffee Day said, “Cafe Coffee Day being a brand for the young and the young at heart, we needed a partner who would be passionate about the brand, to be able to understand the category in depth and the varying dynamics to enable us to move along at a fast pace. We are confident of Madison Media’s thought leadership and competence in executing the campaigns. We are delighted to have them on board.”

     

    However, with brand presence expanding over 185 cities into newer, emerging towns and markets, it’s time for the brand to introduce their first ever television commercial campaign ‘Sit Down’ aiming to reinforce itself into every single household in India, as they make inroads into several newer and unconventional markets.

     

    The ‘Sit Down’ TVC, conceptualized and created by Creativeland Asia, is part of a 360-degree-campaign. This is CCD’s first-ever TVC in its 16 years of existence.

     

    The TVC captures CCD-goers across Cafes in India, telling, actually singing about what they are sitting down for. From sitting down for love and peace, to sitting down to make friends and to tweet, to sitting down to read and to dream, the film showcases plenty of ‘sit downs’ that happen at over 1450 CCDs every single day. The film ends with the line, “Sit Down. A lot can happen over coffee”.

     

    Sajan Raj Kurup

    Sajan Raj Kurup, Founder and Creative Chairman, Creativeland Asia, said, “This is the first ever TVC for CCD. I feel extremely fortunate to have had this unique historic opportunity. We have given it our most honest shot at it. And I hope CCD regulars like it. Personally, as someone who goes to CCD and someone who has been working on the brand for five years now, I feel extremely happy when I see this piece of work. We wanted CCD’s first ever TVC to be a little more than an Advert. Something that CCD goers identify with. Something that is effortless and not trying to hard. Something that is neither too heavy nor too frivolous. In the whole idea of Sit-down, we eventually found all these and more. A powerful thought which is socially relevant in India at this juncture.”

     

    He added, “While the hype initially may be on the TVC, the campaign will be integrated across media. Digital and social playing a very poignant role. Many campaign specific acts have been planned over the last year and will be executed phase-wise.”

     

    The TVC was shot over seven days across various CCDs across the country with a cast of over 75 youngsters. The unique craft of the TVC intelligently combines two contrarian culture. One, the Cafe and the other, the social media space. The storyline of the TVC shows how a bunch of youngsters started a movement call sit-down by self-recording videos across various CCDs across the country to the self anthem and then posting it via various avenues on social media. The central message of the TVC being to stop creating morchas or standing up against things, and instead Sit-down talk  over a cup of coffee and find a way forward. Over 130 social-media profiles were used. Live posts were diligently crafted and created to become the frame-work of the TVC.

     

    The TVC is produced by Equinox Films and directed by Ram Madhvani. “Great effort has gone into crafting every detail in the TVC by Ram, myself and our respective teams who have relentlessly worked over months to design each and every frame in the TVC,” added Mr Raj Kurup.

     

    Speaking on the launch of its first TVC, Mr Ramakrishnan said, “CCD as a brand has never advertised in mass media in the last 16 years of its existence. It has been built solely through unique and pioneering marketing initiatives, coffee category building activities, public relations and more recently through social media. We believe it is the right time to get deeper into our customers lives, possible only through television.”

     

  • The TVC for premium fragrance brand from Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL) launched recently

    CreativeLand Asia creates Fresh Aer

    By A Correspondent

     

    The TVC for premium air fragrance, aer, by Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL), went on-air on November 5. Conceptualized and executed by CreativeLand Asia, the 35-second ad communicates the ability of aer to spread delightful fragrances in cars simply with a click of a button. It marks the entry of aer into the air care segment.

     

    The advertisement opens with a young man sitting in a common hatchback car. During the ad he realises that aer does not make unreasonable promises such as the car being magically transformed into a bigger and more expensive one after. It simply states that by ‘clicking’ aer, one can simply enjoy invigorating fragrances in the car. It communicates the most important aspects of aer – invigorating fragrances and unique mechanisms.

     

    The TVC was supported by a print campaign as well, wherein the readers of Bombay Times and Delhi received a delightful whiff of aer fragrances from the newspaper.

     

    Sunil Kataria, EVP, Marketing & Sales, GCPL said, “The 3 distinct fragrances – Cool Surf Blue, Fresh Lush Green and Petal Crush Pink along with aer’s unique brand positioning, make it stand out in the air care segment. The TVC compliments the invigorating and quirky aspects of the brand and communicates exactly what aer promises to deliver – a delightful experience!”

     

  • Behind every great commercial is super strategy. Every week, MxMIndia will bring you the brief and the strat as given by the client and whatever else that went into creating a winning ad

    AdStrat: Hippo – A World Without Borders

    Sajan Raj Kurup, Founder and Creative Chairperson, Creativeland Asia

     

    Name of the Campaign/Ad: Hippo – Flavours Without Borders

     

    The Brief: Hippo has a child-like wishful purpose in everything he does. He is out there to outdo hunger as he believes that hunger is the root of all evil. Parle Agro’s new Hippo variant, World Toasties, comes in a range of international flavours that include Mexican Cheese & Spicy Jalapeno, Afghan Tawa Masala, Spanish Hot & Sweet Tomato, Thai Chilli Garlic, Greek Yoghurt Cream & Onion and Desi Chatpatta. So Hippo dreams of a world without borders that can also depict the different flavours that Hippo is launching.

     

    [youtube width=”400″ height=”220″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4qKFfIpZbM[/youtube]

    Research insights: Food has a special place in the heart of every human and, to a large extent, is what holds a society together. There are no superficial boundaries, divisions and limitations in sharing food with people from across the world. Creativeland Asia has taken this thought into the ad film launching Hippo World Toasties ‘Flavours Without Borders’.

     

    The thought process behind the creative:

    The campaign captures the thought that we could live the dream of a world with no borders by sharing our food and enjoying it together. The TVC seen through Hippo’s POV, is of Hippo’s journey to realize his dream of a ‘World Without Borders’ with ‘Flavours without Borders’. Hippo traverses Afghanistan, Mexico, Spain, Thailand, Greece, India, gathering signature flavours of each nation. At the end, we see people come together with openness to share as Hippo hoists a multi-nation flag with a VO ‘Hippo sare borders mita kar le aye hai naye world flavours, is asha mein ke ek din duniya banegi bina borders ke. Hippo World Toasties – Bhuke Mat Raho’.

     

    Media vehicles chosen: 360 degree approach.

     

    Key issues kept in mind while executing the ad: Making this film was an interesting experience as Ram (Madhvani) and I went on a road trip with Hippo capturing him sharing and exchanging munchies with people from different parts of the world. Thus real-life inspirations get translated into a storyboard for the commercial.

     

    Does the treatment do justice to the brief? Yes.

     

    What is the differentiating factor about the ad? ‘One love, one heart’ the sound track for the commercial is a cover of the original soundtrack from one of the world’s renowned musical activists, Bob Marley.

     

    Client comment: Nadia Chauhan, Joint Managing Director & CMO, Parle Agro, said, “It’s Hippo’s biggest mission ever. And the TVC captures it beautifully. With Hippo, the purpose is to create something that will outlast the munchies in the pack. ‘Flavours Without Borders’ is an attempt towards that. This should resonate with Indian audiences who are culturally brought up in a seamless environment of many flavours of food; and food in India has always been a social glue.”

     

  • Last week's acquisition of BBH by Publicis has led many to question whether agencies should stay independent or scale up with a network

    Stay solo or scale up with a biggie?

     

    By Tuhina Anand with inputs from Shruti Pushkarna

     

    Creative hotshops have always co-existed with the bigger networks and every now and then one hears of a celebrated hotshop being taken over by a network. Publicis Groupe, which already had a stake in BBH, has now taken 100 per cent stake in the agency. Considering that BBH is among the most celebrated creative boutiques, the development makes one think that the lifespan of an independent has become short and for them to scale, being part of a network has become a necessity.

     

    Bharat Dabholkar, who collaborated his agency Zen Advertising with Publicis Groupe in 1999, is very clear that the only way to scale up is to merge with a network. He said: “When we started, we were servicing homegrown brands; but we realized that with global brands coming in, we had a handicap in getting them on board. By being part of the network, we immediately got access to big, international brands. I think it’s a personal choice, if you are happy servicing a handful of clients, then you can remain independent; but if you have ambitions of growing your outfit, then the way ahead is to merge with a network.”

     

    Also read:

    Anil Thakraney: BBH must remain the black sheep

    “I have also felt that when a client is small in size or have just started with their marketing activities, they will come to a small agency but after having tasted success with grown ambitions, they ditch the small agency and would want a bigger agency on board. They still might continue to work with small agency, but that usually is on few projects,” he added.

     

    Giving an understanding of the situation, a well-known financial advisor to media groups said: “First of all, it depends on how well the creative hotshop is doing. My view is that if it’s doing well and wants to scale up, the only way to do that is to align with some network. And the network will align only if you are doing well. If you are just a creative whiz who’s not doing well, nobody will go after you. They will go after you only if you can bring something to the table. I think one has to also look at the age profile of the creative guys. If you are young, then you can afford to be in the saddle of a creative hotshop for a long time without considering the possible money that you can make because you can afford to wait. If you are in the mid 40s, then it’s time to sell it whenever you are at your peak. So that’s an important consideration, what stage are you in.”

     

    The scale a network offers is one way that helps the creative hotshops. The second is the access to full-time retainers with most of the bigger clients. The advisor echoes what Mr Dabholkar said: “Whatever you see or hear of bigger clients working with smaller agencies, it’s not a permanent relationship and it goes from campaign to campaign. So when you have that scale, you might end up being the only agency on the roster. So that’s an advantage. Also you need to look at networks which don’t have a great reputation in India, they would like to go after these agencies. For instance, Ogilvy would not like to go after anybody because they have a good reputation here. Whereas for a Omnicom, which is internationally well-known for its creative body of work, there’s nobody here in India. So the networks also look at it from that perspective, because it will be an image booster for that group in India.”

     

    But then what about losing one’s independence? After all in most cases the reason the creative people to start their own outfit is the independence that comes with it as opposed to being with bigger agencies. Mr Dabholkar clarified: “As for losing our independent streak being a part of network, my experience was different. Publicis was a delightful network to work with, as it was understood that we had an entrepreneurial streak so they didn’t interfere in our day to day functioning. However, the big help came in terms of sharing knowledge and supporting us with key inputs on businesses.”

     

    Sajan Raj Kurup

    Mr Dabholkar set up a small agency in Tanzania which has seen positive growth. He is not averse to collaborating this agency to a Network; however he feels that latter would not be interested at this point of time as they wouldn’t see much value in that part of the world in terms of advertising. However, he says that such collaboration helps the people who have worked, as it widens their horizon and opens new windows of opportunity.

     

    So it is clear that to scale up sooner or later, either selling of stake or some kind of collaboration is required. However, Raj Kurup who started CreativeLand Asia is very clear that he wouldn’t want to sell because he clearly believes in the India growth story, though he is open to partnering on his own terms. He is looking at expanding footprint and opening office in London. CLA already has a regional office in Singapore.

     

    Even Scarecrow Communications that was set up two years back is clear that they have enough going on their own and wouldn’t want to sell stake but are open to collaborating with partners that will help them in maximizing their potential.

     

    Naresh Gupta

    Naresh Gupta, Managing Partner, Bang in the Middle, who along with partners has got on this entrepreneurial venture recently, said: “There is a future for independents, and a big one at that. Yes BBH got acquired, and some more may get over a period of time, but that for me is the process of evolution. BBH did path breaking work, made a name for itself, and as brand will still stand for the same black sheep thinking even if it’s a part of a network. I see the same thing to happen here.

     

    Independents will be the new force. They are nimble, they don’t have previous baggage, they will take greater risk, be more lateral in terms of business model, and be a challenge to the large networks.

     

    The larger networks at some stage will always be interested in the independents precisely for the values of thinking different and taking risks. Till the large networks protect those values, it may not even be a bad thing.”

     

    Prasanth Mohanachandran

    Clearly there are both merits and demerits of aligning with bigger players. Prasanth Mohanachandran, Founder Director, AgencyDigi, said: “A network always has one advantage – of scale. The other advantage they have is, when it comes to multinational brands, most of the brand decisions are not taken in India but in other parts of the globe. When independents come into play, learning is going to be tough because it’s actually two companies talking. The good part about independents is that it is easier for them to think beyond conventional framework. Network agencies think through a set framework, there is a standard process for creative ideation. Also, in independents, egos are smaller.”

     

    Mr Mohanachandran feels that while scale is important, when it comes to talking to different markets, it might be difficult to take an idea across to different international markets. “If you play cleverly there are ways around it. If you have like-minded partners, it is easy to work with independents. They have the power to take an idea across the globe, someday it will happen, but it’s still few years away.  In a network of course, there is a larger pool of experience behind running an organization. There are more people, in a network you don’t have to worry about too many things so that’s always a benefit,” he added.

     

    So ultimately, it’s a personal choice. You can remain small and thrive or you can have ambitions to scale up where merging with a network seems a better option. Naved Akhtar and Freddy Birdy have been among the most celebrated duo in advertising who quit and started their own agency in 2003, are very clear that they want to remain independent.

     

    Naved Akhtar

    Naved Akhtar, who quit after spending close to 25 years in mainline advertising, said: “For us it was a question of what we want to do with our life. You can grow and keep running endlessly but we wanted to do our own thing, remain independent and enjoy a quality life. We deliberately don’t want to expand but remain small. We have some big clients like ITC and we are comfortable working with them and never felt that our size was an impediment in delivering.”

     

    Clearly, there is no clear answer to advertising agencies aligning with large networks. To each it’s own, we guess.

     

  • Four leading media agency heads pick their top print ads of last year… in an extract from Dainik Bhaskar's Mosaic 2011

    The Best of Print Ads – 2011

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    You may have seen only a few of them and probably even forgotten the underlying message that the campaigns had to tell. But now you could make a dash to have a hard copy of MOSAIC, a compilation of the Best in Print (campaigns) to have hit India n shores in 2011. The compilation has been put together by 23 creative agencies who have submitted their best pieces of work for the category in 2011. Conceptualised by Sanjeev Kotnala and team from the Dainik Bhaskar Group, the initiative has been made special through the “insights” and “personal favourite” sections that have been provided by Media agency bosses. These include Lynn de Souza of Lintas Media Group, Mallikarjun CR, CEO, Starcom MediaVest Group, PM Balakrishna, Chief Operating Ofiicer, Allied Media and Punitha Arumugam, Director – Agency Business, Google India.

     

     

    Lynn de Souza, Chairman and CEO, Lintas Media Group, Chairman, Aaren Initiative and Director, Karishma Initiative

    “An excellent idea to recreate interest and remind all about the power and impact of the print medium. My only reservation is that there were too many submissions of ‘pretty pictures-pithy headlines’ work that may or may not have been published and did not appear to fully grasp how the medium must be used effectively.”

     

    TOP 5 Choices:

     

     

     

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    1) DNA – ISKCON (Scarecrow India)

    Reasons for choosing: The intelligent use of the cigarette-turned-food visual immediately targets the smoker and invites him/her to contribute in a very simple way to a cause that benefits both beneficiary and the giver – something not easy to achieve. I like the simple, clean look of the ad and the directness of the headline and copy.

     

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    2) Flying machine “What an Ass” (Lowe)

    Reasons for choosing: This is my idea of perfect ad! One that has used all the elements of the print medium – headline, visual, copy to present a bold, modern attitude through a perfectly harmonised contribution of all three. It’s an unmissable ad whether you are a guy or a gal.

     

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    3) Parker – Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards (Lowe)

    Reasons for choosing: A stark headline supported by the simple bottle of ink that says it all. An attention grabbing reminder of the power of the pen to influence the world. Perfect synergy for the subject – Journalism awards and the ‘always memorable’ image of a gold Parker fountain pen.

     

     

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    4) The Times of India – A day in the Life of India (Taproot India)

    Reasons for choosing: Fantastic art direction – great visual appeal that hooks you into reading the whole ad. The contemporary feel, using India n kitsch, with attention to detail, is riveting. (Check out the dog lifting his leg to pee on the bed of nails!) Bright, colourful, crowded yet not messy. I could read it again and again!

     

     

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    5) Vaseline ‘Dear Mr. Vaughan’ (BBH India)

    Reasons for choosing: The kind of ad that every Creative Director who woke up to it that morning would have said: “I wish I had written this”. There are some things you can do impactfully in a topical yet ‘permanent’ medium like print that you can’t do anywhere else, and this ad fits the bill. Nose-thumbingly outstanding!

     

     

    Mallikarjun CR, CEO, Starcom MediaVest Group

    “This is a fantastic initiative. As media agency professionals, our lenses to view the world are different. However, what comes across is that great creative work is universal. Really enjoyed it.”

     

     

     

    TOP 5 Choices:

     

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    1) Audi – World Cup (Creativeland Asia)

    Reasons for choosing: Great connect with the Champion’s Trophy ’85 win. Most of the target audience that can buy an Audi will connect immediately with that moment. For a lot of us India ns, that was the first moment of connect with Audi.

     

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    2) DNA ISKCON Food Relief Foundation (Scarecrow)

    Reasons for choosing: A nice calculus linking smoking to food relief. Very innovative, eye catching visuals.

     

     

     

     

     

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    3) Indigo Campaign (Weiden+Kennedy)

    Reasons for choosing: Stark, consistent visuals. The colours, space everything reflects the qualities of the airlines. Nice word play that grabs your attention and makes you read the copy. The reference to price is as value and not cheap.

     

     

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    4) Nissan Micra (TBWA\ India)

    Reasons for choosing: Simple stark visuals. Driving home the relevance of a small car without talking price, affordability etc. Great, understated use of a celebrity.

     

     

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    Reasons for choosing: Great expedient use of Michael Vaughan’s comment. Superb cut through and great visuals.

     

     

    PM Balakrishna, Chief Operating Ofiicer, Allied Media

    “I think this is a wonderful initiative and exposes the fantastic creativity. It is a very different platform as it is more an appreciation of great work rather than a competition as I believe each creative is great on its own.”

     

     

     

    TOP 5 Choices:

     

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    1) Bajaj Fans (Leo Burnett)

    Reasons for choosing: The best part of this creative is the way it has integrated everyday common issues and weaved them into the core communication of the product. The creative is also very well crafted visually using the very cause of the product making it very effective.

     

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    2) Birla Cellulose (Salt Brand Solutions)

    Reasons for choosing: The sheer aesthetic treatment to the communication draws you and I like the beautiful and colourful way the creative has used nature and the human body (woman). It brings out the environmental friendly nature of the product in a very soft and appealing manner.

     

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    3)Fuji(Grey)

    Reasons for choosing: Colour and background are intrinsic material for any great creative and nothing better than drawing inspiration from Mother Nature and wildlife. The beautiful use of the animals brings the message home effectively and creatively and connects with any photographer or photo enthusiast.

     

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    4)NipponPaints (JWT)

    Reasons for choosing: They say a great picture is worth a thousand words and the effect is breathtaking when it is beautifully woven into the message making the communication very compelling and effective. In this case the product USP, a central factor in the category has been brought home very beautifully for correct impact.

     

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    5) Zee 24 Taas (Draftfcb Ulka)

    Reasons for choosing: Ganpati Bappa has a significant connect with the India n diaspora and especially with Maharashtrians who revere the elephant God. I like the way the creative has beautifully engaged the viewers in an innovative and personal manner and makes it unique and different.

     

    Punitha Arumugam, Director – Agency Business, Google India

     

    “This initiative continues the long tradition of Dainik Bhaskar – breaking boundaries and setting new trends in the industry.”

     

     

     

     

     

    TOP 5 Choices:

     

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    1) DNA Mumbai Marathon (Scarecrow)

    Reasons for choosing: The power of long copy. It brings back memories of the old era, which was marked by a great headline and the power of long copy. It inspires and bonds with its audience.

     

     

     

     

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    2) Murphy Richards epilators (Contract)

    Reasons for choosing: The power of a picture. The visual intrigues, makes you pause, demonstrates the benefit and brings a smile – all this without a single word.

     

     

     

     

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    3) MTR Spicy Pickle (Ogilvy)

    Reasons for choosing: The power of insight. A true South India n like me will see this ad and can only say “How true!” Equating spicy with ‘tears’, the way the ad captures the cultural nuances – awesome!

     

     

     

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    4) Parker – Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards (Lowe)

    Reasons for choosing: The power of words. While most entries used the power of the picture, this ad stands out because it uses print for what it does best – leverage the power of words and intriguing headlines.

     

     

     

     

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    5) Saffola Healthy Heart (McCann)

    Reasons for choosing: The power of an innovation. A great collaboration between the creative agency, the brand team, the media agency and the publication to convey the brand message interestingly and inclusively so as to trigger an action from the reader.
    Best of Print in Dainik Bhaskar Group’s MOSAIC
     

    Some may see India’s performance of bagging just four Press Lions at Cannes out of the 30 that were shortlisted as a drab effort, but then there are some who would like to think of it as being otherwise. After all, Press Lions as a category managed to get India its largest tally of four metals versus any other category at the awards – a valiant effort considering that India finished 2012 with just 14 metals in its kitty.

     

    While the category may have received its fair share of fame at the pinnacle of creative awards, many would agree that Indian adland has failed to laud the finesse that stems out from Print creatives over the years. While such is not the case in some large international markets where creative works across categories gets noticed and rewarded that gesture seems to be missing when it comes to India. Luckily for the creative frat in India, an opportunity to showcase their best works – besides the awards shows – were given a fillip by the Dainik Bhaskar Group that released the first of its kind creative compilation of the finest works produced in Print in the form of MOSAIC 2011.

     

     

    Elaborating on the initiative, Sanjeev Kotnala, VP & National Head, Dainik Bhaskar Group said, “This has been a first year for MOSAIC, which is a rich collection of 150 creative units part of 77 campaigns that have been submitted by 23 agencies.” The creative showcase has been made special through some individual comments and insights that have been posted by creative leaders of individual agencies.

     

    Elaborating on the thought process behind the compilation, Mr Kotnala said: “As a group, we believe that the Indian creative across mediums and media is of international standards, in its thinking, relevance and in its execution. Unfortunately there has been no single reference point for the same. MOSAIC bridges this gap and we would want it to be referred by the creative, clients, media and trade.”

     

    As for the method that was adopted in getting the agencies to submit their campaigns, Mr Kotnala said that it began with Dainik Bhaskar requesting the creative heads at the agency to send their best Print work. “They know better than us – as by placing it in MOSAIC affirms it to be their best work. Though we did have constraints on the number of campaigns we could place in Mosaic from a single agency. This has all been a by-invitation. On the other side, there were few agencies that sent lesser number of creative units as they felt others were not up to the standard to feature in such a compilation. So it was created and evaluated by the creative teams themselves.”

     

    On how print has evolved over the years as a medium, Mr Kotnala said: “Today print ads are working on all fronts of communication. They are not just for the purpose of awareness building or as a source of providing tactical information; they engage and involve the readers and are very result-oriented in their approach. We always held that the idea is more important than the medium. And it will automatically find its right medium for better efficiencies and effectively delivery of the message.”

     

    In fact, the compilation has been made special with the involvement of four media agency heads who’ve provided their assessment of the campaigns. They include Lynn De Souza, Chairman and CEO, Lintas Media Group, Chairman, Aaaren Inititative and Director, Karshma Initiative; Mallikarjun CR, CEO, Starcom Mediavest Group; PM Balkrishna, Chief Operating Officer, Allied Media and Punitha Arumugam, Director- Agency Business, Google India.

     

    With the first edition already finding appreciation within the industry, the Dainik Bhaskar group have their task cut out for the next year too. On his plans for a sequel, Mr Kotnala said, “We would want to see more regional and language work in the collection – and they still should meet the standards set. We would and could try getting clients and media owners also picking their favourites and definitely may wish to incorporate a section on media innovations. Though we have taken the task and brought out the book, in our mind it is an industry level initiative and we would want to keep it that way.”

     

    Mosaic 2011 can be accessed and downloaded at http://i10.dainikbhaskar.com /dainikbhaskar2010/books/ Final_Book.PDF

     

  • The jury at Cannes is a mature set of people, so one cannot pass off mediocre work and fool the judges

    Road to CL2013: The way to win at Cannes is by not aiming for a metal

    The Cannes metal wins for India has been disappointing. There could be various reasons for it and the metal tally definitely doesn’t point that the work coming out of India is of inferior category. However, it does point that there is something more required from India n agencies to gain attention of the international jury. Who better that people on the Cannes jury this year to show us some light on where the agencies could improve and what really went behind the judging. We spoke to a few on the jury this year to understand where India went wrong and what can be done to reclaim some of the lost ground this year.

     

    Rahul Jauhari, National Creative Director, Everest Brand Solutions

    Rahul Jauhari

    I don’t think you can aim at Cannes by doing something that can win at Cannes . Most winning entries at Cannes are brilliant solutions to one business issue or another. “Let’s do something like that one” ­ is not going to get you anywhere. The point is to solve the business issue facing your brand with a wonderful idea and execution. If it is that wonderful, it will win.

     

    And yes, the glorious part is in doing it in a way that is relevant to the India n audience. The jury are not fools. They can see through scams, in most cases. They ask relevant questions and give a lot of importance to the logic of the communication. They reward ingenuity, but not at the cost of authenticity.Brazilwins a lot of awards at Cannes . But their work is unmistakably Brazilian. The same goes for other countries. So, the language of your entry is not a minus point, as long as you send in a good explanation.

     

    The jury at Cannes is now well represented by different countries. And that shows in the selection of work. “Let’s do something that integrates social media” is not the answer either. More Facebook likes is not equal to higher chances at a Cannes metal. If the idea is loved, people will spread it on social media. A print ad can lead to online furore or fan-following. The same goes for a TV ad or a radio spot. The consumer builds in social media integration without asking you. So there.

     

    Simply put, the way to win at Cannes is not by aiming for a metal at Cannes . Aim for a brilliant solution or idea. Execute it brilliantly. Even the simplest of ideas can win. There is that little bit about the packaging, though. When a jury member has to sift through a thousand plus entries, he or she will not suffer a poorly packaged entry. Keep it simple, keep it to the point. Sure make it enjoyable. But remember, the jury wants to know how you did it, why you did it and what it achieved. Inform them, but don’t bore them to death. And don’t try to con them. Most are highly experienced and can tell a fake from a real. Instantly.

     

    Sunil Gautam, Founder, HanmerMSL

    This is the fourth year for Cannes PR Lions which saw 1,130 entries from 61 countries, the highest number of entries received by Cannes Lions in this category ever. 134 entries were short listed. India had 19 entries, 1 was short-listed.

     

    The composition of jury was very good and it represented the cross-section from the world over. There was a lot of interaction and discussion before finalising the winners. According to me, it was very professional judging and the experience was awesome.

     

    India had 19 entries in this category, and many of them came up for lively discussion. Of these, one entry was short listed. Unfortunately, this entry didn’t get any metal. But the overall effort by the India n agencies was excellent. All the campaigns that were reviewed were very imaginative, with good strategy, execution and measurable impact and results.

     

    My advice to the India n public relations industry is to focus on innovative strategies, immaculate execution and measurable results in such a way that the campaigns that they implement for a client are a huge success. And not to plan campaigns from the short sighted of just winning awards. Good campaigns are appreciated everywhere and they may end up with the awards. The client comes first and they will get awarded if they deserve.

     

    Vikram S Gaikwad, Partner & Executive Creative Director, Creativeland Asia

    Vikram S Gaikwad

    I think there are three simple yet significant aspects to any entry. The idea, its execution and the category in which it is entered. A brilliant idea can miss out simply because it is not entered in the right category.

    With the number of entries running in thousands even in each category, each panel has a unique criteria while judging entries. So, the chances are that a great entry submitted in a wrong category might fail to even get a shortlist.

    Also, we should look at the new categories introduced at Cannes every year.I was disappointed to see little or no work in categories like Mobile, PR and Brand Entertainment & Content categories. With the size of the Indian
    market, number of brands, consumption etc, we are very much capable of capitalising on various opportunities and entering more quality work in the future.

    This year the number of metals that India won has gone significantly low. This definitely is disappointing. So, I am hoping we will make up for it
    next year.