DDB Mudra has appointed Sambit Mohanty as Creative Head, North. Sam, as Mr Mohanty is better known, will be based out of Delhi and will report in to Sonal Dabral, Chairman and Chief Creative Officer, DDB Mudra Group.
Sam joins DDB Mudra from McCann Erickson where he was Executive Creative Director, New Delhi, instrumental in creating memorable work for Coca-Cola (Haan, Haan, Mein Crazy Hoon) and Aircel (Thoda Extra Milta Hai Toh Achcha Lagta Hai).
With over 14 years in advertising and design, Mr Mohanty has worked with Leo Burnett, Publicis, Lowe and Elephant Design and worked on clients such as Coca-Cola, GM, Nestle, HP, Pernod-Ricard, Virgin Mobile, Hitachi, Max Bupa, Godfrey Philips, The Indian Express, BBC World, Tanishq, Britannia, Reckitt-Benckiser and more.
On joining DDB Mudra, Delhi, he said, “It’s a privilege to be part of DDB’s creative culture that’s guided by play books not rule books. With Sonal’s help, I’m keen on creating a place where one looks forward to coming to work – even on a Monday morning. And also producing some glorious work along the way!
Said Sonal Dabral, Chairman and Chief Creative Officer, DDB Mudra Group said, “New Delhi is an extremely important market for us so I’m really happy that a talent like Sambit will lead our creative offering there. Sambit is among the rare breed of creative professionals in India who are equally comfortable with Hindi or English, with paper and pen or mouse and computer screen. I’m certain Sambit will play a big role in helping shape an exciting creative future for DDB Mudra Group.”
Said Vandana Das, President, DDB Mudra Delhi, “We have got to dot our “I”s in the creative business. I am looking at ushering, welcoming, embracing creative leadership in DDB Mudra Delhi through Sambit. He is a phenomenal talent and he has got the three Is – Inspiration, Imagination and Involvement. Many “I”s put together becomes “We” and I look forward to generating some more incredible work from our office.
DDB Mudra West has announced the appointment of Satyajeet Kadam and Shagun Seda as Creative Directors, DDB Mudra Mumbai. The creative duo will be based out of Mumbai and will work under the guidance of Sonal Dabral, Chairman & CCO, DDB Mudra Group.
Both have had around 10 years experience in advertising and worked last with TBWA.
Sonal Dabral
Said Mr Dabral on the appointment: “I’m very excited about Shagun and Satyajeet joining the DDB Mudra family. Â A hugely talented team, they are both modern day storytellers with big brand experience and excellent work that transcends mediums.”
Said, Rajiv Sabnis, President, DDB Mudra Group, West, “Satya and Shagun are very talented and curious people, exactly what we were looking for in DDB Mudra.”
DDB Mudra Delhi has added Marico’s Livon brand to its slew of accounts. The size of the account is pegged at Rs 40 crore. The incumbent on the account ‘Cut the Crap’ had been working on the brand before Marico acquired the brand from Reckitt Benckiser earlier this year. DDB Mudra Group won this mandate after a rigorous multi-agency evaluation process.
Sonal Dabral
Sonal Dabral, Chairman & CCO, DDB Mudra Group, said, “Livon presents us with a wonderful opportunity to take the DDB ideology of social creativity forward. A brand that talks to audiences that live in a connected world, we look forward to creating ideas that have an inherent ‘talk value’ that drives the brand forward. Besides, with Marico, we are really excited about partnering with one of the most professional Indian multinationals.”
Vandana Das
Commenting on this big win, Vandana Das, President, DDB Mudra Group, Delhi, says, “It’s a great starting point and very encouraging for all of us to be associated with a brand from Marico’s stable. Having won Livon, we are all really delighted and geared to have a long innings together. We look forward to doing some path-breaking and exciting work on the business in months ahead.”
Launched 16 years ago as a music channel, Star India’s Channel V is now turning into a full-fledged youth entertainment channel. Starting July 1, V will stop airing music programmes in India and focus on fiction and non-fiction shows. The reason: “Over the last two years, there has been an explosion of ‘music only’ channels, but everyone’s playing identical playlists,” says Prem Kamath, executive vice-president and general manager at Channel V. “In order to grow as a channel and as a brand, it has always been critical to have an offering that is unique in our competitive space,” he adds on being quizzed on the decision.
Many experts feel that it was bound to happen as more and more channels try to mould themselves to stay connected with what their target audience wants. But there many questions arise: could this mean the beginning of the end of music on TV? What is the future of music genre? Where is it headed?
The beginning
The scene for Indian music channels was set with the launch of MTV in the early 90s. Soon after, Channel V was launched in 1994, and since then there has been no looking back.
The launch of these music channels also led to a boom in international as well as Indie pop culture. However, it was shortlived and Bollywood music took over, and the two channels, along with many other launched afterwards, started playing popular filmi songs. But over a period of time, these two channels moved beyond playing only music with shows like Roadies, Splitsvilla and Dare 2 Date.
Hemant Kenkre
According to music columnist Narendra Kusnur, somewhere down the line for these channels, music took a backseat: “I’m sure any channel would do thorough research while trying to change their gameplan. So, if a music channel shifting towards being a youth entertainment channel is proved beneficial – for viewership as well as revenue – then it wouldn’t harm them to take such a step.”
He’s not alone in voicing this. Even Hemant Kenkre, a former music channel professional and a corporate and brand communications veteran, feels that channels are now branding themselves differently to reach out to their TG. He, however, does blame the availability of music on various platforms – radio, cellphones, laptops, iPods – as the reason for this shift. “Today, the youth is moving towards reality shows and they want it from the channels meant for them. As for music, they get their share of it from other mediums too.”
Luke Kenny
Former VJ, musician, actor and 9XO programming head Luke Kenny, on the other hand, feels that the channel (Channel V) decided to shift long back and has been moving slowly towards it, but there are still many who want music on television. “If music was dead on TV, then how would you explain other new music channels cropping up and doing well too?”
He added: “Having said that, I do believe that with more channels showcasing Bollywood songs, music channels have lost their niche and have just became promotional channels. Therefore, if a channel decides to change colours, it might work. And you never know, Star India might come up with a new music channel called Music OK.”
Industry talk
If one takes a look at various channels, be it music or a GEC, they will find that, there is a great deal of music in some or the other. We have music trailers/songs aired across all channels. Award shows, too, have musical performances and talent shows like Saregama, Indian Idol, DID and even celeb dance show Jhalak Dikhla Jaa are high on ratings.
Mohit Joshi
Therefore, according to media planners, the existence of specialised music channels is a difficult game. “Today, unfortunately for the masses in India, music equals to Bollywood. This is the challenge. This was not the case in the ’90s when there were a lot of private music albums that were launched -Silk Route et al, and the music channels were used for their amplification. So, there was something more than Bollywood, which is not the case today. In the current scenario, if music channels do not experiment with music or the content, then there is a fear that they will dilute their relevance over a period of time,” says Mohit Joshi, managing director, MPG India.
Adds Carat Media India’s senior VP Himanka Das: “Channel V’s decision to discontinue music is a welcome change and would offer interesting opportunities to build engagement content with the youth, considering the very little content that is available to them in entertainment beyond music. Music as a genre gets 6-7 per cent share in the youth segment of viewers with Channel V contributing 24 per cent to this share amongst 20+ channels. Channel V vacating this space is someone else’s gain!”
Punit Pandey
Meanwhile, other music channels aren’t perturbed and are waiting to see how the channel is accepted in its new avatar. As per TAM (CS4+, All India market), there has been a consistent growth in the music genre. In 2007, the genre share of music channels was 2.02 per cent whereas in 2012 (till week 24) the share has grown to 3.62 per cent.
Punit Pandey, senior VP and business head, 9X Media Group, agreed with Mr Das and added: “Music has, and will continue to, work on television. It is close to a Rs360-370 crore industry (in the HSM belt) and growing. More and more people are ‘watching’ music, so there is nothing to worry about for music channels at large.”
Nikhil Gandhi
Similarly, the view from UTV Bindass which started out as a Youth Entertainment Channel (YEC) and has been a pioneer in the segment is that though in the recent past music channels, especially MTV and Channel V, have started shifting focus from music to fictional and non-fictional shows, there is no reason for sleepless nights. “We have an advantage over other channels entering the YEC genre as we have already created a connect with the TG,” says Nikhil Gandhi, Disney UTV Executive Director – Youth Channels, Media Networks. And adds an alert: “So, I would like to tell other channels entering the YEC genre to work on their strategies well.”
Apprehensive marketers?
The change in positioning is due to the feeling that youngsters now have a strong spending power. And, hence, are targeted by various brands more than ever before. TV forms a core part of advertisement for these brands as youngsters also spend a lot of time in front of the television sets.
Simeran Bhasin
But what happens to youth brands if a channel changes its content strategy? According to the various marketing heads, the apprehensions will emerge if the channel isn’t clear about the shift and isn’t able to help a brand reach its TG.
“If the TG of a brand matches that of the channel, it won’t matter if they decide to change over a period of time. However, if there is a shift in TG then a brand would think twice before advertising on that channel,” says Simeran Bhasin, head – Marketing and Retail, Fastrack.
Harkirat Singh
MTV’s latest show Sound Trippin was partnered by Woodland because the brand feels that youth oriented channels helps them reach their TG. However, the brand is clear that it get associated with channels or shows only if it feels there is a connect between the brand and the viewers. “Like any other brand, while media planning, the TG of a certain channel is important for us. We look for shows which are able to reach and connect with our TG. So, if a channel changes its content plan, we will want to go through their new strategy to figure out where do we figure and how it can benefit us,” says Harkirat Singh, MD, Woodland.
Will the shift work?
According to the industry professionals, the change in content plan by a channel is done after a lot of research and only time can decide if it will work in its favour or not. However, they believe that a channel should remain true to its philosophy because otherwise it will lose its identify as well.
Samyak Chakrabarty
Expanding on it, Samyak Chakrabarty, MD, Electronic Youth Media Group and Chief Youth Marketer, DDB Mudra Group believes that ‘youth’ is a very misunderstood word and youngsters cannot be defined in one category as all depends on the exposure and the background one comes from. “In their perception to become ‘youth’ channels, they are getting muddled up and don’t know where they are headed. Today, a youngster cannot associate MTV or Channel V with anything like they do for other brands. For instance, technology means iPad, connectivity means Blackberry etc. I think music channels should have remained with what they started as, instead of losing their identify to gain more TRPs. Such moves will only lead to their downfall, in the long term.”
From being largely optimistic to one predicting a downfall, we received mixed reactions to the proposed change in Channel V’s identity. However, one thing is clear, no matter what Star India decides, there will be many who will wait to see what this mean for them and the genre, at large.
With 11 out of 15 categories already finding their fate at the grand creative stage of excellence-Cannes,India’s performance at this juncture doesn’t paint an impressive picture. Out of a total 84 shortlists that India has managed to garner against its name across the 11 categories announced till date, only 12 have managed to find their way into the winners tally. A recap of India’s performance thus far shows the country having two Golds, three Silvers and 10 Bronzes in its kitty.
On day 4, India managed to pick up 1 Gold, 1 Silver and 5 bronzes. The Gold was bagged by DDB Mudra Group for its entry ‘The Hinglish Project’ in Design Lions category. It also won a bronze for the same entry. The other Gold for India was bagged by McCann Worldgroup for its client ‘Western Union’ in the Outdoor Lions category. As for the Silvers, it is Leo Burnett that is leading the way with 2 Silvers including one in Press Lions for its client Bajaj Electricals and the other for Doorstep School in the Media Lions category.
Leading the list among the agencies is DDB Mudra with 32 points (including 22 points from shortlists). At the second place is Leo Burnett with 30 points against its name. If not for the points accumulated from shortlisted entries, Leo Burnett would’ve been placed at the top spot. Coming in third is Ogilvy India that has a total of 19 points against its name, including 3 Bronzes that it has bagged so far. It is a close call between the fourth and the fifth spots with BBDO India sitting at 14 and McCann WorldGroup sitting at 13. Cheil Worldwide is next with 8 points including 1 Silver that it won for Samsung. Brand David is next with 4 points followed by Publicis and Bates at 2 each. The remaining ten agencies are placed at the same spot (tenth) having bagged a point each for their respective shortlists.
With four more categories to go, including Film Lions, Film Craft Lions, Branded Content & Entertainment and Titanium & Integrated Lions, the table is still wide open. Whether a new contender will emerge at the top and whether India will compare this year’s metals tally to that of the past will be known in a couple of days. Note this does include the shortlists announced today.
Agency
Titanium Grand Prix
Grand Prix, Titanium
Gold
Silver
Bronze
Shortlist
Total
Points
12
10
7
5
3
1
DDB Mudra
1
0
1
22
32
Leo Burnett
0
2
1
17
30
Ogilvy India
0
0
3
10
19
BBDO India
0
0
2
8
14
McCann Worldgroup
1
0
0
6
13
Cheil Worldwide
0
1
0
3
8
Brand David
4
4
Taproot India
3*
3*
Bates India
2
2
Publicis Communications
2
2
BBH India
1*+1
1*+1
JWT Mumbai
1
1
Creativeland Asia India
1
1
TBWA\ India
1
1
M&C SAATCHI
1
1
OMD India
1
1
Mindshare
1
1
Draftfcb + Ulka
1
1
Grey Worldwide
1
1
PERCEPT/H
1
1
Bacardi India
1*
1*
*Â Winners to be announced on Saturday late evening @ Cannes
Day 4 at the Grand Auditorium, Palais des Festivals was not as eventful for the Indian contingent as the metals failed to come in big numbers as envisaged. India managed to clinch only 7 metals, including 1 Gold, 1 Silver and 5 Bronzes in the four categories for which the winners were declared – Design, Press, Radio & Cyber. In Cyber there were no shortlists from India.
The Gold was bagged in the Design Lions category which had a total of eight shortlists from India. DDB Mudra Group was the winner of the lone Gold for their work ‘The Hinglish Project’, bagged under the Consumer Services category, the work was for Ministry of Tourism under the Incredible India initiative.
Ogilvy & Mather’s work for Mentos Sour Marbles saw it bag a Bronze
The creative credits for the entry include Sonal Dabral, Chairman & Chief Creative Officer, Pratap Bose, Chief Operations Officer, Louella Rebello, ECD, Shirin Johari, Associate Creative Director – Copy & Art, Michael Remedios, Agency Producer & Warren Pereira of W Films.
Incidentally, The Hinglish Project also bagged a Bronze in the Design Typography category. Reacting to the win, Louella Rebello, ECD, DDB Mudra Mumbai said: “The Hinglish Project has been a labour of love. We named it ‘The Hinglish Project’ because it is exactly that. A project that aims to demystify Hindi and make it familiar and more approachable by using a wonderful blend of the two languages. It was very well received and appreciated even before it was entered and the Cannes Lions are testimony to this. Kudos to Shirin Johari. At DDB Mudra, it’s champagne time as we bring home our Lions.”
Perhaps the biggest disappointment for the Indian contingent was in the Press Lions category where it managed only four metals out of a total of 30 shortlists. The big winner was Leo Burnett as it bagged Silver for its client Bajaj Electricals. Leo Burnett bagged the award in the Home Appliances & Furnishings category; the creative team for which included KV Sridhar – CCO, Nitesh Tiwari – ECD, Vikram Pandey – CD, Vikram Pandey – Copywriter, Brijesh Parmar – Art Director, Amol Jadhav – Photographer, Sushma Singh/Adya Thakur – Account Supervisor and Beena Koshy – Advertiser’s Supervisor.
The Print category also brought in three Bronzes forIndiawhich included one by Ogilvy & Mather for Mentos Sour Marbles – the team for which included Abhijit Avasthi/Rajiv Rao, CCO, Priti Arora, CD, Tushar Pal, Copywriter, Deelip Khomane, Illustrator and Typographer.
O&M bagged another Bronze in Press Lions for its work around Hot Wheels
The other bronze went to BBDO India for its ‘White Collar Hippies’ campaign – the team for which comprised Josy Paul, CCO, Rajdeepak Das, ECD, Sandeep Sawant, CD, Yohan Daver, copywriter; while the third Bronze went to Ogilvy & Mather for ‘Hotwheels’ for its client Mattel Toys – the team for which included Abhijit Avasthi/Rajiv Rao, CCO and Sukesh Kumar Nayak, ECD & Copywriter.
The other Bronze was bagged in the Radio Lions category by Leo BurnettIndiafor Strand Bookstall. The team for the campaign was led by K V Sridhar, CCO, Nitesh Tiwari, ECD and Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari, CD of Leo Burnett.
DDB Mudra Chief Operations Officer Pratap Bose put up this picture with the Design Gold on his Facebook page
Cannes on Day 4 won more gold for India, taking its tally to two. ‘The Hinglish Project’ from DDB Mudra Group took home a gold Lion in design.
The design entry is part of the ministry of tourism’s Incredible India campaign. Abhijit Bansod, jury member and principal designer and creative head, Studio ABD, said this is perhaps a new beginning for hybrid typographic design work that combines cultures.
“It really stood out amongst the typographic work we saw during the judging process,” he adds. India had a total of eight entries on the shortlist with three originating in DDB Mudra Group, including a campaign for Volkswagen India.
‘The Hinglish Project’ has been awarded a bronze Lion, too. A total of four categories were judged on the day. Press, a traditional favourite with Indian entrants, kept India’s ad engine chugging along. There is one silver Lion in Press for Leo Burnett’s work for Bajaj Electricals.
Ogilvy took home two bronze Lions in the same category for its work for Perfetti Van Melle and Mattel Toys’ Hot Wheels brand. And, BBDO India has one bronze Lion, courtesy its work for White Collar Creatives.
The Grand Prix winner in Press is United Colors of Benetton’s Unhate campaign that cooked up a storm in many places around the world and got it the much-coveted top prize at the Cannes Lions.
In radio there’s a lone win, another bronze Lion for India as well as Leo Burnett. Titled ‘Punishment’, the work interestingly was written entirely in Hindi. The work for Mumbai-based book store Strand Book Stall is in the form of a conversation between Mahatma Gandhi and a little boy.
According to Rob McLellan, executive creative director, Network BBDO South Africa, and Radio Lions’ jury president: “It is a heart-warming piece of work. India is very similar to South Africa in many ways. Radio is still the most popular medium and sometimes the only way to reach people. I think the piece is a worthy winner.”
This brings us to Cyber category, a disappointment of digital proportions. Out of the 27 entrants, not one made the shortlist. About India’s non-existent presence in this category Anita Varma, jury member and director of Digital Driftwood, said it’s a shame because we are great storytellers but falter on how best to use the technology at our disposal.
Having amazed the jury members in the initial stages, Leo Burnett and Brand David Communications showed why they were one of the worthy contenders at Cannes as they both bagged the highest number of (shortlist) entries in Outdoor Lions category. With four nominations, both agencies stand a good chance of winning big at the awards.
Leo Burnett was nominated for its entries – Cigarette, Socks, Fish and Eggs for Bajaj Electricals exhaust fans in the Home Appliances, Furnishings, Electronics & Audio Visuals category while Brand David Communications was nominated for their entries – Pig Attack, Buffalo Attack, Deer Attack and Goose Attack for Peptocid Antacid under the Cosmetics & Beauty, Toiletries & Pharmacy category.
Other contenders include Ogilvy & Mather with three shortlists, McCann Worldgroup India that has three shortlists for Western Union & DDB Mudra Group which has three shortlists for Stedfast.
But what is a bit discouraging is the decline that has been witnessed in the overall number of entries from India which has been its lowest ever at 219. For the record, the entries in 2011 stood at 252. It is even more disheartening as India has sent fewer entries despite the overall number of entries in the category seeing an 8 per cent rise compared to the previous year. There are a total of 4,843 entries that have been entered in this category which is led by entries from countries like Brazil which has sent 766, USA that has sent 404, Germany that has sent 322 and UK & Spain that have sent 191 entries each.
Leading the Jury from India is Vikram Gaikwad, Partner & Executive Creative Director, Creativeland Asia. The Outdoor awards too will be held on Tuesday evening at Palais des Festivals.
TracyLocke India, part of the DDB Mudra Group, announced that its operations will be headed by Samir Mehta, Head- Business & Operations and Pradeep Ramakrishnan will be given additional responsibility; apart from being VP, DDB MudraMax, Media he will also be Head – Strategy & Insights, TracyLocke India.
Pratap Bose, COO, DDB Mudra Group, said:Â “Tracy LockeIndiawill help build the B2R (Business to Retail) practice for clients and will create strategies for converting consumers into shoppers. With the appointments of Samir Mehta and Pradeep Ramakrishnan, we now have the momentum to aggressively push the TracyLocke India agenda, and build a great shopper marketing and retail capability for our clients.”
Commenting on this progress, Samir Mehta, Head, Business & Operations, TracyLocke India, said: “Evolution of retail in India calls for a better understanding of how the shoppers shop at the last mile inIndia. This becomes imperative for brands. For this, brands need to develop shopper insights. With TracyLocke, who have a commendable record with working on some of the best global brands, and with the Indian retail environment being unique in its own way, TracyLocke India will be customizing the requisites of each of our clients to suit this market, which currently comprises of 95 per cent being unorganized and the remaining 5 per cent organized.”
Adding to this Pradeep Ramakrishnan said: “Shopper marketing inIndiais not just about marrying the interests of the brand, retailer and shopper. It is more complex than that. The role of insights in this scenario would therefore be about ‘Bringing a Method to the Madness’. TracyLocke India with its proprietary tool, processes and measurement systems will lead the creation of new ways of understanding, analyzing and influencing the shopper in India.”
TracyLocke is a creative agency founded in 1913. It is part of the DDB Worldwide Network. with a roster of clients including some of the best brands in the world such as HP, T-Mobile, Starbucks, Johnson & Johnson, Gatorade, Tropicana, PepsiCo, Sony and Unilever’s Lipton.
BBC Knowledge has launched a new campaign -‘There’s no telling what knowledge can do’ – directed at parents. The crux of the campaign hinges on the fact that the magazine – with its focus on science, history and nature – gives the child a head-start in today’s competitive world. It has been timed with the reopening of schools in major metros.
This is the first BBC Knowledge campaign targeted at parents; the campaign will run across mainstream dailies, magazines, outdoors and digital. There will be dedicated parent-child contests run by the magazine for this campaign.
“The campaign, which is targeted at parents, reminds them that knowledge is the only edge they can give their kids. And that it’s not an option, but a prerequisite today, when it has become as important to outdo the competition as it has to outdo yourself ,” said Ayesha Bedi, Creative Group Head, DDB Mudra Group.
Soela Joshi, brand publisher, BBC Knowledge said: “Marketing to parents is much more insight-driven. Parents as central role models have the responsibility to bring knowledge into their children’s life. By targeting parents, we are opening doors for their kids too. ”
DDB Mudra Delhi has a new planner and this one is straight from Barcelona who has joined the agency as Vice President, Planning. Xavi Bech De Careda has worked with BBH and McCann Healthcare in London as also BBDO Tiempo, Rapp Collins and DDB Barcelona as a Brand & Communication Strategist.
He has worked on varied brands like Audi, Bayer, Fujitsu Italy, Marcilla Coffe, Natura Bisse, Panasonic and Volkswagen and others. In this role, he would be reporting to Vandana Das, President, DDB Mudra Group, Delhi and Aditya Kanthy, Senior VP, Panning, DDB Mudra, Delhi & Mumbai.
Commenting on this new appointment, Madhukar Kamath, Group CEO & Managing Director, DDB Mudra Group, said: “Delhi is the growth market for the DDBMudra Group. We have a large presence already. Xavi, with his rich and diverse experience will add to the talent base that we have in the DDB Mudra Group in Delhi.”
Gold loan is one of the fastest growing categories amongst retail loans inIndia. Research shows that a lot of customers who take gold loans are small businessmen, small storeowners, painters, mechanics, carpenters and others. It was found that the category is dominated by NBFCs and consumers do not consider going to banks for gold loans. Hence, the task was to get Federal Bank to break into the consideration of the customer.
The new Gold Loan Campaign of Federal bank is based on the premise that there are two kinds of situations that call for a gold loan; an emergency loan (hospital bills) and a loan for progress (buying a house, expanding business). In times of emergencies, these consumers prefer an NBFC for speed of transaction but when it is a loan for progress, they prefer a bank as interest rates and terms of repayment matter.
Ranji Cherian President and Head of DDB Mudra Group, South said: “This campaign magnifies the loans-for-progress in a very strong manner. What is interesting is that when it comes to Loans-for-progress, customers prefer a bank as interest rates and terms of repayment matterâ€.
“In times of need due to undue financial pressure, a person usually gets confused and forgets where to go for help, be it for business, education, or a family wedding. This campaign is aimed at easing his tension and reminding him of the safest, most reliable and trusted partner – Federal Bank Gold Loan, giving instant loan on gold besides safeguarding the gold, and unlike many unscrupulous gold loan companies, not charging a hefty interest rate. The simplicity of this campaign drives home this point quite precisely, easing the tension of any one in need of financial help,†said Vipul Thakkar, Executive Creative Director, DDB Mudra South.
A deep dive into the consumers’ lives revealed that people who are forced to support their families at a very early stage in their lives constantly fight against all the challenges life throws at them and yet try and progress one step at a time. The campaign was based on an insight from the consumer’s life that ‘Circumstances do not dictate my destiny, I do’.
Mr. Anand Chugh, the Chief Manger Marketing at Federal Bank said: “This campaign was conceived well and the execution is also as intended. The faith in advertising has gone up post the campaign as tangible results in terms of portfolio growth are visible. The campaign has strengthened the position of Federal Bank in the retail gold loan market.â€
To break through the clutter in the market, the agency made the woman the hero of this campaign. The television commercials show the lady of the house coming forward to help her family out of a tough situation. Federal Bank is hence showcased as the consumer’s trustworthy partner in progress. “Bringing the woman to the centre of the decision adds meaning and strengthens the case for Federal Bank,†said Mr Ranji.
Day 4 at the Grand Auditorium, Palais des Festivals was not as eventful for the Indian contingent as the metals failed to come in big numbers as envisaged. India managed to clinch only 7 metals, including 1 Gold, 1 Silver and 5 Bronzes in the four categories for which the winners were declared – Design, Press, Radio & Cyber. In Cyber there were no shortlists from India.
By A Correspondent