MxMIndia

Tag: Dentsu Aegis Network

  • Aims to put an end to the indifferent attitude of the tyre buyer

    Dentsu One creates new campaign for JK Tyre

    By A Correspondent

     

    Dentsu One, the creative agency from Dentsu Aegis Network, has rolled out a new campaign for JK Tyre’s two wheeler tyre range, Blaze.

     

    Said Vikram Malhotra, Marketing Director, JK Tyre and Industries: “We have adopted a 360-degree promotion campaign for Blaze through our marketing and communication platforms. The tagline and message of our campaign ‘Ab se tyres mein sirf JK is OK’ is rooted in our firm commitment to total control and safety while driving on roads. We are going all out with our campaign and expect the premium range of tyres to cover 75%-80% of the domestic two-wheeler tyres replacement market demand.”

     

  • The first edition of the awards saw entries from more than 130 brands across 16 categories

    Social Samosa announces Best Social Media Brand winners

    By A Correspondent

     

    Social Samosa, leading news aggregator on social and digital media industry, has announced the winners of its first edition of Best Social Media Brand Awards, via a Facebook live stream event(* See Disclosure).

     

    The first edition of the awards saw entries from more than 130 brands across 16 categories which include Automobile, Cement, B2B, Beauty, BFSI, eCommerce, Education, FMCG, Food & Beverage, Healthcare, Media, Real Estate, Retail, Tourism & Hospitality, Technology, and Telecom.

     

    The journey of creating this formidable benchmark for the social media industry involved a pragmatic analysis of the nominated brands’ engagement on key social media platforms using Unmetric, a rigorous evaluation across parameters from the jury members and social media voting powered by Newsfeed to adjudge the brand’s popularity among social media savvy users.

     

    Speaking on the success of the first edition of the Best Social Media Awards, Hitesh Rajwani, Head-Social Samosa said, “We are overwhelmed with the response we have received for or first edition of the awards. We thank all our participants and winners from the entire team at Social Samosa. We hope to scale to larger heights in our next edition.”

     

    Added Ashish Bhasin, Chairman & CEO South Asia Dentsu Aegis Network and Best Social Media Brand’s Jury Chair said, “It’s good to see that the deserving brands have emerged winners. The quality of their work was good and the jury had a tough time choosing the winners. I congratulate all those who participated and particularly congratulate the winners, who have reasons to be proud of their accomplishments.”

     

    Disclosure: MxMIndia editor-in-chief was on the jury of the awards, though couldn’t participate in the judging process

     

     

  • Harish Bahl & Manish Vij exit SVG Media, sell stake to Dentsu Aegis Network which launches Columbus in India

    Win-win for Dentsu & Smile co-founders as…

    L-R: Chirag Shah, Deven Dharamdasani, Ashish Bhasin, Anurag Gupta and Ashwani Mehta

     

    By A Correspondent

    This news could be looked at from two ends. That the Dentsu Aegis Network has completed yet another acquisition and become really big in digital. Or fro the Smile Group point of view, where the co-promoters Harish Bahl and Manish Vij have hit the jackpot yet again after selling Quasar to WPP in 2008. According to some industry estimates, the deal size is in the region of Rs 750 crore.

    So let’s hear it from the DAN pov first:

    Dentsu Aegis Network has announced the acquisition of SVG Media Private Limited, one of the largest independent digital agencies in India. SVG Media will join the network’s Asia Pacific digital marketingagency Columbus and will become SVGColumbus.

     

    Manish Vij (L) Harish Bahl (R)

    Dentsu Aegis Network claims to be currently Google’s largest search partner in India, and the addition of SVG Media will further strengthen the Group’s leading search position in the market. This acquisition will also support Columbus’expansion in Asia Pacific – now in nine markets across the region.

    SVG Media includes the flagship brands DGM, Komli and Seventynine. Founded in 2006, SVG Media comprises over 280 specialists across four major Indian cities Gurgaon, Mumbai, Chennai and Bengaluru. It offers diverse digital media competencies including online performance marketing, mobile app distribution, representations, social and web services through its flagship brands. The group has one of the largest client bases in the Indian digital media sector with over 700 monthly active advertiser campaigns locally, as well as international clients in Dubai, Indonesia and China.

    Anurag Gupta,CEO of SVG Columbus & DGM, will report to Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia. Anurag Gupta, CEO of SVG Columbus & DGM, Chirag Shah,CEO of SVG Media Mobile & Seventynine, Deven Dharamdasani,COO of SVG Media Mobile & Seventynine, Akshay Mathur, Business Head of Komli, and Ashwani Mehta,Finance Controller,will join the SVG Columbus Managing Board, which will be chaired by Vivek Bhargava, CEO of Performance, Dentsu Aegis Network India.

    Harish Bahl and Manish Vij, founder and co-founder of the Smile Group, will continue to focus on investments through the Smile Group and will no longer act as directors of SVG Media. It has also been agreed that the Smile Group will retain the TyrooTechlabs business.

    Said Ashish Bhasin,Chairman and CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia: “India is a significant market with rapid growth potential in its mobile and performance marketing business, and Dentsu Aegis Network India has a strong track record in the search and performance space to deliver this. Given its capabilities in data led search, performance marketing and mobile,SVG Columbus is ideally positioned to capture the fragmented long tail publisher market in India using technology and data. As a Group we have leading position in digital in India, particularly in search and performance and this gives us a clear leadership position in this area. We will now have over 1,300 digital professionals, accounting for over 35% of our revenues, well ahead of our competitors.”

    On behalf of SVG Columbus management, Anurag Gupta, CEO of SVG Columbus,,said: “We started out as a digital media group more than a decade ago, and for us to join forces with a clear market leader in digital, that is Dentsu Aegis Network, makes perfect sense. Their priority in placing digital at the forefront of their strategy and goals align perfectly with ours. We will continue to scale our offering in performance marketing and serving clients through the network and other agency networks. We are assured of their strong growth momentum, which will enable us to further enhance our scale as a business operationally and geographically. Their unique one P&L model also allows us to be part of that shared vision towards a digital world which will provide us with access to the latest industry technology and talent to deliver the best solutions for our clients.”

    Meanwhile, this is what Messrs Vij and Bahl have to say:

    Manish Vij Co-Founder Smile Group: “We built SVG Media with the philosophy of profitable growth and market leadership. This philosophy is not the most popular in digital industry but has been very gratifying for SVG Media founders and key leadership. We understand that media consumptions habits are changing rapidly therefore will now focus on building the TyrooTech business and other media incubations.”

    Harish Bahl, Founder at Smile Group:“At Smile we are proud to have continuously built successful JV partnerships or exits with large global firms as, Airbnb, Yahoo, WPP Digital, Scan Group-Africa etc. SVG’s market leadership and exit to DAN is another feather in the cap for Smile.  Our strategy of Investing, Building and JVs through one common platform, is uniquely attractive to global unicorns and entrepreneurs and has evolved over years of learnings.  We hope to share few more exciting announcements in 2017.”

     

  • Plans to expand nationally as an entertainment and hospitality brand

    Wonderla Invites India to get closer

    By A Correspondent

     

    In a bid to ramp up the fun factor, Wonderla Holidays has announced a comprehensive repositioning strategy with a new brand identity. Speaking at the unveiling of the Brand Refresh, Arun K Chittilappilly, Managing Director, Wonderla Holidays Limited said, “Over the last decade, Wonderla has gone from strength to strength. Our existing properties in Kochi and Bengaluru including our newly opened park in Hyderabad are immensely popular with a very strong customer equity. We are one of the best performing companies in our segment not only in India but also globally. We are very proud of what we have achieved so far. But, we have bigger ambitions – to make Wonderla a national hospitality and entertainment brand to reckon with. The idea behind the change is therefore set the Wonderla brand up for these bigger ambitions.”

     

    Said Saswata Das, Partner & Executive Director, WOW Design, the agency responsible for developing the new logo explained: “We had to rev-up the Identity of an extremely successful brand with a very well recognised logo to increase its relevance in current times. The primary challenge was to resonate with an audience of age bracket as diverse as 5 to 45 years. What we did was to crack an overarching theme for the Brand which laid the foundations of the Design Strategy. Then we recreated the logo for Wonderla to generate an engaging experience. I am sure the new brand positioning and refreshed look is going to create a lot of pull for the Brand in future.”

     

    In keeping with the new positioning, Wonderla will also be rolling out a new brand campaign and a theme song that will be going on air from 6th April. Happy mcgarrybowen, the creative agency from Dentsu Aegis Network, has developed this new campaign.

     

    Speaking about the new campaign; Kartik Iyer, CEO, Happy mcgarrybowen said, “Wonderla is an iconic name for anyone who has lived in South India. The theme park has been a favoured destination in Kochi and Bengaluru for families and tourists alike. With the opening of a new park in Hyderabad, this was the perfect opportunity for a Brand refresh. Out with a spanking new identity and keeping Wonderla’s aspirations of becoming a national brand name, the teams worked together to come up with a positioning and brand idea that delivers on a simple insight that people get closer when they have fun together. A lot of effort has gone into capturing the essence of the Wonderla experience. The new campaign is only a first step to all the exciting things planned for the brand.”​

     

  • The Life Saving Wallpapers help everyone make mobile wallpapers with emergency contacts and blood group

    Taproot innovates with Airtel’s life-saving wallpapers

     

     

    Taproot Dentsu has partnered with Airtel with an innovative solution for people who become unfortunate victims of accidents.In an accident or medical emergency, one may want to help, but there is no way a stranger can reach out to the victim’s family because the phone contacts are stuck behind pass codes.

     

    Taproot Dentsu’snew innovation addresses this issue with much ease. The Life Saving Wallpapers help everyone make mobile wallpapers with emergency contacts and blood group, so that that information remains accessible without having to unlockthe screen. Dentsu Web Chutney, Airtel’s Digital partner, supported the execution of the idea.

     

    Said Titus Upputuru, Creative Head, Taproot Dentsu, Gurgaon: “At Dentsu Aegis Network, we are innovating the way brands are built in today’s world. In the unfortunate circumstance of an accident, when the victim becomes unconscious or is badly injured, there is no way people can reach out to the victim’s family and friends because the contacts are hidden behind the phone’s passcode. That’s where Airtel’s Lifesaving Wallpapers come handy. All the important data such as emergency contact numbers and blood group details are now available on the phone screen through the customized wallpapers, so that people can reach out to those who need to be contacted and help the victims. Across India, people are benefitting from this initiative. Who thought Wallpapers can save lives, but in today’s world it is possible.”

     

  • The acquisition marks the network’s expansion in South Asia and entry into the Sri Lankan market with the largest independent agency

    Dentsu Aegis Network ​enters Sri Lanka, to acquire Grant

    By A Correspondent

     

    Neela Marikkar and Ashish Bhasin

    Dentsu Aegis Network today announce​d​ it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Grant Group, the largest independent creative agency and ​regarded as pioneer of advertising in Sri Lanka. The acquisition of the 59-year-old integrated agency is Dentsu Aegis Network’s first foray into the island nation and one of the largest agency groups to enter the market in nearly two decades.

     

    ​Said ​Nick Waters, CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network APAC: ​“With social and economic stability in the country, Sri Lanka is set to reap the peace dividend. Significant foreign investment is already flowing into the country, and with strong historical ties to Japan, there is a natural opportunity for Dentsu Aegis Network clients to grow. Grant represents a unique opportunity as a top quality advertising and communications group to get into a strong position in a fast-growing market.”

     

    Post-acquisition, Grant Advertising will be known as Dentsu Grant while Grant Media will join Dentsu Aegis’ global media network brand, Carat. Other global agency brands within the network will integrate with their strong local agency counterparts to grow the business further adding value to their clients and their staff. ​Said ​Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia​: “​The acquisition of Grant Group is a key step in the Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia strategy and will launch our business in a market with significant potential. Through the Grant Group, we have a unique opportunity to enter the market with a bang and will be amongst the largest integrated groups in the country.”
    Steering the Sri Lankan leadership team is Neela Marikkar, Chairperson and Managing Director of the Dentsu Aegis Network Grant Group. She will report to Bhasin​.​

     

    ​Added Marikkar: “Given our long heritage in this market continuously staying ahead of the game, Dentsu Aegis Network’s cultural fit and best-in-class operating model are the right facets of a multinational partner to take our group and most importantly our clients and staff into a very dynamic future. More importantly given the growth in the market and the push towards digital, we need a strongly aligned and committed multinational partner with digital at its heart as brands grapple with the challenges of a changing media landscape. We are very excited to be able to tap on the network’s resources and work with the 38,000 great people at Dentsu Aegis Network. We are beginning a new chapter in the wonderful story of the Grant Group.” The deal is expected to close this week.

  • Spends on Digital Media to reach 24% of adspend pie in three years, notes Dentsu Aegis Network Digital Report

    Digital ad ind to grow 37% by 2020:DAN

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    Had its media partner have its way, this report wouldn’t have appeared on MxMIndia today. Hmmm. Why restrain media organisations or associations from calling other publications which you perceive as competition? Shouldn’t the focus be on partnering the industry and spreading the message for the larger good? One can understand events that are your own (like the various awards and conclaves), but bullying media companies into not inviting select media is not on.

     

    However, our commitment is to our readers, and we are hence bringing you this report which was shared with us eventually.

    Here goes parts of the communique. The big story image is culled from the report, a soft copy that is with us. The primary message: The share of spends on digital media in India, which currently stand at 12%, is expected to reach a whopping 24% of the total advertising pie by the end of 2020,says the inaugural edition of the Digital Advertising Report 2017 from the Dentsu Aegis Network India stable.

     

    Digital media has been the forerunner of growth for the advertising industry in India.Every year, an increasing proportion of marketing budget is spent on digital media due to the increasing affinity of the consumer towards digital experience.

     

    Said Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO, Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia: “The digital ecosystem in India today stands for innovation and growth. Yet, there is no consistent and rigorous research data to back up and push this growth forward. Not to forget, the several researches that are provided to us today through a variety of industry reports do not talk about the advertising categories within digital. Consequently, Dentsu Aegis Network, which today stands at the forefront of digital evolution, decided to come up with an extensive and comprehensive digital study that can further help understand the needs, the gaps and the challenges that this industry faces when it comes to digital. We recognise that there is a need for an industry level research report which not only covers the market size but also gives a direction towards which this industry is moving.  It will be an annual report and I strongly believe that it will eventually become the most credible source of information when it comes to digital in India.”

     

    The digital advertising industry currently stands at Rs 6, 825 crore and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 37% to reach Rs 23,795 crore by 2020. Increase in consumer adoption of mobile phones as an important medium of communication along within creased Internet usage will act as the key catalysts in taking this growth forward, spurred by falling data prices.

     

    According to the executive summary, the “Indian advertising industry currently stands at Rs 56,398 crore and is expected to grow at a rate of 14% to reach Rs 64,488crore by 2017”. The exec summary further adds: “TV and print contribute to the largest share while digital advertising contributes to 12% of the overall advertising share in India. Among industry verticals, the e-commerce sector contributes the highest proportion (25%) of its overall marketing budget towards digital media. The share of spends on digital media is expected to reach 24% by 2020 from the current 12%. The reason behind this growth will be a shift from traditional mediums to digital mediums due to greater effectivity and benefits of hyper-targeting. The digital advertising industry currently stands at Rs 6,825 cr and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 37% to reach Rs 23,795 due to an increase in consumer adoption of mobile phones as an important medium of communication along with increased internet usage.”

     

  • InDeed will work with clients to infuse brand purpose into their CSR strategies

    Dentsu Aegis Network launches a CSR advisory firm, Indeed

    By A Correspondent

     

    InDeed, Dentsu Aegis Network’s newly launched CSR Advisory, will facilitate corporate investments by companies in Corporate Social Responsibly, through insights &a brand-led approach.

     

    InDeed, will provide best-in-class expertise and capabilities in Creative, Media, Digital, OOH, Activation and PR communications services,which will help brands build a truly Integrated and a Brand-Led CSR journey in India.

     

    InDeed will work with clients toinfuse brand purpose into their CSR strategies.The aim is to integrate branding and CSR in order to build a corporate culture around responsibility, leading to business sustainability andthereby reap reputational rewards. This will, in turn, makeCorporate Social Responsibility into an opportunity that is accountable, measurable and scalable across several CSR areas of development. (eradicating hunger, poverty & malnutrition, education, gender equality, rural sports, rural development projects,measure for the benefit of armed forces,ensuring environmental sustainability, contribution to the prime minister’s national relief fund and contributions or funds provided by technology incubators).

     

    InDeed is building a repository of India’s most credible and reputed NGOs and will connect them to corporates on the basis of thematic and geographical priorities – to create the best possible match. It will also be involved in conducting employee engagement activities and volunteering programs that result in a meaningful engagement of the staff in innovative social initiatives that are grounded in business practices.

     

    Indeed has also invested in best brand led CSR case studies to link itto NGO / Brand / CSR activity. More than 2500 case studies are mapped by geography, cost, product, NGO and CSR activity to make sure the best brand-led CSR is delivered.

     

    Ashish Bhasin

    Commenting on the launch, Ashish Bhasin, chairman and CEO, South Asia, Dentsu Aegis Network, said, “Today several of our clients are making a huge investment in CSR but in an adhoc manner. Many corporates want to give back to the society but often don’t know how to go about it in a consistent and meaningful manner. Indeed will act as a catalyst in this entire process and Haresh and his team have really done pioneering work in this area. Feels great to be able to give back to society via a socially relevant business”

     

     

    Haresh Nayak

    Haresh Nayak, Mentor and Managing Director of Indeed, will lead this initiative from Dentsu Aegis Network. Hestrongly believes that brand building should be seamlessly combined with CSR strategies. He said, “It is not enough for brands to just ‘Greenwash’ their actions to provide PR-able fodder. Mostly such acts of philanthropic projects are short lived and rarely build a brand connect. However, if implemented in the right manner and with the right approach, brand building and CSR can perfectly complement each other.”

     

    Being a part of Denstu Aegis Network, InDeed will not only work with their existing clients but will also look at fresh collaborations.

     

    Currently the InDeed team will be based out of Dentsu Aegis Network’s Gurgaon, Mumbai and Bangalore offices.  Dentsu Aegis Network’s presence in India comprises the global network brands Carat, iProspect, Isobar, Posterscope, Vizeum, MKTG, Amnet and mcgarrybowen along with the Dentsu branded agencies – Dentsu Impact, Dentsu One, Dentsu India, Dentsu Media, Taproot Dentsu and DentsuWebchutney. Also, newly added to the group are the recently acquired local brands Milestone Brandcom, WATConsult, Fountainhead MKTG, the Perfect Relations Group, Happy mcgarrybowen and Fractal Design Studio.

     

  • Observers & insiders say IPG is bigger…

    For Real or Bunkum? Dentsu Aegis Networksays it’s #2 agency group. But industry dismisses claim

     

    By A Correspondent

    For nearly a year Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO of the Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia, has been saying that he is working towards DAN being the #2 agency network in the country. What Bhasin hasn’t spelt out in so many words on record is that he is looking at making DAN as second only to the WPP group, and displacing IPG, short for the Interpublic Group.

    Earlier today (Wednesday, Feb 15), we received a mail from the corporate communications team at DAN with a communique making the claim. On record, via a communique. This is a claim that has been dismissed by many in the industry who MxMIndia spoke with as one without any basis. MxMIndia hasn’t looked at the numbers directly and we weren’t able to get official numbers to prove or reject the claims.

     

    List of Companies/Brands within IPG & DAN

    (as per information received from the communications teams of two groups) 

    INTERPUBLIC GROUP (IPG)

    1. Lodestar UM

    2. Initiative

    3. Interactive Avenues

    4. Reprise

    5. Rapport

    6. Ansible

    7. Magna Global

    8. Mullen Lintas

    9 Lowe Lintas

    10. LinOpinion

    11. dCell

    12. LinConsult

    13. LinEngage

    14. GoLinOpnion

    15. LinProdcution

    16. Linteractive

    17. McCann WorldGroup

    18. MRM/McCann

    19. Momentum

    20. McCann Health

    21. Craft

    22. Weber Shandwick

    23. FCB Ulka

    24. FCB Interface

    25. FCB Interactive

    26. FCB Healthcare

    27. FCB Cogito Consulting

    28. FCB Asterii

    29. FCB Aquila

    30. FCB Neon Brand PR

     

    DENTSU AEGIS NETWORK (DAN)

    1. Carat

    2. Vizeum

    3. Dentsu Media

    4. iProspect

    5. Isobar

    6. WAT Consult

    7. Taproot Dentsu

    8. Dentsu Webchutney

    9. Dentsu Impact

    10. Dentsu One

    11. Posterscope

    12. Brandscope

    13. Ambient

    14. Hyperspace

    15. Milestone Brandcom

    16. The Story Lab

    17. Dentsu India

    18. Fountainhead MKTG

    19. Happy mcgarrybowen

    20. Perfect Relations

    21. Fractal

     

    But first let’s look at what DAN is claiming. Here are excerpts from the communique:

    Dentsu Aegis Network has entered the top two bracket of the Indian advertising space to become the # 2 Agency Group in India. With this, Dentsu Aegis Network has now overturned for the first time the existing rankings, which have historically been in place for over 80 years in this country.

    Despite being a late entrant in the Indian advertising space, Dentsu Aegis Network today is the fastest growing agency network for three years in a row. The group has steadfastly helmed some of the industry’s most successful acquisitions in the recent years includingthat of Milestone Brandcom, Dentsu Webchutney, Taproot Dentsu, iProspect (Communicate2), WATConsult, Fountainhead MKTG, Perfect Relations, Happy Mcgarrybowen and Fractal Ink. This has, in turn,not only helped it aggressively scale up its operations organically and inorganically in India but also expand itself to a 3000+ people network. It is pertinent to note here that the latest Fractal acquisition has now brought together a team of over 1,000 digital experts inside DAN, the largest in India, including the combined Isobar team and the existing network digital brands iProspect, WATConsult and Dentsu Webchutney.

    Meanwhile, with Posterscope and Milestone Brandcom under its umbrella, Dentsu Aegis Network is not just the leader but a dominant player in the OOH space in India. It is also home to the most sought-after creative agencies of the country, the biggest social media agency in India and has the most comprehensive marketing communication offerings under its unique One P&L philosophy.

    In the past year, Dentsu Aegis Network India took a huge leap with dramatic improvement in scale, making India a key contributor towards Denstu Aegis Network’s global revenue growth. While the business in India grew 300% of the market growth, the network went on to win some of the largest accounts in India, include Mondelez, Maruti (digital and creative), Carlsberg, Nokia, Microsoft, General Motors, British Airways, Allied Blenders, MasterCard, Sony, Hindustan Times, Panasonic and several other key accounts in the past two years. Digital business grew by 250% (industry average 30%) and OOH advertising by over 150% (industry average 6.1%). The network’s turnover growth stands at a 102% (Industry average 11%) while its revenue growth is over 100%.

    This is what Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia, said in the communique:  “We are delighted to have overturned 80 years of history. I stuck my neck out and publicly announced our ambition and my superb team worked hard and smart to deliver what then looked like an impossible target, well ahead of time. We will use the rest of 2017 to further consolidate our position because from here onwards the top slots of this industry are likely to be, more and more, a two-horse race… We have changed the paradigm in our industry and will continue to strive to ensure that we keep raising the bar to global standards as we march towards a Digital India.”

    The worry is that given that since none of the ad agency majors are listed, the numbers aren’t public. Also, the balance sheets filed with the Registrar of Companies are as of March 2016, and so current numbers aren’t official, but only on the basis of what DAN may present.

    Many observers and senior people in the industry we spoke with in the last few weeks and since this morning are wondering why DAN got into the numbers war, when they don’t really matter in advertising since one is looking at the quality of work. It’s almost like mine’s bigger than yours, said one CEO.

    We asked Bhasin on whether he needed to do it all. After all, the industry has taken note of the rise and rise of the Dentsu Aegis Network. It has been winning business steadily (at the time of writing, there is news that the group has also bagged the Maruti Media AOR aggregating around Rs 400 crore), and it’s no longer a poor cousin of the various agencies. Agreed it’s not won big in the media awards or the Effies, but in the creative awards, the agencies have been fairing well. So why make this claim, and get into a tu tu-main main?

    Bhasin says it was necessary as it was an impossible target he had set for himself and this was a celebration of the achievement. The big thing, he said as in the official communique, is that it has changed 80 years of ranking… It was exceedingly difficult, Bhasin told us given that DAN has started out late and with no major base.

    However, industry observers say that if you compare the work and revenues, it’s difficult to believe IPG is lagging behind DAN. The agencies of IPG – in the MullenLoweLintas Group, McCann and FCB Ulka still have big clients. And even factoring in the loss of a Maruti, Mediabrands is ahead of Carat and Dentsu Media.

    In terms of staffing DAN may be ahead given that digital typically is employee-intensive, but that we are told is not consequential.

    Our attempts to interact with the IPG group in India were unsuccessful as the group doesn’t have a collective leadership. However, we did speak informally to some senior to mid-level employees in the group as well as well as some independent observers, and they were dismissive of the claim. Not yet, and not for long is what we were told.

    Clearly, we haven’t heard the last of this war of oneupmanship initiated by Dentsu Aegis Network. The worry is whether in the process the agency business – which is already experiencing some rough weather – will be a loser. And will get used by marketers to be beaten down in margins and profits.

     

  • A three-month full-time program focuses on the strategic and practical aspects of Digital Marketing

    Dentsu Aegis Network and TimesPro collaborate to offer Diploma course in Digital Marketing

    By A Correspondent

     

    Dentsu Aegis Networkand Times Centre for Learning Ltd under its brand TimesPro have announced a collaboration to offer a ‘Post Graduate Diploma in Digital Marketing’ in Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi. A three-month full-time programmed focuses on the strategic and practical aspects of Digital Marketing. The program is scheduled to begin from January 31, 2017 and will be available for graduates, especially from marketing, retailing and the advertising sectors.

     

    With domain expertise, Dentsu Aegis Network has assisted TimesPro to curate a robust educational program to provide thorough and professional training to the entry-level professionals in digital marketing. The course offers a total of 450 hours of instructor-led training, immersions and eLearning.

     

    Speaking about the association, Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO South Asia, Dentsu Aegis Network said, “Digital marketing is the fastest growing part of the advertising and marketing industry. Being Digitally Ahead and being the domain experts in Digital, through our digital companies like Isobar, iProspect, WatConsult, DentsuWebchutney and Fractal, we have collaborated with TimesPro to curate a robust curriculum relevant to the current trends in the industry. We hope that thousands of students will benefit from this program.”

     

    Said Anish Srikrishna, President, Times Centre for Learning Ltd. (TCLL): “We are glad to be associated with Dentsu Aegis Network, who have conceptualised their years of domain expertise in the form of a course for the next generation professionals. Digital marketing has become one of the most important elements of any business to grow and flourish in today’s world. Many companies have started to realize the untapped potential and value proposition brought by digital marketing to drive company’s success. Through this partnership, we will be able to provide a platform for aspiring students to make a successful career in one of the most lucrative career segments. We shall facilitate the course in across four major cities in India.”

     

    On successful completion of the course, the top candidates will find placement opportunities in the various companies of Dentsu Aegis Network and TCLL among other top e-commerce and digital companies in the country.

     

  • Ashish Bhasin to head jury for the inaugural edition

    Social Samosa announces first edition of Best Social Media Brand Awards

     

     

    Leading social and digital media news website Social Samosa has announced the first edition of its Best Social Media Brand Awards.

     

    Conceptualised with the thought of promoting best practices benchmarking in the industry, #BestSoMeBrands will facilitate a platform to adjudge a brand’s performance amongst peers on a relative scale. Brands can submit awards across 16 categories which include Automobile, Cement, B2B, Beauty, BFSI, eCommerce, Education, FMCG, Food & Beverage, Healthcare, Media, Real Estate, Retail, Tourism & Hospitality, Technology, and Telecom categories.

     

    The jury panel which is headed by Ashish Bhasin, Chairman & CEO South Asia Dentsu Aegis Network, Chairman Posterscope and MKTG Asia Pacific.

     

    Speaking on the same, Hitesh Rajwani, Head-Social Samosa said, “The Indian social media industry has grown by leaps and bounds in the past five years. Hence to cherish this diligence, we have initiated the Best Social Media Brand Awards. Looking back at the growth of this medium involving real-time conversations and live feeds of things that happen around us, we can safely infer that Brands have played a major role in the making of this industry.”

     

    Said Jury Chair Ashish Bhasin: “I think with growing importance of digital as medium, its time it got its due and spotlight and so events like Best Social Media Brands are extremely important. It helps digital practitioners showcase their work better.”

     

  • Partners with NGO Nanhi Kali, fundraising portal Ketto, Bajaj Allianz, BabyCell and Kokuyo Camlin

    WATConsult’s #That’sMyGirlinitiative aims to raise funds for the girl child

    By A Correspondent

     

    WATConsulthas launched a CSR activity titled#That’sMyGirl as a part of its 10thanniversary celebrations.With this initiative, WATConsult is looking to aid the education and hygiene necessities for girls in the primary section (Class 1 to 5) and donate a minimum of Rs10lakh to the renowned NGO Nanhi Kali.

     

    For the cause, WATConsult has partnered with Ketto, the leading fundraising portal, leading insurance company Bajaj Allianz, stem-cell bankBabyCell and stationary brand Kokoyu Camlin to promote the campaign across digital platforms, create awareness and raise funds.

     

    WATConsult has built a microsite to highlight and share the current insights on the state of girl education in India. The site will showcase video bytes from established women leaders across various fields, proud parents of a girl child, management of Dentsu Aegis Network, Kunal Kapoor along with brand partners will support the campaign and voice their concerns, perceptions and suggest solutions around the cause.

     

    To conclude the activity on National Girl Child Day, on January 24, they will raise funds via a Twitter campaign. WATizens, Twitterati and brands will come together to promote the causeby using the hashtag #ThatsMyGirl and cite opportunities andaccomplishments of a girl child. For each ‘hashtag mention’, WATConsult will donateRs 10 to Nanhi Kali.

     

    Speaking on the same, Rajiv Dingra, Founder and CEO, WATConsult, said, “In many parts of India, the arrival of a baby girl still calls for mourning rather than celebration and that’s indeed sad. We would like to build awareness around this cause and support girl child education via our initiative. We look forward to achieve atleast 1,00,000 mentions and contribute 10 lacs to Nanhi Kali.”

     

    Sharing his views Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO – South Asia, Dentsu Aegis Network said, “Gender equality is one of the most important priorities for us at Dentsu Aegis Network. This can be enabled only if the girl child is educated. I am glad WATConsult has taken the initiative of #ThatsMyGirl as a part of their 10th anniversary celebrations.”