MxMIndia

Tag: GroupM South Asia

  • Xaxis claims 10-day pilot gets 2,000 responses, boosts intent to purchase

    Xaxis conversational ad campaign for Pizza Hut a hit with consumers

    By Our Staff

     

    Xaxis, GroupM’s Outcome Media Company, has announced that its voice-activated conversational ad campaign for Pizza Hut India has increased customer engagement by 8.29% over 2 weeks and led to a surge in order volumes. Note: MxMIndia has not verified this data claim and other data claims in this report.

     

    Xaxis Creative Studios (XCS) created voice-activated conversational ads, engaging listeners in a dialogue to drive awareness of Pizza Hut’s Buy One Get One (BOGO) offer. The interactive audio content generated more than 2,000 responses from 60,000 impressions during a 10-day pilot. XCS accessed advertising inventory on the Gaana music app and used voice-activated artificial intelligence (AI) advertising technology to help handle conversational elements. XCS also ran A/B tests to measure the effect of generic campaign creative elements vs. creative focused on dinnertime. The overall voice-engagement rate saw an 8.29% increase.

     

    Said Neha, Chief Marketing Officer, Pizza Hut India: “Pizza Hut has been at the forefront of experimenting with innovative marketing formats that resonate with our millennial-minded audience, and I am thrilled to see that our voice-activated BOGO campaign has received such an excellent response. Kudos to the Xaxis team for perfectly conceptualising and implementing it. I look forward to working with them on many more exciting projects going ahead.”

     

    Added Prasanth Kumar, CEO, GroupM South Asia: “Conversational ads are still in the nascent stage in India,” “Pizza Hut expressed its openness to leverage the expertise of Xaxis Creative Studios and use two-way conversational audio ads to reach its target audience. With conversational audio ads, there is an opportunity for brands to craft a targeted and personalized customer engagement strategy. The results of this campaign are proof that our insight-driven approach and expertise drive impactful and measurable outcomes for the client.”

     

  • As President – Data, Performance and Digital Products

    GroupM appoints Atique Kazi

    By Our Staff

     

    Atique Kazi
    Atique Kazi

    GroupM India has appointed Atique Kazi as President – Data, Performance and Digital Products.

     

    Prasanth Kumar
    Prasanth Kumar

    Said Prasanth Kumar, CEO, GroupM South Asia: “At GroupM our focus is to continue evolving by offering flexible, scalable and innovative solutions. Atique joining the core team at GroupM India is the reflection of our commitment towards offering digital solutions that can create great value-add for brands in this ever-evolving market. I look forward to working closely with Atique and I am confident that he will continue to grow our digital offerings. His expertise of aiming at innovation and providing value-propositions will be key towards Digital Transformation of our clients and partners.”

     

    Added Arshan Saha, CEO Xaxis, APAC: “The scale and speed of digital transformation and the fact that India as a market has demonstrated its leadership in this area means that we need to have our best talent to fulfil this demand. Atique is one of our very best with a proven track record locally and most recently regionally in APAC where he launched and scaled GroupM’s Influencer and content arm – INCA. Having worked with Atique for over 8 years, I can attest to his leadership, curiosity, knowledge and drive which are invaluable in defining and determining client success.”

     

  • As Chief People Officer, South Asia

    GroupM appoints Madhvi Pahwa as CPO

    By Our Staff

     

    Madhvi Pahwa
    Madhvi Pahwa

    GroupM has appointed Madhvi Pahwa as its new Chief People Officer for South Asia. Pahwa, previously Chief People Officer Mindshare APAC, has been promoted into the role to lead the GroupM India talent team and develop GroupM’s talent proposition for the region. She will report to Prasanth Kumar, CEO, GroupM South Asia.

     

    Said Kumar: “Madhvi has a proven track record of delivering innovation and education that moves the dial for the business. She is the perfect choice to lead the GroupM South Asia talent team and to lead us into the next phase of our growth.” He added, “I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Rohit Suri for his commitment and efforts in helping build the talent team across South Asia. We greatly appreciate his contributions and wish him the best.”

     

    Added Pahwa: “Our employee promise has been to make Mindshare the place where you do your best work, and it has certainly been true for me. The people, priorities and culture just come together almost magically to bring out the best in you. I am grateful and proud to be part of the GroupM network that has given me growth opportunities across multiple agencies and geographic remits spanning global, regional and markets while supporting flexibility and personal priorities. I am super excited for the next chapter for GroupM India.”

     

  • These and more results emerge in a Search Advertising Playbook published by GroupM and Amazon Advertising

    62% of urban Indian Net users research for products online

     

    By Our Staff

     

    GroupM along with Amazon Advertising India, have launched a Search Advertising playbook titled ‘Decoding the shift in consumer behaviour to win on search’ with a report on search consumer journeys and how consumers are leveraging online platforms for not only buying products but also for holistic product research.

     

    Notes a communique: “Over the past year, consumer behaviour and purchase patterns have seen a drastic change. Urban consumers have started conducting their product research thoroughly before making any purchase online or offline. The playbook indicates that urban consumers are researching on at least two platforms before making up their mind while Amazon.in is has emerged as a preferred platform for product research. Around 62% of urban internet users research for products online, before making any online or offline purchase; 52% of urban internet users who research online, visit amazon.in to research products before making an online or offline purchase.”

     

    Online product research influences offline sales since 50% of offline shopping across categories involves prior online product research.

     

    A few takeaways from this playbook are:

    • Growth of digital for product research before making purchase decisions

    • in is emerging as one of the trusted brands for product research

    • 89% consumers discover new products and brands on in

    • 60% ads influenced purchase journeys are inspired by search ads

     

    Said Tushar Vyas, President – Growth and Transformation, GroupM South Asia: “The last year has seen a rapid shift in purchase decision making and channel preference for purchases with more consumers now researching and purchasing online. This trend is only accelerating with not only metro consumers but consumers from smaller cities and towns. Furthermore, the role of e-Commerce platforms in the purchase funnel is undergoing a change with more consumers relying on them from a product research point of view. With most of these behaviors set to only accelerate in the coming years, we at GroupM will continue to prioritize and focus on creating knowledge and bringing forth solutions to our clients to effectively navigate this ecosystem.”

     

    Added Vijay Iyer, Director-Ad Sales, Amazon Advertising India:“With the drastic increase in media consumption, online and eCommerce platforms have become the go-to destination for urban consumers to make a product and brand choice before making a purchase online or offline. The search environment provides brands the opportunity to reach ‘intent’ consumers and create awareness in the early phase of the purchase journey. Native search advertising formats aid in establishing a seamless connection with researching audiences. This playbook aims at helping brands understand the behavioral trends with respect to consumer demand and discusses recommended strategies to drive awareness and performance on amazon.in”

     

    The playbook can be downloaded here.

     

  • She will drive Essence’s continued client-centric innovation in data, analytics and technology, as well as business growth and company culture in the market

    Sonali Malaviya to lead Essence as Anand Chakravarthy exits

    By Our Staff

     

    Sonali Malaviya
    Sonali Malaviya

    Essence, the GroupM agency for data and measurement-driven media investments, has announced the appointment of Sonali Malaviya as the agency’s Managing Director for India. Anand Chakravarthy, previously Managing Director for Essence India, has moved on from the agency to pursue new opportunities. Malaviya will be responsible for leading continued client-centric innovation in data, analytics and technology, as well as business growth and company culture for the agency in the market.

     

    Based out of Delhi, Malaviya will report to Essence APAC CEO, T. Gangadhar (Gangs) and GroupM South Asia CEO, Prasanth Kumar (PK). She will join Essence’s APAC leadership team and GroupM India’s executive committee as part of her role.

     

    Joining Essence in 2018, Malaviya most recently led the agency’s Google business in India and Southeast Asia as Senior Vice President, Client Services. Previously, she served as Chief Operating Officer at Colorbar Cosmetics and Country Marketing Lead at Twitter in India. With over 20 years of industry experience, she has also held senior roles at Mindshare, PHD, Roy Morgan Research and MediaCom in India, the United Arab Emirates and Australia.

     

    Said Gangadhar: “Sonali comes with rich experience in management, marketing and media across industries and markets, as well as a deep understanding of Essence’s business, work, people and culture. In addition to building strong, collaborative partnerships with clients and employees alike, she is an advocate of diversity and inclusion in the workplace. India continues to be a priority for Essence in APAC and globally, and with Sonali at the helm, I am very excited about our next phase of growth and development in the market,” We would also like to thank Anand for his efforts in helping to establish our business in India over the last three years. We greatly appreciate his contributions and wish him the best in his future endeavours.”

     

    Added Kumar: “We are glad to see Sonali take over the role of Essence India Managing Director. With her background and significant achievements, she will add to the capabilities of Essence and work with our teams to improve the client experience. As we continue to develop leaders internally, Sonali is also part of our growing pool of talent taking on various leadership roles across GroupM India. I look forward to working with Sonali and leveraging her expertise.”

     

    Said Malaviya: “I am truly honoured to have the opportunity to lead Essence in India. Over the past three years, I have witnessed and been part of our incredible growth story in this market, and am very proud of what our agency, clients and employees have achieved together. I am looking forward to partnering with our highly talented teams and leveraging our industry-leading capabilities to help even more brands in India achieve data-driven growth and transformation, as well as valuable connections with consumers.”

     

    Since Essence’s entry into India in 2016, the agency has rapidly expanded to three offices across Bengaluru, Delhi and Mumbai. Essence’s diverse portfolio of clients in the market includes Airtel, Britannia, Flipkart, Games24x7, Google, Honda motorcycles and scooters, Livspace, Melorra, Purplle, Vedantu, Wakefit and Zee5.

     

     

  • Mobile Gaming saw accelerated growth in consumer engagement as per the GroupM ESP Sporting Nation Report 2021

    Cricket nets 87% share of Indian Sports Sponsorship

     

    By Our Staff

     

    GroupM ESP, the entertainment, esports and sports division of GroupM India has released the sports sponsorship report for India 2020. The size of the Indian sports industry in 2020 is estimated at Rs 5894 crore. This report takes into consideration – sponsorship spends, celebrity endorsement and media spends on sports properties.

     

    The biggest share here goes to media, where advertisement spends on TV, Digital and Print media contributed to Rs 3657 Crore, which accounts for 62% of the total spends. Sponsorship Spends included On-Ground Sponsorships, Team Sponsorships and Franchise Fee, and this took up 28% of the industry pie, which translates to an amount of Rs 1673 Crore. An interesting shift that gained momentum in 2020 was the athlete endorsement which grew 5% over 2019, against the run of play in a year ravaged by the pandemic.

     

    During the period of inactivity in sports, there was a significant step jump in the level of social media influencer activity among popular athletes. Here again, cricketers ruled the roost, with a 92% share of the pie. Of the 377 endorsement deals that happened last year, 275 involved cricket players. 2020 also saw female athletes pulling in brands and the continued success of these stars is proof of the fact that our champions are loved, and we are proud of them. As the sporting nations wait eagerly in anticipation, the stocks are highly in favour of endorsements from our athletes.

     

    The lockdown had also catalysed the growth in certain sectors. The absence of live sports along with a sub-optimal supply of fresh OTT content led to the shift towards gaming; the month of April 2020 saw an 11% increase in users per week along with a significant jump in average time spent per gamer. This led to a sudden boom in e-sports in 2020, with communities getting built and multiplayer activities gaining ground. Over the last three years, there has been a doubling in the gamer base as well as viewership numbers in the time.

     

    Despite Covid-19 threat and multiple risks, India’s foremost sporting league, the Indian Premier League (IPL) got underway in UAE in September much to the delight of fans, players, franchisees, sponsors, and rights holders. The success of the IPL was a great demonstration of the qualities of brinkmanship and improvisation, just what the doctor ordered to lift the spirits of a nation in which cricket is followed with religious fervour. Even as the absence of a fair share of events has rendered year-on-year comparisons irrelevant, two things are extremely heartening. First, the overall levels of business seen in the industry in 2020, and then, the high running momentum as we exit the year and move on to 2021.In November, the Indian Super League (ISL) got underway in three venues in Goa with strict protocols and adherence to bio-bubble considerations. This was the first major sports event to be held in India after the pandemic; giving ample demonstration of our ability to pull off an event of this magnitude under such circumstances.

     

    Said Prasanth Kumar, CEO – GroupM South Asia: “With the lockdown being enforced and subsequent stoppage of play on the field, the void was stark with no visibility on how the anti-Covid efforts would pan out. And even without any activities, our sports heroes stayed close to us. They came closer by actively engaging with their followers on social media and the spontaneity of this online content flow and with the open arms that we welcomed it, is the demonstration of the power of sports in our country. Speedy responses and improvisations are on the go where what the situation demanded and among the many things the Covid-19 situation taught us marketers, was the need to be adaptable as the tide turns fast around us.”

     

    Added Vinit Karnik, Head – Sports, Esports and Entertainment, GroupM South Asia: “Many sports properties were either cancelled or postponed and even sponsorship and media spends were impacted. But it is commendable how the sporting ecosystem reacted to this crisis taking into consideration the very fact that sports were back sooner than expected. Even in the face of an adverse context, the stakeholders came together to provide the spark the industry needed. The IPL and ISL are an exemplary demonstration of India’s preparedness to host major sporting events under such taxing circumstances. With many sporting events lined up in 2021, fans might have to make choices between certain events in terms of what, when and how much to watch, leading to a rise in demand for subscription viewing in live sports. 2020 looks like that proverbial backward step we take before a giant leap, like the one we are expected to take in 2021, as part of the making of the sporting nation.

     

  • In their new roles, Karthik & Vinit will report to Prasanth Kumar, CEO of GroupM South Asia

    @GroupM: Vinit Karnik is Head – Sports, Esports & Ent – S Asia & Karthik Nagarajan is Head of Branded Content

    By Our Staff

    GroupM India has announced the promotions of Vinit Karnik and Karthik Nagarajan. Karnik, the Business Head of GroupM’s Entertainment & Sports practice (ESP), will take over the new role of  Head – Sports, Esports and Entertainment, GroupM South Asia and Karthik Nagarajan, Chief Content Officer for Wavemaker India, will take on additional responsibility at GroupM in the new role of Head of Branded Content, GroupM India.

    Said Prasanth Kumar, CEO of GroupM South Asia said, “Disruption and evolution go hand-in-hand and it also brought in opportunities in the content, sports and entertainment space and it is consistently redefining the market place. Over the years, we have been building these spaces by shaping great solutions for our clients. While we will continue to build on advertising technologies that will add speed and scale, we are equally committed to enhance our creative process and enable larger solutions in the content space. We are fortunate to witness leadership grow within as they bring in experience, adaptivity and inventiveness for being fit for the future. These leadership appointments signify our commitment to the journey and I am confident in both Vinit and Karthik’s abilities and together we look forward to creating great solutions and opportunities for our clients as well as our partners.”

     

    Added Karnik: “The new-age consumers have a better understanding of advertising and this can be seen by their ongoing interactions with brands and readiness for participation.  The demand for higher personalization shows that. Data indicates that delivering high-quality personalized content is what sets successful brands apart from their competitors. Today a brand has various means to reach out to its audience be it via sports, social media, eSports, influencers etc. Hence by strengthening our offerings and by bringing together creative optimization and data, we want to ensure that the brands get to reach their consumers with content, which is highly personalized, effective and relevant for them.”

     

    Karthik spent a significant part of his early career in consulting, as a practice head for Frost & Sullivan in the United States. Before joining GroupM in 2011, Karthik set up Nielsen’s online division and was also the India Country Head for NM Incite, the joint venture between Nielsen and McKinsey for social media consulting in India. He set up the social media practice for GroupM India, which also included its foray into advocacy. Karthik also evangelised the data agenda for GroupM by building its social analytics practice, products like Radar and the command centre offering. In 2015, Karthik conceived and launched Brew, which became the premier content up-front event for not just GroupM but the industry as well.

     

    Said Nagarajan: “Content is a cultural intervention for a brand and the need to be authentic has never been more critical. Hence the journey of an idea today is seeped in data-led audience truths as much as it is in creativity. From an era when brands rode the trend waves, we are well and truly in a phase where brands author their sub-cultures. This is what makes it an extraordinary time to be in this industry. I am looking forward to taking on this additional responsibility at GroupM, at a time when the lines between content and commerce are blurring”.

     

    In their new roles, Karthik & Vinit will report to Prasanth Kumar, CEO of GroupM South Asia.

     

     

  • Ad investment expected to reach Rs 80,123 crore, notes the This Year Next Year report

    Achche Din… GroupM forecasts 23.2% in CY2021

    GroupM share of adspend

     

    By Our Staff

     

    GroupM India has announced its advertising expenditure (AdEx) forecasts for 2021. As per the GroupM futures report ‘This Year, Next Year’ (TYNY) 2021, India will see a major ad recovery in 2021 given the downfall of ad spends in 2020 due to the pandemic.

     

    TYNY forecasts India’s advertising investment to reach an estimated Rs. 80,123 crores this year. This represents an estimated growth of 23.2%, for the calendar year 2021. India is the 2nd fastest growing market in the top 10 countries and will be the 6th largest contributor to incremental ad spends in 2021 globally. While India was ranked 9th in the global ad spend rank in 2019, it dropped to 10 in 2020 and is likely to regain its 9th rank this year.

     

    Prasanth Kumar, CEO - GroupM South Asia
    Prasanth Kumar

    Commenting on the TYNY 2021 report, Prasanth Kumar, CEO – GroupM South Asia said, “2020 was an unprecedented year. The pandemic impacted across sectors and it, therefore, affected the media investments too. As we are aware, the year that went by had a mixture of lockdowns, many restricted market momentum and overall threw a challenge and impacted multi-industry economies. The ad industry too had its challenges and 2020 witnessed a steep drop in the overall media investments. However, we have witnessed a month-on-month upturn in the industry starting Q3 last year and we are quite optimistic about the revival that 2021 will see. With the gradual easement of the lockdown backed by seasonal spends and big-ticket events like IPL, we expect 2021 to continue to build on that momentum. While the global ad spends are estimated to see a rise of 10% in 2021, digital is expected to take 67% of ad spends. With the help of technology, marketers have adapted to pandemic-proof ways by constantly innovating, staying relevant and offering digitally charged solutions to brands.”

     

    Digital was the only medium to witness a gain of USD 27bn globally in 2020. Digital as a media vehicle will continue to skyrocket due to the increase in digital dependency and changing consumer patterns.

     

    Tushar Vyas, GroupM
    Tushar Vyas

    Added Tushar Vyas, President – Growth and Transformation, GroupM South Asia: “2021 will see 90% incremental ad spends on digital globally. The massive switch to digital reliance over the past 1 year has been a major driver for this shift. Brands have been forced to think big and different to transform their businesses, match the newer expectations and overcome the challenges faced. The post-pandemic era will continue to see this upsurge in digital demands. The crisis has brought about a sea change in mindset, adoption, and role of technology in doing business. Brands are seen renewing their business models and are constantly ideating to find better ways to connect with the consumer on a digital tangent.”

     

    Ashwin Padmanabhan
    Ashwin Padmanabhan

    While Covid-19 resulted in an overall slowdown in the global economy, Indian adspends will continue to see a month-on-month recovery considering the overall media landscape. Said Ashwin Padmanabhan, President – Partnerships and Trading of GroupM India: “Based on a strong foundation built on the back of FMCG and e-commerce, 2021 is expected to see growth across sectors like auto, telecom, consumer durable, retail and education. Manufacturing, which was severely impacted by the pandemic, is now stabilising and moving toward a positive outlook enabled by automation, technology and supply chain optimisation. 2020 has accelerated the adoption of agile, cost-effective business models, which will help brands and marketers offer better products, services and experiences to consumers.”

     

    Sidharth Parashar, President - Investments and Pricing, GroupM India
    Sidharth Parashar

    Added Sidharth Parashar, President-Investments and Pricing of GroupM India: “Along with digital, television saw a spike in consumption during the lockdown. With acceptance on the subscription bandwagon increasing, OTT will continue to witness a constructive growth and is likely to develop with more players attracting users by investing in content. Print & Radio expected to be backed by local advertisers and certain categories with marketeers leveraging the brand solutions that these media offer. We expect OOH and cinema to see double-digit growth after a difficult year. Given the uncertainty and cautiously spending consumer, brands are realising the importance of being present wherever consumers are. Hence along with continued relevance of television & other mass media, we will witness advertisers leveraging relevant platforms to reach out to its audience.”

     

    GroupM TYNY Key Highlights

  • Mehta will also be joining the GroupM India Executive Committee (ExCo)

    GroupM integrates ITV & Kinetic under Ajay Mehta

    By A Correspondent

     

    GroupM has announced that Ajay Mehta will Managing Director of Cinema (ITV) and OOH (Kinetic). Prior to this Mehta was MD of ITV. Mehta will also be joining the GroupM India Executive Committee (ExCo).

     

    Speaking on the development, Prasanth Kumar – CEO, GroupM South Asia said: “We are fortunate to be the leaders in both cinema and OOH practices and our goal and vision is to make it stronger and bolder. Our belief in OOH and Cinema related solutions for brands continue to be strong and while we are going through tough times, it is important to prepare as well as strengthen our offering. Ajay in his leadership role will focus on integrating the teams and prioritise focus on larger returns for clients and brands, shaping solutions that would provide an edge for our clients by collaborating with multi avenues like digital, technology and other media opportunities. I am confident his entrepreneurial skills and collaborative nature will help and lead the teams to larger strength.”

     

    Added Mehta:  “I am very excited with this opportunity. The coming together of the two businesses is a huge opportunity for us to create new strengths and to be valued partners for our clients by delivering result -oriented solutions for them. I look forward to working with the two teams and to contribute to the growth of the business.”

     

    All the ITV teams along with the Kinetic leadership team will report to Mehta while he will continue to be based out of Gurugram and will report into GroupM CEO Prasanth Kumar.

     

     

  • On-ground sponsorship grew by 25 per cent for the first time, crossing INR 2000 crore mark

    Indian sports sponsorship crosses Rs 9000 crore benchmark, notes GroupM’s ESP Properties

    By A Correspondent

     

    ESP Properties, the entertainment and sports division of GroupM India, released the 2020 report on sports sponsorship in India. Overall growth in sports sponsorship at a healthy 17 per cent where the sports sponsorship Industry crossed the INR 9000 crore mark in 2019.

     

    The 2019 was the year for cricket and dominated the sports advertising sector unanimously. IPL and ICC World Cup gave a push in both, on-ground sponsorship and media spends. On-ground sponsorship grew by 25 per cent, for the first time, crossing INR 2000 crore mark. Overall industry upsurge was INR 1347 crore of which INR 800 crore was contributed by media spends alone growing at 18 per cent.

     

    Said Vinit Karnik – Business Head, ESP Properties: “Indian sports industry is on an upward trajectory breaking new grounds year-on-year. While cricket proved its dominance in 2019, overall the last 5 years the industry has doubled its size. If we look further, we can see a strong CAGR of 12.8 per cent in the business of sports over the last 10 years, making it one of the strong pillars of the Indian economy. With the sports industry growing at 17 per cent in 2019, the momentum on sports with added thrust from the government provides a holistic opportunity for the sector. Initiatives like Khelo India and Fit India movement are drivers towards making India a truly sporting nation.”

     

    Added Prasanth Kumar, CEO of GroupM South Asia: “Over the last decade, we have witnessed the growth of sports leagues and their gaining popularity across the country. The sports industry has been growing and has witnessed a significant upward shift in the overall ad spends. The passion and excitement that’s involved in this platform have only strengthened. We see more and diverse audience indulging with this platform. Many innovations and leverage of assets in this space are powerful opportunities. As we are unfolding another decade, we see this space to be providing powerful thrust for greater brand stories.”

     

    The non-cricketing space was dominated by women athletes. Badminton queen P V Sindhu was the leading non-cricketing athlete in 2019 in terms of brand endorsements. While Sindhu added four brands to her portfolio, the most notable one among them was her tie-up with VISA that made her the first Indian athlete to endorse the financial services brand.

     

     

  • Inca will connects brands to a wide network of publishers and influencers

    GroupM’s Inca makes its India debut

    By A Correspondent

     

    GroupM has announced the India rollout of its influencer marketing solution, Inca. Inca will connect brands to a wide network of publishers and influencers.

     

    Prasanth Kumar

    Said Prasanth Kumar, CEO, GroupM South Asia: “Influencer marketing is now a key element of the marketing mix, and brands today need to take advantage of potential associations and collaborations. Inca is the ideal tool to facilitate safe brand engagement across platforms. We are confident that this tool is the most effective method for Indian brands to reach their audiences with the precise impact they demand.”

     

    Ratan Singh Rathore

    Added Ratan Singh Rathore, Business Head of Inca India: ”The tastes and behaviours of Indian customers are changing rapidly as they consume content in a multi-platform, multi-device, data-cheap environment. In this fragmented media landscape, marketers are seeking innovative, relevant and brand-safe advertising solutions. The authenticity of influencer marketing makes it stand out as a highly effective brand solution. Inca’s AI driven content discovery technology, provides the quantitative intelligence to select and optimize influencers, predict outcomes and deliver efficient and effective workflow management. Inca helps clients develop user-generated or branded publisher content, which engages consumers and keeps them loyal to brands.”

     

     

  • Gupte, who is currently COO of Wavemaker India, takes over from Kartik Sharma who steps down to pursue other opportunities in the industry

    Kartik Sharma quits. Ajay Gupte is new Wavemaker CEO

    By A Correspondent

     

    Ajay Gupte

    Wavemaker has announced the appointment of Ajay Gupte as Chief Executive Officer for Wavemaker, South Asia. Gupte, who is currently COO of Wavemaker India, takes over from Kartik Sharma who steps down to pursue other opportunities in the industry.

     

    Gupte will continue to be based out of Wavemaker Gurugram and will report into Prasanth Kumar, CEO – GroupM South Asia and Gordon Domlija, President Wavemaker Asia-Pacific and China CEO.

     

    Said Prasanth Kumar, CEO – GroupM South Asia: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank Kartik for his contribution over the years and wish him all the very best.”

     

    Commenting on Gupte’s appointment he added, “At GroupM we always believe in building on the hard work and passion of our people and it gives me great pleasure to see Ajay take over as the new CEO of Wavemaker South Asia. He comes with vast experience working in multiple markets and categories. He is a well-rounded professional, and I see him bring in distinctive and increasing value for our clients and the overall ecosystem. I am confident that he will continue to grow Wavemaker as an agency of the future.”

     

    Added Domlija: “India is a hugely important market for Wavemaker, and we’ve got a very successful team here. I’ve gotten to know Ajay as a strong client and team leader, and I’m convinced he is the right choice to help Wavemaker to future sucesss and, ultimately, to keep looking for better ways to unlock growth for our clients, our agency and our people.”

     

    Said Gupte: “I am humbled and very excited to take over the role of the CEO of Wavemaker South Asia. It is an exciting time for the Indian market as the Indian advertising industry is also having a global impact, and I see lots of opportunities for growth.”