MxMIndia

Tag: Sunil Kataria

  • The 30th edition of the awards will see global marketing and creative industry practitioners be a part of the ideas exchange platform

    Sunil Kataria to lead Indian delegation at Ad Asia Bali

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Advertising Council of India (ACI) and The Advertising Club has announced the appointment of Sunil Kataria, Business Head, Godrej Consumer Products as leader of the Indian delegation for the AdAsia Congress to be held in Bali later this year.

     

    Making the announcement, Srinivasan K Swamy, Vice Chairman, Asian Federation of Advertising Associations and a representative of The Advertising Council of India said:“Ad Asia is a great forum for the Indian creative and media maestros to interact with other global practitioners on evolving industry trends. Having someone which such rich and versatile multi-functional and sectoral experience as Mr Sunil Kataria lead the Indian delegation is sure to ensure that the India delegation plays an inspiring and impactful role at the Congress.”

     

    Speaking about the appointment of Kataria as the leader to the Indian delegation, Raj Nayak, President, The Advertising Club said: “India has been at the forefront of some ground breaking and high impact media campaigns. A coveted knowledge platform like Ad Asia 2017 is a great place to showcase the immersive and transformational work being done by the India media and advertising diaspora.  With Sunil helming the Indian delegation, we are sure to receive the best representation at the form. Sunil with his in-depth understanding of the Indian market dynamics and global trends in sure to add significant value to the Indian delegation.”

     

    Speaking about being nominated to lead the Indian delegation, Kataria said:“I am honoured to be nominated to lead the Indian contingent to the prestigious Congress.  The forum is a great platform for the fraternity to network with global creative leads and jam on media and marketing trends in the new social paradigm that   we are currently in.  We hope to have significant Indian representation at the event and would hence urge maximum participation by corporates at the event.”

     

    Ad Asia 2017, Bali is expected that witness close to 2000 executives from marketing companies, advertising agencies, and media organisations attend this landmark event from all around the Asia Pacific region.  To be held between November 7 and 10, the Advertising Council of India (ACI) and The Advertising Club have announced a special delegate fee applicable on early bird entries for India at US$ 870 per delegate as against the rate of US$ 1100.

     

  • Campaign conceptualised by Creativeland Asia and Baaash Digital

    Creativeland Asia & Baaash Digital executes campaign for Cinthol

    By A Correspondent

     

    Cinthol has launched a monsoon focused campaign for Cinthol Confidence+, that has been conceptualised by Creativeland Asia and Baaash Digital. The central theme of the campaign is to overcome the fear of falling ill because of germs or getting dirty in the monsoon.

     

    Sunil Kataria, Business Head-India and SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL) said, “Monsoon tends to put a brake on our daily lives, particularly sportsmen. The new Cinthol Confidence+ video is a moral boost from a coach to sportsmen and young people to get out in the monsoon without the fear of illness. Cinthol as a brand resonates with pushing your limits to the fullest to live every moment. Cinthol Confidence+ soap also assures 99.9% protection against germs and offers freshness with insta-deo fragrance.”

     

    Said Anu Joseph, Chief Creative Officer, Creativeland Asia: “Many of us prefer staying indoors during the monsoon, but Cinthol as a brand is all about embracing the awesome outdoors. So, with this campaign for Cinthol Confidence+ soap, we zoom in on the fear that keeps people inside during the monsoon. To do this, we needed a spokesperson, a mouthpiece, a motivational figure who would always push you to step out and play, when everybody else is urging you to remain inside. That’s where the Confidence+ Coach walked in with an inspirational take on going out in the monsoon and attaining the glory that awaits.”

     

  • Film conceptualised by Creativeland Asia

    Godrej protekt urges kids to explore the world with their hands

    By A Correspondent

     

    Godrej Protekt, a range of hand hygiene products from Godrej Consumer Products Limited, has unveiled a film conceptualised by Creativeland Asia, that depicts how children love exploring the world with their hands.

     

    Talking about the initiative, Sunil Kataria, Business Head India & SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products Ltd Said: “Kids these days are inquisitive, enthusiastic and unstoppable. You can’t control them from exploring the world around them and in the process getting their hands dirty. And we know dirty hands mean lots of germs. Protekt believes that parents should encourage their kids to step out of home and explore, as it plays an important role in their development. This thought formed the base of our new campaign #ProtektLittleHands, a campaign which encourages kids to explore all those things which makes them wonder without thinking about getting dirty or worrying about germs. Godrej has always been a conscious brand that is committed to consumer’s health and over all benefit. As a thought leader in the category, we want to bring about a behavioral change and promote a healthy habit of keeping your hands clean and germ free.”

     

    Added Anu Joseph, Chief Creative Officer, Creativeland Asia: “What better way to get a mom to keep a hand sanitizer handy than to get kids sing to her the reason why she should? The idea was to throw light on the fact that a child’s hand is constantly busy exploring, and in the process getting really dirty. It’s simple, yet memorable.”

     

  • Industrypersons believe the decision is regressive and could set the advertising clock back for news channels irreparably

    Future Shock?! Channels opting out of BARC could lose ad revenue

     

    By A Correspondent [updated thrice, last update: Saturday, May 20]

    The decision of certain English news channels to opt out of BARC measurement could lead to a huge negative fall-out. The channels which do it stand a chance of advertisers renegotiating their deals and even stopping advertising forthwith.

    MxMIndia spoke to a cross-section of the community, and they believe the decision is regressive and could set the advertising clock back for news channels irreparably. Earlier in the week, News Broadcasting Association (NBA) complained to the TRAI about Republic TV’s alleged usage of multiple LCNs for distribution. It later appealed to BARC, urging it to not release data for English news channels pending the verdict from TRAI. And when BARC chose to release the data yesterday (Thursday), the association secretary general sent a mail to BARC CEO Partho Dasgupta as per an Economic Times report. The mail noted: “Given your indifference to the serious situation at hand, we are left with no option but to advise some of our aggrieved members to opt out of BARC’s watermarking system with immediate effect until there is appropriate redressal of our grievance.“

    A reference was made to how print advertising has gone down in the absence of a currency (IRS) over the last two years. “While the advertising for English nosedived, regional is still holding fort,” a senior industryperson told MxM, hours after the news of the NBA’s surprise mail to BARC was shared with select media.

    Shashi Sinha, CEO of IPG Mediabrands and Chairman of the BARC technical committee, was visibly upset with the development. “I don’t know what the hoopla is all about,” he said, adding: “Everyone has done it on different occasions – around their launch or on special days. If at all anyone has not done it, it’s NDTV,” he said.

    Another senior industryperson told MxMIndia that if the English news channels were so aggrieved, they should have opted out of BARC measurement before the data was released. “Now the world knows that Republic TV is ahead of all others, and there has been enough noise about it on the channel and in terms of advertising on other media,” she said.

    And how will media agencies react to the decision? A senior buyer who requested on anonymity as he is not authorised to speak said that if it’s a one- or two-day gimmick, it’s fine. But if it continues, there’s a problem as there is a lot of accountability in terms of deliverables. So if there is no viewership data, advertising may exit from channels who are not able to supply data.

    Industry captains we spoke with also dismiss the decision to look at multiple distribution points (LCNs) as a marketing tactic around launches or induce sampling. “After a few days or weeks, the real picture shows up, and this is what the aggrieved channels ought to have done.”

    Meanwhile, from the BARC India point of view, it has a steady policy on the matter, we were told. And this has been displayed on the measurement body’s website.
    http://www.barcindia.co.in/resources/pdf/Policy%20for%20Measuring%20Viewership%20of%20Channels%20Available%20on%
    20Multiple%20Frequencies-%20Sept%202016.pdf

    On previous occasions too – when a channel has relaunched, or done a special campaign around the UP elections or around the Union Budget, BARC has reported the data in its entirety. However many be the distribution points.

    BARC has been consistent, a senior industryperson told us. But networks haven’t been so. For instance, while a leading business news channel chose the multiple LCN route around the Union Budget this year, it has now opted out of BARC ratings for its general news channel. A case of double standards, perhaps.

    Meanwhile, BARC has issued a statement (Friday, May 20, 5.20pm). Here goes:

    “BARC India was set up with the mandate to measure What India Watches, and our measurement system delivers exactly that.

    We have a transparent policy on the matter of measuring channels, (which is available on our website http://bit.ly/2dllmIp). This policy has been consistently applied to all channels who subscribe to our measurement.

    The fact is that this is a common distribution strategy among various TV channels, particularly News Broadcasters, to place their channels on multiple LCNs and across genres in the past, and they continue to do so even now.

    Based on information collected from various monitoring agencies we have seen that multiple English news channels on different occasions have placed themselves on multiple LCNs viz across 64 distribution networks during rebranding/revamp, across 16 networks during budget coverage, across 12 networks during UP elections etc. It has become a usual practice.

    We are clear about our position – we measure viewership of channels basis their unique Watermark ID, irrespective of the platform the channel is available on or the number of instances within the platform. For channels having same watermark on more than one LCN, viewership gets aggregated and reported as a single channel and not multiple channels. BARC India neither monitors channel placements across the various DTH platforms/cable head-ends in the country, nor does it have the mandate to do so.

    In the past, we have measured multiple LCN instances of channels as per our policy, and reported them as one channel and the same principle has been applied to our data released yesterday. BARC India is not the regulatory body for resolving issues concerning multiplicity of LCNs for a channel.

    Ideally these issues should be sorted among broadcasters themselves rather than dragging BARC India into these.

    BARC India will continue to measure what India watches.”

    MxMIndia also spoke with Nakul Chopra, senior industryperson and President of the Advertising Association Agencies of India, the apex body of advertising agencies in the country, and this is what he said: “It’s one industry. Differences will always be there. It’s better to let things settle down, take a deep break and let sanity prevail. Having said that we are a 100% behind BARC and what  BARC has said in its statement.”  When asked on what the AAAI advice would be to member-agencies on the decision to advertise on channels that have pulled out of BARC measurement, Chopra said: “We are discussing amongst ourselves and with the ISA (the Indian Society of Advertisers) and will give our formal response very soon.” Any timeframe, we asked. “Next week,” he said.

    And this is what Sunil Kataria, President, Indian Society of Advertisers, the apex body of advertisers: “Any advertiser wants to put money behind TV media which delivers audience viewership and that metric is available through TV ratings. Hence TV ratings are the sole metric for making advertising spend decisions. BARC has already issued a statement on their policy of measuring what India watches and  hence measuring the viewership as per their stated policy. We are closely monitoring the situation and hope the issue gets resolved. In the meanwhile, we are also in talks with AAAI and would come with our formal statement next week .”

     

     

  • The ad film is directed by Karan Shetty and produced by Madhukar Kotian and Vijay Carvalho

    Godrej’s Hit Gel Stick adds filmy punch to fight roach menace

    By A Correspondent

     

    We aren’t sure why it’s only the mother’s duty to do this, but Godrej’s Hit has launched a Gel Stick variant which is a solution to “enable mothers to protect her kids and family from cockroaches”. Hit Gel Stick is a transparent gel which once applied remains effective for seven days, kills cockroaches right at the point of entry and is very convenient to use. Or so claims a communique.

     

    The brand has launched a new nationwide campaign with the tagline ‘Hit Gel Stick Cockroaches KoGhustey Hi Maare’. Talking about the launch of HIT Gel Stick and the unique campaign, Sunil Kataria, Business Head – India & SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products Limited said: “Consumer research reveals that 80 per cent of consumers have faced a cockroach problem, but less than 8 per cent use branded cockroach solutions! Low adoption of specialist cockroach solutions by mothers is due to lack of awareness of the fact that cockroaches spread food poisoning and therefore are a serious threat to the health of her kids and family. Cockroaches enter our kitchen from dirty drains carrying germs and contaminate food and utensils, but they are seen only as unwanted intruders which disgust hence mothers settle for ineffective solutions to contain them.”

     

    The ad film is directed by Karan Shetty and produced by Madhukar Kotian and Vijay Carvalho.

  • Sunil Kataria, Business Head – India and SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products Limited, has been elected Chairman of the ISA on Wednesday

    Sunil Kataria is new Indian Society of Advertisers chairman

    By A Correspondent

     

    Sunil Kataria

    Sunil Kataria, Business Head – India and SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products Limited, has been elected Chairman of the Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA) for 2016-17. Kataria replaces Marico CEO Saugata Gupta who helmed the association since September 2014. The newly elected executive council of the Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA) met on September 14. ISA is the apex body of advertisers in the country.

     

    On his election as ISA chairman, Kataria said “Our focus would be to further strengthen the industry partnerships that we have built over decades and deliver the desired benefit to the advertisers and other stakeholders. I am confident that advertisers have promising times ahead. I look forward to working with industry partners and fraternity associations as a team and make this a credible, meaningful and business impacting ecosystem”

     

    Other members of the executive council are:

    Atul Agrawal, Senior Vice President – Corporate Affairs, Group Corporate Communications, Tata Services Limited,

    Anuradha Aggarwal, Chief Marketing Officer, Marico Limited

    Abraham Mathew Alapatt, President & Group Head-Marketing, Service Quality, Financial Services & Innovation, Thomas Cook (India) Limited

    Narendra Ambwani, Director, Agro Tech Foods Limited

    Ajoy H Chawla, Senior Vice President, Chief Strategy Officer, Titan Company Limited

    Paulomi Dhawan, Advisor, Raymond Limited

    Sonali Dhawan, Brand Director, Procter & Gamble Hygiene and Health Care Limited

    Chandru Kalro, Managing Director, TTK Prestige Limited

    Sandeep Kataria, Director – Commercial, Vodafone India Limited

    Sandeep Kaul, Divisional Chief Executive – India Tobacco Division, ITC Limited

    Sandeep Kohli, Executive Director – Personal Care, Hindustan Unilever Limited

    Beena Koshy, Executive Vice President, Advertising, Digital & Branding, Bajaj Electrical Limited

    Bharat V. Patel, Independent Director, Birla Sun Life Asset Management Company Ltd.

    Prashant Richard Peres, Director Marketing Chocolate, India, Mondelez India Foods Private Limited

    Ramakrishnan Ramamurthi, Vice Chairman, Joint MD & Group CEO, Polycab Wires Pvt. Ltd.

    Samardeep Sunil Subandh, Chief Marketing Officer, Flipkart Internet Private Limited

    Amit Tiwari, Director, Philips India Limited

    Brahm Vasudeva, Chairman, Hawkins Cookers Limited

     

     

  • The quirky TVC has been conceptualized by Creativeland Asia

    Cinthol Deo Stick out to make an impact in India

    By A Correspondent

     

    Cinthol, in its endeavour to remain relevant to youth by offering them innovative products, is all set to launch the CintholDeoStick – a revolutionary product in the space of deodorants. CintholDeoStick is a cream based deo which is easy to use, has great fragrances that lasts 3X longer than ordinary deosprays and is pocket friendly too. The DeoStick is available in six different fragrances, three for men and three for women respectively. The brand’s philosophy of continuous reinvention, with this launch, is expecting to redefine the codes of deodorant category which is marked by expensive sprays, with starting point being Rs. 100+ for female deodorants and 180+ for male deodorants.

     

    The TVC created by Creativeland, showcases the DeoStick unlike any other deodorant in the category. The TVC DeoReborn sets out to showcase how Cinthol has reinvented the concept of using a deodorant. DeoReborn is the story of how and why the deodorant was reborn into its new avatar in a quirky manner along with a set of laterally evolved visuals. CintholDeoStick is a cream based deo and not a spray, which is gentle on skin and lasts 3 times longer than any other ordinary deo.  The TVC also showcases product’s new application format and the different stylized ways in which it can be used.

     

    Commenting on the campaign, Sunil Kataria, Business Head India & SAARC, GCPL said, “We constantly strive to give our consumers the best of personal care products and bridge the gap between consumer needs and what is available in the market. Cinthol has always been innovating to cater to the changing consumer needs of the youth. With the summer season just around the corner, we have launched Cinthol Deo Stick , a unique creme based deodorant that lasts genuinely long, is safe on skin and comes at an affordable price of Rs 69/-. We have reinvented the deo space with this revolutionary product which will appeal to our consumer’s and the TVC very aptly showcases the concept of DeoReborn.”

     

    Commenting on the TVC, Sajan Raj Kurup, Founder and Creative Chairman, Creativeland Asia said, “With CintholDeoStick, we weren’t just launching a new product, but a whole new category. So, there were quite a few boxes to tick, while still making sure that it was in the Cinthol world we’ve been defining over the last few years. We believe the product has the potential to not just increase deo penetration in the market, but also potentially reposition the category in people’s minds.”

     

  • While the campaign has been conceptualized and executed by Creativeland Asia, the TV spot has been produced by Chrome Pictures and directed by Aleya Sen Sharma

    Godrej Expert Rich Creme hair colour promises ‘dekhbhaal’ in new TVC

    By A Correspondent

     

    Hair colours are often considered a necessary evil. People who use hair colours to cover their greys don’t associate them with any higher benefit. That’s exactly what Godrej Expert aims to change with its new campaign for Rich Crème hair colour, which doesn’t just colour, but also looks after the hair with its aloe and milk protein formula. The campaign brings out this ‘dekhbhaal’ using a parent-child relationship. It promises to give back to all parents what they have given children all along – care, protection and love.

     

    The film is about two daughters trying to convince their mother to colour her hair. They begin by telling her how she does so much for them and the family, and now it’s their turn to look after her. Giving her a pack of Godrej Expert Rich Crème hair colour is the children’s way of doing their bit for all the ‘dekhbhaal’ their mother has done. The film signs off with the tagline, ‘Dekhbhaal Godrej Expert Rich Crème ki’.

     

    Speaking about the campaign, Anu Joseph, Executive Creative Director, Creative land Asia Pvt. Ltd. said, “The need of the hour was to get fence-sitters and first-timers to drop their cynicism and start colouring their hair. What better way than to get children to charm their parents into it? The insight that all parents blame their kids for greying early gave us an eminently relatable point to start the conversation.”

     

    Sunil Kataria, Business Head – India and SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL), adds, “Godrej has always been the pioneers in hair colouring – from Godrej Expert Original to now Godrej Expert Rich Crème. This breakthrough innovation has had an amazing run, its Oh My God campaign helped in establishing a strong consumer connect. With the new TVC we are breaking away from the myths that surround hair colouring and bringing alive the concept of Dekhbhaal. The TVC stars Tisca Chopra endearingly conveys this super combination of effective hair colouring and care that the crème hair colour offers.”

     

    While the campaign has been conceptualized and executed by Creativeland Asia, the TV spot has been produced by Chrome Pictures and directed by Aleya Sen Sharma.

     

  • After decades of being a conservative player, Godrej has become more aggressive

    AGGGR-odrej!

     

    By Kala Vijayraghavan

     

    Rohit Vengurlekar, 33, brand manager in Godrej Consumer Products (GCPL) moved into a new role four months ago, heading marketing for the company’s premium haircare offering, B Blunt. It was the latest move in a career graph that followed a fairly unconventional trajectory. He was first noticed as area sales manager in Madhya Pradesh, moving on to area manager Ahmedabad. His last assignment was building Aer, GCPL’s air freshener brand, a new category for the Rs 8,300 crore FMCG company.

     

    In three years, he built it to a Rs 100 crore brand, a creditable feat in an intensely competitive market. Vengurlelar admits, “The three years exposure was a huge learning experience. I learnt how marketing was done to create a category. We were constantly egged on to think different, try new approaches and take risks. I made mistakes but they were seen as part of learning. We were constantly encouraged not to let one failure pull us back”.

     

    However GCPL is loath to let him rest on his laurels. Its constant innovation cycle means even a star performing brand is moved into the base portfolio in its fourth year. “We have given him another challenge: to grow B Blunt, our premium unconventional haircare brand. It is a nascent category right now at Rs 350 crore but we want it to go up to Rs 1000 crore in the next three years,” says Sunil Kataria, business head – India and SAARC, GCPL.

     

    After decades of being a more conservative player in the cut-throat Indian FMCG space, the last few years have seen GCPL become more aggressive. Half of its marketing team has been with the organisation for less than three years.  Talent from diverse backgrounds — food, personal care, digital agencies — bring in different perspectives as it moves into new categories: air care, hair crème and Protext handwash in the health and wellness category.

     

    Over the last three months, GCPL has reorganised marketing to create a new structure that leverages its scale and empowers teams. From three marketing groups: household insecticides, hair care and personal care, it is now down to just two — home care and personal care. Home care is led by Ajay Dang, who has previously worked with Colgate and HT Media. He also leads media buying. Personal care portfolio and consumer insights is led by Chetan Gore, who joined GCPL in 2014 after 15 plus years with P&G in India and abroad.

     

    “We are giving marketing leaders dual responsibilities and facilitating higher levels of collaboration. Marketing teams are integrated, whether it is consumer insights, digital, brands or design. We are asking our teams to own the business, take entrepreneurial decisions and empowering them on ground to take risks. Young employees with a proven track record but not necessarily in the same field are being given important roles,” explains Kataria who was earlier CMO and has now been elevated to business head – India and SAARC. It’s part of GCPL rewiring itself to be more agile and innovative, challenging the traditional marketing rulebook.

     

    Nisaba Godrej

    Executive director, Nisaba Godrej, has been instrumental in changing organisational culture along with managing director, Vivek Gambhir, to be entrepreneurial and edgy. She believes, “Data and technology are going to see a huge shift which affects the way we budget, structure and work. We need to be really creative and quick on our feet with content and stories around our brands. We have to be much less dependent on agencies. Our marketing teams ought to be whole brained and creative.”

     

    For the first time, GCPL has a creative director, getting in Thomas Dawes from Godrej UK who focuses on brand architecture and communication strategies to ensure the brands are differentiated and memorable. Also on his agenda: studying trends and technologies in digital and mobile to see how they can work for GCPL. Clearly, television alone is no longer enough.

     

    Sunil Kataria

    Sunil Kataria says the DNA of the company is to challenge the traditional. Research, for instance, is something that most marketers are comfortable outsourcing. However, drawing from his experience at Idea, Kataria believed there was a significant transmission loss. “We realised the importance of holding the custodianship of the consumer. Asking a third party to do research who in turn would ask an outsourced agency meant we’d never be close to the consumer. We trained teams to be in touch directly as part of Consumer Quest. We hired qualitative in-house researchers from IMRB who are now part of the marketing team.” When in doubt about a brand, GCPL has worked on as many as 70 Consumer Quests aka Conquest researches over 30 days.

     

    The results: almost 40 per cent of GCPL’s incremental growth is driven by GCPL’s new launches. The company has one brand over Rs 1,500 crore (Good Knight), one over Rs 1,000 crore (Godrej No.1) and three over Rs 500 crore (Cinthol, Godrej Expert and Hit). Good Knight Fast Card, India’s first paper-based mosquito repellent, became a Rs 100 crore brand in just 11 months — among the highest run ups for a new FMCG.

     

    Today, the salience of new product development (NDP) to sales is 17 per cent from 5 per cent three years ago. “We could have done better. But 65 per cent success is a damn good average. We do not have the structure and strength of an MNC but we have strength unique to us,” says Kataria.

     

    Its product and package design has caught the eye of retailers.  “I am impressed by how GCPL has renovated its legacy. It is doing what FMCG marketers should focus on: market development and category creation. The emphasis on design and packaging is amazing. Protext handwash or the hair colour packaging is truly futurist. At Rs 30 a packet, GCPL offered a hair colouring experience that bettered the Rs 500 a pack offered by a rival”, admits Devendra Chawla, group president – food FMCG, brands at Future Group.

     

    And now GCPL is moving onto its next big project, One Rural. It roped in consultant Bain to benchmark the rural strategies of other FMCG companies and found that none were too different. 90 per cent of spends of consumer companies in rural are on TV and activation “We are now on an integrated sales and marketing strategy. Our presence is the weakest amongst most companies, although it has moved up from 24 per cent to 28 per cent over recent years,” says Kataria. In the last four to five months, GCPL has piloted four or five different projects to tap new media. “We are shifting spends from TV to community radio. There are 26-30 operational in India and 120 more will go live soon. GCPL has created a separate GM position within its One Rural organisation with supporting teams in each state to ensure last mile execution. “We have 4.2 million outlets covering 60,000 villages which is 75 per cent of rural. Now the challenge is to get more throughput per outlet. So we are not expanding the rural presence. We will instead focus on top 35,000 villages and back it vigorously with an IT backbone that is among the top three best companies in the country” he says.

     

    Shripad Nadkarni,founder & director of MarketGate Consulting, says innovating on new formats in the mosquito repellent category and the Rs 30 crème hair colour and the air care brand have been killers in the brand space in their respective categories. “The organisational change as an agile, innovation and design-led company is not superficial. The proof of its reinvention is in the marketplace. The challenge for it is its legacy in terms of being seen like some of the old world companies like Tata are: very reliable and trustworthy. The brand image change in the minds of consumers as an innovative and cutting edge innovative brand will not happen overnight. But it is on the right track and that change will happen in due course too,” he says.

     

    Nisaba Godrej says, “I truly believe that we are still at the very beginning of our reimagination journey. You will see a very different GCPL a few years down the line.”

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2015, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • The mobile app is designed to deliver real-time information on dengue and malaria based on the user's location at vulnerable places

    Godrej HIT & LinTeractive unveil ‘Track the Bite’ App on occasion of World Mosquito Day

    By A Correspondent

     

    Over the years, Godrej HIT has been at the forefront in building awareness against pest borne diseases through its ‘Kill Pests Kill Diseases’ campaign. Driving the initiative in a big way for Godrej HIT is its variant – Kala HIT that has executed many successful education campaigns through media and on-ground activations to fight diseases like dengue and malaria.

     

    It is a well-established fact that diseases like dengue and malaria claim thousands of lives globally every year. In fact several institutions and brands have been constantly sensitizing people on the measures that need to be taken by spreading the message through mass media vehicles. But despite such investments, Godrej HIT realized that intense media clutter and noise in traditional media channels has made people indifferent (it often becomes a blind spot) even to such critical messages. However, if such messages are designed to address a specific need, people are far more receptive. Godrej HIT decided to draw people’s attention by causing a disruption in the communication by using a tech intervention that solves a specific need.

     

    An idea of developing a mobile app called ‘HIT – Track the Bite’ was thus born. Developed by LinTeractive, the digital arm of Mullen Lowe Lintas Group, the mobile app is designed to deliver real-time information on dengue and malaria based on the user’s location at vulnerable places. Timely and personalized messages provided on the app leads to higher engagement and persuades people to take effective action against dengue & malaria. Rapid awareness also builds up if information is available and sharable in one click. HIT – Track the Bite mobile app is the perfect solution. With app features like easy share, users can push information with their family and friends at the click of a button, which is a must for boosting organic reach.

     

    Godrej HIT would be running a special drive that would kick off on August 20th – World Mosquito Day to create heightened awareness around the need to download the app. The app is available for download on Google Play store for Android users (http://bit.ly/TrackTheBite). It will be launched on the iOS platform soon. The brand would be running an app download campaign on the day on Twitter where it will trend under the hashtag #HarKoneMeinDanger. This would help in driving more app downloads and also create buzz about the impending risks arising due to dengue and malaria.

     

    Sunil Kataria

    Sharing his thoughts on the new initiative undertaken by Godrej HIT, Sunil Kataria, Business Head India and SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products said, “As a category leader Kala HIT has always led the fight from the front against dengue and malaria by educating people about this threat. This has been achieved through innovative campaigns under “Kill pests Kill diseases” like sand art activity on beaches of Chennai and Puri last year. This year on the occasion of World Mosquito Day, we are unveiling HIT – Track the Bite App, a latest initiative on our mission to provide real time information to people. We are hoping that this information will empower people to fight the threat of dengue and malaria.”

     

    Adding further he said, “Taking our fight against mosquitoes a step further, HIT intends to reach out to every citizen in the country sensitizing them about the threat of dengue or malaria through a technological disruption. HIT-Track the Bite is one-of-a-kind mobile app that intuitively provides real-time information on the threat levels to users basis their location. The app also provides precautionary measures required to remain safe. Spreading this information is critical and thus the app has a built-in feature that allows users also to alert their family and friends at the click of a button.”

     

    According to Kataria, Kala HIT would be embarking on a 4000 plus kilometers drive starting from the national capital – Delhi with the objective of educating people about dengue. On its way to Bangalore, the HIT van will cover more than 20 cities and demonstrate how HIT – Track the Bite app can help them be informed and be safe from dengue and malaria.

     

    Some of the highlights of the app include:

    • It provides real time updates to users on dengue & malaria news in their locality
    • The app tracks internet sources for any published news in India on dengue and malaria
    • Users can check the threat levels in any part of the country by entering a particular location
    • It provides a list of potential risk areas for malaria and dengue in the country
    • Easy share features enable users to inform family and friends in any part of the country
    • Gives power to the user to report mosquito infestation in a particular locality
    • Lists important safety tips to take necessary precautions

     

    Sumanta Ganguly

    Sumanta Ganguly, Senior VP – Lin Teractive said, “HIT — Track the Bite app is an offering that is unique in its approach. It’s the first of its kind that takes safety and precaution to the next level on the digital platform.”

     

     

     

    Gauri Joshi

    Sharing her views on developing the app, Gauri Joshi, Unit Creative Director, LinTeractive said, “Our vision to create a unique app that protects users from the ever-present risk of dengue and malaria has finally been realized. Given the increase in smartphone penetration, we are confident that the users will download and discover the many benefits that the app offers. With the app, users can stay informed and keep their near and dear ones safe from these diseases.”

     

  • The campaign builds on the core Cinthol brand philosophy of 'Alive is Awesome', and has been conceptualized and executed by Creativeland Asia

    Cinthol creates ‘Alive is Offline’ for the digital medium

    By A Correspondent

     

    Cinthol has announced the rollout of a new integrated campaign, ‘Alive is Offline’, to encourage people to disconnect from the Internet and spend some time adventuring in the real world instead.

     

    The ‘Alive is Offline’ integrated campaign is anchored by a film that depicts the journey of a man adventuring through wild terrain, keeping away from his smartphone, the Internet and social media. It showcases how rewarding a life of nature and adventure is, if people would only give it a chance.  And finally, the film is also a convincing demonstration of how “the world is more beautiful than the World Wide Web.’

     

    The campaign builds on the core Cinthol brand philosophy of ‘Alive is Awesome’, and has been conceptualized and executed by Creativeland Asia.

     

    Sunil Kataria, COO – Sales, Marketing & SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products Ltd. said, “Three years ago, Cinthol began its journey of talking to the young, live-for-the moment India through its brand philosophy of Alive Is Awesome. Through this campaign, we aim to strike a chord with a generation that’s conscious of how much they’re online and glued to one screen or another. #AliveIsOffline is a brilliant effort that builds on the brand philosophy in a manner that’s both insightful and inspiring. It urges addicted netizens to take away ‘media’ from ‘social media’ and leave one to only be social, to be social with nature, fellow companions and more importantly, with themselves.”

     

    On the campaign thought, Anu Joseph, Executive Creative Director, Creativeland Asia shared, “Most of us are guilty of staying connected – answering calls, replying to emails, posting, liking, tweeting, commenting, forwarding – even during our breaks. We go on holidays, but never go offline. We are never alive in the moment. Alive is Offline is Cinthol’s attempt at reminding people to lead more balanced, more fulfilling lives. To go offline because “this world is more beautiful than the world wide web.”

     

    The film opens on a scenic landscape shot, which is rudely interrupted by the sound of a phone ringing. When the phone call goes unanswered, an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) starts saying, “The person you are trying to call is currently busy”. The phone rings yet again while a man is basking in the sunrise. He remains oblivious to the phone ringing next to him. The IVR says, “The person you are trying to call is currently busy.” This time the IVR continues to speak and explains the philosophy behind ‘Alive is Offline.’ What follows next is best explained as a juxtaposition of what happens in the online world against complementary acts the man does in the offline world.

     

    As part of the teaser phase of the campaign, Cinthol’s Twitter handle  created #Addicted and #AliveIsAwesome, and posed a simple question to its 12.4 K followers- ‘What would you give up your Twitter handle in exchange for?’ This was to make its followers question their own addiction to Twitter and social media on the whole. The campaign received multiple responses. These tweets were monitored and followers were constantly pushed through the day to think deeper about their social media addiction.

     

    On the day of the launch, the #AliveIsOffline film managed to clock 11k plus shares, indicating a very high engagement rate.

     

    Following the teaser and the launch phase, Cinthol will create and promote #AliveIsOffline through user engagement activities on Facebook and Twitter.

     

    Customized caller tunes will also be made available for download, using the same IVR device deployed in the film in a fun and entertaining manner.

     

    The film is produced by BWP Totem Productions.

     

  • Yet another digital innovation by the brand helps one realise that one's world is more beautiful than the World Wide Web

    Cinthol takes to social media with #AliveIsOffline

    By A Correspondent

     

    Cinthol has released its latest digital campaign #AliveIsOffline on social media. The campaign took off with a teaser on twitter and is now reaching millions through a refreshing video which inspires the viewers to take some time off to travel and connect with the world around sans the internet.

     

    The inspirational video strikes an emotional connect and leaves one with a thought of how we are slowly getting strangled by the spider of the thriving World Wide Web. The video transcends the viewers to a forgotten world which can be logged into without a password. It is a wakeup call that urges you to switch to your offline mode once in a while. Weaved in with beautiful lines and picturesque scenes the video is an effective reminder of the breathtaking offline world that should be revisited.

     

    Sunil Kataria

    Sunil Kataria, Chief Operating Officer, Sales, Marketing and SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products Limited, shared, “In a world which is getting sucked into digital and where the youth of today is by default a digital native, this campaign idea of Alive is offline takes the Cinthol brand philosophy of Alive is Awesome forward in a very interesting way. Today we are so addicted to the world of social media that we take pictures only to post them, we check-in before enjoying the beauty around and make conversations only so that they trend. The meaning and beauty of travel to soak in the calm or appreciate a scenic view is lost while we are busy clicking pictures.

     

    #AliveIsOffline is a brilliant effort that urges addicted netizens to take away ‘media’ from ‘social media’ and leave one to only be social, to be social with nature, fellow companions and more importantly, with themselves.”

     

    Apart from the digital video, Cinthol plans to spread this thoughtful philosophy of #AliveIsOffline through online content partners and sought after tweeters. The brand hopes to touch the minds of as many as 10 million viewers through online content experts and Twitter influencer partnerships respectively.

     

    The video is the brainchild of Cinthol brand team and Creativeland Asia. Captured amidst the scenic forests, valleys and breathtaking waterfalls of Kerala this digital video is an eye opener and a thought starter.