MxMIndia

Tag: Vivek Bhargava

  • Mihir joins with over six years of experience in the digital industry, previously holding the position of Digital Media Head at World Wide Open and Reliance Entertainment – Digital

    iProspect appoints Mihir Mehta as director of Display Media

    By A Correspondent

     

    Mihir Mehta

    iProspect India has beefed up its display team with the appointment of Mihir Mehta as Director, Display Media.

     

    Mihir joins with over six years of experience in the digital industry, previously holding the position of Digital Media Head at World Wide Open and Reliance Entertainment – Digital. Recognized as one of the top 50 most influential Digital Media Professionals in 2015 by World Marketing Congress, his portfolio of achievements includes increasing revenue and improving brand awareness through Digital platforms for brands in India and abroad.

     

    From strategy to execution, media planning to buying, affiliates marketing, strategic partnerships and alliances, his focus has always been to drive value to the last cent for all clients. Mihir has experience in all major sectors, working actively on clients such as Reliance Group Companies (Reliance Communication, Reliance Mutual Fund, Reliance General Insurance, Reliance Life) Babyoye, Big Cinemas, SBI Life and Jockey, to name a few.

     

    Vivek Bhargava

    Commenting on the appointment, Vivek Bhargava, CEO iProspect said, “Display is a huge part of online media as it has immense potential for growth. With Mihir on board, we are gearing up to take our Display services to a whole new level. We are really excited to welcome him to the team and look forward to the award winning campaigns that are to come.”

     

  • awards recognize outstanding work, in advertising and marketing communications in the digital space

    iProspect Communicate wins 4 Metals at IDMA 2015

    By A Correspondent

     

    iProspect Communicate 2 from the Dentsu Aegis Network has won four awards across three categories at the India Digital Media Awards 2015. These awards recognize outstanding work, in advertising and marketing communications in the digital space.

     

    The honours included two metals in the ‘Best PPC’ category, with the agency picking up Gold and Silver for their Kotak Mahindra Bank and HDFC Life campaigns respectively. They also won a Bronze for the ‘Most Effective Use of Digital Analytics’ in Social Media for the Big Bazaar campaign. As well as a Bronze for ‘Best Use of Technology’ for Koovs.

     

    The objective of the Indian Digital Media Awards 2015 is to recognize, celebrate and encourage the work being done in the ever-growing advertising and marketing communications activity in the digital media space specifically, internet, mobile, gaming, social media and the blogosphere.

     

    Vivek Bhargava

    Vivek Bhargava CEO of iProspect Communicate 2 commented, “It is a privilege to have our work in the digital space recognised by IDMA. As a team of extremely dedicated professionals who work endlessly, to offer our clients the best online solutions, it is wonderful to have our hard work recognised and I would like to thank IDMA for these honours.”

     

  • For the record, the agency already handles the SEM and SEO domains for the life insurance company

    iProspect Communicate 2 bags AEGON Religare’s social media account

    By A Correspondent

     

    iProspect Communicate 2 has won the additional mandate to optimise social media platforms (SMO) for AEGON Religare. For the record, the agency already handles the SEM (search engine marketing) and SEO (search engine optimisation) domains for the life insurance company.

     

    Yateesh Srivastava

    Speaking on the win, Yateesh Srivastava, Chief Operating Officer, AEGON Religare notes, “As an organisation we truly understand the impact that social media has on our brand and on our reputation. It is a very powerful way to engage our customers and prospects in an authentic and useful manner. In iProspect we believe we have found the right match since the agency has been doing very well on our performance campaigns and we are sure they will do the same with Social Media, as well. The holistic approach will ensure uniformity in messaging across the digital space and will engage customers in a manner that creates maximum impact.”

     

     

    Vivek Bhargava

    Vivek Bhargava, CEO of iProspect Communicate 2 said, “We are glad to deliver our expertise to AEGON Religare in the social media domain, after a successful stint in both SEO and SEM. We have some extremely ambitious plans for the SMO activities of the account and look forward to strengthening our business bond by executing these plans and exceeding all expectations.”

     

  • The Dentsu Aegis Network Digital Council believes that this is a game changing move for the digital agencies in India and will permanently change the digital landscape

    Dentsu Aegis Network Digital Council to raise digital communication standards

    By a correspondent

     

    Dentsu Aegis Network has announced the formation of Digital Council with CEO’s of iProspectCommunicate2, Isobar and Webchutney. The move aims to revolutionize digital communications in India.

     

    Dentsu Aegis Network has emerged as the fastest growing agency group in the digital arena in India, with 500 digital professionals across their three digital specialist companies, Isobar, Webchutney and iProspectCommunicate2, spread across five cities.

     

    Dentsu Aegis Network is a leading international group in India that has market leading tools, skill sets and technology in every aspect of the digital space. iProspect is a leader in Search & Performance, not only in India, but globally too. In India, iProspect acquired Communicate 2 to form iProspectCommunicate2. Isobar is a leading, full-service digital agency in India and part of the global Isobar Network. Webchutney is the most prominent and successful Digital agency in India.

     

    Commenting on the formation of the Dentsu Aegis Network Digital Council, Ashish Bhasin, Chairman & CEO South Asia, Dentsu Aegis Network, said “With Vivek Bhargava, MD – iProspectCommunicate2, Shamsuddin Jasani, MD – Isobar India and Sidharth Rao, CEO & Co-Founder – Webchutney, coming together on the Dentsu Aegis Network Digital Council, we have the country’s best digital leadership, with a proven track record, driving our digital vision. Dentsu Aegis Network has always been a leader in the digital space globally and now we have replicated the same success in India. With 500 digital specialists and the three leading Digital Specialist Companies in India as a part of our group, we are well ahead of the competition in providing world class, comprehensive digital services in India.”

     

    The Dentsu Aegis Network Digital Council believes that this is a game changing move for the digital agencies in India and will permanently change the digital landscape. The Council is committed to raising the Digital Communication standards in India.

     

     

  • Unilever has set up its first media lab in the country in Mumbai which will train its managers on digital media marketing and certify all digital initiatives of its Indian unit before they go public.

    Hindustan Unilever sets up lab to train managers on digital media marketing

    By Sagar Malviya & Amit Bapna

     

    Unilever has set up its first media lab in the country in Mumbai, which will train its managers on digital media marketing and certify all digital initiatives of its Indian unit before they go public.

     

    The development signals a sharp focus on digital marketing by the country’s largest advertiser, and may make other marketers too to take the digital world more seriously.

     

    The lab at Hindustan Unilever’s headquarter at Andheri is the fourth such centre globally for the world’s second-largest consumer goods firm.

     

    Atit Mehta, media services head at Hindustan Unilever, said so far the company has been focusing on doing the similar things much better than others on digital media.

     

    “Now, we will be miles ahead from everybody else,” he said. The lab will ensure that all digital media campaigns of the consumer goods giant are compatible – from a basic mobile device to smartphone to tablet.

     

    The company will also increasingly opt for digital hoardings instead of static old banners. Digital media spends in India, although still very small compared traditional media, is growing at a faster rate than television and print as a rapidly rising number of Indians access internet on phone.

     

    CVL Srinivas

    Experts say HUL’s latest initiative would make other advertisers too to focus more on digital media. “Presently digital in general is under-leveraged. HUL has definitely been ahead of the curve. It’s only a matter of time before more advertisers start making serious investments in the medium,” said CVL Srinivas, chief executive officer (South Asia) at media buying agency GroupM.

     

    Vivek Bhargava, CEO of digital agency iProspect-Communicate2, says companies have no option but to take digital seriously as more and more consumers are trying to avoid conventional advertising. He says that if companies don’t allocate serious resources on digital marketing, then it could affect their survival.

     

    Vivek Bhargava

    Globally, Unilever increased its digital ad spends by about 40% in 2012-13. While Unilever has global partnerships with Samsung, Sony’s Arcade Creative Group and EA Sports, its Indian unit isn’t far behind. In the last few months, several HUL managers have been to global headquarters of Facebook and Google among others for training and digital certification.

     

    HUL launched a India-specific initiative, BE Digital, last year to draw up a complete digital roadmap for premium brands such as Tresemme, Sunsilk, Lakme, Close-up and Surf, where the target audience online is high.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2013, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • Aegis' acquisition of Communicate 2 is part of a series of M&As in the Indian digital media space

    Another win-win digital equation

     

    By Johnson Napier and Robin Thomas

     

    ‘By 2015, we want to be the top 3 player in every single sphere we operate in’
     

    What led you to shortlist Communicate2 as the partner of choice?

    Communicate2 is one of the largest and oldest firms in the area of search & performance marketing in India. Vivek Bhargava, as you’d know, is considered to be the guru of search inIndia. He is also one of the guys to be Google-certified and has been in this business since 1997 – a time when the internet and search was in its absolute infancy. In our view, nobody else managed the quality and scale of the business that he has built up, and therefore he was a preferred partner of choice.

     

    The other important reason for choosing Communicate2 was chemistry – Aegis Media has a certain vision and value outlook which is very close to our heart and Communicate2 seemed to have gelled very well with those attributes. There was a lot of comfort on both sides. So these were some of the key reasons for us to choose Communicate2.

     

    Will you be laying enhanced emphasis on Search with the current acquisition…

    The focus is on search because it is one of the fastest growing parts of our business. Clearly, Communiacte2 is the biggest player in the space and now with iProspect and Communicate2 together, we are straight away the number one player of search in India. So that’s how it is placed as of now.

     

    How long has it been since you have been pursuing Communicate2? Did you scan the market for other potential candidates?

    We were working with them about 4-5 years ago, but nothing more came out of that deal. This recent move has been in the works for a few months. Also, we did scan the market as anybody else would and we did have a few names that we shortlisted and we narrowed down to Communicate2.

     

    The deal seems heavy on the investments front. Would you share with us the monetary plans you engaged in towards snapping the agency?

    An agency that is the oldest and has a workforce of more than 130 people is not going to sell out cheap. I cannot disclose the amounts behind the deal, but I can say that it has been fairly priced.

     

    The market has been abuzz with news of big communication houses buying out specialist digital agencies in the recent past. What would you infer of this trend that everybody is taking a liking to?

    I cannot comment about others, but there is a clear strategy that Aegis Media believes in and that is by 2015, we want to be the top three player in every single sphere that we operate in – be it out-of-home, search or digital. As part of our strategy to be in the top 3, the best way of getting there was by partnering with Communicate2 because their expertise, their client base and their search professionals coupled with the iProspect tools and knowledge would be an unbeatable combination.

     

    In an acquisition it is very important that you have to see how the acquisition fits with the plans of your company. So the task of integration becomes key, which is why the quality and type of people and the chemistry become important. So companies that are blindly going out and buying companies will fall flat on their face, but those who are able to acquire and integrate companies and have a great bond with the partners will be successful in the long run.

     

    Globally, digital contributes more than 35 per cent for Aegis Media. What is it that you anticipate from the Indian market post the acquisition of Communicate2?

    We are looking at being the clear No 1. Globally, iProspect is the world’s largest search network, and in India we now become No 1 with this venture. But we want to be No 1 by a long distance. We want to be double the size of the No 2 guy in a few years.

     

    What are the immediate changes that will be seen on ground?

    There is a new office that we are in the process of doing up in Mumbai; their staff will be moving into that new place soon. Likewise the Delhi team too would be amalgamated in our office. With this the entire Aegis Media clients will have benefits from Communicate2 and vice-versa.

     

    As for people, Vivek will be the MD of the new venture. He already has a management team. Of course, as growth happens we will keep recruiting more people. All other aspects remain the same.

     

    The announcement comes just weeks after Dentsu acquired a stake in Aegis Media. Has this deal been inspired from that takeover…

    These things do not happen overnight; it has been ongoing much before that. The two are not related.

     

    Future plans from Aegis Media…

    As I said, we will be the top 3 player in every space that we operate in. In some instances we will do that organically, in others we will do that inorganically – provided we get a good partner. We are not on the lookout as of now but if any new opportunity does come up we will not be turning a blind eye to that.

    No doubt people would talk about the number of medals won and the records that were broken in Olympics 2012; but what it will be most remembered for is the use of digital media, particularly social media. All of the Olympics events are being streamed live on YouTube for the first time; there has been an increase in the number of Facebook users and Twitter accounts and one can even get live news updates online. Even Google has been putting up doodles on its home page, giving users information and updates on the Olympic sport of the day. These are just few signs that digital has arrived.

     

    The past few months have witnessed quite a few mergers and acquisitions in the digital space. Standalone digital agencies, particularly those with over four years of existence, are being acquired by larger advertising networks. Only recently Publicis Groupe has announced the acquisition of Resultrix, a digital marketing agency, with the aim of strengthening Publicis Groupe’s presence in India as well as its digital dominance. Prior to this, JWT, one of the leading advertising agency acquired a majority stake in Hungama Digital Services, the digital and promotions marketing division of Hungama Digital Media Entertainment. Also recently Gruner + Jahr, the publishing division of European media conglomerate Bertelsmann AG, acquired a majority stake in Network play,India’s digital ad network company.

     

    On August 09, the media and digital communications group Aegis Group plc (“Aegis”) announced that it has acquired Communicate 2, a performance marketing and search agency in India.  With this acquisition, Aegis Media becomes one of the strongest agencies in the digital space in India. Communicate 2  will be merged into iProspect India’s existing operations; strengthening its network in key cities across India and providing additional service capabilities for its clients.

     

    Speaking to MxMIndia about his views on the increasing trend of big communication houses buying standalone or specialist digital agencies, Mr Ashish Bhasin, Chairman India & CEO South East Asia, Aegis Media said: “I cannot comment about others, but there is a clear strategy that Aegis Media believes in and that is by 2015, we want to be the top three player in every single sphere that we operate in – be it out-of-home, search or digital. As part of our strategy to be in the top 3, the best way of getting there was by partnering with Communicate2 because their expertise, their client base and their search professionals coupled with the iProspect tools and knowledge would be an unbeatable combination.”

     

    “In an acquisition it is very important that you have to see how the acquisition fits with the plans of your company. So the task of integration becomes key, which is why the quality and type of people and the chemistry become important. So companies that are blindly going out and buying companies will fall flat on their face, but those who are able to acquire and integrate companies and have a great bond with the partners will be successful in the long run,” he added.

     

    Mr Vivek Bhargava, Managing Director, Communicate 2 was of the view that these are signs that digital media has arrived and that even brands have accepted this reality. “Digital marketing in India has now arrived. More promoters and senior management people now believe that digital is a very critical part of their marketing endeavour. So they are spending a lot of time around the medium. About 3-4 years ago we were talking about digital being the future and today digital is now considered as present. Earlier digital used to attract a small budget from marketers, but now they position it as their first priority and question whether they need conventional media or not.Mobilehas given digital three times the reach of television. So I believe digital is going to be the dominant medium in the future.”

     

    MxMIndia also spoke to a few industry players to gauge their take on the recent mergers and acquisitions in the digital space, especially Aegis Media acquiring Communicate2′.

     

    Anurag Gupta

    According to Mr Anurag Gupta, MD, DGM India, it is a win-win situation for Aegis Media and Communicate 2: “Vivek Bhargava has done well for himself, he has created a fairly good outfit and the testimony for this is the fact that it has been acquired. This is a good sign. I believe that this trend will continue – most of the standalone digital agencies will get merged with larger offline agencies. Both search and performance advertising are growing robustly. In fact, a completely new category in digital has emerged in the past one and half years – e-commerce business. They are doing a lot of search and performance advertising, so there is lot of growth.”

     

    Mr Amardeep Singh, Co-Founder and CEO, Interactive Avenues was also of the view that the Aegis acquiring Communicate2 is a win-win situation: “I believe it is a good move for both Aegis Media and Communicate2, as this kind of transaction will help Communicate2 to scale from where they are currently placed. It doesn’t matter whether an agency is part of, or not part of, a larger advertising networking, if it continues to operate as an independent agency despite being owned by a larger network then it retains its identity. Typically, a specialist agency is able to provide a holistic solution to the clients and everything happens in-house for them. What happens is that when an agency offers an offline as well as online service, the focus on digital is lost. A standalone digital agency is able to give its clients that much more focus than an agency which offers both offline and online services.”

     

    So, while the Aegis Media acquiring Communicate 2 is seen as a win-win situation by industry players, it is also believed that this is just the beginning in the digital space.

     

    ‘It was a meeting of the best minds of the world’
     

    The buzz was that you were being hounded by most big communication players in the market for a takeover and now you’ve finally given in to Aegis Media. How would you describe the takeover journey?

    We had the opportunity to talk to every single large player and we found that the way the market is growing, there is going to be a lot of technology components required in it and iProspect globally has the best technology in the world. Also, we are a very dominant agency as far as search and performance marketing is concerned in India while iProspect was the world’s largest search company, so it was a meeting of the best minds of the world. The digital market in India has matured to the level where clients are looking for the best in the world and we felt that with the expertise that iProspect had to offer, it was a perfect solution to offer to our partners. And we endeavour to take decisions for our partners as much as it helps us.

     

    What is your view on big communication players showing sudden interest in digital in India?

    Digital marketing in India has now arrived. More promoters and senior management people now believe that digital is a very critical part of their marketing endeavour. So they are spending a lot of time around the medium. About 3-4 years ago we were talking about digital being the future and today digital is now considered as present. Earlier digital used to attract a small budget from marketers, but now they position it as their first priority and question whether they need conventional media or not.Mobilehas given digital three times the reach of television. So I believe digital is going to be the dominant medium in the future.

     

    What is the value that you’d be leveraging from this partnership?

    Globally if you see, there are clients like GM, Nokia, Philips and others who have operations in 60-70 countries and they are aligned with Aegis Media. I see tremendous opportunities there. As for us, we are a 140-people agency which makes us the largest digital agency in the country. So with the clients we have and with the kind of team we have in the enterprise sector, I see it as a perfect marriage of the two. I see tremendous value in the venture.

     

    How have clients responded to this move of yours?

    I had spoken to clients even before this venture and they seemed pretty positive about it. Also there is no change as such in the team and talent, so there was a comfort level there. Generally they are happy with the merger.

     

    Do you see the gap between digital and advertising being bridged?

    If you ask me the demarcation between digital and conventional media will probably go away. This is going to be an advertising agency and digital is going to be an integral part of the advertising medium, probably the largest. Demarcation is something that we have created for ourselves but it is about giving out advertising solutions.

     
  • Aegis Group plc ("Aegis") announced that it has acquired Communicate 2, a performance marketing and search agency inIndia. MxM spoke to Ashish Bhasin, Chairman India & CEO South East Asia, Aegis Media on his views…

    ‘By 2015, we want to be the top 3 player in every single sphere we operate in’

    What led you to shortlist Communicate2 as the partner of choice?

    Communicate2 is one of the largest and oldest firms in the area of search & performance marketing in India. Vivek Bhargava, as you’d know, is considered to be the guru of search inIndia. He is also one of the guys to be Google-certified and has been in this business since 1997 – a time when the internet and search was in its absolute infancy. In our view, nobody else managed the quality and scale of the business that he has built up, and therefore he was a preferred partner of choice.

     

    The other important reason for choosing Communicate2 was chemistry – Aegis Media has a certain vision and value outlook which is very close to our heart and Communicate2 seemed to have gelled very well with those attributes. There was a lot of comfort on both sides. So these were some of the key reasons for us to choose Communicate2.

     

    Will you be laying enhanced emphasis on Search with the current acquisition…

    The focus is on search because it is one of the fastest growing parts of our business. Clearly, Communiacte2 is the biggest player in the space and now with iProspect and Communicate2 together, we are straight away the number one player of search in India. So that’s how it is placed as of now.

     

    How long has it been since you have been pursuing Communicate2? Did you scan the market for other potential candidates?

    We were working with them about 4-5 years ago, but nothing more came out of that deal. This recent move has been in the works for a few months. Also, we did scan the market as anybody else would and we did have a few names that we shortlisted and we narrowed down to Communicate2.

     

    The deal seems heavy on the investments front. Would you share with us the monetary plans you engaged in towards snapping the agency?

    An agency that is the oldest and has a workforce of more than 130 people is not going to sell out cheap. I cannot disclose the amounts behind the deal, but I can say that it has been fairly priced.

     

    The market has been abuzz with news of big communication houses buying out specialist digital agencies in the recent past. What would you infer of this trend that everybody is taking a liking to?

    I cannot comment about others, but there is a clear strategy that Aegis Media believes in and that is by 2015, we want to be the top three player in every single sphere that we operate in – be it out-of-home, search or digital. As part of our strategy to be in the top 3, the best way of getting there was by partnering with Communicate2 because their expertise, their client base and their search professionals coupled with the iProspect tools and knowledge would be an unbeatable combination.

     

    In an acquisition it is very important that you have to see how the acquisition fits with the plans of your company. So the task of integration becomes key, which is why the quality and type of people and the chemistry become important. So companies that are blindly going out and buying companies will fall flat on their face, but those who are able to acquire and integrate companies and have a great bond with the partners will be successful in the long run.

     

    Globally, digital contributes more than 35 per cent for Aegis Media. What is it that you anticipate from the Indian market post the acquisition of Communicate2?

    We are looking at being the clear No 1. Globally, iProspect is the world’s largest search network, and in India we now become No 1 with this venture. But we want to be No 1 by a long distance. We want to be double the size of the No 2 guy in a few years.

     

    What are the immediate changes that will be seen on ground?

    There is a new office that we are in the process of doing up in Mumbai; their staff will be moving into that new place soon. Likewise the Delhi team too would be amalgamated in our office. With this the entire Aegis Media clients will have benefits from Communicate2 and vice-versa.

     

    As for people, Vivek will be the MD of the new venture. He already has a management team. Of course, as growth happens we will keep recruiting more people. All other aspects remain the same.

     

    The announcement comes just weeks after Dentsu acquired a stake in Aegis Media. Has this deal been inspired from that takeover…

    These things do not happen overnight; it has been ongoing much before that. The two are not related.

     

    Future plans from Aegis Media…

    As I said, we will be the top 3 player in every space that we operate in. In some instances we will do that organically, in others we will do that inorganically – provided we get a good partner. We are not on the lookout as of now but if any new opportunity does come up we will not be turning a blind eye to that.

     

  • Communicate 2, a performance marketing and search agency inIndia, has been acquired by Aegis Group plc ("Aegis"). MxM spoke to Vivek Bhargava, Managing Director Communicate 2 about the acquistion…

    ‘It was a meeting of the best minds of the world’

    The buzz was that you were being hounded by most big communication players in the market for a takeover and now you’ve finally given in to Aegis Media. How would you describe the takeover journey?

    We had the opportunity to talk to every single large player and we found that the way the market is growing, there is going to be a lot of technology components required in it and iProspect globally has the best technology in the world. Also, we are a very dominant agency as far as search and performance marketing is concerned inIndiawhile iProspect was the world’s largest search company, so it was a meeting of the best minds of the world. The digital market inIndiahas matured to the level where clients are looking for the best in the world and we felt that with the expertise that iProspect had to offer, it was a perfect solution to offer to our partners. And we endeavour to take decisions for our partners as much as it helps us.

     

    What is your view on big communication players showing sudden interest in digital in India?

    Digital marketing inIndiahas now arrived. More promoters and senior management people now believe that digital is a very critical part of their marketing endeavour. So they are spending a lot of time around the medium. About 3-4 years ago we were talking about digital being the future and today digital is now considered as present. Earlier digital used to attract a small budget from marketers, but now they position it as their first priority and question whether they need conventional media or not.Mobilehas given digital three times the reach of television. So I believe digital is going to be the dominant medium in the future.

     

    What is the value that you’d be leveraging from this partnership?

    Globally if you see, there are clients like GM, Nokia, Philips and others who have operations in 60-70 countries and they are aligned with Aegis Media. I see tremendous opportunities there. As for us, we are a 140-people agency which makes us the largest digital agency in the country. So with the clients we have and with the kind of team we have in the enterprise sector, I see it as a perfect marriage of the two. I see tremendous value in the venture.

     

    How have clients responded to this move of yours?

    I had spoken to clients even before this venture and they seemed pretty positive about it. Also there is no change as such in the team and talent, so there was a comfort level there. Generally they are happy with the merger.

     

    Do you see the gap between digital and advertising being bridged?

    If you ask me the demarcation between digital and conventional media will probably go away. This is going to be an advertising agency and digital is going to be an integral part of the advertising medium, probably the largest. Demarcation is something that we have created for ourselves but it is about giving out advertising solutions.