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EE News Desk
Book between 10 and 19 June 2016 and receive a 50% discount (on weekends) and 35% (on weekdays) on the Hyatt Daily Rate for stays between 10 June and 8 September 2016 at Hyatt hotels in India and Nepal. Explore Mumbai in the company of old friends and enjoy the eclectic and cosmopolitan vibes of this great city. Visit Goa with your family and be charmed by its balmy palm-fringed beaches, the architectural beauty of its old churches and houses and fascinating home-style cuisine. Go on a culinary adventure in Chandigarh and Ludhiana and savour the authentic flavours and fragrances of the region, or marvel at the splendour of the Golden Temple in Amritsar. If you are a history enthusiast, a visit to Hampi will awaken your curiosity. Head further south to colourful Chennai - a city steeped in music, art and culture - or enjoy a romantic interlude in the beautiful old palaces of Hyderabad. Wherever your travels take you, a stay at Hyatt hotels, with such great fares, is a must-not-miss this season.
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Today as we enter the era of the fourth industrial revolution wherein the lines between physical, digital and biological spheres are narrowing, it is imperative for large companies to avoid the 'Kodak moment'. Publicis Groupe feels the need for its clients to brace for this change by helping them innovate and stay ahead of disruption. It intends to do this by bringing together some of the sharpest minds from within the tech startup ecosystem in India and the Publicis Groupe brand builders to ‘hack’ solutions on the various brands that it works with across the group. In the late 50s Publicis Groupe founder Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet started the Drugstore near Arc de Triomphe in Paris to bring multiple brands physically under one roof, with the express idea of getting 'consumers to experience brands and for brands to get to experiment with them in return'. Today, it invokes its founder’s vision to bring this concept of disruptive innovation thinking and prototyping to clients and help them 'thrive at scale'. Drugstore India is an innovation facility that fosters relationships between large companies and early stage startups for mutual benefit. This innovation thinking will be mentored by minds across Publicis Groupe companies such as L&K | Saatchi & Saatchi, Publicis India, Leo-Burnett, MSLGROUP and Razorfish. The idea of the Drugstore is fundamentally based on the spirit of identifying and harnessing these innovations and innovators and bridging the gap between needs and resources. Drugstore India will collaborate with leading players in the Indian startup ecosystem like Zone Startups amongst others to bring some of the proven and agile innovation programs such as Minibar, Meet the Makers, Demo Days, Supper Club, Rapid Prototyping & Incubator Accelerator to capitalize on inventions and have radical outcomes in the process, products and services. Besides helping client brands stay successful, Drugstore will add strategic marketing value to the emerging startup fraternity through both physical and cloud based access to brand building resources across the Publicis Groupe and by collaborating with them to help them acquire scale expertise and by mentoring and immersing them on turning any business into a successful brand. Publicis Groupe has launched the Drugstore in London, Sydney, Johannesburg and Zurich and the first Drugstore edition in Asia is now officially starting in India and will be based in Mumbai. The Drugstore India team will be led by Anil K. Nair (CEO, Digital L&K | Saatchi & Saatchi) along with a core team comprising of Sreeraman Thiagarajan (Publicis), Parth Nagar & Aarti Samant (L&K Saatchi & Saatchi), Sanju Menon (Leo-Burnett), Suryasen Kundu (MSL Group), & Swapnil Puranik (Razorfish) and under the overall mentorship of Praveen Kenneth, Chairman & Managing Director, L&K Saatchi & Saatchi.
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As a small token of appreciation for their persistent services and saluting the true spirit of Mumbai traffic police, Dr. Fixit, waterproofing experts from the house of Pidilite Industries, presented 5000 raincoats to the Commissioner of Police, Shri Dattatray Padsalgikar. Dr. Sanjay Bahadur, Global CEO, Construction Chemicals, Pidilite Industries Ltd., while presenting the raincoats said, “We salute the spirit of the Mumbai Traffic Police for being the guardians of the city. Being the waterproofing expert, we would like to acknowledge their work and show gratitude through a special gift – Raincoat. We offer our appreciation to the police personnel who relentlessly work day in and out to ensure safety. We wish them all the best.” The purpose behind giving away these raincoats is to shield police personnel from the upcoming monsoons so that they can perform their duties with ease and continue to protect citizens. The vast majority of us can't wait to get back indoors after braving the haze of soot and smoke hanging over Mumbai every day. However, no one bears the brunt of this city's pollution crisis more than the traffic police who spend hours doing their duty right in the middle of all the dust and din on the roads. Moreover, heavy rainfall causes water logging on the roads which in turn leads to traffic congestion. But this does not dampen the high spirits of the traffic police personnel. They stand rock steady even during heavy downpours and work day in and day out for our safety. Be it the sweltering heat of summer or the heavy rains and floods of monsoons, the Mumbai Police is always present to protect this great city and its citizens. To add further, while, we the citizens enjoy occasions like Diwali and Eid at homes with our families, the men in uniform sacrifice their own priceless moments to ensure our safety. Dr Fixit claims that the raincoats are a small gesture of gratitude towards the unstinted handwork of the traffic police.
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HUL’s CSR initiative Unilever Sustainable Living Plan (USLP) is aimed at operating and growing its business in a socially responsible way. Vibgyor Brand Services associated with Unilever for the 5th consecutive year for managing USLP conference at Taj Mansingh, Delhi on 7 June, 2016. The conference addressed the issues of a sustainable growth faced by companies and how Unilever plans to deal with these issues in the coming years in order to continue walking on the path of success. Some of the attendees of conference were the people from Geometry Global, Water Aid, UNICEF, World Bank, Netherland Embassy, etc. Approximately 100 people attended the conference discussing where the collective action is required to find common solutions of the challenges faced by the business community and as members of the society. Commenting on the association with Vibgyor, Yashmi Yadav – USLP, Communications Manager said “Our association with them has been over 5 years now. The conference was a great success and it was well appreciated by the internal and external guests.” Having successfully organized and executed the conference, Ankur Kalra, CEO Vibgyor Brand Services, said “Our association with HUL goes back at the time when they had started the USLP initiative and the relationship have grown since then. We have organized the 5th consecutive conference for HUL and each time
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Around 100 celebrities from the world of literature, cinema, media and politics will assemble in the temple city of Odisha to deliberate on the theme of ‘Literature and Democracy’ at the Kalinga Literature Festival. Kalinga Literary Festival (KLF) has emerged as the biggest literary platform in the Eastern part of India attracting both experienced and young litterateurs. Bigger than ever before the third edition of the festival will bring nationally and internationally acclaimed names to one platform to discuss, debate and explore commonalities in the diverse voices in literature and democracy. The festival will be inaugurated by Union Ministers led by Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Dr. Mahesh Sharma and Shri Babul Supriyo and Odisha Government Minister Shri Debi Prasad Mishra. Dr. Subramanian Swamy, Rajya Sabha MP will be the Key Note Speaker. The two-day festival will cover several dimensions of the interconnections between literature and democracy. The key sessions will be on topics like dialogue, development and democratic spirit in literature, a literary journey of Kalinga, governance in Odia language, youth, women, media, sports, folk and regional literature etc. 15 new books will be launched during the two days festival. Leading names like Amiya Bhusan Tripathi, Amrendra Khatua, Anil Dey, Anustup Nayak, Arif Mohd. Khan, Arun Rath, Arundhati Subramaniam, Asit Mohanty, Baishnab Parida, Bhabani Mohanty, Bibhuti Pattnaik, Bijaya Kumar Rath, Charudutta Panigrahi, Chittaranjan Jena, Deba Prasad Dash, Debasis Panigrahi, Debi Prasanna Pattanayak, Debajani Mohanty Rastogi, Dinanath Pathy, Durga Panda, Gourhari Das, Haldhar Nag, Haraprasad Dash, Jayanta Mohapatra, JP Dash, Kedar Mishra, Mahesh Sahoo, Mani Shankar Aiyar, Mridula Garg , Mrinal Chaterjee, Nandini Sahoo, Paramita Satapathy, Piyush Mishra, Pooja Bhatt, Praduymna Satpathy, Pratibha Ray, Purushottam Agrawal, Rahul Pandita, Rajendra P Gupta , Ramakanta Rath, Sachidananda Mohanty, Sameer, Sangram Lahiry, Sankar Parida, Santosh Mohanty, Saroj Mishra, Satyabrata Rout, Satyanand Nirupam, Seema Biswas, Sitakanta Mohapatra, Subhransu Panda, SujitMohapatra, T.K Chand, Uma Basudev, Vineet Kumar and YashPattnaik etc. For Schedule and Online Registration please visit: http://www.kalingaliteraryfest.com/ Mr. Kamala Kanta Dash, Convener of KLF, believes that “Indian literature is rich in diversity of colour and human experiences. KLF has also been a platform to explore Odisha’s rich variety of literature and human experience”. Announcing the festival, Founder Rashmi Ranjan Parida said “KLF 2016 promises to be the biggest platform and will be a best blend of Odia literature and its interconnection with national and global literature.” Chief Convener Shri Sangram Dhar said “We are happy that in three years KLF has gone global. We have been able to attract diverse voices from all over India.”
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Cinépolis India, an international exhibitor in India, will exclusively showcase Viacom 18 film festival across 5 cities in India. Scheduled from June 11th to June 17th, 2016, the week-long festival will bring back the memories of few handpicked Bollywood movies such as Kahaani, Gangs of Wasseypur 1 & 2 across 5 cities in Cinépolis Andheri in Mumbai, Cinépolis Viviana Mall in Thane, Cinépolis Seasons Mall in Pune, Cinépolis Royal Meenakshi Mall in Bangalore and Cinépolis Shahdra in Delhi. To bring the best of the movie viewing experience to their audience and to celebrate the successful completion of 5 years of Viacom’s existence, Cinépolis India has exclusively partnered with Viacom 18 for the upcoming film festival. The festival will kick-start with the Bollywood mystery thriller movie “Kahaani” on Day 1 at all the megaplexes and will conclude with Gangs of Wasseypur 1 & 2 on Day 7. The tickets for the festival will be available at all the respective cinemas at their lowest price points. A mix of other inspiring, intense and entertaining movies such as Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, Special 26, Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2, Manjhi The Mountainman and Queen will be screened at all multiplexes. Sharing his views on this strategic partnership, Mr. Devang Sampat, Director – Strategy, Cinépolis India, said, “Cinépolis India has always been at the forefront in promoting and offering a seamless cinema experience for its audience in India. In our endeavor to offer our consumers and movie enthusiasts their favorite Bollywood movies in the theatres once again, we have associated with Viacom 18 to showcase the best of their movies. We are confident that our patrons will enjoy this experience.” Cinépolis India currently operates in 39 cities across India and has total of 240 screens running at present. The company has plans of rolling out 400 screens by 2017.
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Ratan Tata, one of India’s top business leaders and investor has invested in Kyazoonga - a ticketing company that is making impressive strides. Kyazoonga owns its own IP and ticketing technology and platform. In addition to creating and growing the ticketing market in India, Kyazoonga has ticketed international events including the ICC Cricket World Cup in three countries, the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, SAFF Cup, bilateral international cricket matches and domestic tournaments such as the Indian Premier League and the Pro Kabaddi League, Nehru Cup and others. Most recently it was adjudged a close runner up in the ticketing bid for the Rio 2016 Olympics beating global ticketing majors to reach that position. Kyazoonga now has ticketing operations around the world – in the UAE, U.S., and the Caribbean. It tickets tournaments such as the Caribbean Premier League and the Pakistan Super League. Speaking about the investment, Neetu Bhatia, CEO and co-founder of Kyazoonga said, “We are delighted to have Mr. Tata on board. As we scale Kyazoonga into a global enterprise, glad to know he shares in the excitement of our mission of ‘Tickets made simple for everyone, everywhere’. We continue to focus our efforts on the large potential for paid access that India represents and pushing the envelope on significant global opportunities. Personally, as a lifelong fan of his work that has included building several Tata companies into global majors, and as someone whose early world view of business was shaped by interactions with the Tata Group and Bombay House and his office, it is an honor and a privilege to get his validation for our team, product and market.” For Neetu Bhatia, the investment from Mr. Tata has come full circle – as a young engineering student at the College of Engineering, Pune, Neetu had interned at Tata Motors. When she was accepted as a graduate student into MIT and as a research student at the world-renowned International Motor Vehicle Program at MIT, Mr. Tata had written her a personal note encouraging her to come back to India and change the world. Neetu is also a Tata scholar.
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Euro16 is here- so what should brands expect from it? Onspon.com dissects a few research reports published and learnings to bring across some facts that can make their brands' engagement effective. A study conducted by RadiumOne has derived key findings in a sample group of 1,000 people interested in the tournament. Their findings show that TV rules the roost, but it also suggests there are opportunities for brands to branch out in how they connect with fans watching football. While 82% will watch games live on TV, 58% will talk about the Euros with friends or family face-to-face, 56% will follow news about the tournament and 50% will follow a team. In addition, 22% will listen on the radio, 21% will consume content on social media, 20% will share UEFA Euro ‘16-related content with friends or family using email, text or instant messaging and 19% will share content via social channels. Team from Onspon.com further analysed the research details. The research also shows that engagement with the Euros is high, as 45% of those surveyed would describe themselves as fanatics, 36% as enthusiasts and 19% as followers. Fanatics are mostly male – 59% versus 41% of females – while the split for enthusiasts swings the other way, with 45% of men classing themselves as such, versus 55% of women. There are also more female followers (67%) compared to men (33%), but while men are perhaps more obsessive in their love of football, there are a significant number of very interested women that brands should be looking to engage. What does it mean ? So what about the gender divide ? Almost three in five fans suggest that they will watch the Euros at home on their own, more prevalent in male fans (71%) than female fans (45%) who want to devote their time to the game. Female fans are significantly more likely to plan a party or barbecue (21% compared to 11% of men) or watch the games at a family member’s house (43% of women versus 27% of men). Further detailing on the mode of viewing ; the data clearly indicated that most fans will watch matches live on TV, talk about games with friends or family, and watch highlight shows on TV. Fanatics are significantly more likely to participate in any UEFA-related activity, while female fans are more inclined towards supporting a team in the Euros. Hitesh Gossain, CEO of Onspon.com derives an interesting conclusion, “While those described as followers will be more likely to focus on the game, fanatics and enthusiasts will be multi-tasking and actively engaging with the match by reading, chatting and sharing content. Reading online comments or chatting via instant messaging are the top two activities done while watching the game, illustrating that brands should consider different tactics to reach their target audience.” The above study also unveils that about 87% of the people will be sharing content in ‘dark social’ mode which indicates to online chats and emails and not social platforms. This means that their content will be bypassing the analytics programs for web measurement. Among the type of shared content, scores turned out to be the favorite with 53%, and goals being the next in line with 47%. News and pictures take up 42% each, followed by controversial decisions by referees, which stand at 41%. Team news sharing will be done by 35% of the respondents. In terms of devices used for sharing, smartphones lead the way with 38%. This will be followed by 24% using laptops and 18% using tablets. Hitesh sums up by saying - 'The above stats clearly point out that the Euro 2016 is all set to be a second-screen experience providing Indian brands with a series of sustainable opportunities regarding ‘moment marketing,’ if they are able to establish a connection of the usage of second-screen with the key moments.' The key moments can also be synchronized to ads that can be directed to a number of connected devices holding a profile similar to that of TV audience. The focus of advertisers will be on making the use of technology to take up a key moment from TV, and use that to expand the reach of their audience base for relevant real-time ad in order to gather better ROI and higher engagement. Hitesh Gossain, CEO Onspon.com says 'Its a perfect opportunity to communicate with a highly engaged gender agnostic IP where a brand can be creative and drive massive engagement across all platforms.'
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Experiential marketing agency, Vibgyor Brand Services, specializing in brand activations, events and consumer outreach programs with its corporate headquarters in Delhi, has created a specific division for Exhibitions by the name of Vibgyor Exhibits. As the company is focusing its strategy on continuous growth and expansion, its new division Vibgyor Exhibits will offer clients a bouquet of exhibition services both in the domestic as well as and international space. Vibgyor has roped in RK Yambungchou as the Business Head of Vibgyor Exhibits. He has more than 20 years of experience in the field of exhibition management & consultancy that encompasses sales, corporate communications, client relationship & team management. Prior to joining Vibgyor, he has held responsible roles in well-known Exhibition firms like Pico International Exhibitions India & Milton Exhibits India, both multi-nationals pioneering in the field of International Events & Exhibitions, as Operations & Business Development Head & Director Business Development Head respectively. He has rendered exhibition services to most of the prominent trade bodies, private agencies & councils and associations like ITPO, EEPC, AEPC, APEDA, Thailand Embassy, JETRO, GJEPC, Dentsu, Honda, etc. to name a few. Speaking about joining Vibgyor RK mentioned – ‘Vibgyor is best known for managing the large scale activations & events in the industry and works with some of the best brands. My focus would be to leverage the goodwill that the company has created over the last 14 years and establish it as a leading name in the domestic as well as international exhibitions industry. The new exhibition division starts with an independent head count of over 10 people and would be supported by the existing creative and operations verticals of Vibgyor. There are plans to begin a separate production facility to cater to Vibgyor Exhibits specifically in the near future. Speaking about the announcement of Vibgyor Exhibits - Ankur Kalra, Managing Director, Vibgyor Brand Services: While Vibgyor has been doing several exhibition projects for its clients over the past few years, our core focus area has always been activation & events. With the launch of Vibgyor Exhibits as a separate SBU under the able guidance of RK I am confident that this will be a growth driver in the years to come. We have made considerable investments in people, resources and facilities and with a specialised division hope to make a name in this market as well. RK is a seasoned professional with more than 20 years rich experience in the exhibition industry – I look forward to him greatly contributing to the teams capability to deliver in this space.
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Madison Outdoor’s unit, Platinum Outdoor, continuing its association with Tiago, the new hatchback from Tata Motors, has created an experiential outdoor innovation in Mumbai. After its successful launch in OOH a few months ago, the agency put up an actual real size 3D model of the car on a hoarding in prime location in Mumbai. The agency also used sky-tracker high intensity lights to build curiosity from a distance and give the hoarding an iconic feel. The hoarding was on a heavy traffic route of Western Express Highway in Bandra. Executing the innovation was a real challenge, it took about 50 days to fabricate a 20 foot 3D model of the car, put it up on the hoarding and getting regulatory approvals. This is the first time something of this scale has been put up on a hoarding. In the past, some brands have put up shells of their cars, but nothing to this scale. Says Dipankar Sanyal, CEO, Platinum Outdoor, “We are really excited with this new innovation done for Tiago on the back of a very successful launch”.
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