Cosmetics brand Maybelline New York hosted a multi-city integrated Google Hangout with Alia Bhatt and thousands of fans across India. The activity was conceptualized and executed by FoxyMoron, an independent digital marketing agency. Visitors at Shoppers Stop in Delhi and Mumbai were in for a treat as they got the chance to interact with Alia Bhatt LIVE via a Google Hangout. Since Alia’s latest make-up favorites from Maybelline New York are the new Color Show nail colors and the Lip Polish range, she quizzed her fans on the names of the shades and had a fun session with them sharing make-up and beauty tips. In addition to this, a few lucky shoppers were handpicked by Alia Bhatt from the crowd and received nail art tutorials from an artist present during the Hangout. Commenting on this fun way to interact with her fans, Alia Bhatt, brand ambassador of Maybelline New York, said, “I’ve always loved Maybelline New York not only for the innovative products they launch, but also for the initiatives they take up to engage with their consumers and fans. The experience of talking to so many fans in two different cities at the same time and sharing some of my thoughts on beauty was fantastic. It was such an interesting way to brighten up a regular Friday evening and at the same time get some amazing feedback from the fans on my work and Maybelline New York’s new launches.” Across India, over 92,121 fans tuned-in LIVE to the Hangout which received an overwhelming 92 Million impressions and a reach of over 14 Million across Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Instagram. In the lead up to the Live interaction with Alia, over millions of fans across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram sent in their questions for her with #IWantToAskAlia and #HangoutWithAlia and so far, the digital savvy brand’s engagement rate has increased to 6.1% on Facebook. Leena Shoor, Marketing Manager, Maybelline New York India, said, “As a tech savvy make-up brand, Maybelline New York has always aimed to engage with its consumers and fans in a very innovative manner. In order to continue representing the essence of the brand of being fun, edgy and fashionable, Maybelline New York introduces various novel initiatives with new product launches. Taking the brand to a next level of engagement, Maybelline New York decided to host this one-a-kind multi-city integrated Google Hangout with Alia Bhatt who is the face of the brand and represents the brands core values.” Harshil Karia, Co-founder, FoxyMoron, said, “Maybelline New York India a well renowned and loved brand by consumers all over. And, Alia Bhatt the brand ambassador truly represents the spirit of the brand. The multi-city integrated Hangout was yet another innovative platform for these fans to interact with Alia like never before. Through the innovative use of technology, Maybelline has paved the way for digital to play an integral role in engaging with consumers.” The popular make-up brand represents the young, contemporary cosmopolitan girl who is attuned to fashion and loves to experiment with make-up products. Hence, all of its campaigns have been clutter breaking in the cosmetics industry. Over the years, Maybelline New York has pioneered various brand engagement strategies through innovative use of the digital platforms to get fans and consumers to sit and take notice, get educated and eventually use the unique products on offer by the brand.
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The Jabong fashion week that commenced on July 25th concluded on July 30th at Hotel Le Meridien, New Delhi. Jabong Online Fashion Week in partnership with Talenthouse India was initiated with the idea of providing a platform to aspiring artists and to enable them to showcase their talent. The event called in budding talents from the field of designing, modelling, photography, hairstyling and make up artistry. The event took a kick start with Mr. Praveen Sinha, Founder and Managing Director Jabong.com, Mr. Arun Mehra, CEO, Talenthouse India and Ms. Rashmi Virmani, Show Director, IOFW. The jury panel comprised of Designers: Poonam Bhagat, Dr. Darlie Koshy; Models: Carol Gracious, Samant Chauhan; Photographers: Akash Das, Hemant Khendilwal, Sushmendra Dubey and makeup/hair experts: Rod Anker and Samantha Kochhar. The participants were mentored by Bollywood’s girl-next-door Yami Gautam. Elaborating on this contest, Praveen Sinha, co-founder, Jabong, said, ” When we came up with the idea of Jabong Online Fashion Week, the only thought process was to bring upon a positive change in the online fashion industry, with an aim to polish the gigantic talent our country has. I am elated by the unprecedented response this initiative has received in its first season itself. With India Online Fashion Week, we aspire to represent the fashion industry and provide the fraternity an online platform to grow, thus benefiting all stakeholders.” The participants showcased their designs according to a set theme and timeline. Participants included Scilicet, DIR 69 by Tanu Bagai, Shreya Mistry, Bhootsavaar by Nitin Bal Chauhan, Armaan and Aimaan, Timsy and Siddhartha, Astha Bahl, Siddharth K Kakkar, Dressology by Amit Arora, ANS by Astha and Siddarth, Azalea by Aditi Gupta, Piquancy by Sarthak Gandhi, Swagger by SAJ (Sajid Dhar), ILK by Shikha and Vinita, Threesome by Kanika;Ankit and Mehak. The event witnessed Aditya Roy Kapoor walking the ramp for Nitin Bal Chauhan and Yami Gautam for Rajdeep Ranawat. The final winners across three categories were announced with Mr. Praveen Sinha awarding Ashish Gurbani as the Best Photographer and Arvind Sharma as the Hair Stylist, while Mr. Rajiv Kumar, Director Sales and Marketing Revlon awarded Vipin Arora for Makeup Artistry. The collection from ramp was available on www.jabong.com marking itself as the first shoppable fashion week in Indian history. The sponsors included NDTV Goodtimes: Media Partner, 92.7 Big FM: Radio Partner, Revlon: Official Makeup Partner, Phillips: Official Hairstyling Partner, Ziveg: Accessories Partner, Talenthouse: Talent Hunt Partner, Le Meridien: Hospitality Partner. Along with being the first of its kind and showcasing handpicked talent and involving consumers and giving them a firsthand experience it also gave an opportunity to achieve ‘zero’ time to market –‘launch, showcase & sell’ the latest collection through India Online Fashion Week (IOFW) platform. “It is a combination of talent and fashion. If we create a few, hundreds will get motivated to aspire their dreams. This will remove the blockage, the dogma of less scope and fashion prowess will be encouraged”, added Praveen Sinha with a smile.
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Ashish Pherwani, Advisory Partner at Ernst & Young, and, Vinit Karnik, National Director – Entertainment, Sports & Live Events at GroupM, addressed the gathering of event organizers at the recently concluded EEMAGINE 2014 and exemplified the role of ROI in the Indian events space. Built on the surveys, discussions and estimates conducted by EY, Ashish conducted an elaborate discussion focused at the subject of ROI in the event space that Vinit supplemented with his insights. Demonstration of ROI by the event industry Having a creative edge over others may all be about the theme and concept but the business side should pertain to the parameters concerning ROI. Ashish began by explaining that 80% brands agreed to the fact that in case of better Return on Investment they would spend more on BTL. Moving further he showed that only 10% of the brands feel that their agencies adequately demonstrate ROI, whereas much larger than that, 30% felt that it does not at all. On the whole 60% perceived a weak approach towards ROI from their agency’s end. “TAM helped the industry much more than RAM”, said Ashish Pherwani. To back his judgment he further explained that one can measure and keep a track of each second and every move that takes place in a television. It thus provides a much larger perspective and deep understanding of ROI. Events ROI and related concerns Some considerations pertaining to the nature of events was then thrown light upon. A TV spot is same everywhere whereas an event happening across two locations can be entirely different. An event is based on the theme and the objective of the event agency. Thus to obtain a standard measure or even get an appropriate fixed rating is impossible in this case. He proceeded to explain that the event objective may vary as per the choice of the advertisers. One may look out for awareness whereas other may aim at high sales. The third case is when there are no advertisers. Such happens in the case of weddings and parties. Measurement framework On the basis of research by EY, in order to have fair measurement there should be a common platform incurring no added cost. This platform should be standard for each event objective. This measurement framework should meet specific requirement of every event sponsor making it optional, standard or customizable. The third idea that he stressed on was Validation. Ashish Pherwani said “If you need your event to be validated, your customer doesn’t trust you”. Validation should only be done when it is required. - See more at: http://everythingexperiential.com/event-measurement-roi-and-related-concerns-ashish-pherwani-ey-and-vinit-karnik-group-m/#sthash.Yy5xc35P.dpuf The hypothesis was substantiated with a close look into the functioning of B2C events. Summing up the research he explained the protocol of the B2C events space. Ashish concluded with the following suggestions mentioning the three key factors for the event agencies to keep in mind to attain better ROI in a span of one year. Vinit Karnik carried the discussion further throwing light on the evolution of sponsorship keeping in consideration a global perspective and the importance of measurement and evaluation in the event space. Categorizing the evolution of sponsorship, he explained- 1960-1970s: Brands aimed at establishing a logo as an identity. 1970-1990s: The age of multi sponsorship event model. 1990-2010s: The era of multi-sensory model with global sponsorship strategy. It was when a brand owned a space globally, for example Coca Cola owns FIFA, P&G owns CSR as a space worldwide. 2010- till date: The period of social era sponsorship. With changing times and scenario, brands are now looking at more ground-level activations and promotion through the digital medium to reach out to and engage their audience. Vinit Karnik comments that “We Indians are still happy being in the 1960’s to 70’s age of establishing logos. We would love to see a ROO driven industry. Adding to this he said, ‘We go wrong because we start from content and then go to our objectives’.” Objectives should always come before Investments, he added. All event sponsorships should put in mind the following attributes: Analyse < Strategic < Recommend < Negotiate < Activate < Evaluate Stressing on the evaluation metric he explained: Pre-Evaluation Post-Evaluation Quantitative study Impact of Activation Media Value Media Value delivered Price Benchmarking PR value delivered Entitlement Benchmarking Consumer Study Cost Change in brand scores Brand recall Brand awareness Brand affinity Cost of reaching per viewer basically covers the engagement initiatives and social media scores attained by an event agency. Based on the objectives discussed with the clients, we should aim at obtaining where our clients spend keeping into consideration whether they are active or passive spends. Activation Indexes include Engagement, Experience, and Education as the three things that help or end up in the purchasing habit of the consumer or sales of a store Brands these days are evolving in terms of their approach towards sponsorships and spend. A brand needs to own a platform to compete in the present market space. A few examples to cite are Rolex sponsored Wimbledon. It owns the space of tennis. Similarly Cadbury owns ‘Celebration’ as a platform and so does Pepsi, the space of cricket in India. Concluding his talk Vinit said “It is imperative to link the objective with the investment.”
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A study by the Great Place to Work Institute India has revealed the 100 best companies to work for in India for the year 2014. The Great Place to Work Institute was born in USA in the year 1997. It has since opened its doors to 45 countries across the world with the aim to recognize and build great workplaces. It started operations in India in 2003, in conjunction with a local consulting firm. Over 500 organizations registered for the 2011 study making it one of the largest studies in workplace culture in the world. In collaboration with Businessworld, Great Place to Work in India published lists of Best Workplaces in India in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2007. This year’s study is in collaboration with Economic Times. Around 600 organizations applied to be assessed for the 2014 study. As part of this assessment, companies were studied through two different lenses. Firstly, perceptions of the organizations’ employees were measured through surveys where over 1,70,000 employees were surveyed in all. Secondly, strength of people related management practices of the organizations was assessed using a people practice assessment framework developed by the Institute. So what’s making India a great place to work and what’s holding it back from being one? The research revealed some of the key strengths and areas of improvements for India Inc. Friendliness, non-discrimination on basis of sex & race, pride and trust in management’s competence were found to be some of the leading strengths of organizations in India. More than 80 percent of the respondents feel positive about these areas. On the other hand, perceptions about managers’ favouritism and politicking, equitable distribution of profits, lack of unique benefits, and absence of collaboration in decision making were found to be some of the leading areas for improvement for organizations in India. Only around 60 percent of the respondents feel positive about these areas. In midst of peculiarities of the country’s culture, demographics and economy, 100 organizations have stood out to emerge as the best companies to work for in India. Here’s a look at the Top 25- 1. Google India Pvt. Ltd. 2. Intel Technology India Pvt. Ltd. 3. Marriott Hotels India Pvt. Ltd. 4. American Express India 5. SAP Labs India Pvt. Ltd. 6. Adobe Systems India Pvt. Ltd. 7. Godrej Consumer Products Limited 8. Intuit Technology Services Private Limited 9. Ujjivan Financial Services Pvt. Ltd. 10. Cactus Communications Pvt. Ltd. 11. NetApp India 12. Eureka Forbes Ltd. 13. Encore Capital Group (Midland Credit Management India Pvt. 14. Microsoft Corporation India Pvt. Ltd. 15. Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces 16. DHL Express India Pvt. Ltd. 17. Starwood Asia Pacific Hotels & Resorts Pte. Ltd. 18. Vodafone India Ltd. 19. Federal Express Corporation 20. Accor Hotels India 21. Lifestyle International Pvt. Ltd. 22. Titan Company Limited 23. Bajaj Finance Limited 24. Blue Dart Express Ltd. 25. Radio City 91.1 FM Source: Great Place to Work Institute
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LIV Sports and Blogmint today crowned Nekib Ahmed as the winner of the first LIV Sports Bloggers World Cup at an event in Gurgaon. The Bloggers world cup was a unique Influencer Marketing initiative from LIV Sports and Blogmint that allowed bloggers to blog about their favorite team and compete on a real time basis. The LIV Sports Bloggers World Cup was hosted on the Blogmint platform, a leading Bloggers Marketplace, managed by Tangerine Digital. The LIV Sports Bloggers World Cup was launched to kindle the football passion in social media savvy youth of India received over 10,000 entries from football bloggers across the Indian sub-continent. Top 32 bloggers were selected to participate based on their social influence, Sports relevancy and passion for innovative Digital Marketing. They followed the similar format as the 2014 FIFA World Cup, from the qualifying rounds, to knockout stages. The top two bloggers from each group were further shortlisted to the quarterfinals on the basis their Blog Score – a measure of their influence. The awards were given by Mr. Nitesh Kripalani, Executive Vice-President – New Media, Business Development and Digital/Syndication at Sony Entertainment Network. Launched in June this year, LIV Sports is the Official Mobile and Internet Broadcaster for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. LIV Sports offers both LIVE and Video-on-demand match content, with rich and informative statistics and analysis. The innovative Influencer Marketing initiative received a phenomenal response on the digital platforms with an organic reach of 3 Mn on Social media based on the 151 blogs written by the contestants. Commenting on behalf of Blogmint, Kesavan Kanchi Kandadai, Chief Executive Officer, Tangerine Digital stated, “We are delighted with the response and interest that the LIV Sports Bloggers World Cup has received on the digital platform. We would like to congratulate the winners and assure that similar properties, across Sports will be launched in the near future.”
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Change Talk – Friday Funda was held at the Godrej India Culture Lab in Vikhroli on Friday August 1. Archana Prasad, Navroze Godrej and Rajeev Thakkar, the creators of three very interesting collaborative urban space projects shared their experience in creating these spaces and discussed with each other and the audience, the pleasure and complications of designing for community building in Indian cities. Archana Prasad is the Founder-Director of Jaaga Bangalore, a community based urban art, tech and activism project, shared her dream for the future of Jaaga, including expanding classes that are being held in a banana plantation near Bangalore! Navroze Godrej who works on the Godrej Group’s disruptive innovation initiatives through the Godrej Innovation Centre, that has incubated several businesses such as ChotuKool, a cooler for rural markets, spoke about his creation, The Hubble, Godrej’s new collaborative workspace in Vikhroli, that is re-imagining the traditional employer-employee relationship and visualising the corporation as a platform for people to do their best work. Rajeev Thakkar is a practicing architect and the director of Columbia University’s GSAAP Studio X project in Mumbai. He spoke about how Studio X is creating a collaborative platform for architects, artists, planners, developers and activists, to engage in research, exhibition and debates regarding future of cities. Along with interesting discussions, the evening saw several eminent personalities including Mr. Nadir Godrej and his wife Mrs. Rati Godrej, Ms. Nisaba Godrej, Mr.Vijay Crishna, and Ms. Meera Sanyal. Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Parmesh Shahani, Head, Godrej India Culture Lab said, “The lab is all about cross pollination, meeting new people and exchanging ideas, which is why we host events, talks and discussions which range from fashion to art and culture and today this very interesting Change Talk on collaborative urban space projects. We saw a brilliant turnout today and hope to witness the same enthusiasm of people in the future as well.”
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Titan Company’s ‘Paradox Panel’ think tank has released its third Millennial Paradox Quarterly based on ‘Collective Individualism and what it means for the Lives and Leisure of India’s Generation Y.’ Following the release of the white paper a round table discussion was organized on 8th July 2014 with a panel comprising of Mr. Aditya Swamy – Executive Vice President, MTV India, Dr. Bino Paul – Professor and Chairperson, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mr. Kaustav Sengupta – Associate Professor at National Institute of Fashion Technology and Mr. Sam Ahmed, Film Director. According to the research, Collective Individualism – the contradiction that typifies India’s millennial population (those aged between 21 and 35 years) – is clear and present across all aspects of their lives, from travel and tourism to their particular attitudes on work-life balance. Collective Individualist behaviour is the contradiction that characterizes today’s ‘Generation Y’ demographic; while they are intensely and determinedly individual in the way they obtain and use information, make choices and reach opinions. They are, simultaneously, the most Collective generation on earth, sharing everything from activities to opinions and constantly seek endorsement for the same. This is the essence of Titan Company’s Millennial Paradox; and a series of studies, research and insights commissioned by the company around this demographic phenomenon. The Collective Individual; from traveller to protagonist When travelling, millennials value individual and, where possible, deeply personal experiences that go way beyond the superficial; 78% of millennials would prefer to learn something new when traveling, while 70% indicated they expect special places to offer immersive experiences that are interactive and hands-on. Over 90% strongly agree, “Being well travelled was a competitive advantage in the workplace” with the same survey respondents claiming that student travel ‘fosters an appreciation for diversity, an appreciation and acceptance of cultural differences which helps to build confidence’. According to Mr. S. Ravi Kant – Chief Executive Officer – Eyewear & EVP Corporate Communications, Titan Company, today’s ‘Collective Individual’ traveller aspires to be, not merely a visitor, but a genuine protagonist in the places they visit. “Millennials’ approach to travel perfectly reflects the Millennial Paradox; they religiously ‘crowd source’ insights and opinions before deciding on a journey or destination, but what they are ultimately seeking is an experience that’s completely individual and unique,” says Mr. Kant. “Generation Y travellers demand to be integrated in local culture with an actual authentic, local experience. This perfectly reflects the shift from travelling to witness or experience to travelling to participate. Millennial travellers look beyond just a completely personalized experience; they go a step further to participate and be much more than just a visitor.” Work-life balance – a false distinction for the Collective Individual Other findings highlight Indian millennials’ attitude towards work-life balance. For millennials work is simply another medium of individual, personal self-expression with 83% believing that a job should help them to ’pursue their passion’. Such consideration should not, however, suggest any compromise when it comes to their careers; on the contrary, 37% Indian millennials ‘expect to be in a management position within one year of graduating’ and 25% expect to be in ‘senior management positions or running their own business’ within two years. For today’s millennials, work is an intensely individual and personal activity; and much more than simply the extraction of ‘surplus labour’. Over 80% millennials believe business can exert a positive impact on issues such as climate change, 56% believe business can contribute more to issues such as resource scarcity; 55% climate change; 49% income inequality. And they expect to be treated as individuals throughout the process; around 70% of them see themselves working independently as entrepreneurs ‘at some point’ in their lives. “The Millennial Paradox is palpable in the way that India’s Generation Y considers work, its meaning and their role within. They expect a direct, personal and individual relationship with their employer; however, they are deeply conscious of the wider role employers can play beyond the workplace with respect to the wider collective. 69% actively seek employers whose corporate responsibility efforts reflect their personal values; India’s millennials are applying the same values and logic to work as to their lives outside the office,” added Mr Kant. Titan Company’s Paradox Panel has already explored the implications of the Millennial Paradox on India’s youth in terms of their consumer behaviour; following papers will cover love & relationships and professional lives. These insights will be published in subsequent Titan Company’s Millennial Paradox Quarterlies during the course of the year.
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In the age of stringent competition, marketers need to focus on the needs and demands of the customers and delight them by slightly exceeding their expectations. Experiences generally tend to become the basis of people’s lives and conversations. Marketers thus try to imbibe elements that make an experience commemorating and what can be better than integrating a component of surprise. A surprise can evoke several emotions at the same time. Surprise does not require heavy investment; all it needs is some great ideas! So here are a few activities that instilled an element of surprise in an event… CELEBRATION TIME! Westjet is known to have always delight its customers through various surprises. Similarly, Spanair took an initiative to surprise its passengers.190 passengers travelling from Barcelona to Las Palmas on the Spanair flight at the Christmas Eve were happily surprised by the unexpected gifts they received at the luggage carousel. The agenda behind any successful experiential campaign is to emotionally connect with the customers and provide an experience that stays with them for long. So, on the Christmas Eve, when people are normally celebrating over dinners and parties in Spain, Spanair made these passengers feel at home by distributing gifts to them. NEVER MISS A BREAKFAST… Kellogg’s, the leading cereal producing brand served breakfast in a transit mode in India. To carry this out, Kellogg’s associated with Meru Cabs to provide breakfast meals to passengers in the cabs. 100 Meru cabs in the four metro cities were branded with Kellogg’s “Anaaj ka Naashta” campaign. A breakfast kit was placed in all cars keeping in mind the early morning travelers. These cabs were surprise cabs for the passenger. If they happen to book a cab for pick-up between 5am – 9am, and if they are allotted a breakfast cab, then a message would be sent to the consumer telling them that they will be sent a breakfast cab. Thus, offering the right thing at the right time incorporated with a surprise element proved to be a great experiential campaign for the brand. LIPTON’S STRESS KILLER Lipton in its Chillout surprise campaign connected to people with the help of twitter. For all those who were stressed in their lives and were venting it out on twitter, Lipton designed a campaign for them. Lipton scanned stress-filled or complaining tweets from people in Mumbai and by finding their locations, it reached out to them. The Chill Out Crew went to all the scanned locations and handed a Chill Out hamper to those people. The motive of spreading smiles and happiness was efficiently brought out through this initiative. This surprise campaign brought smiles to several faces. FEEL CONNECTED… Finnair surprised its on- board passengers during a flight to Delhi by dancing on the tunes of Bollywood songs to celebrate India’s Republic Day. It was seen as a brilliant move to connect with the passengers and promote the brand at the same time. This surprise dance culturally engaged the passengers who were travelling on the 26th of January. It was a great experiential campaign that left the passengers in the flight awe struck. HEINEKEN’S CRAZY DESTINATION ROULETTE! Travelers at the New York’s Kennedy airport became a part of the crazy destination roulette wherein they could change their flight to a more exotic destination at the push of a button. Those taking part in the adventurous campaign had to agree to drop their existing travel plans without knowing the new destination and immediately board a flight to the new place. Heineken booked hotels for these travelers and provided cash to cover expenses. It promoted the message of ‘drop everything’ and ‘go anywhere’ through this initiative. Many travelers agreed to take up the challenge and give up on their planned trips to be a part of this experiential campaign. Heineken thus engaged with several travelers providing them an unforgettable and daring experience.
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Kids are simply adorable, ask any newly turned parents. Let some years pass by, most of these parents may still say that their kids are adorable, but the truth may be far from what they admit. A child secures many relationships in its formative years, and the ones they establish with brands at an early age are usually long-lasting therefore extremely precious. KIDS MAY SEEM ANNOYING BUT NOT FOR MARKETERS, THEY SIMPLY ADORE THEM To marketers, kids represent a lifetime of opportunities for a brand. Kids are among the most important demographics who on top of having considerable purchasing power, they can also influence their parent’s purchasing decisions. The kids can influence their parents to make purchasing decision on things ranging from entertainment choices like trips, movies and excursions to clothing, foods, drinks and breakfast choices. These factors have forced brands to look at ways to reach out to young population and the advertisings to them have catapulted in the recent decades. Parents globally and in fast paced economies like India are more than willing to buy their kids whatever they demand due to factors like reduced family size especially in metro cities, the rise of dual incomes in the family and couples having fewer kids than they traditionally would have. TAPPING INTO THE PSYCHE The most valuable factor for a brand marketing its products to kids is understanding the psychology behind what ticks the kids. If a child identifies himself/herself and associates with a brand at a young age. He/she is likely to remain a loyal customer for a very long time into adulthood. It is not uncommon for most of us to cherish products we may have consumed during our childhood and the feel good factor surrounding it. As more research and technology is available at our disposal, brands are increasingly utilizing them to analyze and understand kids’ emotional, social and developmental needs. CUTTING THROUGH THE CLUTTER The market is littered with brands and their products targeting kids primarily. It becomes vital for brand managers to cut through the mundane and offer an experience that sets themselves apart. Marketing to kids alone isn’t enough, providing an experience is much more vital. This is where experiential marketing becomes vital. GLAXOSMITHKLINE ENGAGES KIDS WITH A GAME With the recent launch of its Horlicks brand’s new ‘Kesar Badam’ flavour, it took to video games for reaching out to youngsters and engage them with the brand. The experiential campaign included an online game named ‘Chote Sultan Hunt’ followed by a TVC and offline activities. Since, a lot of kids do not like drinking milk with the usual flavours, Horlicks introduced kesar badam flavour to get them drinking milk. The first touch point towards achieving this included the online game that encourages the player to collect as many kesars and badams as possible while running towards its destination. The highest scorers could win prizes that were carefully selected, which included popular gadgets like Xbox 360, iPads etc. On-the-ground activities followed with the game being taken to schools in Gujarat to attract school kids. They could play the game on a large projector screen with motion sensing. Similarly, they also planned on-ground activities in other parts of India to allow kids to experience Horlicks brand through gaming, which is very popular among youngsters. Select City Walk Mall targets Kids this Summer The Select City Walk mall located in the southern part of Delhi is quite popular and frequented by many through most part of the year. However, it would not be surprising to see a drop in footfall during summers when the temperature soars in Delhi. What Saket came up to counter this during the 2014 summer was to target kids by organizing a summer camp for them. The camp lasted two months from May till June when the temperature usually peaks. The camps offered theatre workshops, fun packages at hangout, special art & craft activities, ‘paint your pottery’ competition and workshop on Hindustani and Classical Western Music. As schools usually have two months holidays during this time, it was clever of the brand to entice kids to the mall, which would eventually bring their parents as well as friends that translates to more footfall, more spend on food and shopping. Hence, a clever way to beat the reduced number of visitors during the part of the year when most prefer to stay inside their air conditioned rooms. What’s more? Being kids, they would always remember and cherish the best days of their lives when they could do what they love carefree (having fun with other kids, painting their favourite cartoon characters, playing their favourite music and eating out at their favourite joint at the mall). This not only lasts for just two months but an experience that will keep bringing them back to the mall and relive their best times. These children-oriented experiential experiences not only provide a temporary reach for marketers to children, but tinkers with the psyche of kids in a positive way that is beneficial to any brand for a long term association.
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Murphy’s Law The most important thing one should remember while hosting any event is Murphy’s Law that states, ““If something can go wrong, there’s a chance it will.” There will always be unexpected issues to be addressed. It all depends on the approach while handling the issues that will determine if things are heading in a negative direction or if the audience barely takes notice of it. The risks that could take place should be evaluated. Equipment Failure Failure of equipment is every event planner’s nightmare as it becomes temperamental and breaks down, prior to the show. Setting up of the equipment and testing it a couple of times before the actual use is pertinent. One can conduct a dry run of the presentation at an opportune moment and ensure that the equipment and applications are functioning. This needs to be done for all the arrangements beginning from the venue bookings to the spelling in an event literature. Take personal responsibility even if there is a team to handle different aspects to ensure smooth functioning Equipment Damage THE PROBLEM: Accidents can happen even after meticulous planning and preparation, as technology may create problems. It can range from the equipment being delivered at the wrong place or get damaged during installation of the display. THE FIX: One should ensure that there is a backup for the equipment and there is an emergency kit at their disposal. It is important to remain calm as there is someone who will be willing to rent things that are required at that moment. Typo Mistake THE PROBLEM: There can be instances wherein the event is ready to take off and someone notices that there is a major typo error in the display or marketing materials. Similarly, in case the caterers have not been confirmed or if the client’s company name is spelled incorrectly on a sign boards, it can be a catastrophe. THE FIX: In case it is critical, then head to the printing store to fix the mistake before the event begins. THE VERDICT If the equipment is available at the venue, then check for specifics whether they are available or not. It is essential to have alternative methods of presentation in case there is a breakdown of the equipment. Failure of Plan The cheapest and easiest way is not always the best way. If necessary resources are not set up for a business event, it will end up in a weak and amateur presentation of the company. It is better to partner with a qualified vendor, such as a signage and event branding expert to make the event successful. Plan with the Client THE PROBLEM: It is important that there is a consensus with the client at every step so that one knows his likes and dislikes. THE FIX: One should double check with the client on each and every small detail from the beginning to the final arrangements. It is better to meet personally and not depend on phone calls that can create a misunderstandings. Avoid MC’s THE PROBLEM: It is better to decide whether to employ the services of an MC is advisable or not as it can make the guest inattentive with the onslaught of the speakers and alienate the attendees. THE FIX: It is pertinent to have a mix of speakers and activities in the event. Finalize Settings in Advance THE PROBLEM: Attendees will be annoyed to come for an event where there are last minute arrangements being made and it will look very unprofessional. THE FIX: Timing is crucial throughout the event and so it is sensible to have a `dry run’ if possible. Miscalculation of Guests THE PROBLEM: In case the venue is too small and cannot fit a massive crowd and there are not enough chair to the attendees, it becomes a problem. THE FIX: It is good to have registrations done for all attendees, even in case they are not paying for a ticket so that there are accurate numbers to plan. Do a check on the venue about the extra chairs and the room size in case it is required. One should take the guest speakers and their presentation styles into account while choosing the venue. Set cut-off dates for registration well in advance so that there is sufficient time to change something if required. Booth Over/Understaffed THE PROBLEM: A major problem will be to over or under staff as it becomes difficult to gauge the busy moments. It is better the staff meet the other vendors during the period and call them when necessary. THE FIX: The best way to keep track of staff is to keep a “Check-Out/In” list, along with a list of cell phone numbers. That way you know who is where and how to reach them, if your booth gets busy. THE VERDICT Keep Track of the Event It is good to know what is happening when the event is taking place. One staff member should be dedicated to monitor the different areas of the business event and keep track of the changes and give solutions or notify an event manager to fix it. Plan B Any event planning requires preparation and guarding against any conceivable contingencies. Plan B should be in place in case something goes wrong. It is nice to review a variety of different scenarios and options to deal with any sort of issues. Attendee Failure The most important part of making the event a success is the audience and there should be no confusion about the venue. Unclear Venue THE PROBLEM: Attendees arrive late, at the wrong venue due to the confusion over the time and location of the event. THE FIX: If possible it is nice to include specific details of the venue, date and time of the conference in all correspondence with the attendees including promotional materials, tickets and confirmation and reminder emails. Unexpected Turn of Events Unexpected Bad Weather THE PROBLEM: In case an outdoor event is planned and due to sudden rains and strong winds the hoardings and equipment gets damaged, the whole event will be a disaster. THE FIX: One should have a contingency plan in place to move the event to a secondary indoor venue. Troubleshooting any possible problems ahead of time, will help one calm and ensure that the plans are in place. Take time to think ahead, and deal with situations when something goes wrong. Unexpected Cancellation of Vendor THE PROBLEM: If the vendor or caterer or entertainer or the MC fails to arrive on time or cancels in the last moment, it becomes a problem. THE FIX: The best solution is to have a list of backup vendors and caterers, entertainers who can come immediately in case of a crisis. Staff Member Fall Sick THE PROBLEM: Another common complication that can arise is when the staff member becomes sick prior to the event. Even the absence of one person can create chaos. THE FIX: The best solution to this problem is to make sure that all the booth staff members are adequately trained on everything that is happening within the booth, and all the products are showcased. Guest Speaker Failure THE PROBLEM: Relying on other people means there’s always a possibility that they can let you down. The presenter can pull out at the last minute due to a cold, a broken leg or an accident due to bad weather or a clash of schedule. THE FIX: So always confirm the dates with the guests in advance so that holidays and sick days can be booked. Set clear expectations about where and when the presenters should be available and make sure they agree. Always have a back-up speaker waiting in the wings to step in and save the day. A follow up is required to confirm their attendance. Make a contingency plan as one cannot stop people from getting sick or hurt, so work out what one can do if this does happen. Miscellaneous Keep Calm and Carry On This is the most important tip to remember, and perhaps the most obvious. But it has to be repeated again. Cool heads prevail in any unexpected sort of situation and in case something goes wrong it is better to keep one’s wits at hand. Stay calm, and address the issue unemotionally. One has to bravely face such situations and deal it successfully without any unwanted attention. Honesty is the Best Policy Finally, if something does go wrong during an event, don’t panic and don’t waste energy trying to make elaborate excuses. Simply be honest with the guests, and explain the situation clearly and concisely. The guests will appreciate the honesty even in case of any untoward incident and earn success.
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