Mr. Karthik Raman is the Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer at IDBI Life Insurance, a brand that has invested heavily into the category of sports. In the following authored account he talks about IDBI's popular 'Childsurance' campaign, everything non-sports and cutting the clutter. "As a brand we have always chosen to go on an off beaten path. Be it our sports and fitness initiatives or our various campaigns across the year. Our messaging style of hope and humour has helped us stand apart in the cluttered market space. A striking example of this was our Childsurance campaign. Children’s future solutions are the second most popular life insurance plans in India. This is because most studies point towards the fact that Indian parents save and invest widely in insurance for the future of their kids. They contribute about 20% to our sales portfolio and remain an important category for the company. We wanted to launch a child campaign to drive sales and build positive disposition for the brand through awareness. With a bouquet of child products in our kitty, as a brand we were keen to highlight our offerings but soon found that the category was already too crowded. What’s usually depicted in life insurance ads in this category is a child asking for something, an arrested moment of thought and then the parent resolving the tension by planning for it. To distinguish between multiple such ads is clearly difficult. So, we came up with an idea that would nudge the young parent harder in a manner which is humorous. That’s how the ‘angry baby’ campaign came up. Our company captured the hearts and minds of millions of parents in India with the angry baby hoardings plastered across the skylines of 110 Indian cities. In the month of September, 2015, our company launched an outdoor promotion for the children’s future solutions with the ‘Childsurance’ campaign. The outdoor creative asked parents how their angry child of today would look at 18 years of age. Clearly, he or she wouldn’t be as cute then. It was then followed up with an interactive radio campaign and digital campaign called ‘the cutest angry baby hunt’. Apart from high-impact activations in prominent malls across key metros to hunt the cutest angry baby, our company also launched 33 on-air short radio films featuring children for their campaign. In the phase II, an educative radio programme, ‘Badon ki Pathshala’, was launched that enabled young parents to share and learn from the experience and enables us to bing celeb moms, child psychologists and financial advisors on the same platform. The show gave tips on good parenting, financial planning, understanding and tackling the developmental stages of children from 0-8 years. Unconventionally, we excluded a TVC from this campaign and restricted it to Outdoors, Digital and Radio. The idea worked for us - despite being a passive medium, it managed to stop the consumer in his tracks. The series of awards won and superlative brand scores achieved during the period bear testimony to the success of the campaign. We won a Gold in the Radio Effectiveness Category for the Childsurance Radio Film Festival and Bronze in the Best Use of Celebrity Endorsement for Badon Ki Pathshala at the prestigious Asian Customer Engagement Forum (ACEF). We also won Gold in the Social Media Category at the Public Relations Council of India and won the Most Effective Use of Radio in an activation campaign at the Excellence in Radio Awards (ERA) by India Radio Forum. Our consideration scores moved up 5% and our partner banks’ total awareness increased from 81% in March-August 2015 to 99% between Sept'15-Nov'15 during the campaign period. One of the biggest challenges for marketers today is fragmentation. This is not just in terms of the proliferation of brands in various categories, but also in terms of consumer interests and the way they engage in those interests. A few years ago, you could advertise on the networks; sponsor a few big sports or events and rest assured that your brand message was being delivered. Now, you have dozens of media avenues with content that draws passionate followers. This is landscape that is much more diverse with the impact of social media and new trends and passions emerging every day! Our campaign idea thank fully allowed us to break through the clutter and delivered the message powerfully. It gave us an opportunity to add value to the experience of participants and align with their values through something that they truly care about – the future and well being of their little stars!"
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The UEFA Euro 2016 has got off to a rocketing start. With the on-field action grabbing the headlines, the Indian market has moved swiftly to capture the biggest football flavor of this season. Mobile handset maker GioneeMobiles has come on board as the title on-air sponsor after their successful rebranding stint with the Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League. Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN), hold the rights for Euro's broadcast in India and are beaming it across their channels and online onsonyliv.com. Last heard before the beginning of the tournament, they had sold almost 80 % of the advertising inventory. Highly placed sources close to these deals reveal that brands have allocated tentatively Rs 8-10 crore towards sponsorship. According to a report in the Business Standard, SPN is continuing with an activity it had started dabbling with in 2014 where it had multi-lingual feeds for the FIFA World Cup with a Bengali feed on Sony Aath, the Bangla entertainment channel under the network. Euro 2016 will be available in six languages, English, Hindi, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam. Sony SIX will telecast the English language feed while Sony ESPN will give viewers the other options. Prasana Krishnan, executive vice-president and business head of Sports Cluster, SPN, says, "When we experimented with the Bengali feed, we realised that there is an appetite for the sport in the regional markets. With Euro 2016, we intend to test out more markets and so we have added three more languages. It is perhaps the first time in India that a non-cricket tournament of this scale will be available in so many languages." According to the ESP Properties - SportzPower India Sports Sponsorship Report 2016, on the back of Hero Indian Super League (ISL), ground sponsorship for Football shot up from Rs 59.5 crore in 2014 to Rs 114 crore in 2015, a jump of 91.6% . Hitesh Gossain, CEO of Onspon.com, gives us a lowdown on the brands that have moved on-board for the European football fiesta, "According to market sources and SPN estimates, the brands that have agreed to be a part of the Euro bandwagon are Honda Cars India, Idea, Carlsberg, Hero Cycles, Crompton Greaves, Micromax, YES Bank and Renault. E-commerce players such as Amazon, OLX and Paytm were also said to be keenly interested in taking up slots. As the games are shown on Sony SIX and Sony ESPN channels at the primetime slots of 6:30 pm and 9:30 pm, and 12:30 am. SPN's sales team has quoted a rate of Rs 2.25-2.5 lakh for ad-spots and most brands have accepted this.
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Vh1 All Stars is a strategic program for the benefit of advertisers and brands across the country. It aims to provide customized solutions to clients and brand campaigns taking their message to the relevant TG across on-ground outlets spanning 60 cities. Speaking more about this initiative, Sabrina D’Souza, Head Marketing, English Entertainment Cluster, Viacom18 said, “Vh1 has been a consistent frontrunner in providing innovative solutions to clients and now we are taking things forward with Vh1 All Stars. Vh1 All Stars is a unique strategic program designed to help brands reach out to their audience in an effective and impactful manner. With a program reach of over 3 million people each week via our unique set of more than 870 on ground partners, we are certain that advertisers will find merit in this pioneering initiative providing added width & depth to their marketing efforts” Through Vh1 All Stars, the channels have established associations with 878 on-ground partners in 60 cities across India. Besides partnerships in tier I cities and metros the program has a 191 partner outlets in Mumbai and 118 in Delhi NCR alone. The program also reaches out to smaller cities such as Pune, Chennai, Hyderabad, Agra, Indore, Surat etc., thereby engaging with the relevant TG’s Pan India. Vh1 All Stars has established partnerships with brands such as Costa Coffee, Ginger Hotels, Truefitt & Hill, Haagen Dazs, Gold’s Gym, Jean-Claude Biguine and Hoppipola, as well as associations with locally admired venues such as The Humming Tree, Bootlegger, High Spirits, Johnny Rockets, Thalassa, Summer House, to name a few. The on-ground partnership stretches out through diverse categories such as adventure surf schools, sports hubs, book clubs, tattoo parlours, robotics, dance studios, language clubs, gyms, spas, salons, restaurants, pubs, bars, dessert chains as well as hotels. With multiple brands on board, Vh1 All Stars aims at providing brand solutions to advertisers through an all-encompassing approach.
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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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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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