There are a few moments in life that are definitive. My life seems to revolve around cricket and advertising. A few defining moments in my life? It was 7.36 p.m. on 4th June, 1993. I was sitting in the bar stool of the Bangalore Club watching the Old Trafford Ashes test on TV. And Warne bowled Gatting with a ball that turned two feet and clipped the off bail. I was watching the ball that would soon be dubbed the “ball of the century”. I just yelled in amazement. I rudely woke up the oldest member who was quietly dozing in his favourite stool who must have wondered at the falling standards of behaviour of new club members. (Another sobering moment as the spin wizard announces retirement just now). England in 1999. Herschelle Gibbs drops Steve Waugh and the World Cup. To me watching from the stands, it was another defining moment. 2003, South Africa, and the World Cup final. Zaheer Khan’s first over cost 15 runs and cost India the cup. Another defining moment. The 23rd of November, 2006. It is 5.30 a.m. and Steve Harmison came into tremendous applause to deliver the first ball of the most anticipated series in recent times – the Ashes. I am right there in front of the TV. He started with a huge wide to second slip which started England’s slide to a 3-0 Ashes defeat (at the time of writing). Another defining moment. All these moments had the capacity to move and shake me and made a profound impression on me and made me believe that I was seeing something unique, different and unforgettable. Did I have one such moment in advertising in 2006? The answer is a quick if a somewhat sad “no”. 2006 was one of those years. One of those commercials that you see and yet don’t notice. One of those ships that pass you by in the night.
The business of advertising
“Advertising” somebody said “is the business of producing ads and TV commercials”. And the business of advertising by all accounts has been good, whether your agency is ranked No.1, No.8 or No.30. A whole host of categories have discovered the power of advertising. The automotive industry is booming and as a consequence the advertising spends. Never mind the fact that every car ad reminds you of some other car ad that you have seen before. The roads are clogged with two wheelers and the networks jammed with two wheeler ads, each of which tries desperately to be like its competition. Mobile services it seems has lost its pre-occupation with tariff plans. Thank God for small mercies! And in the same breath we must thank clients and agencies for continuing campaigns in the mobile space. The ‘pug’ dog continues to charm us magically! From dogs to monkey. Idea Cellular’s tune of an Ilayaraja hit has a monkey running helter- skelter but the network follows. One of the few nice ads I saw this year. If mobile services are heavy spenders, can mobile phones be far behind? One saw a lot of advertising that was hip for mobile phones. And yet to me the stand out was Motorola’s ad for MotoFlip W220, which features a young boy being grilled by his parents for having what they believe is a horrendously expensive phone. What a brilliant way of saying that the sleek phone costs only Rs.3990! FMCG continues to alternate between brand building and price cutting. Lots of advertising, not too much worthy of recall. And yet I must recall the Surf Excel commercial in Tamil with a foreign kid eating with great relish with his “hands” watched by his horrified parents. And a reassuring old lady who says that in India, we not only eat with our hands but wash with our hands as well. Banks continue to provide mediocre service but the advertising has improved dramatically. SBI stopped being “Surprisingly” diffident but had an interesting range of commercials. HSBC had some different advertising as had Bank of India. We all live in hope and one day the service of banks will match the advertising! Education (thoroughly fragmented) has still become a large consumer of space. IIPM continues to release ads that are in your face. I don’t wish to comment on how bad they are as I thankfully am not applying to management school and am therefore not the target audience. Mutual funds is another category that has advertised heavily. HDFC Standard Life Insurance had a very insightful ad for pension plans. The retail boom is yet to result in brand building advertising which seems to be still obsessed with “sales and price-offs”. Someone has to start building retail brands harnessing advertising.
Some trends
The ad industry has announced its “unbundling” of services with great fanfare. Today agencies offer specialised services and I guess this in turn makes the client’s job more challenging. He has to be strong (and if one may add enormously patient) to deal with the creative agency, the stand-alone media agency, the PR agency, the MR agency, the events agency and the sales promotion agency. Is the client man or superman, only time will tell! And yet I think there is an increasing disconnect between creative agencies and media agencies and clients are feeling the pinch. Today agencies are a lot more focused on the bottom line. And the direct reaction is declining salaries at entry levels and increasing disenchantment at the middle level. The advertising industry is growing – but where are the people? Which bright young kid in his right senses would like to join us?
The year in perspective
I remember seeing a commercial for RIKK Bank that reminds me of Indian advertising in 2006 “The most boring bank in the world” was the descriptor. “The people are working. The money is working and that’s all”. Yes people are working in advertising and agencies are making money. But we need to introspect. If we don’t get the right people, we just won’t make any money. Let 2007 be the year of talent. And may it be the year where India’s defining moment could be winning the Cricket World Cup! At least it would make it worth my while to travel all the way to Barbados!
The author is Ramanujam Sridhar, CEO of Brand-comm.
Feedback can be mailed to sridhar@brand-comm.com
Thursday, December 28, 2006
2006 – Hardly a defining year
There are a few moments in life that are definitive. My life seems to revolve around cricket and advertising. A few defining moments in my life? It was 7.36 p.m. on 4th June, 1993. I was sitting in the bar stool of the Bangalore Club watching the Old Trafford Ashes test on TV. And Warne bowled Gatting with a ball that turned two feet and clipped the off bail. I was watching the ball that would soon be dubbed the “ball of the century”. I just yelled in amazement. I rudely woke up the oldest member who was quietly dozing in his favourite stool who must have wondered at the falling standards of behaviour of new club members. (Another sobering moment as the spin wizard announces retirement just now). England in 1999. Herschelle Gibbs drops Steve Waugh and the World Cup. To me watching from the stands, it was another defining moment. 2003, South Africa, and the World Cup final. Zaheer Khan’s first over cost 15 runs and cost India the cup. Another defining moment. The 23rd of November, 2006. It is 5.30 a.m. and Steve Harmison came into tremendous applause to deliver the first ball of the most anticipated series in recent times – the Ashes. I am right there in front of the TV. He started with a huge wide to second slip which started England’s slide to a 3-0 Ashes defeat (at the time of writing). Another defining moment. All these moments had the capacity to move and shake me and made a profound impression on me and made me believe that I was seeing something unique, different and unforgettable. Did I have one such moment in advertising in 2006? The answer is a quick if a somewhat sad “no”. 2006 was one of those years. One of those commercials that you see and yet don’t notice. One of those ships that pass you by in the night.
The business of advertising
“Advertising” somebody said “is the business of producing ads and TV commercials”. And the business of advertising by all accounts has been good, whether your agency is ranked No.1, No.8 or No.30. A whole host of categories have discovered the power of advertising. The automotive industry is booming and as a consequence the advertising spends. Never mind the fact that every car ad reminds you of some other car ad that you have seen before. The roads are clogged with two wheelers and the networks jammed with two wheeler ads, each of which tries desperately to be like its competition. Mobile services it seems has lost its pre-occupation with tariff plans. Thank God for small mercies! And in the same breath we must thank clients and agencies for continuing campaigns in the mobile space. The ‘pug’ dog continues to charm us magically! From dogs to monkey. Idea Cellular’s tune of an Ilayaraja hit has a monkey running helter- skelter but the network follows. One of the few nice ads I saw this year. If mobile services are heavy spenders, can mobile phones be far behind? One saw a lot of advertising that was hip for mobile phones. And yet to me the stand out was Motorola’s ad for MotoFlip W220, which features a young boy being grilled by his parents for having what they believe is a horrendously expensive phone. What a brilliant way of saying that the sleek phone costs only Rs.3990! FMCG continues to alternate between brand building and price cutting. Lots of advertising, not too much worthy of recall. And yet I must recall the Surf Excel commercial in Tamil with a foreign kid eating with great relish with his “hands” watched by his horrified parents. And a reassuring old lady who says that in India, we not only eat with our hands but wash with our hands as well. Banks continue to provide mediocre service but the advertising has improved dramatically. SBI stopped being “Surprisingly” diffident but had an interesting range of commercials. HSBC had some different advertising as had Bank of India. We all live in hope and one day the service of banks will match the advertising! Education (thoroughly fragmented) has still become a large consumer of space. IIPM continues to release ads that are in your face. I don’t wish to comment on how bad they are as I thankfully am not applying to management school and am therefore not the target audience. Mutual funds is another category that has advertised heavily. HDFC Standard Life Insurance had a very insightful ad for pension plans. The retail boom is yet to result in brand building advertising which seems to be still obsessed with “sales and price-offs”. Someone has to start building retail brands harnessing advertising.
Some trends
The ad industry has announced its “unbundling” of services with great fanfare. Today agencies offer specialised services and I guess this in turn makes the client’s job more challenging. He has to be strong (and if one may add enormously patient) to deal with the creative agency, the stand-alone media agency, the PR agency, the MR agency, the events agency and the sales promotion agency. Is the client man or superman, only time will tell! And yet I think there is an increasing disconnect between creative agencies and media agencies and clients are feeling the pinch. Today agencies are a lot more focused on the bottom line. And the direct reaction is declining salaries at entry levels and increasing disenchantment at the middle level. The advertising industry is growing – but where are the people? Which bright young kid in his right senses would like to join us?
The year in perspective
I remember seeing a commercial for RIKK Bank that reminds me of Indian advertising in 2006 “The most boring bank in the world” was the descriptor. “The people are working. The money is working and that’s all”. Yes people are working in advertising and agencies are making money. But we need to introspect. If we don’t get the right people, we just won’t make any money. Let 2007 be the year of talent. And may it be the year where India’s defining moment could be winning the Cricket World Cup! At least it would make it worth my while to travel all the way to Barbados!
The business of advertising
“Advertising” somebody said “is the business of producing ads and TV commercials”. And the business of advertising by all accounts has been good, whether your agency is ranked No.1, No.8 or No.30. A whole host of categories have discovered the power of advertising. The automotive industry is booming and as a consequence the advertising spends. Never mind the fact that every car ad reminds you of some other car ad that you have seen before. The roads are clogged with two wheelers and the networks jammed with two wheeler ads, each of which tries desperately to be like its competition. Mobile services it seems has lost its pre-occupation with tariff plans. Thank God for small mercies! And in the same breath we must thank clients and agencies for continuing campaigns in the mobile space. The ‘pug’ dog continues to charm us magically! From dogs to monkey. Idea Cellular’s tune of an Ilayaraja hit has a monkey running helter- skelter but the network follows. One of the few nice ads I saw this year. If mobile services are heavy spenders, can mobile phones be far behind? One saw a lot of advertising that was hip for mobile phones. And yet to me the stand out was Motorola’s ad for MotoFlip W220, which features a young boy being grilled by his parents for having what they believe is a horrendously expensive phone. What a brilliant way of saying that the sleek phone costs only Rs.3990! FMCG continues to alternate between brand building and price cutting. Lots of advertising, not too much worthy of recall. And yet I must recall the Surf Excel commercial in Tamil with a foreign kid eating with great relish with his “hands” watched by his horrified parents. And a reassuring old lady who says that in India, we not only eat with our hands but wash with our hands as well. Banks continue to provide mediocre service but the advertising has improved dramatically. SBI stopped being “Surprisingly” diffident but had an interesting range of commercials. HSBC had some different advertising as had Bank of India. We all live in hope and one day the service of banks will match the advertising! Education (thoroughly fragmented) has still become a large consumer of space. IIPM continues to release ads that are in your face. I don’t wish to comment on how bad they are as I thankfully am not applying to management school and am therefore not the target audience. Mutual funds is another category that has advertised heavily. HDFC Standard Life Insurance had a very insightful ad for pension plans. The retail boom is yet to result in brand building advertising which seems to be still obsessed with “sales and price-offs”. Someone has to start building retail brands harnessing advertising.
Some trends
The ad industry has announced its “unbundling” of services with great fanfare. Today agencies offer specialised services and I guess this in turn makes the client’s job more challenging. He has to be strong (and if one may add enormously patient) to deal with the creative agency, the stand-alone media agency, the PR agency, the MR agency, the events agency and the sales promotion agency. Is the client man or superman, only time will tell! And yet I think there is an increasing disconnect between creative agencies and media agencies and clients are feeling the pinch. Today agencies are a lot more focused on the bottom line. And the direct reaction is declining salaries at entry levels and increasing disenchantment at the middle level. The advertising industry is growing – but where are the people? Which bright young kid in his right senses would like to join us?
The year in perspective
I remember seeing a commercial for RIKK Bank that reminds me of Indian advertising in 2006 “The most boring bank in the world” was the descriptor. “The people are working. The money is working and that’s all”. Yes people are working in advertising and agencies are making money. But we need to introspect. If we don’t get the right people, we just won’t make any money. Let 2007 be the year of talent. And may it be the year where India’s defining moment could be winning the Cricket World Cup! At least it would make it worth my while to travel all the way to Barbados!
The author is Ramanujam Sridhar, CEO of Brand-comm.
Thursday, December 21, 2006
An insider’s view of branding
Brands are visible. And so too is branding. Brands have the capacity to capture our imagination. There are many images that come to our mind when we think of brands. Companies and brands strive to stand out from the clutter through one or more elements of the brand. Differentiation is the name of the game. The brand name is what most people remember and recall. The brand name can be generic – cueing the category and business. Al Ries however says that this is a recipe for disaster. Or it can be just different. Nothing straight forward or predictable about Orange in mobile services or Apple in computers. But who’s complaining? Brands can be different in terms of the very shape of the product. Who does not like Toblerone chocolates? (More so people of my age who are better off, not even looking at chocolates). But back to the sweet stuff – the very shape of the chocolate and its trademark triangle are differentiators. Brands like Harpic have a unique packaging. Other brands like KFC have a continuing character or a mascot that is instantly recognisable. Who can forget the Air India Maharajah? (Except perhaps the employees of the beleaguered airline). I cannot but remember “His Master’s Voice” and the dog. Sorry, if that belongs to my time. Some brands own colours – it is not only coke that has appropriated the colour red, but Eveready batteries as well. And Tide with its orange stands out from the blues and whites in the detergent category. Corporations too have realised the value of their identity. IBM’s venetian blinds are a property. So what’s your brand’s property? Advertising is another differentiator. Sharply positioned brands like Volkswagen, Volvo or Avis stand out from their competition. Yes, all these visible aspects of branding are outward. They are targeted at an important segment – consumers. Brands need consumers as much as consumers need brands. Most marketing theory is about branding with the consumer as target. I have no quarrel with that. But what is often sidelined is the fact that brands have other key targets. Existing and potential employees and investors to name just a few. Will your mass media product TV commercial work for a harassed and hassled employee? Will not a slick (and largely untrue) appointment ad be a red rag to a bull when the current employees are disgruntled? This is what leads me to talk about building a brand internally. Within a company. Targeted at its employees. Communicating with them. Telling them and showing them that they matter.
Talk to me
CEOs specialise in clichés. Simple one liners that they pick up in management seminars or books of famous corporate leaders. “People are our most valuable asset”. (Oh really!) “Every evening our assets go down the elevator and we hope they return the next day”. (We all live in hope don’t we)? Sadly there is a preoccupation with empty statements but a strong reluctance to “walk the talk”. People realise the value of internal communications but do not give its strategy or execution the importance it deserves. Communication of the company’s values, systems and processes are a CEO’s job. But CEOs in my opinion are more anxious to talk to the media and the CII rather than their own employees. Of course there will be CEOs who are exceptions and thank God for them. Nor does this seem to be a problem only with Indian companies. When Deloitte and Touche Human Capital conducted a survey among American CEOs who were asked which HR issues are very important to the success of the organisation, 95% of them said “effective internal communication”. Simultaneously only 22 percent agreed that they thought it was being delivered effectively. If that is the situation in the land of management gurus and corporate giants, imagine the situation that could prevail here. So here is my question to you. Do you have a planned internal communication programme in place? Who is driving it? Who is monitoring its programmes and progress? What do your employees think about it?
People first, second and third
Technology companies whether they like it or not, know that people matter. Period. And to add to the challenge, the demand for quality technology professionals seems to far outstrip the supply. To add to the excitement, some of them seem insecure as well. Adding to their insecurity is the risk of obsolescence and fear of burn out. The counselling centre that I do voluntary work for in Bangalore has a fair share of techies battered by stress at the work place and tension at home thanks to the long hours and prolonged absence from home on global trips to unhappy and unappreciative client offices. “I am an individual” he says “recognise me as one such”. “Tell me what is happening in the company, outside of my work group”. “I am worried about repetitive strain injury…tell me about it”. Savvy companies are realising that it is just great business sense to focus on their people as much as on their customers. Satisfied employees will get their friends to join the company thereby reducing recruitment costs. Disgruntled employees bring down the morale of the place and frighten prospective employees. And yet a carefully devised, consistent, well executed internal communication programme can reduce attrition and improve employee morale. And while I speak about technology companies, I am sure that is true of every other company.
The “what” and the “how”
When we talk about branding an organisation internally we need to be clear about a few things. First determine the current mood of your employees. What are their highs and lows? What are their current concerns? What is the current level of communication? While it is fine to talk of communicating, it is equally critical to understand what needs to be communicated. Is it the announcement of a rewards programme? Is it “Thank God its Friday”. Today people want communication that is impactful. Done by professionals-not an out-of-work freelancer or a disappointed copy writer who is now writing software. Ad agencies are not motivated by creating internal communication. They want big budget TV films that are shot in Switzerland. Go to a professional who understands people, HR and communications. Determine where you will communicate. It can’t be only the intranet. Where are the vantage points in the campus? Where do people congregate? Where is the opportunity to see a grafitti board for instance? Have you considered the lift doors? Monitor your communication. And last but not least – get senior management involved. Some of our most successful internal communications programmes had a champion – the CEO. Find a champion within the company. And may you have a company of brand champions. A company full of people who know what your brand stands for and who will be your best salesmen.
Talk to me
CEOs specialise in clichés. Simple one liners that they pick up in management seminars or books of famous corporate leaders. “People are our most valuable asset”. (Oh really!) “Every evening our assets go down the elevator and we hope they return the next day”. (We all live in hope don’t we)? Sadly there is a preoccupation with empty statements but a strong reluctance to “walk the talk”. People realise the value of internal communications but do not give its strategy or execution the importance it deserves. Communication of the company’s values, systems and processes are a CEO’s job. But CEOs in my opinion are more anxious to talk to the media and the CII rather than their own employees. Of course there will be CEOs who are exceptions and thank God for them. Nor does this seem to be a problem only with Indian companies. When Deloitte and Touche Human Capital conducted a survey among American CEOs who were asked which HR issues are very important to the success of the organisation, 95% of them said “effective internal communication”. Simultaneously only 22 percent agreed that they thought it was being delivered effectively. If that is the situation in the land of management gurus and corporate giants, imagine the situation that could prevail here. So here is my question to you. Do you have a planned internal communication programme in place? Who is driving it? Who is monitoring its programmes and progress? What do your employees think about it?
People first, second and third
Technology companies whether they like it or not, know that people matter. Period. And to add to the challenge, the demand for quality technology professionals seems to far outstrip the supply. To add to the excitement, some of them seem insecure as well. Adding to their insecurity is the risk of obsolescence and fear of burn out. The counselling centre that I do voluntary work for in Bangalore has a fair share of techies battered by stress at the work place and tension at home thanks to the long hours and prolonged absence from home on global trips to unhappy and unappreciative client offices. “I am an individual” he says “recognise me as one such”. “Tell me what is happening in the company, outside of my work group”. “I am worried about repetitive strain injury…tell me about it”. Savvy companies are realising that it is just great business sense to focus on their people as much as on their customers. Satisfied employees will get their friends to join the company thereby reducing recruitment costs. Disgruntled employees bring down the morale of the place and frighten prospective employees. And yet a carefully devised, consistent, well executed internal communication programme can reduce attrition and improve employee morale. And while I speak about technology companies, I am sure that is true of every other company.
The “what” and the “how”
When we talk about branding an organisation internally we need to be clear about a few things. First determine the current mood of your employees. What are their highs and lows? What are their current concerns? What is the current level of communication? While it is fine to talk of communicating, it is equally critical to understand what needs to be communicated. Is it the announcement of a rewards programme? Is it “Thank God its Friday”. Today people want communication that is impactful. Done by professionals-not an out-of-work freelancer or a disappointed copy writer who is now writing software. Ad agencies are not motivated by creating internal communication. They want big budget TV films that are shot in Switzerland. Go to a professional who understands people, HR and communications. Determine where you will communicate. It can’t be only the intranet. Where are the vantage points in the campus? Where do people congregate? Where is the opportunity to see a grafitti board for instance? Have you considered the lift doors? Monitor your communication. And last but not least – get senior management involved. Some of our most successful internal communications programmes had a champion – the CEO. Find a champion within the company. And may you have a company of brand champions. A company full of people who know what your brand stands for and who will be your best salesmen.
The author is Ramanujam Sridhar, CEO of Brand-comm
Thursday, November 23, 2006
It’s all about the game silly!
Last week I was visiting Mumbai and dropped in to see my friend, who is much younger than me but who is probably more passionate about cricket than I am. Not surprising since he lives so close to Shivaji park the cradle of Indian cricket. And yet both cricket lovers were taught a new lesson about how the great game that caught us young is not having the same success with today’s urban kids (at least on a sample size of one!) My friend’s young seven year old hogged the TV set watching an obscure football match for the 90 minutes I was there. Tottenham Spurs vs Reading was the game he was subjecting us to. Neither of these teams are Manchester United (which is one of the few teams that I know) but our young friend didn’t care or mind. But I certainly minded as I was not keen on watching football but didn’t have a choice but was more upset because I found that cricket was not running in the kid’s blood. And my friend also mentioned with more than a trace of regret in his voice that the little boy did not watch or play cricket, adore MS Dhoni or even talk about cricket. I remember Rahul Dravid speaking at a TV interview where he said that he expected more Indian cricketers to come from the smaller towns a la Dhoni. Has cricket viewing also shifting to the smaller towns? This is my first worry about cricket viewing today. How good are the television rating points as an indicator of changing trends? Are we still guided by our own predilections for cricket in backing the game and putting our marketing rupees behind it? Are we suffering from generational myopia and believing wrongly that our kids will behave the way we did 40 years ago. I believe marketers need to do serious research on who exactly is watching cricket. Recently Justin Langer discovered an unpleasant truth. When he asked some people in Australia what their favourite series were they said India 2004 and the Ashes 2005. Both series lost by Australia! So tired was the Asussie fan of one sided games. Do we really know our viewer?
In India cricket is not a religion
Ever since I was a kid I have heard this statement that you too must have heard ad nauseam, “Cricket is a religion in India”. “You can’t go wrong with cricket”. “India is a diverse country divided by languages, religion and customs and cricket is one of the common or unifying factors”. I would still go with the appeal part of it. But religion? Let me clarify. The last few months have seen Indian cricket go through the horrors. After a flattering home series triumph against Sri Lanka, India (as they have been known to do) lost their way losing badly in the West Indies. “Our track record overseas usually has not been anything to write home about” is how we consoled ourselves. “Things will look up in the champions trophy” we told each other. After all this was India and we were playing at home. Well it was India but the conditions were not Indian. The pitches were not our usual batting belters. The ball alternately kept low, bounced or seamed. Even as the ICC flew down someone to glue the pitches the Indian team came apart at the seams. We lost to our recent nemesis West Indies and our age old bugbear Australia. When did we last beat Australia? Who knows, who cares? And one consolation to the Indian cricket fan was that we were not alone in not making to the semis as Pakistan and Sri Lanka did not make it too. But there was little to cheer for the advertisers, the sponsors and the television channel Set max. The grounds were by and large empty and people were not even watching the two innings (some of which lasted all of 30 overs) let alone “extra innings”. And it is this that leads me to question the religious beliefs of the Indian cricket fan. The Indian cricket fan (at least the TV audiences that are boasted of) is very selective in his religious preferences. It is not cricket that matters to him as much as Indian cricket. He leaves the ground when Sachin gets out and switches channels when Dhoni gets out. My submission is that he is so conditioned to his favourite breaking records that he is not all that focused on team records or their success rate. One wonders whether he takes the cue from some of our record breaking cricketers. Hence my reservation to place my viewing bets on this fickle watcher. Our cricket fan reminds me of a bhakta who continues to worship his God only till his boons are granted! Some religion! So marketers who are betting on cricket are advised to hedge their bets.
Mandira or the tiger?
The “lady or the tiger” is an interesting marketing conundrum that has floored several brands. In their quest for new customers, marketers forsake their existing customers. Set max started this in the World Cup saying that they would expand audiences for cricket – bring in new viewers by marrying cricket and entertainment. I have one basic issue with this strategy. Test cricket in India was watched by die hards like me. We spent nights outside the Chepauk stadium waiting for the gates to open. Then India won the World Cup in 1983 and the world series of cricket in Australia. What happened? Even housewives started watching cricket and worried when the asking rate in the final overs was more than six. And they continue to watch when India does well. All of us watched the 2003 world cup because India played well because Sachin was almost the victor. Not because of Mandira Bedi though I must confess that I listened to unconfirmed rumours that suggested that as India kept winning, Mandira’s dress was becoming shorter. Sadly India did not win the world cup. It hasn’t since 1983. And I am not sure Set max is winning the ratings war with all the film stars who keep mouthing inanities about cricket. Where is the research that supports this strategy? I am sure Sidhu has outlived his usefulness and as for Mandira I feel sorry for her. After all it is no fun being the champion of team India that refuses to be a champion and her fortitude as she keeps smiling as wicket after wicket keeps falling. I think it is important to remember one thing. The entertainment has to happen at the centre not in the studio. The days of radio commentary meant commentators talked for 6 hours and we listened. We imagined Lillie’s bowling action and Botham’s batting. Today we have stump vision and action replays and we can see what’s happening. We don’t need analysis till we are paralysed. And what greater entertainment can Mandira and co provide that is greater than what Gayle, Sehawag or Gilchrist provide. It is only about cricket and if that doesn’t entertain then there is nothing that any television channel can do whatever its strategy. And all these attempts to build viewership are actually putting off cricket fans and making them switch. And new viewers? Yes they are in Australia getting irritated with Sidhu and clogging the blogs with their vitriolic comments. Yes there is a lot riding on cricket in this country and the game is in the news thanks to Darrel Hair, Shoaib Akthar, Sharad Pawar and Trescothick. Where is your brand in all this? Is it benefiting? Or getting battered like the Indian cricket team.
Cricket’s role in the sun
Cricket will always be important. And the game is not just in between commercials as our marketers would like to believe but the main reason why we watch. Commercials that eat into the first ball and the last ball are hated by viewers. Brands like MRF, LG or Pepsi may have to stay with cricket. They may even do commercials for Saurav Ganguly! As the wag said in his hey days Saurav Ganguly did commercials for Pepsi, today for old times’ sake Pepsi is doing commercials for Saurav. But do you and I have this luxury? When did you do research about how seriously people are watching cricket? Are peoples’ perceptions the same as yours? Are we losing out young audiences? Are they watching the Harlem Globetrotters? Maybe the Ashes will be interesting. Maybe England and Australia well recreate history. It will definitely be cheaper than sponsoring Indian matches. Maybe India will do brilliantly in South Africa. Maybe one billion people will rediscover the religion! And maybe all advertisers, channels and sponsors will be laughing all the way to the bank. And maybe my friend’s seven year old son will actually start watching cricket!
In India cricket is not a religion
Ever since I was a kid I have heard this statement that you too must have heard ad nauseam, “Cricket is a religion in India”. “You can’t go wrong with cricket”. “India is a diverse country divided by languages, religion and customs and cricket is one of the common or unifying factors”. I would still go with the appeal part of it. But religion? Let me clarify. The last few months have seen Indian cricket go through the horrors. After a flattering home series triumph against Sri Lanka, India (as they have been known to do) lost their way losing badly in the West Indies. “Our track record overseas usually has not been anything to write home about” is how we consoled ourselves. “Things will look up in the champions trophy” we told each other. After all this was India and we were playing at home. Well it was India but the conditions were not Indian. The pitches were not our usual batting belters. The ball alternately kept low, bounced or seamed. Even as the ICC flew down someone to glue the pitches the Indian team came apart at the seams. We lost to our recent nemesis West Indies and our age old bugbear Australia. When did we last beat Australia? Who knows, who cares? And one consolation to the Indian cricket fan was that we were not alone in not making to the semis as Pakistan and Sri Lanka did not make it too. But there was little to cheer for the advertisers, the sponsors and the television channel Set max. The grounds were by and large empty and people were not even watching the two innings (some of which lasted all of 30 overs) let alone “extra innings”. And it is this that leads me to question the religious beliefs of the Indian cricket fan. The Indian cricket fan (at least the TV audiences that are boasted of) is very selective in his religious preferences. It is not cricket that matters to him as much as Indian cricket. He leaves the ground when Sachin gets out and switches channels when Dhoni gets out. My submission is that he is so conditioned to his favourite breaking records that he is not all that focused on team records or their success rate. One wonders whether he takes the cue from some of our record breaking cricketers. Hence my reservation to place my viewing bets on this fickle watcher. Our cricket fan reminds me of a bhakta who continues to worship his God only till his boons are granted! Some religion! So marketers who are betting on cricket are advised to hedge their bets.
Mandira or the tiger?
The “lady or the tiger” is an interesting marketing conundrum that has floored several brands. In their quest for new customers, marketers forsake their existing customers. Set max started this in the World Cup saying that they would expand audiences for cricket – bring in new viewers by marrying cricket and entertainment. I have one basic issue with this strategy. Test cricket in India was watched by die hards like me. We spent nights outside the Chepauk stadium waiting for the gates to open. Then India won the World Cup in 1983 and the world series of cricket in Australia. What happened? Even housewives started watching cricket and worried when the asking rate in the final overs was more than six. And they continue to watch when India does well. All of us watched the 2003 world cup because India played well because Sachin was almost the victor. Not because of Mandira Bedi though I must confess that I listened to unconfirmed rumours that suggested that as India kept winning, Mandira’s dress was becoming shorter. Sadly India did not win the world cup. It hasn’t since 1983. And I am not sure Set max is winning the ratings war with all the film stars who keep mouthing inanities about cricket. Where is the research that supports this strategy? I am sure Sidhu has outlived his usefulness and as for Mandira I feel sorry for her. After all it is no fun being the champion of team India that refuses to be a champion and her fortitude as she keeps smiling as wicket after wicket keeps falling. I think it is important to remember one thing. The entertainment has to happen at the centre not in the studio. The days of radio commentary meant commentators talked for 6 hours and we listened. We imagined Lillie’s bowling action and Botham’s batting. Today we have stump vision and action replays and we can see what’s happening. We don’t need analysis till we are paralysed. And what greater entertainment can Mandira and co provide that is greater than what Gayle, Sehawag or Gilchrist provide. It is only about cricket and if that doesn’t entertain then there is nothing that any television channel can do whatever its strategy. And all these attempts to build viewership are actually putting off cricket fans and making them switch. And new viewers? Yes they are in Australia getting irritated with Sidhu and clogging the blogs with their vitriolic comments. Yes there is a lot riding on cricket in this country and the game is in the news thanks to Darrel Hair, Shoaib Akthar, Sharad Pawar and Trescothick. Where is your brand in all this? Is it benefiting? Or getting battered like the Indian cricket team.
Cricket’s role in the sun
Cricket will always be important. And the game is not just in between commercials as our marketers would like to believe but the main reason why we watch. Commercials that eat into the first ball and the last ball are hated by viewers. Brands like MRF, LG or Pepsi may have to stay with cricket. They may even do commercials for Saurav Ganguly! As the wag said in his hey days Saurav Ganguly did commercials for Pepsi, today for old times’ sake Pepsi is doing commercials for Saurav. But do you and I have this luxury? When did you do research about how seriously people are watching cricket? Are peoples’ perceptions the same as yours? Are we losing out young audiences? Are they watching the Harlem Globetrotters? Maybe the Ashes will be interesting. Maybe England and Australia well recreate history. It will definitely be cheaper than sponsoring Indian matches. Maybe India will do brilliantly in South Africa. Maybe one billion people will rediscover the religion! And maybe all advertisers, channels and sponsors will be laughing all the way to the bank. And maybe my friend’s seven year old son will actually start watching cricket!
The author is Ramanujam Sridhar, CEO of Brand-comm.
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Mr. Software retires from work, not from life
One of the most interesting quotes that I have heard in branding was not made by Philip Kotler, John Philip Jones or David Aaker. It was made by Nandan Nilekani, CEO & MD of Infosys when I interviewed him in connection with my book, “You become a brand not when you talk about yourself but when others talk about you” he said. And I remembered this quote in the context of Mr. N.R. Narayana Murthy stepping down from the Executive Chairmanship of Infosys Technologies Ltd on 21st August, 2006. Because this statement if anything certainly applies to Mr. Narayana Murthy who in my opinion atleast is India’s foremost personal brand in the corporate world. And in this column I would like to share a few things based on my experience and interactions with him. The reason for this is simple. For five years in a row Mr. N.R. Narayana Murthy has been voted as the most admired business leader by management students in this country in brand-comm’s business leadership study. And I believe that people in business and people in India can learn a lot from him as I have, over the years. So here are a few random memories that I shall cherish of my experiences with Mr. Software as I believe that title best represents his achievements.
Confident of the future not futuristic
I first met Mr. Narayana Murthy in 1993 in connection with the Infosys public issue. Mudra, the agency I worked for then, was handling the issue. I remember 6 of us landing up in their small office in Koramangala to make the presentation. (Agencies believe in strength in numbers!). And I remember a few people vacating their chairs to accommodate us. I am reminded of Infosys’ spartan early beginnings whenever I see their mind boggling, world-class structures at Mysore or Bangalore. But back to the advertising. I remember my then colleague, Balki working a futuristic campaign referring to Arthur C. Clark and Isaac Asimov for Infosys. We believed Infosys was a futuristic company. Very rightly the company said it would not talk about the future. I guess they were content with merely creating it! The campaign that came out was matter-of-fact, boring even. Over the years Infosys has metamorphosized to one of India’s most successful companies and one of its most visible as well. But its visibility is a product of public relations not mass media advertising. And leading the public relations strategy has been Mr. Narayana Murthy who has been the face of the company and the software industry as well. And the strategy has been simple. Achieve. Do things first. Do them differently. Do them in a larger scale. And you will be written about. And you will become the foremost brand in your category.
First in business, economy in travel
On another occasion on a later date, I was traveling to Ahmedabad. As I went to my customary 12C seat in economy I was surprised to see Mr. Narayana Murthy peering shortsightedly at a magazine in the business class section. (This is hardly the time to talk about my childhood affinity for the 12C bus route in Madras as it was called then, which has extended to my airline travel by way of seat preference). But back to Ahmedabad and my return trip to Bangalore the next day. Whom should I bump into at security other than Mr. Narayana Murthy. I mentioned to him that I had seen him in the same flight the previous evening. Barely had I finished my sentence before he started saying how the organisers who had invited his wife, Sudha Murthy had bought business class tickets and how despite their protestations it could not be changed at the last moment and how now they were travelling economy and boy was he relieved at the changed scenario! To me it seemed a simple conversation, but to him it was a way of life. One had to fly to save time. But traveling business on a local flight to him seemed wrong. To the point of being an obsession. You can call it a middle class hang–up but I would call it a value, that drives Infosys as well.
Environment is what you make
A lot of us depend on our environment to make a statement. The address we live in, the clubs we are members of, the restaurants we patronise, the schools our children go to are all symbols that we cling to. I remember moving to Delhi (or trying to) in 1993. My predecessor lived in Vasant Vihar, an expensive suburb of New Delhi. The reason for that was simple. He said one’s address matters. Well Mr. Narayana Murthy continues to live in Jayanagar. That isn’t Cuff Parade or Boat Club Road. And I have seen him having iddli vada at Adigas which is hardly as aspirational as having breakfast at Leela’s or the Sheraton Towers. (Probably just that little bit tastier). But then Mr. Narayana Murthy does not need the props that you and I need. You can look for the brand to support you or you can be the brand that supports the environment. Like every youngster today believes that IIM is the only brand that can build his career. Mr. Narayana Murthy however believes in strengthening the IIM brand with the power of his own personality and the strength of his conviction. And this is precisely what he did as Chairman Board of Governors, IIM Ahmedabad. He fought for the IIM’s autonomy on the fee increase issue tooth and nail whilst some others in positions of authority were dithering and sitting on the fence. And I remember that from the IIM ‘B’ alumni association we wrote individual letters to over 40 Directors of the various IIM’s expressing solidarity with their quest for autonomy. We got one solitary reply thanking us. No prizes for guessing that Mr. Narayana Murthy was the only one who wrote back. Mr. Narayana Murthy has always responded to mail immediately. (A trait that Nandan Nilekani has as well). Unlike a host of CEOs and VPs even who never respond to mails, text messages or calls on the mobile. There is a lot that business leaders and aspiring ones can learn from NRN as he is called. But then since many of our leaders know everything that needs to be known on every subject under the sun. I am sure they are not reading this column or following what comes to Mr. Narayana Murthy naturally.
Recognition of achievement
Mr. Narayana Murthy was one of the few business leaders who gave me considerable time by way of a personal interview for my just published book. I remember our slotting an hour and we ended up spending ninety minutes. The interview was interrupted up just once as Mr. Murthy after seeking my excuse went out to say hello to G.R. Vishwanath the stylish cricketer who was visiting on behalf of SBI. Mr. Murthy said he had been present with a host of his IIT Kanpur friends in 1969 when the batsman made his test debut against Bill Lawry’s Australians. Mr. Murthy complimented GRV on his fantastic century in the 2nd innings while Vishwanath smilingly recalled his duck in the first innings. This was absolutely fascinating to me, a new dimension to Mr. Narayana Murthy. Today he is a celebrity several times over, but he took pride in recognizing a hero of 37 years ago, when he was a nobody and actually went out of a meeting to recognise him.
Sum and substance
Mr. Narayana Murthy clearly is a leader with a difference. I can’t think of too many laying down office when they are at the peak of their physical and mental powers. More so when the company has been founded by them. Mr. Narayana Murthy demonstrates the value of being oneself without professing to be something else. Consistency is key to a brand. “Ethical”, “Values”, “Simple”, “Wealth Creator” are the brand associations that he elicits consistently. Today Infosys is recognized as the leader of the second generation of successful Indian companies. Not content with leading his company, he led software as one of its most influential leaders making it the industry of choice to Indian’s brightest and best. He may retire from the company he built but will no doubt continue to be a brand. Without even trying.
Confident of the future not futuristic
I first met Mr. Narayana Murthy in 1993 in connection with the Infosys public issue. Mudra, the agency I worked for then, was handling the issue. I remember 6 of us landing up in their small office in Koramangala to make the presentation. (Agencies believe in strength in numbers!). And I remember a few people vacating their chairs to accommodate us. I am reminded of Infosys’ spartan early beginnings whenever I see their mind boggling, world-class structures at Mysore or Bangalore. But back to the advertising. I remember my then colleague, Balki working a futuristic campaign referring to Arthur C. Clark and Isaac Asimov for Infosys. We believed Infosys was a futuristic company. Very rightly the company said it would not talk about the future. I guess they were content with merely creating it! The campaign that came out was matter-of-fact, boring even. Over the years Infosys has metamorphosized to one of India’s most successful companies and one of its most visible as well. But its visibility is a product of public relations not mass media advertising. And leading the public relations strategy has been Mr. Narayana Murthy who has been the face of the company and the software industry as well. And the strategy has been simple. Achieve. Do things first. Do them differently. Do them in a larger scale. And you will be written about. And you will become the foremost brand in your category.
First in business, economy in travel
On another occasion on a later date, I was traveling to Ahmedabad. As I went to my customary 12C seat in economy I was surprised to see Mr. Narayana Murthy peering shortsightedly at a magazine in the business class section. (This is hardly the time to talk about my childhood affinity for the 12C bus route in Madras as it was called then, which has extended to my airline travel by way of seat preference). But back to Ahmedabad and my return trip to Bangalore the next day. Whom should I bump into at security other than Mr. Narayana Murthy. I mentioned to him that I had seen him in the same flight the previous evening. Barely had I finished my sentence before he started saying how the organisers who had invited his wife, Sudha Murthy had bought business class tickets and how despite their protestations it could not be changed at the last moment and how now they were travelling economy and boy was he relieved at the changed scenario! To me it seemed a simple conversation, but to him it was a way of life. One had to fly to save time. But traveling business on a local flight to him seemed wrong. To the point of being an obsession. You can call it a middle class hang–up but I would call it a value, that drives Infosys as well.
Environment is what you make
A lot of us depend on our environment to make a statement. The address we live in, the clubs we are members of, the restaurants we patronise, the schools our children go to are all symbols that we cling to. I remember moving to Delhi (or trying to) in 1993. My predecessor lived in Vasant Vihar, an expensive suburb of New Delhi. The reason for that was simple. He said one’s address matters. Well Mr. Narayana Murthy continues to live in Jayanagar. That isn’t Cuff Parade or Boat Club Road. And I have seen him having iddli vada at Adigas which is hardly as aspirational as having breakfast at Leela’s or the Sheraton Towers. (Probably just that little bit tastier). But then Mr. Narayana Murthy does not need the props that you and I need. You can look for the brand to support you or you can be the brand that supports the environment. Like every youngster today believes that IIM is the only brand that can build his career. Mr. Narayana Murthy however believes in strengthening the IIM brand with the power of his own personality and the strength of his conviction. And this is precisely what he did as Chairman Board of Governors, IIM Ahmedabad. He fought for the IIM’s autonomy on the fee increase issue tooth and nail whilst some others in positions of authority were dithering and sitting on the fence. And I remember that from the IIM ‘B’ alumni association we wrote individual letters to over 40 Directors of the various IIM’s expressing solidarity with their quest for autonomy. We got one solitary reply thanking us. No prizes for guessing that Mr. Narayana Murthy was the only one who wrote back. Mr. Narayana Murthy has always responded to mail immediately. (A trait that Nandan Nilekani has as well). Unlike a host of CEOs and VPs even who never respond to mails, text messages or calls on the mobile. There is a lot that business leaders and aspiring ones can learn from NRN as he is called. But then since many of our leaders know everything that needs to be known on every subject under the sun. I am sure they are not reading this column or following what comes to Mr. Narayana Murthy naturally.
Recognition of achievement
Mr. Narayana Murthy was one of the few business leaders who gave me considerable time by way of a personal interview for my just published book. I remember our slotting an hour and we ended up spending ninety minutes. The interview was interrupted up just once as Mr. Murthy after seeking my excuse went out to say hello to G.R. Vishwanath the stylish cricketer who was visiting on behalf of SBI. Mr. Murthy said he had been present with a host of his IIT Kanpur friends in 1969 when the batsman made his test debut against Bill Lawry’s Australians. Mr. Murthy complimented GRV on his fantastic century in the 2nd innings while Vishwanath smilingly recalled his duck in the first innings. This was absolutely fascinating to me, a new dimension to Mr. Narayana Murthy. Today he is a celebrity several times over, but he took pride in recognizing a hero of 37 years ago, when he was a nobody and actually went out of a meeting to recognise him.
Sum and substance
Mr. Narayana Murthy clearly is a leader with a difference. I can’t think of too many laying down office when they are at the peak of their physical and mental powers. More so when the company has been founded by them. Mr. Narayana Murthy demonstrates the value of being oneself without professing to be something else. Consistency is key to a brand. “Ethical”, “Values”, “Simple”, “Wealth Creator” are the brand associations that he elicits consistently. Today Infosys is recognized as the leader of the second generation of successful Indian companies. Not content with leading his company, he led software as one of its most influential leaders making it the industry of choice to Indian’s brightest and best. He may retire from the company he built but will no doubt continue to be a brand. Without even trying.
The author is Ramanujam Sridhar, CEO of Brand-comm
Thursday, June 8, 2006
Cricket. A game of chance?
“Bulls make money, bears make money, pigs gets slaughtered” is the interesting title of a book by Anthony M. Gallea. And anyone who had the wisdom (?) to enter the Indian stock market on May 10, 2006 when the sensex was a mere 12,624 would bear testimony albeit reluctantly to the correctness of the title! (At the time of writing the sensex has gone down a mere 300 points in 60 minutes and is at 10276!) Indian cricket seems to display similar tendencies and is turning out to be a bit of a lottery for sponsors, advertisers, viewers and fans as well. With the World Cup in March / April 2007 less than a year away it is not only the Indian cricket team but advertisers who are contemplating cricket who need to get their thinking right lest they get slaughtered like some of our poor, unsuspecting retail investors.
Can you pick the spin?
The English media is going gaga over Kevin Pietersen and has been quick to brand him the next Vivian Richards. And one of the reasons why there is so much media hype is based on Pietersen’s ability to pick Murali’s spin and spot his “doorsra”. And yet I am amazed at the PR spin around Indian cricketers and the game itself. I was recently foxed at seeing a TV programme in a fairly popular television channel focused on Dhoni’s home town of Ranchi and the celebrity‘s status in that town. If the report was to be believed people were swearing by their local hero and saying what a great credit he was to their town and state and how they would only buy products endorsed by Dhoni! Of course a few days later the news was full of how Gujarat was boycotting products like Titan, Coke and Innova that Aamir Khan was endorsing! Both these seem to be contradictory to whatever one has known or read about celebrities. Someone’s PR machinery is clouding the issue and I think it is important for advertisers not to be carried away by “PR Spin” and media hype and stick to facts about cricket and its efficacy as an interest or advertising opportunity.
Most viewers sleep at night
When Kerry Packer launched his revolutionary brand of Pajama cricket under lights, cricketers like Imran Khan sported T Shirts with the slogan “Big boys play at night”. And yet during the recently concluded India West Indies matches (which were absolutely absorbing) barring a few night owls like me most of India was sleeping. Let me explain. How many of you saw Kaif’s winning hit of Bravo with just a ball to spare at Jamaica live? Which of you saw Yuvaraj’s shattered expression as he was bowled by Bravo at Jamaica live or Sarwan’s winning hit of Sreesanth at St. Kitts. Absolutely enthralling matches played out to miniscule television audiences at 3.45 a.m, Indian Standard Time. And I think this is relevant when we consider that next year’s big ticket event will be the Cricket World Cup. And most of the matches will be played around this time of day (or is it night) barring a few that may be played under lights which could still preclude viewership of the first innings. Yes, cricket is in the news, cricket celebrities make headlines (sometimes like Shane Warne) but if your money is riding on the game and its viewership itself, just step back for a moment.
Ride the excitement
India and Pakistan way back in 1987 were hosting the Reliance World Cup. We were working for a brand of blades called Wilman (the brand has since been taken over by Gillette). It was not a large advertiser and did not have the resources to take spots on the telecast of the matches. They wisely decided to ride the cricket wave without getting caught in the clutter. They created a lot of excitement around the stadium where the crowds were there – held promos, trials and displays. After all every one cannot be a Reliance. And this is the point I want to make. There are many brands with long term interests, commitment and loyalty to the game and its stars. Brands like MRF, LG and Pepsi readily come to mind. These are huge brands, leaders in the markets they operate in with large budgets. Several Indian and international cricketers endorse these brands. Brands like these will continue to back cricket in India or abroad, day or night, whether India wins the world cup or gets knocked out in the preliminaries. But what about the majority of brands who are in various stages of search, wooing or flirting? The answer is obvious. Cricket is vast getting followers of all sizes, shapes and nationalities. But can you fine tune your strategy even if you are staying with cricket? World Cup cricket or football obviously makes sense for companies selling TV sets. (And one wonders how much Pepsi will be drunk in the middle of the night?) But what about shampoos, soaps, invertors, paints, cements, which will feature in the world cup telecast next year? To my mind the obvious, lazy strategy will not work. Even if you want to stay with cricket can you look elsewhere or at the fringes?
The game spreads
The ICC is keen to expand the game and its popularity beyond the traditional centres. Whether that has worked or not, what has certainly happened is that people are watching cricket from other parts of the world. The viewership for the last Ashes series played in England or for that unbelievable one day match between Australia and South Africa played at the Wanderers was phenomenal in India. And the costs? Probably much lower. The Ashes will precede the world cup and the champions trophy will be in India as well. Try not to get caught in the hype. Cricket is here to stay. It is not like real estate as some smart salesman would like us to believe. Keep a budgetary provision for opportunities that may turn up lest you end up like the retail investor who invested on 10th May 2006!
Can you pick the spin?
The English media is going gaga over Kevin Pietersen and has been quick to brand him the next Vivian Richards. And one of the reasons why there is so much media hype is based on Pietersen’s ability to pick Murali’s spin and spot his “doorsra”. And yet I am amazed at the PR spin around Indian cricketers and the game itself. I was recently foxed at seeing a TV programme in a fairly popular television channel focused on Dhoni’s home town of Ranchi and the celebrity‘s status in that town. If the report was to be believed people were swearing by their local hero and saying what a great credit he was to their town and state and how they would only buy products endorsed by Dhoni! Of course a few days later the news was full of how Gujarat was boycotting products like Titan, Coke and Innova that Aamir Khan was endorsing! Both these seem to be contradictory to whatever one has known or read about celebrities. Someone’s PR machinery is clouding the issue and I think it is important for advertisers not to be carried away by “PR Spin” and media hype and stick to facts about cricket and its efficacy as an interest or advertising opportunity.
Most viewers sleep at night
When Kerry Packer launched his revolutionary brand of Pajama cricket under lights, cricketers like Imran Khan sported T Shirts with the slogan “Big boys play at night”. And yet during the recently concluded India West Indies matches (which were absolutely absorbing) barring a few night owls like me most of India was sleeping. Let me explain. How many of you saw Kaif’s winning hit of Bravo with just a ball to spare at Jamaica live? Which of you saw Yuvaraj’s shattered expression as he was bowled by Bravo at Jamaica live or Sarwan’s winning hit of Sreesanth at St. Kitts. Absolutely enthralling matches played out to miniscule television audiences at 3.45 a.m, Indian Standard Time. And I think this is relevant when we consider that next year’s big ticket event will be the Cricket World Cup. And most of the matches will be played around this time of day (or is it night) barring a few that may be played under lights which could still preclude viewership of the first innings. Yes, cricket is in the news, cricket celebrities make headlines (sometimes like Shane Warne) but if your money is riding on the game and its viewership itself, just step back for a moment.
Ride the excitement
India and Pakistan way back in 1987 were hosting the Reliance World Cup. We were working for a brand of blades called Wilman (the brand has since been taken over by Gillette). It was not a large advertiser and did not have the resources to take spots on the telecast of the matches. They wisely decided to ride the cricket wave without getting caught in the clutter. They created a lot of excitement around the stadium where the crowds were there – held promos, trials and displays. After all every one cannot be a Reliance. And this is the point I want to make. There are many brands with long term interests, commitment and loyalty to the game and its stars. Brands like MRF, LG and Pepsi readily come to mind. These are huge brands, leaders in the markets they operate in with large budgets. Several Indian and international cricketers endorse these brands. Brands like these will continue to back cricket in India or abroad, day or night, whether India wins the world cup or gets knocked out in the preliminaries. But what about the majority of brands who are in various stages of search, wooing or flirting? The answer is obvious. Cricket is vast getting followers of all sizes, shapes and nationalities. But can you fine tune your strategy even if you are staying with cricket? World Cup cricket or football obviously makes sense for companies selling TV sets. (And one wonders how much Pepsi will be drunk in the middle of the night?) But what about shampoos, soaps, invertors, paints, cements, which will feature in the world cup telecast next year? To my mind the obvious, lazy strategy will not work. Even if you want to stay with cricket can you look elsewhere or at the fringes?
The game spreads
The ICC is keen to expand the game and its popularity beyond the traditional centres. Whether that has worked or not, what has certainly happened is that people are watching cricket from other parts of the world. The viewership for the last Ashes series played in England or for that unbelievable one day match between Australia and South Africa played at the Wanderers was phenomenal in India. And the costs? Probably much lower. The Ashes will precede the world cup and the champions trophy will be in India as well. Try not to get caught in the hype. Cricket is here to stay. It is not like real estate as some smart salesman would like us to believe. Keep a budgetary provision for opportunities that may turn up lest you end up like the retail investor who invested on 10th May 2006!
The author is Ramanujam Sridhar, CEO of brand-comm.
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Is daddy cool?
The setting is a primary school classroom. The children are all busy listening to their teacher. Outside the class a parent (father) is trying desperately to catch the eye of his child who is equally desperately trying to avoid his eye. The kid’s friends also draw attention to the gesticulating parent and reluctantly the boy comes out of the class. His animated father asks him how to get the cricket score on his mobile and how he can get to R World. The exasperated son looks at his father with barely concealed scorn and tells him “just press the button”, gets him the score and goes back to class. The film ends with the father’s delighted, albeit ill-timed jig at the Indian score and at Dhoni’s six. Two nuns, who are passing by, wonder what’s happening. I like this commercial for a number of reasons not the least of which is my own anxiety to know the cricket score, sometimes when I am in alien lands like Thailand where cricket is nowhere in the scheme of things. But back to school and our commercial.
Execution – only half the story
At the risk of carrying coal to Newcastle, I must repeat that there are two components to any communication. The execution is that which we finally see, love, hate or are indifferent too. It is difficult not to like the Reliance R World commercial. Key to the executional success is a cute kid whose histrionics holds the commercial together. I am sure many of us have noticed the bevy of cute kids that waltz into our living rooms emoting for one brand or the other. This kid is one such. Let’s move on to the other part which is the strategy or ‘what’ is being said: This precedes the ‘how’ that you and I get to see.
The ‘parity economy’ we live in
One of the most abused clichés of our times is the statement that we live in a competitive world with multiple brands in every category. Every product is depressingly similar to its competition and there are so many of them whether it is soaps, shampoos, detergents… You name the category and I would be hard pressed to name the brands within it. So unique selling propositions like ‘bottles washed in steam’ or ‘only toothpaste with clove oil’ are increasingly difficult to come by in this day and age of product parity. The solution is not within the product but within the consumer. However difficult it is we must strive to find a consumer insight that strikes a chord in the viewer’s heart and moves the brand’s sales graph up. This commercial has one such insight. It’s not the ‘R World’ feature. Airtel offers value-added services too as I am sure does Hutch. And I am sure all these brands are powered by a website like Cricinfo. So there is no differentiator there. But the difference is that this commercial strikes a chord through its understanding of its consumers.
Daddy is a technophobe!
Just look around you and you will be amazed at how technologically challenged most consumers are. Nor is it a new phenomenon. In the eighties and nineties, one out of every two middle class Indian households bought a VCR but few among them ever used the ‘record’ switch, perhaps even more infrequently when a program that was scheduled for later had to be recorded in absentia. Even today people seem to be more comfortable ‘forwarding’ e-mails than composing them. People who own the snazziest LCD TV’s do not know how to tune the various channels that are beamed off the cable network. Owners of satellite radio do not know how to feed the password to get it on air and most relevantly many of us have fancy mobile phones with umpteen features that we haven’t the foggiest notion about. I wonder how many people above 40 who have cell phones with camera can actually take a picture and use that visual as wall paper. I for one cant! So what do we do? We enlist the support of our children who thankfully don’t suffer from our technological deficiency. These kids can delete our unnecessary messages, store important numbers, tell us how to activate voice mail and use call waiting facility. And they barely need to be out of their diapers to do all these seemingly mind boggling things.
It is this insight that drives the ‘R World’ commercial.
Insights are pure gold
Phil Dusenberry, the advertising great who was behind some of BBDO’s path breaking campaigns has this to say, “Good research demands brilliant analysis which inspires blazing insights that lead to ground breaking strategies and award winning executions.” Traditionally we have believed in the power of ideas. I am not knocking ideas. They have their use- but insights are long term and far more valuable. GE’s ‘We bring good things to life’ based on a strong insight ran for 24 years. The starting point is research. And research does not mean tons of spreadsheets or mountains of data. It is understanding the consumer, her motivations and problems. It is time spent intelligently at the consumer’s house or at the retail outlet or at the pub if beer is our product. Insights have been discovered before by observant marketers. And will continue to be discovered in future too. If you want to secure your brand’s future have no stone unturned. Just unearth that insight!
Execution – only half the story
At the risk of carrying coal to Newcastle, I must repeat that there are two components to any communication. The execution is that which we finally see, love, hate or are indifferent too. It is difficult not to like the Reliance R World commercial. Key to the executional success is a cute kid whose histrionics holds the commercial together. I am sure many of us have noticed the bevy of cute kids that waltz into our living rooms emoting for one brand or the other. This kid is one such. Let’s move on to the other part which is the strategy or ‘what’ is being said: This precedes the ‘how’ that you and I get to see.
The ‘parity economy’ we live in
One of the most abused clichés of our times is the statement that we live in a competitive world with multiple brands in every category. Every product is depressingly similar to its competition and there are so many of them whether it is soaps, shampoos, detergents… You name the category and I would be hard pressed to name the brands within it. So unique selling propositions like ‘bottles washed in steam’ or ‘only toothpaste with clove oil’ are increasingly difficult to come by in this day and age of product parity. The solution is not within the product but within the consumer. However difficult it is we must strive to find a consumer insight that strikes a chord in the viewer’s heart and moves the brand’s sales graph up. This commercial has one such insight. It’s not the ‘R World’ feature. Airtel offers value-added services too as I am sure does Hutch. And I am sure all these brands are powered by a website like Cricinfo. So there is no differentiator there. But the difference is that this commercial strikes a chord through its understanding of its consumers.
Daddy is a technophobe!
Just look around you and you will be amazed at how technologically challenged most consumers are. Nor is it a new phenomenon. In the eighties and nineties, one out of every two middle class Indian households bought a VCR but few among them ever used the ‘record’ switch, perhaps even more infrequently when a program that was scheduled for later had to be recorded in absentia. Even today people seem to be more comfortable ‘forwarding’ e-mails than composing them. People who own the snazziest LCD TV’s do not know how to tune the various channels that are beamed off the cable network. Owners of satellite radio do not know how to feed the password to get it on air and most relevantly many of us have fancy mobile phones with umpteen features that we haven’t the foggiest notion about. I wonder how many people above 40 who have cell phones with camera can actually take a picture and use that visual as wall paper. I for one cant! So what do we do? We enlist the support of our children who thankfully don’t suffer from our technological deficiency. These kids can delete our unnecessary messages, store important numbers, tell us how to activate voice mail and use call waiting facility. And they barely need to be out of their diapers to do all these seemingly mind boggling things.
It is this insight that drives the ‘R World’ commercial.
Insights are pure gold
Phil Dusenberry, the advertising great who was behind some of BBDO’s path breaking campaigns has this to say, “Good research demands brilliant analysis which inspires blazing insights that lead to ground breaking strategies and award winning executions.” Traditionally we have believed in the power of ideas. I am not knocking ideas. They have their use- but insights are long term and far more valuable. GE’s ‘We bring good things to life’ based on a strong insight ran for 24 years. The starting point is research. And research does not mean tons of spreadsheets or mountains of data. It is understanding the consumer, her motivations and problems. It is time spent intelligently at the consumer’s house or at the retail outlet or at the pub if beer is our product. Insights have been discovered before by observant marketers. And will continue to be discovered in future too. If you want to secure your brand’s future have no stone unturned. Just unearth that insight!
The author is Ramanujam Sridhar, CEO of Brand-comm
Thursday, April 27, 2006
Back to the future
I recall a famous Tamil film song penned by the immortal lyricist Kannadasan which when translated reads as follows “Feet that stray from the right path don’t reach the destination”. And yet I believe it is possible for people and brands to get back on track with a little introspection. Brands stray when they try to be different for the sake of being different. The desire to be different is pretty common in advertising. And this desire to be different usually means a break from the past. If only the agency were to listen to the “echoes” of the past – a term that the famous advertising person David N. Martin (the founder of the Martin agency) was fond of using – it could build on the framework of the past, rather than creating from scratch.
A.R. Rahman resurfaces for Airtel
Airtel is an amazingly successful brand. It has very visible advertising, with a fairly high share of voice. As mobile services is an extremely competitive (cut throat?) category, there are a number of advertising renditions that happen. And yet one of the most interesting ones for me as a consumer was the one with A.R. Rahman in Hyde Park (was it) playing with an assortment of musicians even as an adoring recording artist listens to the music that is carried through Airtel mobile’s service. Well, I know that I can’t be exactly objective about A.R. Rahman but it was a brilliant track. Airtel had integrated this piece of communication making it a fairly popular ring tone. Every second Airtel user was having this ring tone and enthusiastic guys even used it in their cars as they reversed. I am not sure if Airtel has been using this tune in all their advertising. Some of their schemes like Rs.199/- set in paan shops and barber saloons certainly did not. But I was pleasantly reassured to see the Airtel music shop commercial with a predominance of red (the Airtel logo and colours) and A.R. Rahman’s music track again – in the forefront where it belongs. Their other black and white commercial too which is on air which I shall refer to as the “Berlin Wall” commercial has a strand of this music as it ends.
I will not forget A.R. Rahman
Indians love music. Its one of the great unifiers of this diverse country. Music too provides a great “opportunity to hear” (OTH) if you are not in the same room as the TV set. Airtel’s music track has the potency of being a ‘brand property’ if it isn’t already. Titan has had the same music track for a small matter of 19 years. I remember the commentator David Lloyd asking errant bowlers to write 100 lines – “I will not bowl short to Ricky Ponting”, I am sure bowlers would do well to remember this as well – “I will not bowl on Rahul Dravid’s pads” and Airtel’s agency would do well to memorise this “I will not forget A.R. Rahman”. And I wonder if it is politically correct for me to write about this interesting call I received from Hutch saying that they had an unbeatable offer for Airtel’s privileged customers. This deserves another column so I should desist for the present. Ashes to Ashes, dust to dust, if Airtel doesn’t get you then Hutch must!
“Thanda” returns to a hot country
Summer time is cola time – or at least cool drink time. A couple of years ago Coke had this wonderful “thanda” campaign with Aamir Khan, which was a break from their global advertising position and stance. Their line “Thanda matlab coca cola” warmed my heart at least. It was an attempt to own the word “thanda” which most of India (read Hindi heartland) could relate to. Then Coke lost its way (or so I said in one of my columns in this august newspaper) and said “Sar Utha Ke”. Clearly Coke was throwing out the baby with the bath water in its quest for change. And now Coke is back – if not with a bang – at least with Thanda. The new campaign with Aishwarya Rai is not my favourite – it’s too Delhi University centric, relies too much on Aishwarya’s histrionics (what are they) but is still built on “Thanda”. Coke, you are getting there. But where is Aamir? Probably in Gujarat….
“The king of good times”
Let’s get back to our original concept, music. Kingfisher first launched their Calypso tune when they sponsored the West Indian Cricket team. Arguably the West Indian Cricket team was the worst then. It is getting there even now but Kingfisher had a good thing going with its music track. The calypso beat had people humming when they were not guzzling. I particularly like Kingfisher’s recent shower commercial with Michael Vaughan and Freddie Flintoff. An interesting use of international cricketers while they are touring. (Perhaps the only worthwhile thing Vaughan has done in India on their recent tour is shoot this commercial!). And an interesting replay of the tune. The same “good times” thought is airborne with Kingfisher airlines as well. Yes, music will work. The question is can we see beyond the tips of our noses? Can we recognize the good thing that we own? Sadly we miss the obvious trick when it comes to brands and branding. So, whenever you are stumped to find a solution at present, just look backwards. You just might find your pot of gold. Your brand’s past could well guide your future.
A.R. Rahman resurfaces for Airtel
Airtel is an amazingly successful brand. It has very visible advertising, with a fairly high share of voice. As mobile services is an extremely competitive (cut throat?) category, there are a number of advertising renditions that happen. And yet one of the most interesting ones for me as a consumer was the one with A.R. Rahman in Hyde Park (was it) playing with an assortment of musicians even as an adoring recording artist listens to the music that is carried through Airtel mobile’s service. Well, I know that I can’t be exactly objective about A.R. Rahman but it was a brilliant track. Airtel had integrated this piece of communication making it a fairly popular ring tone. Every second Airtel user was having this ring tone and enthusiastic guys even used it in their cars as they reversed. I am not sure if Airtel has been using this tune in all their advertising. Some of their schemes like Rs.199/- set in paan shops and barber saloons certainly did not. But I was pleasantly reassured to see the Airtel music shop commercial with a predominance of red (the Airtel logo and colours) and A.R. Rahman’s music track again – in the forefront where it belongs. Their other black and white commercial too which is on air which I shall refer to as the “Berlin Wall” commercial has a strand of this music as it ends.
I will not forget A.R. Rahman
Indians love music. Its one of the great unifiers of this diverse country. Music too provides a great “opportunity to hear” (OTH) if you are not in the same room as the TV set. Airtel’s music track has the potency of being a ‘brand property’ if it isn’t already. Titan has had the same music track for a small matter of 19 years. I remember the commentator David Lloyd asking errant bowlers to write 100 lines – “I will not bowl short to Ricky Ponting”, I am sure bowlers would do well to remember this as well – “I will not bowl on Rahul Dravid’s pads” and Airtel’s agency would do well to memorise this “I will not forget A.R. Rahman”. And I wonder if it is politically correct for me to write about this interesting call I received from Hutch saying that they had an unbeatable offer for Airtel’s privileged customers. This deserves another column so I should desist for the present. Ashes to Ashes, dust to dust, if Airtel doesn’t get you then Hutch must!
“Thanda” returns to a hot country
Summer time is cola time – or at least cool drink time. A couple of years ago Coke had this wonderful “thanda” campaign with Aamir Khan, which was a break from their global advertising position and stance. Their line “Thanda matlab coca cola” warmed my heart at least. It was an attempt to own the word “thanda” which most of India (read Hindi heartland) could relate to. Then Coke lost its way (or so I said in one of my columns in this august newspaper) and said “Sar Utha Ke”. Clearly Coke was throwing out the baby with the bath water in its quest for change. And now Coke is back – if not with a bang – at least with Thanda. The new campaign with Aishwarya Rai is not my favourite – it’s too Delhi University centric, relies too much on Aishwarya’s histrionics (what are they) but is still built on “Thanda”. Coke, you are getting there. But where is Aamir? Probably in Gujarat….
“The king of good times”
Let’s get back to our original concept, music. Kingfisher first launched their Calypso tune when they sponsored the West Indian Cricket team. Arguably the West Indian Cricket team was the worst then. It is getting there even now but Kingfisher had a good thing going with its music track. The calypso beat had people humming when they were not guzzling. I particularly like Kingfisher’s recent shower commercial with Michael Vaughan and Freddie Flintoff. An interesting use of international cricketers while they are touring. (Perhaps the only worthwhile thing Vaughan has done in India on their recent tour is shoot this commercial!). And an interesting replay of the tune. The same “good times” thought is airborne with Kingfisher airlines as well. Yes, music will work. The question is can we see beyond the tips of our noses? Can we recognize the good thing that we own? Sadly we miss the obvious trick when it comes to brands and branding. So, whenever you are stumped to find a solution at present, just look backwards. You just might find your pot of gold. Your brand’s past could well guide your future.
The author is Ramanujam Sridhar, CEO of Brand-comm
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