A few years ago I was to do a review of the “yes sir” commercial for fastrack watches. In case you do not remember the commercial, it is set in a class room, which could be St Stephen’s in Delhi or St Xavier’s at Mumbai and it is roll-call time. (What a relief to parents like me that things like this still happen in college).
As students keep saying “yes sir” with varying degrees of disinterest, it is observed that one of the young gentlemen is wearing a groovy fastrack watch and all the girls in the class keep drooling and saying “yes sir” when his name is called out, to the embarrassment of the young man and the merriment of the rest of the class.
The commercial seemed interesting enough though I am not sure if I got the commercial in its entirety. Of course, I am not the target audience for the commercial or the brand, so I asked my second son who was 19 then, as to what he thought of the ad. His response was instantaneous. “Pa, it is kickass!” he said. If I had spoken like that to my dad, then I would not be sitting here writing this column, but that is not the point I am trying to make.
The point is that India is a young country with close to 57% of the population below the age of 24. But in the same country we have marketing managers in their forties and managing directors in their fifties who are trying to woo these twenty some things. If that is not a marketing and a communication challenge then I wonder what is!
What works, what doesn’t?
So what do we know about India’s youth? Not very much I am afraid but I think we need to feel our way through this generation as it is very important to understand this emerging segment of the market who could soon be leading it in terms of importance and size.
The obvious thing we need to remember is that this generation is relaxed if not spaced out. It can laugh at itself and others in stark contrast to dour middle aged professionals like me. So advertising like the ads for Mentos or Sprite works for young people, while people of my age may look at it with distaste.
Try to talk the language of the young however...
complex it is, which first means that you have to understand what they are saying and if they are your consumers, you better figure it out fast, in your own self interest.
Don’t lecture
My son, labels me as a dangerous combination as I am both a parent and a teacher. He says parents advise while teachers lecture and I do both! So as marketers, for God’s sake, do not lecture.
We do not have a captive audience out there, waiting to be converted. These sophisticated young things have a potent weapon in their hand, the remote control and so can easily shut out our message and our brand if it does not entertain at least, even if it does not engage this demanding set of consumers.
Surprise the key
I think we need to remember one important thing about today’s youth, particularly the urban youth. It has been there, done that, seen it all and is on the verge of being cynical.
You need to spring your brand message in a manner that is surprising to say the least and completely unexpected. Brands like Levi’s in India and Nike world over seem to understand the potency of this segment and have a better feel for what makes them tick.
A brand is a brand
This generation understands the need for and value of brands. Look at the importance it assigns to education at IIT, IIM or now the National Law School. It waits for sales to buy brands that it aspires to own whether it is Levis, Nike or Reebok.
My marketing professor called India’s young as the MTV generation, which is multiple processing, time compressed, value seekers. Seek them out for your own good!
Ramanujam Sridhar is CEO brand-comm and the author of “One land, one billion minds”
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Never give up on the idea!
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/catalyst/2008/09/25/stories/2008092550100200.htm
Celebrity value: Disgraced cricketer Shane Warne’s story lent credibility to Nike’s campaign.
Shane Warne was the ultimate celebrity of my time. He exhilarated fans and exasperated authorities and sponsors with the same ease with which he bowled the flipper. Like the great tennis player John McEnroe who was arguably Nike’s greatest flag bearer, Warne, another endorser of the brand, challenged the establishment and yet was a champion, which was the individuality that the brand portrayed and valued in its endorsers. After Warne’s phenomenal performance in the unforgettable 1999 World Cup in England, Nike produced an ad titled “Never give up”.
It was my favourite, as it showed Warne facing a number of challenges that might have seemed insurmountable to ordinary mortals, some of whom competed with him — his shoulder injury, the betting scandal, separation from his family and the ultimate insult — being dropped from the team that he was such an integral and important part of; and then the commercial ends with him making a brilliant comeback in the finals at Lords against a hapless Pakistan, which Australia won in a canter.
Like to all great work the response was extreme and not middle-of-the-road. As per Michael Simon, creative director of the Advertising agency Foot Cone Belding: “Blokes punched the air and went “Come on”. Women said I don’t care how good he is, he’s a nob.” As for me, the commercial made a profound impression on me, not only because Shane Warne was one of my favourite cricketers, but also because the idea was powerful. Warne was in the news for all the wrong reasons and had come out of the depths to the pinnacle as only he can do, and this commercial had captured that. Once again a clever scriptwriter had an idea that the celebrity had taken to the next level with his real-life story and rather than use the celebrity to prop up a weak idea as we see so often.
Reel life or real life
All of us are voyeurs in some sense of the term and love to peek into the lives of celebrities. The importance index of socialites seems to be directly proportionate to the gossip that they have access to about the celebrities that we all admire and yet we must concede that these same celebrities constantly provide grist to the gossip mill with their errors of omission and commission. Thank God for that, otherwise we would all be so bored! Of course, some of these are facts and not gossip as celebrity lives are open books.
It is common knowledge that M. S. Dhoni, India’s one-day and T20 captain (and at this point of time the hottest celebrity when it comes to sponsorships), was an indifferent student at best and has just now enrolled for a graduate course years after leaving school. Of course, one can be defensive about one’s lack of education or flaunt it. Or better still, let that be the idea of a television commercial for one of the myriad brands that one is endorsing.
Dhoni and Pepsi have done just that in the new “Youngistan” commercial. Although it is likely that you would have seen the commercial too, as it has got wide exposure, the script is still worth recounting. The commercial begins with Dhoni in an unlikely setting, the classroom, where he is clearly ill at ease. The teacher seems to revel in his role of increasing the young sportsman’s discomfiture and asks him his marks in Mathematics.
I am sure there will soon be another maxim that says that like you do not ask a man his salary and a woman her age, people must remember not to ask youngsters their marks in Maths! Dhoni sheepishly says 41, reminding me of my rank in class X, but back to the script!
The film gets into monologue mode where he says he realises he did not spend much time studying in school though he did spend time studying pitches and opposition bowlers’ minds as he examines someone who at close quarters looks surprisingly like Brett Lee. But he is mortal enough to concede that he has been unable to read the mind of Sreesanth who is gyrating in the background. He ends the commercial by saying that thanks to all his studies he has already won a world cup and the secret is to have a thirst for success.
Why do I like this commercial? Is it because it is true to Pepsi’s character of being for the young and young at heart? Is it because it appeals to the popular sentiment that my children seem to reflect that you do not have to study to be successful? Is it because the brand promise of quenching thirst is so deftly woven into the script? Is it because it is the story of the lad from Ranchi who is so far from us geographically and yet so close to our hearts? Is it because of the power of the idea that builds real life into a commercial that is endearing? Yes. Once again my submission to writers is: “Never give up on the power of the idea”. That and not the celebrity will make your commercial striking.
Clever writers too know the value of the presence and charisma that someone such as Dhoni brings to the script and table. He seems to have the same poise behind and in front of the wicket as he has in front of the camera. I wish I could say the same for some of our other cricketers who seem to be as nervous in front of the camera as they have been in their nineties.
Rejection is not the name of the game
There was a time when actors used to reject film scripts that were not challenging or interesting. Or so out-of-work actors claimed.
Looks like actors do not exercise the same level of restraint or judgment when it comes to choosing scripts for products that they endorse. It seems like they are guided by considerations of a quick buck. I recently had the misfortune of seeing another celebrity commercial featuring Preity Zinta of BSNL fame and you must forgive me if I do not get the script right, as the commercial made for agonising watching, much less for remembering. The action happens on a film set and we have a distraught actor saying that she is unable to concentrate on the lines of the film as her washing machine is not working. I am sure out-of-work actors do their own laundry and those that own cricket teams must do the team’s laundry as well, which explains her confusion. Preity Zinta seems to pick real losers when it comes to endorsement scripts. Given the increasing importance of actors in this entire celebrity environment one hopes that actors, who may have a limited understanding of branding, will at least have a better feel for the audience and exercise one level of quality control in the script. Well, there is no harm in hoping, is there?
Cricketers, actors, who else?
Our marketers and advertising agencies, despite all the hype about thinking differently and out of the box, end up being surprisingly predictable in their thinking and execution. Cricket and (hold your breath) films or entertainment seem to be the only two genres in their horizon. Dhoni endorses 12 brands at last count. Giving him a run for his money is Saif Ali Khan. Ads which were featuring Saif appeared for about 45 lakh seconds last year leaving behind Shah Rukh Khan with 42 lakh seconds and Big B with a mere 32 lakh seconds.
Younger actors are replacing the older actors. TVS, Sonata, Titan, Brylcreem, Lays, Taj Mahal Tea, Royal Stag, Pepsi, Toshiba, Videocon are all using celebrities. Surely our agencies, marketers and communication experts are taking the easy way out. Yet, there is no denying the fact that celebrities bring instant awareness to the brands they endorse, but yet the question must be asked: How many of these celebrities are part of the long-term strategy of the brand, like the Nike brand that this piece started with?
Never give up
Let me end with my familiar refrain. More and more companies are joining the celebrity bandwagon as they seem to be following the herd or getting satisfied with the awareness which is just one part of the whole buying equation. At the risk of sounding nostalgic one can only remember some long-term strategies like a continuing character that Surf Excel created in Lalitaji, Onida’s creation of the devil or Amul’s little moppet that still continues to be the longest running campaign. Maybe there is learning from the life and times of Shane Warne. In cricket and branding there can be no pain without gain.
Are you ready for the pain of the long term?
(Ramanujam Sridhar is the CEO of brandcomm and the author of One Land, One Billion Minds.)
Celebrity value: Disgraced cricketer Shane Warne’s story lent credibility to Nike’s campaign.
Shane Warne was the ultimate celebrity of my time. He exhilarated fans and exasperated authorities and sponsors with the same ease with which he bowled the flipper. Like the great tennis player John McEnroe who was arguably Nike’s greatest flag bearer, Warne, another endorser of the brand, challenged the establishment and yet was a champion, which was the individuality that the brand portrayed and valued in its endorsers. After Warne’s phenomenal performance in the unforgettable 1999 World Cup in England, Nike produced an ad titled “Never give up”. It was my favourite, as it showed Warne facing a number of challenges that might have seemed insurmountable to ordinary mortals, some of whom competed with him — his shoulder injury, the betting scandal, separation from his family and the ultimate insult — being dropped from the team that he was such an integral and important part of; and then the commercial ends with him making a brilliant comeback in the finals at Lords against a hapless Pakistan, which Australia won in a canter.
Like to all great work the response was extreme and not middle-of-the-road. As per Michael Simon, creative director of the Advertising agency Foot Cone Belding: “Blokes punched the air and went “Come on”. Women said I don’t care how good he is, he’s a nob.” As for me, the commercial made a profound impression on me, not only because Shane Warne was one of my favourite cricketers, but also because the idea was powerful. Warne was in the news for all the wrong reasons and had come out of the depths to the pinnacle as only he can do, and this commercial had captured that. Once again a clever scriptwriter had an idea that the celebrity had taken to the next level with his real-life story and rather than use the celebrity to prop up a weak idea as we see so often.
Reel life or real life
All of us are voyeurs in some sense of the term and love to peek into the lives of celebrities. The importance index of socialites seems to be directly proportionate to the gossip that they have access to about the celebrities that we all admire and yet we must concede that these same celebrities constantly provide grist to the gossip mill with their errors of omission and commission. Thank God for that, otherwise we would all be so bored! Of course, some of these are facts and not gossip as celebrity lives are open books.
It is common knowledge that M. S. Dhoni, India’s one-day and T20 captain (and at this point of time the hottest celebrity when it comes to sponsorships), was an indifferent student at best and has just now enrolled for a graduate course years after leaving school. Of course, one can be defensive about one’s lack of education or flaunt it. Or better still, let that be the idea of a television commercial for one of the myriad brands that one is endorsing.
Dhoni and Pepsi have done just that in the new “Youngistan” commercial. Although it is likely that you would have seen the commercial too, as it has got wide exposure, the script is still worth recounting. The commercial begins with Dhoni in an unlikely setting, the classroom, where he is clearly ill at ease. The teacher seems to revel in his role of increasing the young sportsman’s discomfiture and asks him his marks in Mathematics.
I am sure there will soon be another maxim that says that like you do not ask a man his salary and a woman her age, people must remember not to ask youngsters their marks in Maths! Dhoni sheepishly says 41, reminding me of my rank in class X, but back to the script!
The film gets into monologue mode where he says he realises he did not spend much time studying in school though he did spend time studying pitches and opposition bowlers’ minds as he examines someone who at close quarters looks surprisingly like Brett Lee. But he is mortal enough to concede that he has been unable to read the mind of Sreesanth who is gyrating in the background. He ends the commercial by saying that thanks to all his studies he has already won a world cup and the secret is to have a thirst for success.
Why do I like this commercial? Is it because it is true to Pepsi’s character of being for the young and young at heart? Is it because it appeals to the popular sentiment that my children seem to reflect that you do not have to study to be successful? Is it because the brand promise of quenching thirst is so deftly woven into the script? Is it because it is the story of the lad from Ranchi who is so far from us geographically and yet so close to our hearts? Is it because of the power of the idea that builds real life into a commercial that is endearing? Yes. Once again my submission to writers is: “Never give up on the power of the idea”. That and not the celebrity will make your commercial striking.
Clever writers too know the value of the presence and charisma that someone such as Dhoni brings to the script and table. He seems to have the same poise behind and in front of the wicket as he has in front of the camera. I wish I could say the same for some of our other cricketers who seem to be as nervous in front of the camera as they have been in their nineties.
Rejection is not the name of the game
There was a time when actors used to reject film scripts that were not challenging or interesting. Or so out-of-work actors claimed.
Looks like actors do not exercise the same level of restraint or judgment when it comes to choosing scripts for products that they endorse. It seems like they are guided by considerations of a quick buck. I recently had the misfortune of seeing another celebrity commercial featuring Preity Zinta of BSNL fame and you must forgive me if I do not get the script right, as the commercial made for agonising watching, much less for remembering. The action happens on a film set and we have a distraught actor saying that she is unable to concentrate on the lines of the film as her washing machine is not working. I am sure out-of-work actors do their own laundry and those that own cricket teams must do the team’s laundry as well, which explains her confusion. Preity Zinta seems to pick real losers when it comes to endorsement scripts. Given the increasing importance of actors in this entire celebrity environment one hopes that actors, who may have a limited understanding of branding, will at least have a better feel for the audience and exercise one level of quality control in the script. Well, there is no harm in hoping, is there?
Cricketers, actors, who else?
Our marketers and advertising agencies, despite all the hype about thinking differently and out of the box, end up being surprisingly predictable in their thinking and execution. Cricket and (hold your breath) films or entertainment seem to be the only two genres in their horizon. Dhoni endorses 12 brands at last count. Giving him a run for his money is Saif Ali Khan. Ads which were featuring Saif appeared for about 45 lakh seconds last year leaving behind Shah Rukh Khan with 42 lakh seconds and Big B with a mere 32 lakh seconds.
Younger actors are replacing the older actors. TVS, Sonata, Titan, Brylcreem, Lays, Taj Mahal Tea, Royal Stag, Pepsi, Toshiba, Videocon are all using celebrities. Surely our agencies, marketers and communication experts are taking the easy way out. Yet, there is no denying the fact that celebrities bring instant awareness to the brands they endorse, but yet the question must be asked: How many of these celebrities are part of the long-term strategy of the brand, like the Nike brand that this piece started with?
Never give up
Let me end with my familiar refrain. More and more companies are joining the celebrity bandwagon as they seem to be following the herd or getting satisfied with the awareness which is just one part of the whole buying equation. At the risk of sounding nostalgic one can only remember some long-term strategies like a continuing character that Surf Excel created in Lalitaji, Onida’s creation of the devil or Amul’s little moppet that still continues to be the longest running campaign. Maybe there is learning from the life and times of Shane Warne. In cricket and branding there can be no pain without gain.
Are you ready for the pain of the long term?
(Ramanujam Sridhar is the CEO of brandcomm and the author of One Land, One Billion Minds.)
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Main aur meri director, kya team hai!
http://www.blonnet.com/catalyst/2008/08/21/stories/2008082150040200.htm
Successful ad men and their teams: Adding value to the creative product
Great bowlers, they say, hunt in pairs. Lillee and Thomson, Trueman and Statham, Bedi and Prasanna, McGrath and Warne have swept all before them and won matches and series, if not hearts. England, which has been at the receiving end of a lot of these bowlers, has always had the capability to laugh at its own travails and this famous rhyme probably says it all: “Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, if Lillee doesn’t get you then Thommo must”. Much as I would like to go on about the glorious game of cricket, I realise that it is perhaps insensitive to talk about it right now as India has just lost another overseas series at Colombo where probably another new potent pair is emerging in the form of Murali and Mendis. So let me move on to advertising, as having been married for long, I know when I should change to a topic that is less likely to cause heartburn and the sensible and prudent male stays with neutral topics such as these in the interest of his own safety and the inherent desire for self-preservation.
Art and copy, the old marriage
I came to advertising because I was fascinated by the power of the printed word and its ability to thrill and sell. Ads such as those of Volkswagen and Avis are classics even today simply because they were crafted by wordsmiths who took persuasion to a new level. They were followed by a breed of outstanding art directors who gave us the Marlboro man and the Absolut Vodka campaign, to name just two.
Let us look here at our own country. There was a time in India when art directors and copywriters used to sit in different parts and different departments of the same agency and the copywriter would hammer her lines on her trusted typewriter and hand it over to the art director, at times, without even entering the room, and he would scribble on his notebook before giving it to the studio where the waiting artists would physically finish the rough layout.
Thankfully, realisation struck and smart creative types teamed up. Art directors and copywriters came together to produce campaigns that won awards and sold volumes. The key to this whole success was the fact that they worked so closely together that no one knew whose idea it was and therein lay the success of the advertising. The copywriter often gave the rough scribble which the art director then embellished to give us a finished product that both of them and the agency could be justifiably proud of. Art directors too were known to think up lines when allowed to. This was all fine in the Eighties when Indian advertising only thought print. This was before the days of the Asiad in 1982, the entry of colour televisions in a big way and the emergence of cable and satellite homes as the only homes fit to live in.
Today all that has changed at the advertising agency and we have a new breed of creative directors that live, eat, sleep, think and dream television scripts (which probably explains some of the nightmarish scripts that one gets to see on television). But on a more serious note, there is no denying the fact that some of our work on television is truly outstanding, and in no small measure, the credit for this should go to the producer who gives life and meaning to the script that a young and often inexperienced copywriter comes up with. I remember some of the ‘Only Vimal’ films that were made in the late Eighties which were done by Kailash Surendranath, who understood the brand’s personality and gave it a creative edge. I am sure that famous creative directors of leading agencies in India such as Balki, Piyush Pandey and Prasoon Joshi (in pictures above) all have their own set of directors who they work closely with and who add enormous value to the creative product because they are able to understand the expectations, give life and meaning to a script and work as team players. Today more than ever, the agency needs a director who understands the brand and can work consistently over multiple executions at different points in time, without diluting the brand’s values that have been so carefully and assiduously built over film for years on end.
Internationally, one remembers and recalls the celebrated commercial director Joe Pytka, whose consistently successful work for brands such as Pepsi – remember the “Uh- huh’ and the Cindy Crawford commercials - have not only won recognition but awards and accolades for the brand.
The professional producer
I was speaking to my friend who is a creative director at a large multinational agency network (is there any other type of agency?) and he was commenting on the increasing professionalisation of the new breed of producers, who are so ready to discuss the script idea at a formative stage, and their capability to add cinematic value to the same. Nor does it stop there. The pre-production documentation and detailing are all valuable aids to the agency which has its fair share of disorganised and yet creative minds. The same level of comfort and ease which the art director had with the copywriter of old has now become the comfortable acceptance and co-existence of the creative director and the producer.
It could well be the most important partnership for the all important medium of television on which most brands are won or lost. Significantly at the Lowe awards, which they called the “true awards”, they thought it fit to reward these unsung heroes and placed the credit for a lot of the agency’s outstanding creative work with the director, music composer and the editor.
The ‘three quotation’ phenomenon
While one can talk at length about the partnership and synergy that a producer can bring to the table, the system often does not reward something like this. I am sure one can find enough criticism for working with the same people, even within the agency. And some clients, particularly the public sector variety, thanks to the history of unsavoury practices, insist on three quotations, whether it is to buy paper clips or to produce a television commercial! While enterprising client servicing people usually find a way out of this, it certainly comes in the way of consistency and creativity.
I remember someone asking Neil Armstrong if he was nervous while landing on the moon and he is supposed to have confirmed asking who wouldn’t be, as he was sitting on 99,999 parts made by the cheapest supplier! Business should be run on trust and creative directors can and must trust the producer who delivers the creative product that they want. They should be in a position to work with them on an ongoing basis on projects. I am glad it is happening in India and quite regularly too.
Advertising reflects the times we live in
Let me end this piece with something that has been happening for some time but yet struck me with renewed clarity. Advertising has always influenced the world around it and got it to use its creativity. A line like Kalakkarey Chandru had become a way of speech in Tamil Nadu and I need to clarify here that this line was the translation of the “Sunil babu” line in the Asian paints commercial when it was translated into Tamil. This probably had as much potency as the lines of Rajinikanth that Tamil Nadu seems to reverberate with. Earlier the lines like “Yeh dil mange more” of Pepsi have cheerfully been used by newspaper editors as they seem to be so readily available to them. Today, thanks to the power of an advertising line, Kerala is almost invariably referred to as “God’s own country” in articles about it.
Last week I saw one newspaper carrying the line “What an idea”’ to the feature that had a huge write-up on some public service stuff that was happening in Bangalore and a feature in the metro section of another newspaper on young people had the caption “youngistan”. Often creative people place an almost unreasonable importance on awards and recognition. But my friend, if your line assuming universal appeal is not recognition, I wonder what is. Let us create more ideas and captions like these that India can take to and that more than anything else will demonstrate the importance of our profession to the lives of people around us.
(The author is CEO, brand-comm and the author of `One Land, One Billion Minds'.)
Successful ad men and their teams: Adding value to the creative product
Great bowlers, they say, hunt in pairs. Lillee and Thomson, Trueman and Statham, Bedi and Prasanna, McGrath and Warne have swept all before them and won matches and series, if not hearts. England, which has been at the receiving end of a lot of these bowlers, has always had the capability to laugh at its own travails and this famous rhyme probably says it all: “Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, if Lillee doesn’t get you then Thommo must”. Much as I would like to go on about the glorious game of cricket, I realise that it is perhaps insensitive to talk about it right now as India has just lost another overseas series at Colombo where probably another new potent pair is emerging in the form of Murali and Mendis. So let me move on to advertising, as having been married for long, I know when I should change to a topic that is less likely to cause heartburn and the sensible and prudent male stays with neutral topics such as these in the interest of his own safety and the inherent desire for self-preservation.Art and copy, the old marriage
I came to advertising because I was fascinated by the power of the printed word and its ability to thrill and sell. Ads such as those of Volkswagen and Avis are classics even today simply because they were crafted by wordsmiths who took persuasion to a new level. They were followed by a breed of outstanding art directors who gave us the Marlboro man and the Absolut Vodka campaign, to name just two.
Let us look here at our own country. There was a time in India when art directors and copywriters used to sit in different parts and different departments of the same agency and the copywriter would hammer her lines on her trusted typewriter and hand it over to the art director, at times, without even entering the room, and he would scribble on his notebook before giving it to the studio where the waiting artists would physically finish the rough layout.
Thankfully, realisation struck and smart creative types teamed up. Art directors and copywriters came together to produce campaigns that won awards and sold volumes. The key to this whole success was the fact that they worked so closely together that no one knew whose idea it was and therein lay the success of the advertising. The copywriter often gave the rough scribble which the art director then embellished to give us a finished product that both of them and the agency could be justifiably proud of. Art directors too were known to think up lines when allowed to. This was all fine in the Eighties when Indian advertising only thought print. This was before the days of the Asiad in 1982, the entry of colour televisions in a big way and the emergence of cable and satellite homes as the only homes fit to live in.
Today all that has changed at the advertising agency and we have a new breed of creative directors that live, eat, sleep, think and dream television scripts (which probably explains some of the nightmarish scripts that one gets to see on television). But on a more serious note, there is no denying the fact that some of our work on television is truly outstanding, and in no small measure, the credit for this should go to the producer who gives life and meaning to the script that a young and often inexperienced copywriter comes up with. I remember some of the ‘Only Vimal’ films that were made in the late Eighties which were done by Kailash Surendranath, who understood the brand’s personality and gave it a creative edge. I am sure that famous creative directors of leading agencies in India such as Balki, Piyush Pandey and Prasoon Joshi (in pictures above) all have their own set of directors who they work closely with and who add enormous value to the creative product because they are able to understand the expectations, give life and meaning to a script and work as team players. Today more than ever, the agency needs a director who understands the brand and can work consistently over multiple executions at different points in time, without diluting the brand’s values that have been so carefully and assiduously built over film for years on end.
Internationally, one remembers and recalls the celebrated commercial director Joe Pytka, whose consistently successful work for brands such as Pepsi – remember the “Uh- huh’ and the Cindy Crawford commercials - have not only won recognition but awards and accolades for the brand.
The professional producer
I was speaking to my friend who is a creative director at a large multinational agency network (is there any other type of agency?) and he was commenting on the increasing professionalisation of the new breed of producers, who are so ready to discuss the script idea at a formative stage, and their capability to add cinematic value to the same. Nor does it stop there. The pre-production documentation and detailing are all valuable aids to the agency which has its fair share of disorganised and yet creative minds. The same level of comfort and ease which the art director had with the copywriter of old has now become the comfortable acceptance and co-existence of the creative director and the producer.
It could well be the most important partnership for the all important medium of television on which most brands are won or lost. Significantly at the Lowe awards, which they called the “true awards”, they thought it fit to reward these unsung heroes and placed the credit for a lot of the agency’s outstanding creative work with the director, music composer and the editor.
The ‘three quotation’ phenomenon
While one can talk at length about the partnership and synergy that a producer can bring to the table, the system often does not reward something like this. I am sure one can find enough criticism for working with the same people, even within the agency. And some clients, particularly the public sector variety, thanks to the history of unsavoury practices, insist on three quotations, whether it is to buy paper clips or to produce a television commercial! While enterprising client servicing people usually find a way out of this, it certainly comes in the way of consistency and creativity.
I remember someone asking Neil Armstrong if he was nervous while landing on the moon and he is supposed to have confirmed asking who wouldn’t be, as he was sitting on 99,999 parts made by the cheapest supplier! Business should be run on trust and creative directors can and must trust the producer who delivers the creative product that they want. They should be in a position to work with them on an ongoing basis on projects. I am glad it is happening in India and quite regularly too.
Advertising reflects the times we live in
Let me end this piece with something that has been happening for some time but yet struck me with renewed clarity. Advertising has always influenced the world around it and got it to use its creativity. A line like Kalakkarey Chandru had become a way of speech in Tamil Nadu and I need to clarify here that this line was the translation of the “Sunil babu” line in the Asian paints commercial when it was translated into Tamil. This probably had as much potency as the lines of Rajinikanth that Tamil Nadu seems to reverberate with. Earlier the lines like “Yeh dil mange more” of Pepsi have cheerfully been used by newspaper editors as they seem to be so readily available to them. Today, thanks to the power of an advertising line, Kerala is almost invariably referred to as “God’s own country” in articles about it.
Last week I saw one newspaper carrying the line “What an idea”’ to the feature that had a huge write-up on some public service stuff that was happening in Bangalore and a feature in the metro section of another newspaper on young people had the caption “youngistan”. Often creative people place an almost unreasonable importance on awards and recognition. But my friend, if your line assuming universal appeal is not recognition, I wonder what is. Let us create more ideas and captions like these that India can take to and that more than anything else will demonstrate the importance of our profession to the lives of people around us.
(The author is CEO, brand-comm and the author of `One Land, One Billion Minds'.)
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Prioritise or perish!
Today we live in a communicated if not wired world where people are an audience first before they even think of becoming consumers. So there is a crying need to understand the media exposure and consumption patterns of consumers.
_ Cartoon by Ravikanth “As you can clearly see in the chart, the market we’ve to capture is behind these two hills ...”
_ Cartoon by Ravikanth “As you can clearly see in the chart, the market we’ve to capture is behind these two hills ...”
I was reading an interesting and yet contrarian article in a business paper recently titled “Ignorance is bliss? It may also be rational”. The article spoke about the theory of rational ignorance which dictates that for a person to justif iably expend that time and effort in collecting additional information, the value of that information has to outweigh the costs of collecting it. The piece ends as follows: “If the difference in the value of outcomes is not significant, you may be better off not spending your time and money on collecting information on the available alternatives.”
Yes, there are instances of primary research projects that may be poorly designed or shoddily executed or findings that often lead us to ask “so what’s new?” Not to forget marketers, who by their very nature, seem so well organised [!] that often they do not have the time for information gathering, which leads us to agree selectively to this point of view. Yet the value of secondary research is often not recognised or respected, which is perhaps an indication of some of the reports that are currently available. Having said that, I must concede that the recently launched RK Swamy BBDO Guide to Market Planning is an insightful edition containing proprietary research that can help marketers, planners and agency personnel to be better informed about markets and their potential, so that their decision-making can be better and better informed.
Yes, there are instances of primary research projects that may be poorly designed or shoddily executed or findings that often lead us to ask “so what’s new?” Not to forget marketers, who by their very nature, seem so well organised [!] that often they do not have the time for information gathering, which leads us to agree selectively to this point of view. Yet the value of secondary research is often not recognised or respected, which is perhaps an indication of some of the reports that are currently available. Having said that, I must concede that the recently launched RK Swamy BBDO Guide to Market Planning is an insightful edition containing proprietary research that can help marketers, planners and agency personnel to be better informed about markets and their potential, so that their decision-making can be better and better informed.
India, a land of myths
India by its very nature is complex, stumping marketers and, on occasion, analysts as well. Marketers too have their own pet theories about markets in India and the Indian consumer. I am no exception to this rule. Examples are rife – the rural market is all hype, the North is a better market than the South, Hyderabad is the best test market, everyone is watching cricket, the only thing that works in India is celebrities … All of us are guilty of adding to this confusion with our own two bits of wisdom which is often untested. But there is no substitute for comprehensive research as this volume demonstrates. The survey covers 515 districts out of 593, of both urban and rural districts, in 21 States and three union territories of India.
The basic questions that anyone would ask about a particular district might well be: Does the district have the “means to consume?” This is arrived at on the basis of crucial parameters such as per capita income, bank deposits, number of house owners and percentage of affluent households, which helps us to come up with certain meaningful insights. But our experience does suggest that market potential, while important, is only half the story. Whether the district and its constituents have the inclination to consume is a larger concern. What is the ownership of telephones, which includes mobile phones as well, the ownership of cars, fast moving consumer goods and durables in the district that we are studying? All of this can provide a reasonable pattern of buying behaviour which can guide us in making a prediction of the future. This analysis has been done by the research group blending different databases to give it a greater level of objectivity and accuracy.
Today we live in a communicated if not wired world where people are an audience first before they even think of becoming consumers. So there is a crying need to understand the media exposure and consumption patterns of consumers. The module gives us a better understanding of the diverse audience that is India. What is the level of exposure /awareness of the district to media such as TV and radio and what is the level of female literacy in the district? Finally, can the district support the activity? What are certain important parameters like road density and population density in the district under review? As a consequence of all these questions and the study it is possible to arrive at the aggregate potential of the markets, the quality and affluence of the consumers and markets and the availability of mass media to consumers.
India by its very nature is complex, stumping marketers and, on occasion, analysts as well. Marketers too have their own pet theories about markets in India and the Indian consumer. I am no exception to this rule. Examples are rife – the rural market is all hype, the North is a better market than the South, Hyderabad is the best test market, everyone is watching cricket, the only thing that works in India is celebrities … All of us are guilty of adding to this confusion with our own two bits of wisdom which is often untested. But there is no substitute for comprehensive research as this volume demonstrates. The survey covers 515 districts out of 593, of both urban and rural districts, in 21 States and three union territories of India.
The basic questions that anyone would ask about a particular district might well be: Does the district have the “means to consume?” This is arrived at on the basis of crucial parameters such as per capita income, bank deposits, number of house owners and percentage of affluent households, which helps us to come up with certain meaningful insights. But our experience does suggest that market potential, while important, is only half the story. Whether the district and its constituents have the inclination to consume is a larger concern. What is the ownership of telephones, which includes mobile phones as well, the ownership of cars, fast moving consumer goods and durables in the district that we are studying? All of this can provide a reasonable pattern of buying behaviour which can guide us in making a prediction of the future. This analysis has been done by the research group blending different databases to give it a greater level of objectivity and accuracy.
Today we live in a communicated if not wired world where people are an audience first before they even think of becoming consumers. So there is a crying need to understand the media exposure and consumption patterns of consumers. The module gives us a better understanding of the diverse audience that is India. What is the level of exposure /awareness of the district to media such as TV and radio and what is the level of female literacy in the district? Finally, can the district support the activity? What are certain important parameters like road density and population density in the district under review? As a consequence of all these questions and the study it is possible to arrive at the aggregate potential of the markets, the quality and affluence of the consumers and markets and the availability of mass media to consumers.
A problem of plenty
Every marketer knows that there are never going to be enough resources to do what one wants all the time. The size, complexity and choices that are available in India excite, and at times, confuse us. Brands try to be everywhere all at once and forget the basic principle that there is a minimum threshold level required for a marketing activity to bear results and they often enough end up spreading themselves too thin. I, as one who consults for companies, would like to know the answers to questions like these: Which are the emerging markets for a product category like a small car? Are there any markets that perform less optimally? How can we help set sales targets taking into account the potential of the market? Which is the best area to test market our products? Are the five-lakh-plus towns the easiest and best “low hanging fruits’? What should be the mix of urban and rural markets? The guide helps us to find the answers to questions like these.
Every marketer knows that there are never going to be enough resources to do what one wants all the time. The size, complexity and choices that are available in India excite, and at times, confuse us. Brands try to be everywhere all at once and forget the basic principle that there is a minimum threshold level required for a marketing activity to bear results and they often enough end up spreading themselves too thin. I, as one who consults for companies, would like to know the answers to questions like these: Which are the emerging markets for a product category like a small car? Are there any markets that perform less optimally? How can we help set sales targets taking into account the potential of the market? Which is the best area to test market our products? Are the five-lakh-plus towns the easiest and best “low hanging fruits’? What should be the mix of urban and rural markets? The guide helps us to find the answers to questions like these.
Nuggets of information worth considering
One of the major features of the study is that it covers both the urban and the rural markets and comes up with the surprising insight that the rural market is as big as the urban market. With the exception of Maharashtra and Goa, the rural market accounts for at least 40 per cent of the market potential. Maharashtra is as big as Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Goa combined, thereby providing a greater opportunity to focus, consolidate and gain. Speaking of urban consumption, a relatively unheard of and often not considered market like Meghalaya finds a place.
The south zone offers the best quality markets be they urban or rural. Maybe one could see brands that are strong in South India continuing to grow and consolidate in these markets without trying to get national. The purchasing power per unit area is the highest in Kerala, which means that the State offers markets that are dense. One of the features of the guide is that it allows marketers to fine-tune or extrapolate the data in the context of the peculiarities of their own respective product categories. For example, someone who is marketing financial services can look into parameters that reflect means or ability to consume in addition to the quality of the market.
One of the major features of the study is that it covers both the urban and the rural markets and comes up with the surprising insight that the rural market is as big as the urban market. With the exception of Maharashtra and Goa, the rural market accounts for at least 40 per cent of the market potential. Maharashtra is as big as Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Goa combined, thereby providing a greater opportunity to focus, consolidate and gain. Speaking of urban consumption, a relatively unheard of and often not considered market like Meghalaya finds a place.
The south zone offers the best quality markets be they urban or rural. Maybe one could see brands that are strong in South India continuing to grow and consolidate in these markets without trying to get national. The purchasing power per unit area is the highest in Kerala, which means that the State offers markets that are dense. One of the features of the guide is that it allows marketers to fine-tune or extrapolate the data in the context of the peculiarities of their own respective product categories. For example, someone who is marketing financial services can look into parameters that reflect means or ability to consume in addition to the quality of the market.
Information - the next big advantage
It is often said that any consultant is only as good as his current project, an agency is only as good as its current campaign, and a company is only as good as its current team. Yet in a constantly dynamic world there is one enduring fact and that is the value of information that is well-researched, timely and objective.
Although it is hardly original, I can say that you are only as good as what you know. In marketing what you know is about markets, their complexities, their peculiarities, behaviour of consumers, their affluence, their inclination to buy and their exposure to media. A study that provides information on these issues through the length and breadth of this diverse country is well worth subscribing to, following and using for making crucial marketing and planning decisions.
It is often said that any consultant is only as good as his current project, an agency is only as good as its current campaign, and a company is only as good as its current team. Yet in a constantly dynamic world there is one enduring fact and that is the value of information that is well-researched, timely and objective.
Although it is hardly original, I can say that you are only as good as what you know. In marketing what you know is about markets, their complexities, their peculiarities, behaviour of consumers, their affluence, their inclination to buy and their exposure to media. A study that provides information on these issues through the length and breadth of this diverse country is well worth subscribing to, following and using for making crucial marketing and planning decisions.
Tailpiece
Hung over after the completion of IPL, I am not watching too much television nowadays, as meaningless contests such as the Asia Cup refuse to excite me. To add to my tedium was this uninspiring commercial from BSNL featuring Preity Zinta. In case you have not seen the commercial consider yourself lucky.
It features a traditional family coming to ‘inspect’ Preity Zinta for an alliance. To cut a boring story short, they check out the boy’s credentials and discover that he does not have a BSNL land line and reject the boy! BSNL like so many other brands has lost importance over the years to a variety of reasons and yet believes that all the complex marketing problems that arise out of poor customer service can be solved with a poorly executed TV commercial.
Long live the power of advertising, even if it does not work in this case!
Hung over after the completion of IPL, I am not watching too much television nowadays, as meaningless contests such as the Asia Cup refuse to excite me. To add to my tedium was this uninspiring commercial from BSNL featuring Preity Zinta. In case you have not seen the commercial consider yourself lucky.
It features a traditional family coming to ‘inspect’ Preity Zinta for an alliance. To cut a boring story short, they check out the boy’s credentials and discover that he does not have a BSNL land line and reject the boy! BSNL like so many other brands has lost importance over the years to a variety of reasons and yet believes that all the complex marketing problems that arise out of poor customer service can be solved with a poorly executed TV commercial.
Long live the power of advertising, even if it does not work in this case!
(Ramanujam Sridhar is CEO, brandcomm, and the author of One Land, One Billion Minds)
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Is your company a ‘brand of choice’?
It is important to communicate with your employees.
One of the downsides of a booming Indian economy (current inflation notwithstanding) is the tremendous choice available to consumers across categories. While that is certainly a boon for consumers like you and me, it certainly is a cause for worry for manufacturers, more so, if the products they manufacture or services they offer, are ‘me-too’.
On to the world of employers and employees which is the focus of this piece, even if the rest of the world does not share my enthusiasm for the subject. Was a time when jobs were hard to come by and lifetime employment was the norm rather than the exception. Today the situation on the employment front is dramatically different and that would be putting it mildly. People have multiple job offers on hand and pick and choose the companies they wish to work for after extensive homework and discussion with friends and sometimes even with employees of the same company that they are considering. Employers too are actively scouting for the best of talent, even as they are desperately trying to retain the talent that they have, which, even as we speak, is being wooed assiduously by the competition. While it is a happy situation for employees, it is certainly a challenging time for employers as well who are being forced to get their act together both on the human relations and communication fronts.
So here is a quick question for you. Is your company’s brand a brand preferred by employees? Is it even possible for existing companies to become more interesting to prospective employees? How do they go about it?
One of the downsides of a booming Indian economy (current inflation notwithstanding) is the tremendous choice available to consumers across categories. While that is certainly a boon for consumers like you and me, it certainly is a cause for worry for manufacturers, more so, if the products they manufacture or services they offer, are ‘me-too’.
On to the world of employers and employees which is the focus of this piece, even if the rest of the world does not share my enthusiasm for the subject. Was a time when jobs were hard to come by and lifetime employment was the norm rather than the exception. Today the situation on the employment front is dramatically different and that would be putting it mildly. People have multiple job offers on hand and pick and choose the companies they wish to work for after extensive homework and discussion with friends and sometimes even with employees of the same company that they are considering. Employers too are actively scouting for the best of talent, even as they are desperately trying to retain the talent that they have, which, even as we speak, is being wooed assiduously by the competition. While it is a happy situation for employees, it is certainly a challenging time for employers as well who are being forced to get their act together both on the human relations and communication fronts.
So here is a quick question for you. Is your company’s brand a brand preferred by employees? Is it even possible for existing companies to become more interesting to prospective employees? How do they go about it?
The power of branding
At the risk of stating the obvious, one must say that people wish to work for companies that are brands. What sets these brands apart? These corporate brands stand for certain values, are recognised names not only in the world of business but by ordinary people as well, and are most critically, great places to work. In the world of marketing, we do know that while there may be a lot of attendant hype around brands and branding, we can never afford to forget one important principle. The starting point for a successful brand, whether it is in the product or service space, has to be built around a good product or service. The hype can follow later, if it must. That is the bare minimum, or the basic hygiene factor that any brand needs to succeed.
Product brands that are successful in the long run have excellent quality and they never compromise on that. Similarly, companies that wish to become attractive employer brands are successful, well-run and good places to work for. So a company that wants to be ‘a brand of choice’ has no option but to get its act right in terms of performance, culture and opportunities to learn.
A different audience with different needs
Every corporate brand has multiple audiences with widely differing needs. The investor wants capital appreciation, banks want their instalments on time, customers want value for money and government wants compliance with the laws of the land even if its officials want something else on occasion! So how companies position themselves is very critical, for one of the key factors behind a brand’s success is its clear and consistent positioning. Most companies are fairly well positioned for their consumers as positioning was seen and continues to be seen primarily as a marketing exercise. While there is no denying the importance of positioning for consumers, clever marketing slogans may have little relevance for the acquisition of talent or its retention. Of course, we do have slogans such as Nike’s “Just do it” which might work equally well as a rallying call for employees, but it must be observed that most brand and marketing slogans do not cut much ice with employees either existing or prospective and this is something that companies need to consider if not worry about.
How distinctively is your company positioned for its employees, both current and future? Companies often spend a lot of time in useless debate and eulogise the importance of product branding. While conceding the importance of product branding, we need to understand its impact and implications on the overall corporate brand with particular reference to the effect it can have on the appeal to prospective employees. So carefully evaluate your tone of voice, position and tagline and see if it means anything to your employees. While consistency is critical, one can consider another variation to employees for internal communication which is not at cross purposes with the overall position. It is important to recognise the diverse needs of different audiences. I must tell you, however, that people can have strong views on positioning and taglines, so be prepared for battle! May the better position win!
Category choice or brand choice?
In marketing we do know the value of the difference between marketing of the category and marketing of the brand. Let me explain. To someone who brushes his teeth using tooth powder, it is a major shift to move to toothpaste. Similarly, someone who uses double-edged blades will not shift easily to twin blades. A housewife who uses a bar to clean her vessels has to be wooed to change to dishwashing liquid and so on.
Similarly, prospective employers may need to do a category selling effort before they come to a company-specific pitch. The software industry marketed itself brilliantly a few years ago to prospective employees and as a consequence basic engineering, research and development suffered in their efforts to get talent. So how attractive is your industry to prospective employees? You need to understand that before you get to talk about your specific company. When I recently visited my alma mater, IIM Bangalore, I was surprised if not shocked to hear that marketing has very little appeal for today’s young MBAs and companies such as Hindustan Unilever that ruled the roost once have become reasonably low-involvement and courses like advertising are taken by students so that they can ‘chill’ in the middle of a hectic work schedule!
Internal and external audiences
In our preoccupation with wooing fresh talent, we seem to forget that we have a large, captive audience within the company that needs to be communicated to on an active basis. How engaged are our current employees with the company and its activities? Have the values of the company been communicated internally? Have they been understood? Is there some level of acceptance? Is communication within the company only top-down or is there a climate for it to be two-way? Are employees being heard?
In all this talk of “branding” that is being bandied about, we need to ask employees what they think of the brand. Do employees feel the same way that we feel about the brand or is there a significant disconnect? Do our leaders ‘walk the talk’? Is there an internal communication programme that has a clearly articulated set of objectives and strategy to go with it? Are there periodic events where employees can be heard, like the “all hands meet”? Is the programme being evaluated for results and possible course correction? Who has the ownership for the communication programme, HR or corporate communications? Is the CEO committed to internal communication as this discipline more than anything else needs a champion, and the higher the champion is in the hierarchy the better.
Branding is a process not an event
As we wind up our discussion let us just emphasise a few things that we need to do when we talk about building an attractive employer brand. The most important thing is for a brand to be “true to its self”. Branding is all about delivering expectations to all audiences and companies that go to campus promising Utopia come to grief when they deliver short to people who come on board. It is easy to get carried away by the hype and hoopla and focus on events like ‘Thank God it’s Friday!’ and ignore the basics.
The basics include having an open environment where people are recognised, rewarded, trained and valued. Boring but true! Identify what the brand stands for. See if you can build a point of differentiation with the competing brands in your category. But before that do a quick check on your industry, how attractive it is. My mind instantly goes to the advertising industry which, despite its ability to create and build brands, is really low-involvement for young people. Communicate your difference to relevant audiences externally. Customise your communication offering for your employees and monitor its progress closely if not constantly. Finally, remember branding is a process not an event. It is not a quick-fix. It needs dedication and commitment. But the results of making your brand an ‘employer of choice’ will be worth the effort.
Are you ready for the effort?
As we wind up our discussion let us just emphasise a few things that we need to do when we talk about building an attractive employer brand. The most important thing is for a brand to be “true to its self”. Branding is all about delivering expectations to all audiences and companies that go to campus promising Utopia come to grief when they deliver short to people who come on board. It is easy to get carried away by the hype and hoopla and focus on events like ‘Thank God it’s Friday!’ and ignore the basics.
The basics include having an open environment where people are recognised, rewarded, trained and valued. Boring but true! Identify what the brand stands for. See if you can build a point of differentiation with the competing brands in your category. But before that do a quick check on your industry, how attractive it is. My mind instantly goes to the advertising industry which, despite its ability to create and build brands, is really low-involvement for young people. Communicate your difference to relevant audiences externally. Customise your communication offering for your employees and monitor its progress closely if not constantly. Finally, remember branding is a process not an event. It is not a quick-fix. It needs dedication and commitment. But the results of making your brand an ‘employer of choice’ will be worth the effort.
Are you ready for the effort?
Ramanujam Sridhar is CEO of brand-comm and the author of “One land, one billion minds”.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Cycling away to Cannes
What is the first association that comes to your mind when I say ‘France’? A normal person might say ‘perfumes’ while an advertising person (not to suggest that he is abnormal) might well say ‘Cannes Lions’, so imp ortant is the winning of this international award to people in the business of creativity.
Coincidentally, it was a brand of agarbathi from the NR Group, a fragrance company headquartered in the quaint town of Mysore, which won a bronze lion at Cannes in the radio category in the first set of awards that were announced on June 18. An award at Cannes is still something that the Indian advertising industry yearns for and so rarely gets, and Mudra Communications, the agency that created the spot, has every reason to be proud of its achievement.
The power of the brand
There is a criticism levelled at agencies, not without justification, that most of their international award-winning work is for public service advertising or for marginal brands. The significant fact in this case is the fact that Cycle Brand is a dominant brand in the agarbathi category with over 30 per cent market share of the organised sector. The brand that has been in existence for 60 years, no mean achievement, has a few interesting reasons behind its success. Most successful brands have a simple, yet effective brand name.
There is a criticism levelled at agencies, not without justification, that most of their international award-winning work is for public service advertising or for marginal brands. The significant fact in this case is the fact that Cycle Brand is a dominant brand in the agarbathi category with over 30 per cent market share of the organised sector. The brand that has been in existence for 60 years, no mean achievement, has a few interesting reasons behind its success. Most successful brands have a simple, yet effective brand name.
The brand name ‘Cycle’ has a few striking advantages in the Indian context. A cycle is something that every Indian has seen, wanted to own, owned or ridden. It needs no translation, has a visual mnemonic that is recognised across the length and breadth of the country and most importantly represents ‘value for money’ which is really one of the key reasons for the brand’s popularity and dominance. Let’s move on to the award winning commercial.
Radio, the Cinderella medium
For quite some time, radio has been ignored by advertisers, media planners and creative directors. Thankfully the trend has been changing, courtesy the increasing importance of the youth market and the phenomenal rise in the incidence of traffic jams in every metro. FM radio is here to stay.
For quite some time, radio has been ignored by advertisers, media planners and creative directors. Thankfully the trend has been changing, courtesy the increasing importance of the youth market and the phenomenal rise in the incidence of traffic jams in every metro. FM radio is here to stay.
In the same breath, however, one needs to accept that India is primarily a television country if script writers are anything to go by. It is all fine to say that ‘radio is the theatre of the mind’ but if the scripts are anything to go by then the scripts for radio more often than not end up being mindless. Of course, I must mention that radio channels seem to do better scripts for themselves than for some of the clients who entrust their creative work to them.
In fact, the actual number of entries for Cannes in the radio category has come down from 46 last year to 36 this year. It is in this context that the award-winning Cycle brand commercial has to be viewed. Let me explain: The entire film is one long and shrill (as per a member of the jury that awarded it) rendition of the familiar Indian tune ‘Om Jai Jagadish …’ on the cycle bell. The commercial is dramatic and single-minded, even if my description is not! Yes, as someone said, “Great advertising is produced by a single-minded thought that comes alive in a compelling way.”
Throw in a tune and a chant that the whole of India can relate to and you have a winner. Once again, I must hasten to add that this is not dependent on turn of phrase, or ideas lost in translation in this vast and confusing land that is India, which even jurists who did not understand the language or the significance of the words could still award. It certainly has ‘legs’ as it could be extended to ‘Silent Night, Holy Night’ and a whole host of tunes pertaining to other religions that this not always secular country can recognise, if not relate to.
Awards and media
All of us are familiar with the ‘strategy’ of agencies releasing their award-winning entries in cheap media at their own cost. I am sure that this is not one such happening and this campaign will get extensive media as the idea surely has the capability not only to win an award as it has done, but will also deliver at the market place, addressing as it does, the Indian ethos and preferences for things that are religious, and stokes the Indian penchant for prayer, particularly in the face of problems! Speaking of media exposure and visibility, one must mention also the ‘Lead India’ campaign that had tremendous media weight behind it, not to forget celebrities such as Amitabh Bachchan, also winning an award as did other well known brands such as Luxor and Reynolds. Indian agencies too had sent 295 entries this year as against 252 the previous year. Yes, winning is important for Indian agencies as it represents global recognition for Indian talent.
All of us are familiar with the ‘strategy’ of agencies releasing their award-winning entries in cheap media at their own cost. I am sure that this is not one such happening and this campaign will get extensive media as the idea surely has the capability not only to win an award as it has done, but will also deliver at the market place, addressing as it does, the Indian ethos and preferences for things that are religious, and stokes the Indian penchant for prayer, particularly in the face of problems! Speaking of media exposure and visibility, one must mention also the ‘Lead India’ campaign that had tremendous media weight behind it, not to forget celebrities such as Amitabh Bachchan, also winning an award as did other well known brands such as Luxor and Reynolds. Indian agencies too had sent 295 entries this year as against 252 the previous year. Yes, winning is important for Indian agencies as it represents global recognition for Indian talent.
Winning at the market place
It is generally accepted that the creative mind is very different from mine, dull and predictable as it is. Awards matter to the creative mind like nothing else and winning at Cannes must be the ultimate. At the risk of pouring some cold water on their enormous enthusiasm, I must say one thing. India is an enormously diverse, complex country ridden with differences of language, colour, caste and religion. To sell here is no mean achievement and many of our eminent brands and creative people do this with regular ease. Some of the work done for dominant brands in the Indian context continue to deliver outstanding creativity that makes customers notice it, on occasion smile and almost invariably buy. Let us put a premium on work like this and if it wins an award, then it is a bonus. Let us not get preoccupied with the approval of a few foreigners who have limited understanding of this country, its people and complexity.
It is generally accepted that the creative mind is very different from mine, dull and predictable as it is. Awards matter to the creative mind like nothing else and winning at Cannes must be the ultimate. At the risk of pouring some cold water on their enormous enthusiasm, I must say one thing. India is an enormously diverse, complex country ridden with differences of language, colour, caste and religion. To sell here is no mean achievement and many of our eminent brands and creative people do this with regular ease. Some of the work done for dominant brands in the Indian context continue to deliver outstanding creativity that makes customers notice it, on occasion smile and almost invariably buy. Let us put a premium on work like this and if it wins an award, then it is a bonus. Let us not get preoccupied with the approval of a few foreigners who have limited understanding of this country, its people and complexity.
Taking a leaf out of the BCCI
Let me digress to cricket, my obsession and I can almost hear you saying, ‘So, what is new?’ In the Sixties, Seventies and Eighties, India – even if it was a good team and the winner of the Cricket World Cup, was a nobody in the pecking order of the people who mattered, when it came to running the game. Our itinerary was at the mercy of the biggies like England and Australia who treated us as ‘illegal immigrants’ on their hallowed turf. Now all that has changed; India has the eyeballs, the spectators, the TV revenue, the marketing acumen and now wonder of all wonders – a good team.
Let me digress to cricket, my obsession and I can almost hear you saying, ‘So, what is new?’ In the Sixties, Seventies and Eighties, India – even if it was a good team and the winner of the Cricket World Cup, was a nobody in the pecking order of the people who mattered, when it came to running the game. Our itinerary was at the mercy of the biggies like England and Australia who treated us as ‘illegal immigrants’ on their hallowed turf. Now all that has changed; India has the eyeballs, the spectators, the TV revenue, the marketing acumen and now wonder of all wonders – a good team.
The shoe is on the other foot. We call the shots and the erstwhile dominant countries are protesting and perhaps some of our actions are worth protesting about. But the balance of power has shifted, slowly, steadily and inexorably in India’s favour. The cricketing world had to sit up and take notice when we ran the IPL. Now others are trying to do their own versions and only time will tell how successful they will be.
Similarly at Cannes, one suspects that India and Indian advertising is not as well represented or as powerful as it ought to be. There are whispers of South American dominance in the jury for one. My submission is that our time will come and that day is not far off. Let us not do what we used to do in the world of cricket for so many decades, complain about being discriminated against and sidelined, but discover a way of getting the recognition that we rightly deserve. Recognition, not only for our work, but also for the industry. Let us learn from our clients who faced the same problems that we are facing globally and yet who have placed India on the global map through their achievements whether it is the Tatas through their acquisition or the technology companies who have put us on the global map of recognition. It did not happen by whining or ‘whingeing’ as the Aussies might say, but by the power of achievements, that just cannot be ignored.
Yes, we can!
(Ramanujam Sridhar is CEO brand-comm and the author of “One land, One billion minds”)
Friday, June 13, 2008
Does your personality fit your organisation’s culture?
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/manager/2008/06/09/stories/2008060951511000.htm
Sport can offer a lot of learning about life and managing businesses, but that’s only if we pay attention, assimilate the lessons and follow them consistently. My knowledge of sport, sadly though, is restricted to cricket for which I have an obsession, to put it mildly.
Thanks to the Indian Premier League, there was a lot happening on and off the field which could teach us some lessons. There has been a lot of controversy about the poor performance of the Royal Challengers team and the owner, Vijay Mallya’s obvious and publicly stated unhappiness with his team’s performance. The CEO of the team was “summarily dismissed” and if rumour was to be believed, a few other heads were on the block as well, Rahul Dravid’s included.
Let’s take a look at the two principal actors in the drama — Mallya, the owner of the Royal Challengers and Dravid, the former India captain (and the captain of the Royal Challengers team) — and analyse their respective personalities based on what we have seen, read and heard about these two personalities and see if there is a match of personalities at all between the two.
We should remember that the two were forced to come together in a commercial venture to create a winning team unlike what happens in the corporate world where people can choose the company they join, and owners too determine who works for them. When Mallya won the Bangalore bid he had to sign Dravid on as the captain and Dravid had no option but to represent Bangalore.
The king of good times
Mallya is a successful businessman with a flamboyant lifestyle. His brands are famous, some of them leaders and a few global. His diversification into airlines, if not commercially profitable yet, has demonstrated his understanding of diverse businesses and delivery of quality service to the most demanding if not the most discerning customers. He is in-your-face in the media.
Contrast this with Dravid, an educated middle-class professional whose cricketing ability has given him international recognition. Even in the cut-throat world of modern cricket he has been a gentleman. He seems to be a knowledgeable, intense, introvert who loves to spend time with his family when he is not touring and who is more comfortable with a book in his hand than with a glass. Now tell me where is the fit between the two?
Companies have cultures
It is important to remember that companies have cultures, some strong, some not so well defined or tangible. I have spent a fair amount of time in advertising agencies and I can say with a fair amount of certainty that the culture of advertising agencies is very different from your normal, staid company.
I remember an induction statement often made at ad agencies “Welcome to the zoo!” While that could be argued about, what is certain is that only a certain type of individual would be comfortable in the advertising agency, where creative types come to work in torn jeans, pony tails and earrings.
In fact, I frequently tell my students who wish to enter advertising to do an internship in an agency to help them decide whether they would fit in or end up being fish out of water in the chaotic environment typical of an agency. I am told the BPO industry could give the agency business a run for its money in being an industry for mavericks.
While we are talking extremes in these examples, it is still important for people who wish to join companies to understand what they are getting into in terms of management style and working environment. So, do your homework, talk to your seniors, acquaintances and just about anyone who can give you information about the industry, the company and the working environment.
So where is the fit?
So let’s get back to our cricketing example. Mallya has publicly gone on record saying that he would have picked a different team. The common complaint is that Dravid picked a test team. Whether he has or not, he has certainly chosen people he is comfortable with. People like Anil Kumble, Sunil Joshi, Wasim Jaffer and Jacques Kallis who are culturally and emotionally suited, perhaps, to his own disposition. People who are understated, but performers in their own right.
I for one have no idea what is on Mallya’s mind. But if one were to do an academic exercise, I am sure Mallya would have chosen people who would entertain. A few who would have interested the business tycoon — Shane Warne the king of spin, with a cigarette in one hand and a can of beer in the other and with a track record of amazing success and astounding controversies. M. S. Dhoni, the charismatic captain of the Indian team with his flamboyant batting style and matching hair style. Andrew Symonds, the dreadlocked hero, Harbhajan Singh and maybe even Sreesanth… I know all of this seems funny, but I do think that there is some, if not a lot of, truth in the statement that people work better for companies and people they like and are comfortable with. They flower in environments where they have “freedom from fear” and “the freedom to fail.”
Do you have the freedom?
(The writer is CEO Brand-Comm and also the author of One Land One Billion Minds.)
Sport can offer a lot of learning about life and managing businesses, but that’s only if we pay attention, assimilate the lessons and follow them consistently. My knowledge of sport, sadly though, is restricted to cricket for which I have an obsession, to put it mildly.
Thanks to the Indian Premier League, there was a lot happening on and off the field which could teach us some lessons. There has been a lot of controversy about the poor performance of the Royal Challengers team and the owner, Vijay Mallya’s obvious and publicly stated unhappiness with his team’s performance. The CEO of the team was “summarily dismissed” and if rumour was to be believed, a few other heads were on the block as well, Rahul Dravid’s included.
Let’s take a look at the two principal actors in the drama — Mallya, the owner of the Royal Challengers and Dravid, the former India captain (and the captain of the Royal Challengers team) — and analyse their respective personalities based on what we have seen, read and heard about these two personalities and see if there is a match of personalities at all between the two.
We should remember that the two were forced to come together in a commercial venture to create a winning team unlike what happens in the corporate world where people can choose the company they join, and owners too determine who works for them. When Mallya won the Bangalore bid he had to sign Dravid on as the captain and Dravid had no option but to represent Bangalore.
The king of good times
Mallya is a successful businessman with a flamboyant lifestyle. His brands are famous, some of them leaders and a few global. His diversification into airlines, if not commercially profitable yet, has demonstrated his understanding of diverse businesses and delivery of quality service to the most demanding if not the most discerning customers. He is in-your-face in the media.
Contrast this with Dravid, an educated middle-class professional whose cricketing ability has given him international recognition. Even in the cut-throat world of modern cricket he has been a gentleman. He seems to be a knowledgeable, intense, introvert who loves to spend time with his family when he is not touring and who is more comfortable with a book in his hand than with a glass. Now tell me where is the fit between the two?
Companies have cultures
It is important to remember that companies have cultures, some strong, some not so well defined or tangible. I have spent a fair amount of time in advertising agencies and I can say with a fair amount of certainty that the culture of advertising agencies is very different from your normal, staid company.
I remember an induction statement often made at ad agencies “Welcome to the zoo!” While that could be argued about, what is certain is that only a certain type of individual would be comfortable in the advertising agency, where creative types come to work in torn jeans, pony tails and earrings.
In fact, I frequently tell my students who wish to enter advertising to do an internship in an agency to help them decide whether they would fit in or end up being fish out of water in the chaotic environment typical of an agency. I am told the BPO industry could give the agency business a run for its money in being an industry for mavericks.
While we are talking extremes in these examples, it is still important for people who wish to join companies to understand what they are getting into in terms of management style and working environment. So, do your homework, talk to your seniors, acquaintances and just about anyone who can give you information about the industry, the company and the working environment.
So where is the fit?
So let’s get back to our cricketing example. Mallya has publicly gone on record saying that he would have picked a different team. The common complaint is that Dravid picked a test team. Whether he has or not, he has certainly chosen people he is comfortable with. People like Anil Kumble, Sunil Joshi, Wasim Jaffer and Jacques Kallis who are culturally and emotionally suited, perhaps, to his own disposition. People who are understated, but performers in their own right.
I for one have no idea what is on Mallya’s mind. But if one were to do an academic exercise, I am sure Mallya would have chosen people who would entertain. A few who would have interested the business tycoon — Shane Warne the king of spin, with a cigarette in one hand and a can of beer in the other and with a track record of amazing success and astounding controversies. M. S. Dhoni, the charismatic captain of the Indian team with his flamboyant batting style and matching hair style. Andrew Symonds, the dreadlocked hero, Harbhajan Singh and maybe even Sreesanth… I know all of this seems funny, but I do think that there is some, if not a lot of, truth in the statement that people work better for companies and people they like and are comfortable with. They flower in environments where they have “freedom from fear” and “the freedom to fail.”
Do you have the freedom?
(The writer is CEO Brand-Comm and also the author of One Land One Billion Minds.)
Thursday, June 12, 2008
IPL’s drama and excitement leave people thirsty for more!
Shane Warne is a fantastic cricketer.” I looked up in surprise. Not that the statement was surprising. It was the person who was making the statement about one of the game’s greatest characters that caused me to look up and stare. It was being made by a prosperous 50-year-old lady in the huge queue at the new, glittering and yet completely characterless Bengaluru International Airport.
Would this lady have known that Shane Warne is the greatest leg spinner of all time, if not the most disciplined? Would she know that Shane Warne has over 700 test wickets? Would she know about Warne’s ball of the century to Mike Gatting? Would she have known about his ability to text messages at a furious pace even as he spun the ball with a gentle drift? What she certainly knew about was Warne’s tremendous contribution to the Rajasthan Royals team leading the underdogs to actually end up winning the IPL trophy in an amazing final at the brand new stadium at Vashi.
Yes, the single greatest achievement of the IPL has been its ability to woo housewives and socialites like the lady mentioned above from their traditional soaps to cricketainment as the advertising mentions. I need hardly mention that it had diehard cricket fans like me glued to the television set every evening with a steadfastness that has frustrated spouses and delighted Sony Entertainment whose television ratings for Max have gladdened marketers and advertisers no end. It has also left some of us with withdrawal symptoms as we have nothing to do every evening, not that our spouses want us back in any case! So, how have these 45 days been? Are there any learnings for franchisees, marketers and consumers?
Would this lady have known that Shane Warne is the greatest leg spinner of all time, if not the most disciplined? Would she know that Shane Warne has over 700 test wickets? Would she know about Warne’s ball of the century to Mike Gatting? Would she have known about his ability to text messages at a furious pace even as he spun the ball with a gentle drift? What she certainly knew about was Warne’s tremendous contribution to the Rajasthan Royals team leading the underdogs to actually end up winning the IPL trophy in an amazing final at the brand new stadium at Vashi.
Yes, the single greatest achievement of the IPL has been its ability to woo housewives and socialites like the lady mentioned above from their traditional soaps to cricketainment as the advertising mentions. I need hardly mention that it had diehard cricket fans like me glued to the television set every evening with a steadfastness that has frustrated spouses and delighted Sony Entertainment whose television ratings for Max have gladdened marketers and advertisers no end. It has also left some of us with withdrawal symptoms as we have nothing to do every evening, not that our spouses want us back in any case! So, how have these 45 days been? Are there any learnings for franchisees, marketers and consumers?
Power of the team, not reputation of individuals
The franchisees that got their team composition right, without worrying unduly about the individual reputations of the players they bid for, were ahead. Rajasthan Royals paid a mere $10.3 million for its team as against $16.9 million paid for the team from Bangalore that was branded as the Royal Challengers. The Mumbai and Hyderabad teams were similarly high priced.
The learning is simple. Reputations or brands cost money but they have not delivered if this tournament is anything to go by. The most valuable player was Shaun Marsh, not Andrew Symonds! All the Indian iconic players delivered sporadically, if at all. The emerging (high price) champions such as Ishant Sharma and Robin Uthappa had very poor ROIs. It seems strange to talk about cricketers as though they were stocks, but many of the Indians flattered to deceive and some of the franchisees at least have regretted the non-performance of their stars quite vehemently and publicly to the embarrassment of the stocks in question!
No other team demonstrated the lack of balance than Hyderabad, which, despite the presence of charismatic players, finished at the bottom of the table, aided and abetted by the likes of Shahid Afridi. So, the big task for the teams next time around is to scout far and wide for talent from the world even as they develop their own young talent within their regions. Also, some of the teams might have to trade their players and hope that this will not add to their losses. Managing teams and managing companies is simple, provided you keep your costs low.
The franchisees that got their team composition right, without worrying unduly about the individual reputations of the players they bid for, were ahead. Rajasthan Royals paid a mere $10.3 million for its team as against $16.9 million paid for the team from Bangalore that was branded as the Royal Challengers. The Mumbai and Hyderabad teams were similarly high priced.
The learning is simple. Reputations or brands cost money but they have not delivered if this tournament is anything to go by. The most valuable player was Shaun Marsh, not Andrew Symonds! All the Indian iconic players delivered sporadically, if at all. The emerging (high price) champions such as Ishant Sharma and Robin Uthappa had very poor ROIs. It seems strange to talk about cricketers as though they were stocks, but many of the Indians flattered to deceive and some of the franchisees at least have regretted the non-performance of their stars quite vehemently and publicly to the embarrassment of the stocks in question!
No other team demonstrated the lack of balance than Hyderabad, which, despite the presence of charismatic players, finished at the bottom of the table, aided and abetted by the likes of Shahid Afridi. So, the big task for the teams next time around is to scout far and wide for talent from the world even as they develop their own young talent within their regions. Also, some of the teams might have to trade their players and hope that this will not add to their losses. Managing teams and managing companies is simple, provided you keep your costs low.
Where is the money?
The main source of revenue for the franchisee is the media rights and the teams in the last four got a bigger share of the media pie – which is a great relief. The phenomenal viewer interest within the country and in cases outside India are a testimony to the tremendous popularity of the T20 format and the closeness of many of the games including the final, which was undecided till the very last ball. The franchisees who are here for the long haul will benefit, although some of them might have been disheartened at the manner in which most of the companies which are publicly listed like Reliance Industries have been hammered in the stock market after they have won the bids.
Clearly, while Dalal Street watches cricket, it does not favour companies investing heavily in it. If you look westwards at similar clubs such as Arsenal, one of the most successful football clubs which has revenues of £177 million, and baseball teams such as the Los Angeles Dodgers, they have a cumulative annual growth rate of 21 per cent.
A significant portion of the gate revenues goes to the franchisees and the sight of full stadiums almost everywhere including Hyderabad, where the Deccan Chargers lost all their seven local games, some of them narrowly, was a feature. The entertainment in the grounds with world-class performers (if not the cheerleaders) must have helped. But one wonders if the same enthusiasm will continue if the cricket fails to deliver. I repeat myself when I say that IPL’s long-term success will have to depend on the quality of success and the closeness of the teams that are competing.
The main source of revenue for the franchisee is the media rights and the teams in the last four got a bigger share of the media pie – which is a great relief. The phenomenal viewer interest within the country and in cases outside India are a testimony to the tremendous popularity of the T20 format and the closeness of many of the games including the final, which was undecided till the very last ball. The franchisees who are here for the long haul will benefit, although some of them might have been disheartened at the manner in which most of the companies which are publicly listed like Reliance Industries have been hammered in the stock market after they have won the bids.
Clearly, while Dalal Street watches cricket, it does not favour companies investing heavily in it. If you look westwards at similar clubs such as Arsenal, one of the most successful football clubs which has revenues of £177 million, and baseball teams such as the Los Angeles Dodgers, they have a cumulative annual growth rate of 21 per cent.
A significant portion of the gate revenues goes to the franchisees and the sight of full stadiums almost everywhere including Hyderabad, where the Deccan Chargers lost all their seven local games, some of them narrowly, was a feature. The entertainment in the grounds with world-class performers (if not the cheerleaders) must have helped. But one wonders if the same enthusiasm will continue if the cricket fails to deliver. I repeat myself when I say that IPL’s long-term success will have to depend on the quality of success and the closeness of the teams that are competing.
Who is supporting whom?
I started supporting the Royal Challengers and then quickly changed camps. I followed the Punjab Kings (not because of Preity Zinta) for some time and kept reminding myself that I was born in Madras, the home of the Chennai Super Kings, but found myself supporting the winners ultimately.
Speaking of local connect and the ability to garner the locals to back teams, I thought that the Kolkata Knight Riders had done a good job as had, perhaps, the Chennai Super Kings. Of course, these are not based on hard facts, though I did read somewhere that the Kolkata franchise had sold T-shirts to the value of Rs 5 crore.
I feel that while there has been a lot of interest, hype and media around the event, the franchisees, perhaps given the paucity of time, have done very little to promote following for their teams in their cities. People (and here both Kolkata and Chennai are perhaps exceptions) are following the game for their individual favourites, like the lady of the piece following Shane Warne. This will be the big challenge if our cricket teams have to have the following of Manchester United and Chelsea – a lot of ground level activities must happen, not only on our TV screens.
The next big challenge for the franchisees has to be connecting with the local city population. That has to be a continuous, ongoing activity, hopefully resulting in unearthing of local talent making its debut in IPL and eventually hitting the international scene. I know that for all the franchisees, this is a commercial venture. India Cements has already broken even in the first year, but in the long haul, the profitability of this whole venture will have to depend on it being a mass movement that people will feel passionately about, not just a mere mix of cricket and entertainment. Our getting there will depend entirely on the long-term commitment, vision and passion of the franchisees, even if some of them are already frothing at the mouth over the non-performance of their teams and the consequent losses that they have suffered.
I started supporting the Royal Challengers and then quickly changed camps. I followed the Punjab Kings (not because of Preity Zinta) for some time and kept reminding myself that I was born in Madras, the home of the Chennai Super Kings, but found myself supporting the winners ultimately.
Speaking of local connect and the ability to garner the locals to back teams, I thought that the Kolkata Knight Riders had done a good job as had, perhaps, the Chennai Super Kings. Of course, these are not based on hard facts, though I did read somewhere that the Kolkata franchise had sold T-shirts to the value of Rs 5 crore.
I feel that while there has been a lot of interest, hype and media around the event, the franchisees, perhaps given the paucity of time, have done very little to promote following for their teams in their cities. People (and here both Kolkata and Chennai are perhaps exceptions) are following the game for their individual favourites, like the lady of the piece following Shane Warne. This will be the big challenge if our cricket teams have to have the following of Manchester United and Chelsea – a lot of ground level activities must happen, not only on our TV screens.
The next big challenge for the franchisees has to be connecting with the local city population. That has to be a continuous, ongoing activity, hopefully resulting in unearthing of local talent making its debut in IPL and eventually hitting the international scene. I know that for all the franchisees, this is a commercial venture. India Cements has already broken even in the first year, but in the long haul, the profitability of this whole venture will have to depend on it being a mass movement that people will feel passionately about, not just a mere mix of cricket and entertainment. Our getting there will depend entirely on the long-term commitment, vision and passion of the franchisees, even if some of them are already frothing at the mouth over the non-performance of their teams and the consequent losses that they have suffered.
Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!
If you had to pick one player who has dominated the media and attention of the nation including the lady in the queue, it has been Shane Warne. One admiring English cricketer who has been tormented enough by him once asked him, “Who writes your scripts?” In the 2005 Ashes series, it was Shane Warne who single-handedly kept England at bay and almost helped Australia retain the Ashes. England loved, admired and yet dreaded Warne and headlines like ‘It ain’t over till the fat laddie spins’ were common and the IPL was over only after the fat laddie won the trophy! Not only him, but a host of players such as Shaun Marsh, Shane Watson, Mathew Hayden and a host of coaches such as John Buchanan and Tom Moody have all left their mark on the tournament. The IPL calendar for the next few years at least must accommodate the full Australian contingent to ensure even greater interest.
So, here is a quick summary of what I am saying. The IPL has been an unqualified success for viewers, spectators and advertisers if not for Vijay Mallya. Prudence in team acquisition and balance in its composition are key. I read somewhere that Kevin Pietersen is being contemplated for a huge fee. My quick response is: Perish the thought; it will be one more costly failure.
Get the players to do grassroots promotions, not TV appearances, as that will help the locals to bond with the teams. Shane Warne has a lot of following in Hampshire as I am sure in Rajasthan. While it is a business, it is still a game for most of us. Let not the sordid things that happen in board rooms be aired on our screens. Manage quietly if you cannot manage efficiently. While Mukesh Ambani has been very much in evidence in the Mumbai stadium, he has, to me at least, been the most admirable owner.
The greatest thing for our cricket has been the emergence of so many fine youngsters such as Manpreet Goni, Yusuf Pathan and Swapnil Asnodkar who have taken to this format as a duck would take to water. May their tribe increase! There has been no innovation in the game itself and the game suffers from its old ailments such as very poor umpiring despite the availability of technology. The umpiring was pathetic. What was even worse was the commentary. We had some of the worst commentators on air while some of the best cricket was on view.
Let me end with a tongue-in-cheek comment even as I accept that some of my initial predictions about IPL have not been bang on. Teams must have both a long-term and a short-term strategy. The short-term strategy would be to get some ageing Australians in, such as Justin Langer, Andy Bichel and Brad Hogg, for a song. The long-term strategy is to use some of the greatest players in the world to influence, motivate and develop local talent that will eventually build a team of world beaters.
If you had to pick one player who has dominated the media and attention of the nation including the lady in the queue, it has been Shane Warne. One admiring English cricketer who has been tormented enough by him once asked him, “Who writes your scripts?” In the 2005 Ashes series, it was Shane Warne who single-handedly kept England at bay and almost helped Australia retain the Ashes. England loved, admired and yet dreaded Warne and headlines like ‘It ain’t over till the fat laddie spins’ were common and the IPL was over only after the fat laddie won the trophy! Not only him, but a host of players such as Shaun Marsh, Shane Watson, Mathew Hayden and a host of coaches such as John Buchanan and Tom Moody have all left their mark on the tournament. The IPL calendar for the next few years at least must accommodate the full Australian contingent to ensure even greater interest.
So, here is a quick summary of what I am saying. The IPL has been an unqualified success for viewers, spectators and advertisers if not for Vijay Mallya. Prudence in team acquisition and balance in its composition are key. I read somewhere that Kevin Pietersen is being contemplated for a huge fee. My quick response is: Perish the thought; it will be one more costly failure.
Get the players to do grassroots promotions, not TV appearances, as that will help the locals to bond with the teams. Shane Warne has a lot of following in Hampshire as I am sure in Rajasthan. While it is a business, it is still a game for most of us. Let not the sordid things that happen in board rooms be aired on our screens. Manage quietly if you cannot manage efficiently. While Mukesh Ambani has been very much in evidence in the Mumbai stadium, he has, to me at least, been the most admirable owner.
The greatest thing for our cricket has been the emergence of so many fine youngsters such as Manpreet Goni, Yusuf Pathan and Swapnil Asnodkar who have taken to this format as a duck would take to water. May their tribe increase! There has been no innovation in the game itself and the game suffers from its old ailments such as very poor umpiring despite the availability of technology. The umpiring was pathetic. What was even worse was the commentary. We had some of the worst commentators on air while some of the best cricket was on view.
Let me end with a tongue-in-cheek comment even as I accept that some of my initial predictions about IPL have not been bang on. Teams must have both a long-term and a short-term strategy. The short-term strategy would be to get some ageing Australians in, such as Justin Langer, Andy Bichel and Brad Hogg, for a song. The long-term strategy is to use some of the greatest players in the world to influence, motivate and develop local talent that will eventually build a team of world beaters.
Ramanujam Sridhar is CEO of brand-comm and the author of “One land, one billion minds”
Friday, June 6, 2008
Royal challenge – a diluted brew
In my early twenties I used to be a lot dumber than I am now. My father had a bottle of Glen Livet whiskey in his cupboard and on a couple of occasions I had swigs from it. For fear of getting caught, I would slip in some water into the bottle lest my father discover the shortage. I am sure he could recognize the diluted taste of that excellent malt, but being the gentleman he was and still is at 92, he never raised the issue. Now several years later I can see another brand of whiskey being diluted through the impetuosity of its owner. I speak of Royal Challenge or RC as it is fondly referred to by its drinkers. Although I do not have the market share figures to back it, I do believe that Royal Challenge is a dominant brand of whiskey. In fact when I used to be a Rotarian a few years ago, the fellowship used to be the high point of the meetings, particularly those involving multiple clubs, and if RC was not being served, the event would receive a “thumbs down”, so powerful was the brand’s influence on Rotarians from Bangalore at least. Given the threat to surrogate advertising for his brands, Vijay Mallya branded his cricket team as ‘Royal Challengers’ and in five weeks time the team has become history.
The impact on the brand
Surrogate advertising is something that we all see. Mineral water, cocktail snacks, casual wear are all brands of liquor or cigarettes that are not allowed to advertise in mass media and use this devious route. In this scenario Mallya arrived at what might have been a marketing coup in calling his team the ‘Royal Challengers’. Commercials were made - which also featured Mallya - merchandise was created, mass media was bought….A blitzkrieg of advertising was launched. The team started playing matches and losing them with monotonous regularity. The players did their best, but still lost, at times narrowly and at other times embarrassingly. Mallya lost his cool and sacked the CEO who went to town about being ‘summarily dismissed’. Nor was Mallya satisfied with that. He went to the media to complain bitterly about the team composition. The brand has got amazingly bad press and Mallya, in no small measure is responsible for the mess that the brand and the team is in. The only difference between this team and others is that this team is an existing, popular brand, not a new creation like the Kolkatta Knight Riders.
Building a brand’s equity
A brand’s equity is something that is carefully and assiduously built over a period of time. Your actions can add to the brand’s equity or dilute its equity. The poor performance of the team and the controversy surrounding it must certainly have affected the brand. Instead of strengthening a dominant brand, the owner of the brand has substantially diluted the brand’s equity. Imagine a guy walking into the Bangalore Club bar and asking for ‘Royal Challenge’ even as the match is being shown on TV! It is important that Mallya remembers the impact of his sometimes hasty actions on a large, well established, popular brand. After all it is easier to destroy than to build, whether it is a brand or a team.
The impact on the brand
Surrogate advertising is something that we all see. Mineral water, cocktail snacks, casual wear are all brands of liquor or cigarettes that are not allowed to advertise in mass media and use this devious route. In this scenario Mallya arrived at what might have been a marketing coup in calling his team the ‘Royal Challengers’. Commercials were made - which also featured Mallya - merchandise was created, mass media was bought….A blitzkrieg of advertising was launched. The team started playing matches and losing them with monotonous regularity. The players did their best, but still lost, at times narrowly and at other times embarrassingly. Mallya lost his cool and sacked the CEO who went to town about being ‘summarily dismissed’. Nor was Mallya satisfied with that. He went to the media to complain bitterly about the team composition. The brand has got amazingly bad press and Mallya, in no small measure is responsible for the mess that the brand and the team is in. The only difference between this team and others is that this team is an existing, popular brand, not a new creation like the Kolkatta Knight Riders.
Building a brand’s equity
A brand’s equity is something that is carefully and assiduously built over a period of time. Your actions can add to the brand’s equity or dilute its equity. The poor performance of the team and the controversy surrounding it must certainly have affected the brand. Instead of strengthening a dominant brand, the owner of the brand has substantially diluted the brand’s equity. Imagine a guy walking into the Bangalore Club bar and asking for ‘Royal Challenge’ even as the match is being shown on TV! It is important that Mallya remembers the impact of his sometimes hasty actions on a large, well established, popular brand. After all it is easier to destroy than to build, whether it is a brand or a team.
(Ramanujam Sridhar is CEO of brand-comm and the author of “One land, one billion minds”)
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Cricket break in between commercials
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/catalyst/2008/05/15/stories/2008051550020200.htm
Brands need to continually reinvent themselves as they grow older but it does not stop with merely changing the identity and creating new commercials to announce it. Does it demonstrate a new focus to the customer, better customer service or more contemporary products?
Cricket has audiences who are glued onto the TV set for hours on end, starting with the pre-match build-up, the toss, the pitch report, the highlights at the end of each innings, the presentation ceremony, the concluding remarks and whatever else follows it. On one single match day, a consumer could end up seeing the same commercial 10 times.
It is 8:45 pm on Tuesday –May 6 – and yet another IPL match is being telecast. I watch religiously despite the mediocre fare being provided by the depleted Chennai kings who clearly miss the likes of Mathew Hayden (who has recently been a t his diplomatic best) and Mike Hussey (who continues to be Mr Cricket).
One more wicket falls as the home team struggles. As I wait for the replay, a commercial comes on air for the nth time.
The IPL has been a succession of TV commercials, several of ordinary quality, like some of the players on display, interspersed with some cricket, some of it lacklustre.
Even as I contemplate switching the channel, the phone rings. It is my friend who calls to tell me that a wicket has fallen in the Royal Challengers camp too as the CEO has just quit. The CEO later reiterates that he has been “summarily dismissed”!
What with the cheerleaders having to tone down their act and actually being made to wear some clothes, Harbhajan’s hand straying onto his India team mate’s cheek, the ‘excellent’ relations between Warne and Ganguly… the IPL has had its fair share of excitement. My regret, though, is that the advertising that has been the foundation for the entire economics of funding the IPL – barring a few exceptions – has been quite boring, at least for diehard viewers like me.
Opportunity to see. But what is there to see?
Media planners swear by OTS or ‘Opportunity to see’. They want consumers like you and me to see the commercials a few times at least, during the purchase cycle. But how many times can one see the same boring commercial which precedes, interrupts and follows a game, which also happens to be dull and one-sided on occasion?
So, here is my question to agency creative and strategic types: What is your view on ‘wear-out’ of TV commercials?
Cricket has audiences who are glued onto the TV set for hours on end, starting with the pre-match build-up, the toss, the pitch report, the highlights at the end of each innings, the presentation ceremony, the concluding remarks and whatever else follows it. On one single match day, a consumer could end up seeing the same commercial 10 times.
Clearly, some of us do not learn or are gluttons for punishment. I read somewhere that the IPL could well be the ‘Superbowl’ of India. Superbowl is a big event in the US, as most of us know, where several brands launch new, edgy commercials at a phenomenal cost. One recalls the impact made by the ‘1984’ commercial previewed by Apple when I was young and actually had hair on my head!
This tradition of launching commercials in the event continues. While the IPL may present a great opportunity for Indian advertisers to showcase their creative talent, one wonders if they have risen to the challenge or even understood the mindset of the viewer of 20-20 cricket.
My submission to advertisers, agencies and marketers is to watch both games on the weekend at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m., particularly the commercials, without switching the channel once and see their own commercials several times over to empathise with the viewer. They will quickly realise that their execution does not measure up to the challenges of repeated opportunities to see on the same day on the same channel.
Having said that, let’s take a look at some of the commercials that have been on air, not necessarily in any order.
Change for the sake of change
It is that time of year when companies seem to be dissatisfied with the way their brands look. Everybody wants to look younger, more with it, and in tune with what a younger audience wants. After all, we are a young country and even if we forget it for a moment, the agencies who have been behind these identity changes will quickly remind us! Ceat, one of the well-known if not iconic brands of my time, has suddenly woken up to the fact that younger customers do not even know it exists.
Marketing as we all know seems to be full of companies who ignore the importance of investing in their brands in a sustained manner! So, out goes the rhino, out goes the ‘born tough’ (a clear position if there was one) and in comes a new colourful logo which is announced with a lot of fanfare.
A lot of the communication on TV is about change itself and how it is inevitable and necessary. There was a level of intrigue in the first commercial where a middle-aged man tries to take a picture of a young girl in a bikini (when will middle-aged men improve!) while a young man wearing a t-shirt with the caption ‘change’ is blocking the view. The other commercials, in my opinion, lack the same level of interest and intrigue.
Godrej, another ‘old’ brand, has reinvented itself in design and Shoppers Stop too has a new identity.
All these campaigns feature heavily on the IPL, some as ‘creepy crawlers’ below and on the side of the screen, which, instead of reminding, actually end up repelling me.
Rejuvenation is an important part of branding and brands need to constantly monitor themselves, keep measuring how consumers feel about them and look for ways to engage the customer.
But identity, however visible, is just one aspect of the brand. Brands need to continually reinvent themselves as they grow older but that does not stop with merely changing the identity and creating new commercials to announce it. Does it demonstrate a new focus to the customer, better customer service or more contemporary products?
My concern about all these identity changes is that there is a predictable pattern to it. The logo is changed, often without continuing any aspect of its past; it becomes a lot more vibrant and colourful; there is a high-profile ad campaign that touts the change and then life goes on. What has changed for the brand or the consumer?
Hawaai at your feet
When we were kids (there I go again!) we used to wear a brand of rubber chappals called Hawaii made by Bata. Every second person used to wear it. In fact, I later discovered that Hawaii had become a generic name and several other manufacturers sold their brands as Hawaii to unsuspecting and uniformed customers.
Paragon, a company that makes rubber chappals has a new commercial featuring actor Shriya (Rajnikant’s lady love in the film Shivaji) who is dancing in the streets with a group of people, one of whom is a lady with a broom! Another celebrity commercial without a script or an idea … quite like a formula film that cannot find the right formula.
In defence of the commercial, I must tell you that my 17-year-old nephew, who is visiting from Malaysia, wanted to buy the chappals because he likes Shriya … So there you go.
The agency might well say “you are not the target audience!” But I am the target audience for the commercials done by Citibank. Clearly, the bank seems to be stressed out because of all this sub-prime crisis and I do recall one commercial with a girl jogging, talking to the camera and I could not for the life of me figure out what she was saying. Citibank has a series of commercials which are not too different.
From banks, we move on to insurance and another commercial for Max NewYork Life which has a harried housewife whom we later discover is paranoid.
But I am getting ahead of myself. A lady enters an empty house and searches high and low for her husband. He is not answering his phone, his shoes are strewn carelessly on the floor and he is nowhere to be found. The tension increases for the lady as she rushes from pillar to post calling out to her husband and her panic increases. She finally finds him slumped in his chair and rushes to him, only to wake up the poor sleeping man who probably was having one of his few moments of peace undisturbed by his wife…
Yes, insurance is a difficult subject and fear is not an easy emotion to handle, but after all this build-up, staccato images, black and white treatment, all adding the tension, it’s a letdown as the film ends almost comically. As my nephew says, “God! She almost gave him a stroke waking him up like that!” Yes, advertising works differently for different folks I guess.
Love me, love my dog
Advertising uses the unnatural liking we have for children and dogs. I love dogs and children (especially when they are not my own) and I just love the Vodafone commercial which has a cute girl with curls and our pug which has now acquired celebrity status. The brand which used to talk about coverage is now talking about service and helping consumers.
The commercials are charming, to put it mildly, and restore my faith in the power of advertising to charm and sell. Being an Airtel consumer, I am unable to talk about their service. But being an avid television watcher, I can tell you that I do not mind ‘opportunities to see’ commercials like these.
Another interesting commercial is for the Moto Yuva where a middle-aged father apes his teenage son while his family watches in amusement. While I have discussed a few commercials that were sad, weird even, there is nothing to beat the Animal Welfare Board which claims that the dog has been mistreated and the ad should be pulled off air!
So, here’s hoping that we get better cricket breaks!
(Ramanujam Sridhar is CEO,brand-comm, and the author of One Land, One Billion Minds.)
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