March 16-31, 2014 Volume 2, Issue 20 `100 In a historic breakthrough, trade bodies representing ad agencies, publishers and advertisers have agreed to do away with all media surveys. “Readership and viewership surveys are causing conflict and creating distrust in the industry,” emphasised an official on condition of anonymity. The end of surveys is expected to usher in a new era of peace and understanding in the Indian media business. &RQWLQXHGRQSDJH>> 35 14 20 PLUS KOTAK MAHINDRA BANK Fighting Inertia 6 QUICKR.COM What’s the MSP? 10 MTV 50 REPORT MAX LIFE INSURANCE WOODLAND-UNICEF Raising a Toast Big Data Serious Relationships Helping Hand EENADU How big is Big Data? An A campaign that extends the Safe drinking water is the next 52 afaqs! special. ‘advisor’ theme. point on Woodland’s agenda. Widening its Reach EDITORIAL This fortnight... Volume 2, Issue 20 EDITOR ack in the 1980s, educated Indians had a rather low opinion of most things Sreekant Khandekar Indian, and with good reason. However, that self-flagellation sometimes March 16-31, 2014 Volume 2, Issue 20 `100 B PUBLISHER extended to the most unexpected areas. Prasanna Singh DEPUTY EDITOR One grumble heard often was that Indians didn’t even have a sense of humour! Ashwini Gangal I remember getting into an angry argument on this one because I hate whiners and SENIOR LAYOUT ARTIST this was really the limit. How could one even begin to compare one nationality Vinay Dominic with another? Was there a ranking of the ‘World’s Most Humorous Countries’? PRODUCTION EXECUTIVE In a historic breakthrough, trade bodies representing ad agencies, publishers and Andrias Kisku advertisers have agreed to do away with all media surveys. Of course there wasn’t. “Readership and viewership surveys are causing conflict and creating distrust in ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES the industry,” emphasised an official on condition of anonymity. The end of surveys is Naveen Arora, (0120) 4077803, 4077866 expected to usher in a new era of peace and As Indians’ opinion of themselves improved, I began to hear less on the subject. understanding in the Indian media business. Noida &RQWLQXHGRQSDJH>> Of course, one has to concede that in a country as diverse as India where everyone 35 14 20 PLUS Arunima Bhattacharya, (022) 40429702-5 KOTAK MAHINDRA BANK is in a minority on grounds of language, caste, region, religion or gender, people are Fighting Inertia 6 Mumbai QUICKR.COM What’s the MSP? 10 quick to take offence at laughter purportedly directed at them. Sometimes I wonder MTV [email protected] 50 REPORT MAX LIFE INSURANCE WOODLAND-UNICEF Raising a Toast Big Data Serious Relationships Helping Hand EENADU How big is Big Data? An A campaign that extends the Safe drinking water is the next if some people lie in anticipation, just waiting to be offended so that they can burn 52 afaqs! special. ‘advisor’ theme. point on Woodland’s agenda. Widening its Reach MARKETING OFFICE something down or enjoy a cheerful little riot. B-3, First Floor, Sector-4, Noida-201301. Tel: (0120) 4077800. One thing is certain: there has never been a better time for the comic next door. MUMBAI (There is even an article on ‘How to have a sense of humour’ on Wikihow!) In the past, a great joke 501-502, Makani Center, 5th Floor, Off Linking Road, Bandra (W), would have travelled slowly around a hostel or college at most to another. Today, a lazing teen can Mumbai - 400050 punch a one-liner into his mobile and that could light up a million smiles within days. Tel: +91-22-40429 709 - 712 BENGALURU From sharing a private joke digitally to making a business out of humour was just a step away. S-1, New Bridge Corporate Centre, 777 D, 100 ft Road, Indira Nagar, And that is exactly what we have. A bunch of young men – it is mostly men – are using the digital Bengaluru - 560038, India media to laugh at everything they see around them. And in India, there is a lot to laugh about. SUBSCRIPTION ENQUIRIES Akhilesh Singh, (0120) 4077837 These attempts are being powered by social media. We like to share funny stuff with friends and [email protected] family because making them laugh is a nice way of saying hello. Owned by Banyan Netfaqs Pvt Ltd and Printed and published by The ‘funnies’ are the subject on the cover not because it is big business but because it says something Prasanna Singh, about the digital medium as well us as Indians. at 7-A/13, Ch. Ratan Singh Complex, Jawala Heri Market, Paschim Vihar, New Delhi-110 063. Printed at Cirrus Graphics Private Limited B-61, Sector 67, Noida (U.P.), 201301 Sreekant Khandekar Cover Illustration [email protected] Tiffin Box CONTENTS 18 31 PLUS ADFEST 2014 CAB ADVERTISING McCann Leads the Way 12 Cruising with Brands Advertising in ZOIRO INNERWEAR taxicabs goes to a new 14 level. Staying In INMA AWARDS KULZY 8 10 24 Stake Your Claim ToI Gets a Max A platform that credits you for the work you have done. SPORTZPOWER-GROUPM Looking Beyond Cricket 26 POINTS OF VIEW 22 Print Ads IDEA MTV STAR GOLD Do creative agencies neglect ‘Fool’proof Idea Knitting Stories... 52 print advertising? Our panel Don’t sink in the information Bollywood directors to film Movies Galore comments. overload. HUL’s brand philosophy. afaqs! Reporter, March 16-31, 2014 5 $'9(57,6,1* KOTAK MAHINDRA BANK Fighting Inertia In its latest campaign, the bank tackles consumers’ inertia and focuses on people who are yet to make up their minds about opting for the bank’s higher interest savings account. By Rashmi Menon ackling competition is easier than changing “Indians by nature are touchy. We had to be more human behaviour, and that’s the chal- subtle in our message rather than rub people’s face Tlenge Kotak Mahindra Bank seems to be in it,” Marshan states. While brands have carried up against. The bank’s latest campaign, which is out dry humour ad campaigns abroad, it wouldn’t an extension of its previous ‘Subbu sab jaanta hai’ be taken that well here, he opines. (Subbu knows it all) campaign, continues to urge In fact, the campaigns launched since 2011, people with the higher, more attractive interest when the bank started the 6 per cent value propo- rate on savings account on balance above `1 lakh. sition, have worked well for the brand. In mere Besides giving the brand’s live mascot ‘Subbu’ three years, the bank has grown three times in (played by Vinay Pathak) a miss, the current terms of the money parked in its savings accounts, campaign addresses so called “fence sitters” with and has registered double the number of new cus- the message ‘Why are you stuck on tomers, as compared to pre-2011. four per cent, when six per cent is “Inertia is our biggest enemy. My target cus- greater?’ television, it is supported by tar- tomers are fully aware of the product proposition While the earlier campaigns had geted outdoor, cinema and digital but many are not doing anything about it,” he Subbu dispensing expert advice to media. In outdoor, the bank says it says. The reason for this could be that till 2011, people, the current campaign has has an “impactful property” in T3 when the regulation on savings account interest switched to inanimate, everyday-use of Delhi Airport where it has 168 rates were lifted, people never gave much thought objects such as elevators, GPS moni- sites. In fact, the bank has invested to savings account as the perception was that the tors and token display machines. extensively in outdoor properties in interest rates were next to nothing. The three-film campaign is the Mumbai-Delhi corridor since Marshan, therefore, felt that he was creating a conceptualised and executed by people commuting between the new market and more participants (read: competi- Cartwheel Creative Consultancy. two cities form an important target tor banks) offering similar or competing interest While one film shows a man in group for the bank. rates would only result in creating more noise for an elevator stuck on the 4th floor, SUSHIL KUMAR ‘Subbu’ worked well for the this value-proposition. another shows a man waiting for his Marshan: interest-game brand in its earlier campaigns. Why token number to be called. In the then the decision to do away with it SIX OF ONE? third film, a woman in a car hears her GPS monitor this time? Karthi Marshan, executive vice-presi- ditya Kanthy, national strategic planning head, telling her that six is greater than four. The films dent and head, group marketing, Kotak Mahindra ADDB Mudra, feels that while campaign’s reiterate that those stuck Bank, clarifies that Subbu has been put on “pause” message is relevant and in line with its earlier ava- on ‘four’ may be the only and the brand has not decided to do away with tar, it falls short on how it talks to us. “I wonder ones left, who haven’t him. “Our internal research showed that Subbu if the execution misses a trick. While its campaign yet opened an account was becoming ‘wall-paperish’. People tuned out is dramatic and the message is hard to miss, does with Kotak Mahindra when they saw him as they thought they knew it bring alive the personality or character of the despite knowing the what Subbu was going to say,” says Marshan, brand? Does it move us or entertain us?” he asks. that the bank offers 6 adding that while the character has high retention A more compelling work in the category, per cent rate of interest value, it looked like people had stopped grasping Kanthy believes, acknowledges the fears, anxieties per annum.