September 16-30, 2010 Volume 1, Issue 18 `50
The recent order on music royalties by the Copyright Board has come as a huge reprieve for radio stations. 34
24 30 12 PLUS 8 IODEX Immediate Action 18 IN.COM In the Fast Lane 36 TELECOM Becoming Social 36 MAHUAA KHOBOR PROFILE IMAGINE NESTLE What’s the News? 44 Tarun Chauhan Gunning for Linearity Eager for Action SAB TV JWT’s new Mumbai head The channel is eyeing a spot Bar One is back after a long, Getting it Straight 48 has an open-door policy. in the top three slots. long time.
EDITORIAL
This fortnight... Volume 1, Issue 18
ow that the issue of music royalty seems behind us, let me admit something: I haven’t had EDITOR Na lot of sympathy for radio operators. Our struggle to take afaqs! to profitability broadly Sreekant Khandekar coincided with the rise of the private radio business in India. Some internet companies like PUBLISHER Prasanna Singh ours survived but the overwhelming majority went under. I knew many of the entrepreneurs SENIOR LAYOUT ARTIST but can’t recall any who wailed about the unfairness of it all. They had played hard and they Vinay Dominic
had lost. From where I stood, it seemed like radio companies were constantly lamenting their LOGISTICS situation. They knew what they were getting into, so what were they complaining about? Rajesh Kanwal Actually, I should be happy that the radio operators have won the music ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES Hansika Koli, (0120) 4077834 4077837 Noida royalty case. I have an hour-long drive to office and I enjoy listening to the Varun Mohan, (022) 40429702-5 Mumbai radio. I am benignly amused by most radio jockeys even if they don’t know Neeraj Ranjan, 09886846842 Bangalore September 16-30, 2010 Volume 1, Issue 18 `50 when to stop and the lack of variety in music is bugging. I have often wondered [email protected] why there is no other form of programming on radio. I know the answer: Marketing Office B-3, First Floor, Sector-4, Noida-201301. most Indians want just film music and nothing else. All the same I can’t help Tel: (0120) 4077800.
thinking that there has to be something else that people would like to hear. Mumbai 501-502, Makani Center, 5th Floor, I am sure radio companies must be looking forward to profits that they can Off Linking Road, Bandra (W), plough back and grow the business. As a listener, I fervently hope that they put Mumbai - 400050 Tel: +91-22-40429 709 - 712
The recent order on music royalties at least some of that money into programming. by the Copyright Board has come as a huge reprieve for radio stations. Bangalore 34 At a broader level, the decision on royalty will allow the rollout of the S-1, New Bridge Corporate Centre, 777 D, 100 ft Road, Indira Nagar, 24 30 12 PLUS 8 IODEX radio revolution to the rest of India. Radio firms were reluctant to bid for Immediate Action 18 Bangalore - 560038, India IN.COM In the Fast Lane 36 TELECOM the new stations in smaller towns because the cost of playing music could not Becoming Social 36 Subscription Enquiries MAHUAA KHOBOR PROFILE IMAGINE NESTLE What’s the News? 44 be supported by the small advertising base in these centres. In many towns, Garima Agnihotri, (0120) 4077837 Tarun Chauhan Gunning for Linearity Eager for Action SAB TV JWT’s new Mumbai head The channel is eyeing a spot Bar One is back after a long, Getting it Straight 48 has an open-door policy. in the top three slots. long time. companies had taken to switching off the station at night since royalty costs were [email protected] a drain and there was no advertising to compensate for it. Printed, published, and owned by Prasanna Singh, Publisher, Here’s hoping that this does mark the beginning of a new chapter in India’s radio business… at 7-A/13, Ch. Ratan Singh Complex, Jawala Heri Market, Paschim Vihar, New Delhi-110 063.
Printed at Paras Offset Pvt. Ltd., C-176, Naraina Industrial Area, Phase I, New Delhi 110 028. Sreekant Khandekar Cover Illustration [email protected] Tiffin Box CONTENTS 26 51 PLUS KBC 4 Encouraging Questions 14 UTV Show of Strength AIRTEL NATGEO The channel visits Exploring Explorers 16 media agencies across India testing BY INVITATION muscle power. Lessons Revised 22 NEROLAC T GANGADHAR & STEPHEN LI 14 12 A New Ambassador 46 Learning in India The men at the helm of MEC KYOORIUS DESIGN talk about their plans. Design Principle 54
POINTS OF VIEW 40 INDIAN MAGAZINE CONGRESS Contesting a Point IDEA USHA STRIKER The Revival 56 Can digital agencies think Making Life Simpler Stopping them Cold EEMAX 2010 up more interesting user- The brand continues tackling Talking about superfast generated contests? larger issues. cooling in a quirky manner. Awards Time 60
afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010 5 CANON INDIA Sponsored by
ith Onam ushering in The company, which has tra- the beginning of the ditionally been a strong believer Wfestival season, digital in promoting its brand through Ford India> The company will launch eight new vehicles imaging firm Canon India is shifting experiential marketing, launched a in India in the next few years to expand its presence in the its focus from six big cities to tar- pan-India road show, called Canon country’s fast growing car market. This move is a part of the get the upcountry market in India. on The Wheels, early this year, company’s plan to bring more and more vehicles from its Targeting about 43 per cent growth covering states such as Gujarat, global portfolio to India and other markets in Asia Pacific and over 2009, Canon aims to be a `1,200 Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, MP and Africa. Ford India launched the Ford Figo subcompact earlier crore company in 2010. It also plans Punjab. It is extending this initiative this year, selling more than 30,000 units in 25 weeks. As per to be a billion dollar company in five to various other parts of the coun- estimates, sales of vehicles in India has grown at an average years, with most of its business com- try, including Uttarakhand and UP. annual rate of 17 percent in the past five years. ing from smaller towns. Subsequently, it plans to take the Through a combination of initiative to East India. This visual Coca-Cola> The official beverage communication and distribution, The Canon on The Wheels partner of the 2010 Commonwealth the company is looking to entice programme has covered 16 towns identity will be used to activate Games has launched its new Visual first-time camera users in small reaching more than 15 lakh peo- Identity System (VIS) and logo for the towns and cities. In order to bring ple. “More than a lakh and a half all the venues of Games in Delhi. Conceptualised on the the customers into its fold, the com- have actually visited the road show the Games. theme of ‘Go Dilli, Let Sports Win’, the pany is connecting with consumers to experience the technology,” new VIS encourages people to partici- by trying to make them understand elaborates Bhardwaj. He adds that
MARKETING pate and support the games. technology in a unique way. Canon has already recorded sales of Until about five about `3.5 crore so far years ago, the compa- through this initiative, Hero Honda> To further strengthen its leadership in the ny had a major focus across six states in the deluxe segment, Hero Honda has launched Super Splendor with new value-added features. The new Super Splendor on the top six cities country. (drum version with self-start) is priced at `45,950 (ex-show- in the country. Later, The company is The company is room Delhi). It is being made available through Hero Honda’s Canon India saw a aiming to become targeting wedding wide network of over 4,200 sales and service points across higher demand com- a billion dollar photographers as a the country. The brand was first launched in the 1994. Also, ing from smaller cities unique segment in the company is planning a slew of new launches leading up and its share in the company by 2015 smaller cities. “In to the festive season. total business began and expects these cities, wedding to tilt towards smaller photographers are one towns. In 2009-10, 70 per cent of its of the key focus areas The retailer will Pantaloon Retail> Part of the Future Group, Pantaloon about 51 per cent of business to and we are leveraging add six Central retail is gearing up to more than double the number of its the company’s busi- come from that through work- and four Brand Food Bazaar and Big Bazaar stores, the expansion contrast- ness came from tier II shops dedicated to this Factory stores. ing with its simplification drive. and tier III towns. smaller towns. segment - where they This year, the retailer will also Alok Bhardwaj, get to experience new open a large format 18,000 sq ft sport lifestyle store, Planet senior vice-president, Canon India, technologies in photography. We Sports, in Delhi. says, “There is a traction happen- have got phenomenal sales of D-SLR ing towards smaller cities and we in tier II and tier III cities,” he adds. decided that we have to look at tier II So far, the photography-workshops KWAN & Geetha Arts> One of the leading production and tier III towns as an integral part have reached 2,000 photographers houses of South - Geetha Arts has partnered with KWAN, of our future strategies to achieve in 16 cities. an entertainment and marketing company to form Artist the targeted growth. Our rough esti- Canon is also improving servic- Alliance - an entertainment marketing firm focussed on South mate indicates that five years from es to its existing customers. The Indian cinema. Artist Alliance will replicate KWAN’s business now, 70 per cent of our business will company recently launched the model in southern cinema, working in the areas of celebrity come from these towns.” Level IV Master Service Centres, management, movie marketing, in-film placements, casting, “The challenge in these towns is particularly in view of the upcom- television and event sponsorships. The new entity will also that technology is something that ing Commonwealth Games in the handle Bollywood celebrities’ career in South. does not come easy to the people capital. It has invested `2 crore on and there is a phobia and a little bit building the fifth Level IV Master The digital TAN & PlayTime> Times Audience Network (TAN) has of a ‘not-for-me’ syndrome,” adds Service Centre in the country, which video arm entered into a strategic partnership with video advertising and Bhardwaj. has an area of 2,500 sq ft. of the Times analytics platform Tube Mogul to launch PlayTime in India. A Group will sell video advertising platform that connects brands with the TG, QUOTE OF THE FORTNIGHT PlayTime is a new ad platform for video advertisers. Under PlayTime to this partnership, the digital video arm of the Times Group will advertisers. sell PlayTime to advertisers, who will be able to reach Indian ‘‘With 70-75 per cent of the audiences on leading publisher sites and social networks. Indian PC market still dominated by desktop, it is a crucial Mom & Me> Mahindra Retail, which started with Mom & segment for us. Desktop sales Me, a retail chain of stores specialising in infant and maternity care, plans to open more than 50 stores by March 2011. After for us comes more from the the first store, which was launched in January 2009, it has commercial segment.’’ since grown to 18 stores across 14 cities today. These stores SAMEER GARDE, COUNTRY MANAGER, DELL INDIA, ON THE IMPORTANCE OF THE DESKTOP MARKET FOR THE offer a complete range of products required by moms-to-be, COMPANY, IN BUSINESS STANDARD. moms, babies and kids.
6 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
FEVER 104 FM Sponsored by
nce upon a time, interested are certain we will create dedicated listeners across the coun- listeners,” he says. Otry would be all ears while The channel will heavily promote audio dramas unfolded on their the show on the radio station, with Star Plus> The GEC has announced the launch of its radio sets. That was the time when the three celebrities urging viewers new show titled, Kaali-Ek Agnipariksha. The story is about a television did not exist. to tune in. Fever will also promote teenage girl, Rachna, who has dreams of becoming India’s Now, Fever 104 FM is all set the show in the group’s publication, next badminton star, and gets threatened by a senior sports to recreate the mythological epic, Hindustan Times. official. The show explores if she will have the strength to become today’s Kali - the goddess. The show premiered on Ramayan on radio. The radio station Divya Radhakrishnan, president, air from September 13 at 11 PM. The show aims at increas- has roped in Naseeruddin Shah, Om TME, expresses doubt over such a ing social awareness about the growing number of cases of Puri and Anupam Kher, to lend their proposition. She believes that radio MEDIA sexual crimes against women. voices to the Radio Ramayan. stations should stick to their core Fever has been working on Radio strength of being an audio medium. Ramayan for the last six months, Creating a visual effect on radio may It aims to become SureWave Spot TV> The Bengaluru-based media with its programming teams from be a bad idea. She adds that it could a one-stop solutions company, SureWave Spot TV, will now sell cable Delhi, Mumbai, work for non- channels in Kerala to national advertisers. As of now the Kolkata and private stations destination for company has tied up with multi system operator Asianet, Bengaluru col- that have listen- placing ads on which owns seven cable channels and reaches out to almost laborating for ers in remote cable channels 70 per cent of TV households in Kerala. The service also the venture. areas where in Kerala across offers advertisers specific details related to time and exact S Keerthi- there is no MSOs. placement of their adver- vasan, business access to other tisements in programmes head, Fever media; but an bought by them. 104 FM says, FM station “Ramayan is commands a The latest order by the Delhi High one story that metro audience. Dainik Bhaskar> Court allows DB Corp to circulate the Ranchi edition with a has travelled across the “Besides, on a station Fever 104 FM dedicated dateline of Ranchi. It was earlier circulated in the world and appeals to has launched like Fever which has state capital with a dateline of Jamshedpur. everyone in the 12-60- a younger listener fol- Sanjay Aggarwal, co-owner of the title Dainik Bhaskar, year age group.” Ramayan on lowing, Ramayan may filed a petition saying that the planned launch did not have The mythological radio, and has be a bad idea,” she says. his approval and any decision on the new editions would drama goes on air on Instead, in her require mutual consent. During the injunction period, the September 20, on all roped in veteran opinion, shows such print line of the Ranchi edition read ‘Printed from Ranchi’ four Fever stations. Bollywood actors as Binaca Geet Mala, and ‘Published from Jamshedpur’ instead of ‘Printed and The series will be which combined Published from Ranchi’. spread across 120 epi- to lend their music with stories, sodes over 24 weeks. could be a good prop- voices. The channel has launched a reality Radio Ramayan osition. The show targets Bloomberg UTV > show titled The Assignment. Showcasing the two distinct is being aired thrice a day - early Radio stations have explored home-grown ends of the Indian business spectrum. The Assignment is morning, afternoon and late night. unconventional programming. On services and based on the insight that there is a mad race to get into top Based on the response generated, the Radio City, soaps such as Kyunki Saas companies as B-Schools, and then land a brilliant salary package with one radio station may repeat it further or Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and Kahaani well as young of the leading companies. And the people who get into this reduce the number of airings. Ghar Ghar Ki were recreated ear- environment come with a know-it-all chip on their shoulders. One of the challenges the audio lier. Around 2004, the radio station executives. However, beyond the big companies, there are home-grown drama faces is that while the time experimented with other genres of businesses that are very successful and are also fuelling the that any consumer listens to radio programming, with a thriller called growth story of India. may be fixed, which station or show Apradhi Kaun, a horror show - Darr, he or she listens to may not be. and comedy shows. But Keerthivasan is optimistic about These certainly created buzz, Ormax> While some people consider radio jockeys’ ban- Radio Ramayan’s prospects. but failed to accumulate substan- ter to be a hindrance to radio listenership, the good news “In India, the concept of appoint- tial listenership. Apurva Purohit, is that radio jockeys are one of the key reasons for listen- ment listening is not practised as chief executive officer, Radio City, ers to tune into a radio station, according to a syndicated done internationally, because every believes that ultimately, people come study called RJ Files conducted by Ormax Media. The study radio station is similar to the other. to radio for music; non-music listen- provides answers to questions that impact the success of With this unique offering, we ership on radio is very low. a radio jockey - such as what makes the best RJs tick, how important RJs are for a station, and what traits an ideal RJ QUOTE OF THE FORTNIGHT should have. The study also measures the popularity of RJs and the reasons behind their popularity. ‘‘Regional viewing preferences are very important for us. We The cricket Patrika Group> The Rajasthan-based media house put in lot of efforts to provide tournament will Patrika Group recently announced the launch of a cricket follow the 20: 20 tournament involving the readers and common masses. more content for customers Patrika Cup will involve six states, 1100 teams fighting on format. municipal ward basis, involving 15,000 players. The group from different regions.’’ has made teams based on its editions including the Dream SAURABH DHOOT, DIRECTOR, VIDEOCON GROUP, ON DTH OPERATORS Team from Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and national editions COUNTING ON FESTIVALS TO ADD SUBSCRIBERS, IN MINT. (Bengal, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat).
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Percept> The agency, Percept, has launched of a new strategic business unit (SBU), Percept Activ. The new unit will focus on brand activation, and will function in the domain of below-the-line brand communication activities, encompassing promotional activation and event-based activation. It will create and provide customised solutions Showcasing the best of the lot to brands, in order to enable them to effectively connect for Atul Sharma’s ‘Fold-out Yoga with their target audience. Cards’ in miscellaneous category. Ogilvy India (Mumbai office) is Lemon Mobiles, one of the new in second position with nine entries, Lemon Mobiles> entrants in the mobile handsets market, is on the lookout including Breakthrough Trust’s for a creative partner. The pitch is in its initial stage, and ‘Bank Clerk, Software Engineer, in the first round, the participating agencies were asked to Bus Driver’ in public service TV make a strategic presentation without using any creatives. campaign category; Fevicol’s While Delhi-based agency, Panchtatva Advertising currently ndian agencies continue to figure ‘Fevicol Moustache’ in television handles the brand’s creative duties, the media duties are in The Work and once again, - single category; The Economist’s looked after by Motivator, a division of GroupM. Imany have made it to the final ‘Baby’, ‘Bag’, ‘Whale’, ‘Vulture’ in entries for this year’s edition of the newspapers category; Vodafone’s Manufacturer and exporter of curtains and ADVERTISING annual advertising archive. ‘Choking Lives - Sea Birds, Cattle, D’decor> Now in its ninth year of Turtles’ in public service - print upholstery fabrics, D’décor has roped in Shah Rukh and publication, The Work is a 400-page, category; ‘Vodafone Zoozoos’ in Gauri Khan as brand endorsers. The appointment marks the company’s shift from B2B (business to business) to B2C hard cover publication featuring the integrated and ‘Vodafone Zoozoos - (business to consumer) trade. The brand currently has a best advertising of the year from Park Bench, Scream, Xerox, Suicide’ 15-20 per cent market share in India across all SECs. The Australia, New Zealand and Asia. in TV and films category. media mix for the upcoming campaign includes TV, outdoor, Published by Campaign Brief, it is The agency’s Delhi branch has print (magazines and newspapers), radio, in-cinema recognised as a record of creativity three entries including Bharatpur advertising and the internet (social media). for the entire region. Included with Bird Sanctuary’s ‘Ornithologist’ in the annual are two DVDs with all direct category; and there are two the accepted TV, film, integrated and entries for Eno - one each for ‘Eno >> ACCOUNT MOVEMENT radio entries. Bubbles - Pig, Fish and Lamb’ and Taking the lead this time is JWT another one for ‘Eno Deflated - > The advertising agency Happy has won the creative duties with 18 entries, including three Radish, Eggplant and Tomato’ in of icube, the mobile handset brand. It won the account following entries for Fujifilm’s ‘Inner Smile’ poster category. a multi-agency pitch; around six agencies pitched for the in newspapers, posters and outdoor Leo Burnett is next with five business, of which four were shortlisted. Autumn Advertising categories; six entries, two each in entries. These include Sambhavna is the incumbent agency. The agency is currently looking at newspapers, posters and outdoor for Trust’s ‘Awareness of Bhopal Gas creating a strong, clutter-breaking positioning for the brand. A Hero Honda’s ‘Flyover’, ‘Highway’ Victims - Citizens for Bhopal’ full-fledged 360-degree campaign is expected to break by the end of the year. and ‘Night’; three entries for GSK’s in print - single category; Tide ‘Horlicks Pro Height Room’ in Detergent’s ‘Tide Magttraction - > Following a multi-agency pitch, Lowe Lintas has won the outdoor, direct and ambient or Ketchup, Ink, Coffee and Egg’ in creative duties for the Karvy Group. The account will be headed guerrilla categories; one entry for magazines category. Apart from this by Anaheeta Goenka, executive director, Lowe Lintas Mumbai. ‘Horlicks Lite Odd Couple’ in TV there are two entries for Akshara’s The incumbent agency on the account was RK Swamy BBDO, the and film category; two entries for ‘Helpline’ and Bajaj Hand Blender’s agency handled the creative as well as media duties for the account. National Geographic’s ‘Magician’ in ‘Pleasure of Mixing’ in radio and According to sources Grey, Rediffusion Y&R, Ogilvy India, JWT and TV and film and public service TVC Lingo’s ‘Akbar’ in television category. Concept Communications were also in the fray for the account. categories; two entries for Apollo McCann Erickson has four Hospitals’ ‘Apollo Blood Donation’ entries followed by Publicis India in craft in TV and public service with three entries, and two entries > The creative duties for home-making TVC categories, and one entry from Publicis Ambience. retail brand, HomeTown, has been awarded to Rediffusion Y&R. Some of the agencies in the fray for the account were Leo Burnett, McCann Erickson, Draftfcb QUOTE OF THE FORTNIGHT Ulka and Lowe Lintas. Leo Burnett was the incumbent agency on this account. The HomeTown business is worth `30 crore. The media mix for the upcoming campaign will be a 360 degree effort but will focus primarily on print. ‘‘Advertising needs to be socially creative. We need to > After a closely fought multi-agency pitch over the shift from classic advertising to last two months, McCann Erickson has won the creative account planning to behavioural duties for Big-CBS, the joint venture between Reliance targeting’’ Broadcast Network Limited (part of the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group) and CBS Studios International. It is learnt LUCY JAMESON, EXECUTIVE STRATEGY DIRECTOR, DDB (UK), ON THE that Rediffusion Y&R was the other agency in the final race for the mandate. The IMPORTANCE OF SOCIAL CREATIVITY AND THE SHIFT FROM TRADITIONAL ADVERTISING, IN THE STRATEGIST. business will be led by Parvathy Nair, while the creative team will be headed by executive creative directors, Akshay Kapnadak and Rahul Mathew.
10 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
USHA STRIKER Stopping them Cold The latest commerical of the ceiling fan talks about the superfast cooling in a quirky manner. By Rohit Nautiyal
hough Usha International per cent of this. Also, the organised launched the ceiling fan, sector is growing at 30 per cent per TUsha Striker early last year, annum in India. it recently felt the need to come up Usha’s strong markets in India with a TV campaign. The objective include Orissa, Bihar, Assam, UP, of the campaign is to position the Punjab, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, product as a major sub-brand in while its key international mar- ceiling fans, with the proposition kets are Iraq, Oman, Bahrain, of ‘superfast cooling’. Tanzania, Nigeria, Maldives, The film opens in a sweet shop, Ethiopia, Kuwait, Egypt, Ghana, located on the banks of a river. Sudan and Qatar. A priest walks in, asking for alms from the cook who is frying samo- COOL ENOUGH? sas. With the help of a ladle, the cook ith mixed feelings, Titus Upputuru, lifts one out of a frying pan and puts it in Real-life sweepers, body builders WECD, Saatchi & Saatchi says, “It’s an the priest’s bowl. The priest takes a bite and a rickshaw puller were roped in attempt at humour, storytelling or maybe and is surprised at how soon the samo- intrigue. I am not quite sure if the intent sa, just out of the pan, has turned cold. for the ad shoot. was met and if this can be a game-changer Shouting chamatkar repeatedly, the priest, in the category. As in the past, we have seen still holding the samosa, starts running attracting at the location well in advance, clicking lots of commercials which demonstrate the power of a the onlookers’ attention. pictures to decide on various angles and lighting. fan - with things flying around.” The story of the cold samosa soon reaches the Another motive was to capture the city in a fashion Jitender Dabas, executive planning director media, which flocks to the shop where the now totally different from what is popularly seen in and vice-president, JWT feels that creative exag- popular ‘cold samosa’ was discovered. When the films and photographs. geration of a functional attribute is not new in the cook, Pyarelal Ji Halwayi is asked why his samosas Extensive casting was done, wherein a real-life durables category - air-conditioners, refrigerators turn cold so soon, he responds innocently, “Ache sweeper, body builders and a rickshaw puller were and now fans have used it. “It is for sure creatively karmo ka prasad hai”. It is then that the overhead roped in. And the shoot was wrapped up in two disruptive, because one is kept engaged and left fan, Usha Striker, comes into view. days. Speaking about the ad, Chhaya Shriram, wondering what is coming next,” he adds. Interestingly, the TVC has been conceptualised director, Usha International, says, “Given the He adds that, “I see the maker indulging the by the in-house team at Usha, in association with immensely crowded TV advertising scenario, viewers with beautiful shots of Benaras, but I Shiven Surendranath of Old School Films, who when we considered making the film, we felt couldn’t really spot the insight. My understanding has penned and directed the film. Discussing the strongly that quirky humour was the way to make is that ceiling fans would fall under a ‘considered’ brief, Surendranath says, “The client wanted us to an outstanding statement.” purchase for most people. So, I would want to do something which is funny and cutting-edge.” According to industry estimates, currently, the know if the humour will be able to persuade the Benaras was zeroed on as the setting for the size of the electric fan market in the organised sec- kind of target consumers who buy Usha fans.” film; and to do proper research, the team arrived tor is around 34 million fans. Usha lays claim to 18 [email protected]
NESTLÉ new thrust is further strengthened The TG comprises young, col- by revamped packaging which is lege-going boys and girls. There fresh, youthful and premium. are three TVCs in all, two of which Bar One has now returned from focus on a guy impressing girls and Eager for Action the back-burner with a campaign one where girls try to woo a guy. titled Kaafi Hai. The catch-phrase The common thread in all the TVC The packaging and communication has been bears a double meaning. At the is the product that urges attention- surface level, the message is that the seekers to be themselves. revamped targeting college-goers. By Ashwini Gangal chocolate is loaded with caramel The creative duties for the brand lie with JWT, Delhi. Anuja fter six years, Nestlé has Chauhan, former executive crea- re-launched its chocolate tive director and vice-president, Abrand, Bar One. During this JWT Delhi, who has worked on period, Nestlé Bar One has been the campaign, elucidates, “It was available in the market, but was not like working on a clean slate; pretty advertised at all. much like launching the brand than B Kannan, general manag- re-launching it.” er, chocolates and confectionery, In the first TVC a young boy Nestlé India, informs, “Rigorous tries to impress a couple of trendily work with the technology centres dressed girls by riding past them on has enabled us to develop taste his fast bike. The VO states that at superiority in Bar One, which is campaign goes beyond the product and nougat, and is, hence, filling that speed, he would not be able to supported by consumer research. benefit and strengthens the emo- enough. At a deeper level, the brand see their faces clearly nor will the We have, therefore, re-launched it tional experience of the consumer.” encourages youngsters to be them- girls be able to catch a glimpse of his. as the companion for the confi- Nestlé Bar One is available at selves, as that would be enough to dent young Indian. This re-launch price points of `5 and `10, and this impress the opposite sex. >>
12 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
IDEA Making life Simpler The new campaign of Idea Cellular continues its trend of tackling larger issues. By Biprorshee Das
ne could well think of Idea Cellular as being more than just a provider of mobile Oservices. Here is a brand that takes its name a bit too literally - coming up with a new ‘idea’ to tackle serious issues each time in its com- munication campaign. Following the successful campaign champion- ing saving of paper, the recent one talks of how the barriers created by the plethora of languages spo- ken in India could be broken by the mobile phone. Talking to afaqs! Reporter about the new campaign, Anupama Ahluwalia, senior vice-pres- ident, Idea Cellular, says, “India is a land of a billion people talking in 22 recognised languages, 850 mother tongues and 22,000 dialects; it is also He suggests that they speak to each other over career, education, travel and other prospects in a land of opportunities for the young Indians who the phone, asking for help with the language that life; or need to communicate with people talking are ambitious, go-getters and have dreams.” they are not familiar with. different languages in their own surroundings. “However, this diversity and vastness, at times, Soon, the Haryana lad gets his way out of an It aims to help them to adapt to the change in poses a hurdle in the growth of the youth of this angry mob in Maharashtra with his Marathi friend surroundings and connect better with people country. Taking note of this growing concern helping him; while the Bengali woman seeks help speaking other languages. of the multi-lingual Indian society, Idea set out from her Malayali friend to find accommodation; The core message is ‘Bolne ke liye bhasha zaruri to demonstrate how a simple solution can build and the Marathi finds space in a crowded bus with nahi hoti’, and highlights the fact that the language bridges between people speaking different lan- the help of his Bengali friend; while the Malayali barrier can be broken with a simple idea. guages,” he adds. breaks ice similarly in Haryana. All of this happens “The topic is current, relevant and appeals to The television commercial by Lowe Lintas over phone conversations. the youth - who are most affected by the language shows four friends who hail from Kerala, Haryana, The film ends with the revelation that the tea barrier. Maharashtra and West Bengal, being posted in vendor is actually dumb and the message that one The message is conveyed in a subtle manner, non-native regions. Faced by the problems of an does not really need a language to connect with with a flavour of humour as well as poignancy. alien language, they are offered a simple solution another. The creative has a contemporary feel to it - mak- by a tea vendor - played by brand ambassador The ad aims at offering a simple solution to Abhishek Bachchan. many Indians who move out of their homes for >>
KBC 4 Encouraging Questions KBC’s new campaign has taken the route of propagating that no question is small or stupid and curiosity ought to be promoted. By Devina Joshi
hen it’s a campaign for concept, as is its host, superstar on the small screen for the first time game show, Kaun Banega Amitabh Bachchan. ever. As a result, one saw campaigns WCrorepati (KBC), aware- While the first season was such as Ek crore mein kitne zero hote ness of the show’s concept isn’t a hugely popular and broke viewer- hain? and Nau baj gaye kya? to create problem. For the show, launched ship records of sorts, subsequent hype around the show. almost a decade ago and currently seasons while successful, didn’t For the second season, christened getting ready for a fourth season, quite match up. Kaun Banega Crorepati - Dwitiya, the is a household The third season even had a campaign revolved around how change of host - Shah Rukh Khan they could make it big with KBC - - which generated mixed reactions (Left) Tiwari and Khan: inquisitive Umeed se dugna went the punch-line. from the junta. The third season had to announce To create buzz around the sea- FLASHBACK a change of host, SRK. This was son - and to popularise the fact rand KBC has had a rather done with a fast-paced music track that Sony Entertainment Television Binteresting journey. In KBC’s featuring the superstar, on how a (SET) would be home to the show, first season, the campaign focused single question could change your as opposed to STAR Plus - Leo on two factors - the huge prize life; Ek sawaal jo aapki zindagi badal Burnett has launched a four-phased money up for grabs and the fact that de was the thought there. campaign that hopes to bring the India’s biggest superstar, Amitabh ‘romance’ back into the show. Bachchan, would appear as a host !>>
14 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
AIRTEL NAT GEO Exploring the Explorers Airtel Nat Geo’s Young Explorer targets over 60,000 children in the age group of 10-14 years. By Poojya Trivedi
elecom firm, Bharti Airtel in association with National Geographic Channel, has Tbegun The Airtel Nat Geo Young Explorer, an initiative to identify young talent, who have the curiosity and aptitude to explore the world. “The focus is to encourage more and more students to live curious and explore beyond their immediate world - its people, animals and places. Through this unique initiative, National Geographic Channel aims to stimulate and build better interactions with every child who par- “We aim to ticipates,” says Keertan Adyanthaya, managing build better director, National Geographic Channel India & interactions Fox international Channels. “The campaign to identify the young explorer with children.” is well crafted and designed, keeping in mind all KEERTAN the necessary parameters that test the knowledge ADYANTHAYA and aptitude of the participating kids. It will be a great learning experience for kids, as well as their schools,” says K Srinivas, president - Telemedia and trail hunts, where the participants would need Services, Bharti Airtel. to clear various levels to proceed further. Airtel Nat Geo Young Explorer will target The hunt will take place at school and city level. over 60,000 children in the age group of 10-14 Participating kids will be divided into two groups: years. The activity aims to reach about 120 schools The event seeks the Junior (students of Classes 5 and 6) and Senior in total across Delhi, Bengaluru and Chennai (Classes 7 and 8). The 200 top scorers at the school through on-ground activation. smartest kids with the level will qualify for the city level, at which three The on-ground activity is managed by Krayon winners will be shortlisted. The city finals will take Events. spirit of adventure and place in the respective cities in October. Winners The event seeks the smartest kids with the curiosity - the traits of will get branded laptops and other goodies from spirit of adventure and curiosity - the traits of an Airtel and National Geographic Channel. explorer. It is a combination of fun games, puzzles an explorer. [email protected]
<< " # include print, outdoor and digi- all experienced - whether it is the tal media. Since the primary target jingoistic mob or the politely hostile group is the youth, innovations in landlady,” Vaidya says. Making Life... the digital space will also be empha- “As a social message, though, it did sised. not seem deep or inspiring enough. I ing it appealing to the youth,” says Much like the earlier campaign, would have liked it a lot more if Idea Ahluwalia. activation centred on the theme of had shown me how to break down R Balakrishnan (Balki), chairper- language is also on the cards. the barrier and not just find my way son and chief creative officer, Lowe The media duties for the brand around it. But then, this is the real Lintas, says that the aim has always are handled by Mindshare. (Left) Ahluwalia and Balakrishnan world and we need solutions that been to provide better ideas. work. This one does,” he adds. “From the very beginning, we Robby Mathew, national creative knew that the brand must not have Since the primary target group is the director, Interface Communications a constant idea but newer ones every is of the view that the film does not time. We are trying to show how youth, innovations in the digital space match up to the standards already telecom can solve many problems,” set and says that the idea in the film he says. will also be emphasised. plays on stereotypical thought. “It is not a cause. We are not say- “I like the ‘What an Idea, Sirji’ ing that this is the only possible way. COULD HAVE BEEN tive director, Euro RSCG says that concept. However, the latest one is Some of the ideas could be practical BETTER, SIRJI!! Idea has managed to stand out in definitely not the best idea or execu- - some not. However, you can make ith ‘Sirji’ becoming as popular a cluttered category, with its com- tion. There is too much happening in a start by solving problems like this. Was it already has, Idea’s cam- munication hijacking the social good the film. The idea does not have the At the end of the day - it is advertis- paigns usually meet with approval platform and making it relevant to same quality to it as before. The exe- ing. Things are shown in a lighter and praise. Creative experts admit the product. cution is not particularly hot, either. vein and one must have a sense of that they have always liked the “I have always admired Idea’s There are too many stereotypes,” humour,” Balki adds. brand’s ideas. advertising. While not every take Mathew says. Idea has planned a 360 degree The latest campaign, while being resonates well, the new film works. However, he does believe that the campaign around the new theme. appreciated for the insight, has met ‘In Rome, speak as the Romans do’ is campaign idea is big enough to sur- The first phase of the media plan with its share of criticism as well. a relevant insight and the film is very vive “a few poor executions”. constitutes television and will also Nilesh Vaidya, executive crea- well made, too. It is a truth we have [email protected]
16 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
IODEX HEADFAST Addressing a Painful Canvas Making its foray into the headache relief category the brand makes a promise of instant relief. By Rohit Nautiyal odex - a brand synonymous with ly immobilise a person. “Even the muscular pain relief, recently slightest sound has a magnified effect Ilaunched Iodex HeadFast, a balm and can accentuate headache. So, to treat headache. The brand is the we used simple everyday household latest entrant in the country’s `900 objects, rendering their magnified crore pain balm market. effect on the most obvious canvas - Research indicates that headache the forehead,” he says. is a common ailment across different According to Pal, simplicity has age groups and in some cases, occurs always been a key element in most more than three times in a week. of Iodex’s commercials so far. “Our The communication challenge was client instantly liked the idea of using to convey the fast action promise of the forehead as a canvas. The execu- Iodex HeadFast to cut through the overcrowded tion was a challenge as we had to show the (with tablets) and over-promised category. simultaneous movement of the eyes and the fore- The campaign opens on the shot of a man head. The best part is, we managed to achieve this crashing on the sofa in his home after a long day without going abroad,” she adds. at work. Obviously, the house is buzzing with The campaign will also be rolled out in print, activities, generating sounds which are disturb- outdoor and radio. ing to the worn out man. The camera zooms into Iodex has been a trusted brand in India since his forehead, which turns into a canvas - with 1919. The brand was re-launched in 2004 to over- the horizontal tension lines twisting into various come perceived shortcomings such as unattractive shapes, projecting all the objects producing noise packaging, greasy look and bad smell. Attempts and resulting in headache (objects such as TV, were made to revamp its positioning by launching mixer grinder and party popper are shown). (Left) Pal and Singh: new canvas the brand in a green coloured bottle. Also, Iodex As the man applies the balm on his forehead, extended its brand by launching a variant for the tension lines become relaxed and twist slightly, The challenge was to multi-purpose use with the name Iodex Double this time to form a smiley. Power, which promised a double dose of pain The idea has been cracked by the team at JWT convey the fast action fighting ingredients. including Surjo Dutt and Tanurupa Pal in crea- After facing stiff competition from Moov, the tive and Dalbir Singh and Ankit Vohra from client promise of Iodex HeadFast brand was launched again in 2006 with a new cam- servicing and planning, respectively. While the ad paign, where a middle aged man, while walking in has been directed by Abhijit Chaudhuri, the post to cut through the over- the garden, notices a `500 note on the ground. He production work is done by Rythm & Hues. crowded (with tablets) and is tempted to pick it up but as soon as he bends to Singh believes headache is a big hindrance in today’s life and is something that can complete- over-promised category. >>
" # Date - were released. The message ply because they are ignorant of the FOUR TIMES BETTER? << conveyed was the time and the date, answer; while Big B ends up asking he campaign gets a thumbs- when phone lines would open for them those very same questions on Tup from industry folk. Raj Encouraging... auditions to participate in KBC. In the hot seat. Kurup, founder and creative chair- both ads, Big B prompted people to Says Nitesh Tiwari, executive cre- man, Creativeland Asia says, “Koi The brief for the fourth season remember the time and date, if they ative director, Leo Burnett India, that bhi sawaal chhota nahi hota is a simple campaign was simple: as the show is wished to improve their own ‘time’ the campaign’s tone is a page straight insight and Akbar ka baap is an enter- popular enough and its basic format or phase in life. out of Bachchan’s persona. taining execution for the same. It is familiar to most, the primary task The third phase of the campaign “There is this saying in Hindi, koi would be quite redundant for a show would be to bring the magic back has three commercials, includ- bhi gyaan vyarth nahi jaata (no knowl- of the stature and with the familiarity into the show, and to convey that the ing Akbar ka baap, an ad that has a edge goes waste). We worked on of KBC to focus on prize money to show is still relevant and engaging child asking his father who Mughal this insight, while the creative idea create pull.” for viewers. emperor Akbar’s father was, to which was how the lack of knowledge you To Jagdeep Kapoor, chairper- his dad laughs and gives him sarcas- scoffed at could come back to haunt son and MD, Samsika Marketing FOUR’S THE NUMBER tic answers (as he doesn’t know the you when you need it the most,” Consultants, the romance had never he fourth season campaign has answer himself). Tiwari says. gone out of KBC, and the campaign Tbeen divided into four phases. It reaches a point where the father Danish Khan, head, marketing, only to enhance the romance. “This In first phase the popular KBC tune, is sitting on the hot seat at KBC, with SET, remarks, “The social reality effort takes KBC to a higher level, was played with two promos. One Bachchan is asking him the same in India is that knowledge is placed maybe even a shade better,” he says. showed Big B’s silhouette at the question. The embarrassed man, at the highest pedestal in Indian Further, the strategy of all kinds KBC set whistling the tune, while looks helplessly towards his son sit- homes. Even parents encourage their of knowledge being rewarding, is, the super read ‘Coming soon on ting in the audience. Koi bhi sawaal children to learn more. That is how according to him, apt for a show of Sony’; another had him taking a walk chhota nahi hota, advises Big B, as the we chanced upon the ‘knowledge is this level, and the touch of humour down a picture gallery, whistling the KBC logo comes on. rewarding’ idea.” takes the mundane factor out of the same tune mysteriously. Two more ads in the series would The fourth leg of the campaign communication, considering that the The second phase was for the have similar situations of individuals will be launched shortly to announce show’s format isn’t a novel one. auditions, where two ads - Time and mocking at simple questions, sim- the exact launch date for KBC 4. [email protected]
18 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
BMB Changing Hands Following the JV, mc2 will be merged and the new entity will be called BMB Madison Advertising. News Bureau
n a bid to step up its creative offering in Prabha Prabhu, chief India, Madison World has entered into a executive officer. Soon, 50:50 joint venture (JV) with the UK-based a chief creative officer I (From left) Lara and Sam Balsara, Beattie, McGuinness and Prabhu BMB to create BMB Madison Advertising in from the UK will also India. With this development, BMB (Beattie be appointed, who will be based in India. people. India has more of that,” he says. McGuiness Bungay) is finally going to set up Andrew McGuiness, one of the founders When asked if international clients would be its operations in India, having planned its entry of BMB, says that while India as a market was shared in India, McGuiness says that there could for a while now. always a priority, the agency actively began to be possibilities of talks with brands that are plan- Following this move, Madison World’s adver- look into it 12-18 months ago. “It is impor- ning to enter India. Operations are expected to tising business, mc2, will be merged with the JV. tant to have strong cultural and local links in start within the next few weeks - in a new office Sam Balsara, chairperson and managing direc- a country you begin operations in. India is a that is being set up in Mumbai. tor, Madison World admits that for long, Madison high growth and high creativity market. There BMB was launched in 2005 in the UK by has been best known for the media duties that it is a lot of strong competition and terrific work Beattie, McGuiness and Bil Bungay. Besides handles for its clients, while he has been perceived among brands that we see here. This sets the India, the agency has offices in London and to be a media expert. The advertising business, in benchmark for even better work ahead. We have New York and handles clients such as McCain, the process, had taken a backseat. enormous respect for Indian advertising,” adds Carling, Diageo, ING, Nissan, Samsung and “We wanted to give advertising a lot more McGuiness. Virgin Money, among others. focus. For a long time now, we have been Trevor Beattie, founding partner, BMB says Madison World is a 22-year-old diversified exploring various options to beef up our crea- that he finds Indian advertising to be rather simi- communication group, with 20 units across 10 tive offering. With this initiative, we have filled lar to that in the UK - and not like advertising in specialised functions including advertising, media, an important gap in Madison World offering the US, which he thinks is more “business-like”. PR, OOH, rural, retail, entertainment, mobile, across all communication functions,” he adds. “India is one of the friendliest nations in the events and sports. BMB Madison Advertising will be led by world. We want to work with talented but nice [email protected]
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Some of India’s well-known professionals write on issues that they feel passionately about
NANDA KISHORE SETHURAMAN Lessons Revised
s Lord Krishna steered the COMMUNICATION Golden Chariot to help his horse provides direction Arjuna in the business of Tto the pack. The right set of war, so do brand managers messages provided at the right time needA to steer their brands to the right ensures that the consumer’s mind- position in the consumer’s mind. scape is navigated perfectly. Close your eyes and think of Incorrect or confusing messages Srimad Bhagavad Gita. I am sure may derail the chariot. you would recall the vivid image of Lord Krishna in the Golden Chariot, BRAND MOMENTS OF which was donated by Agni and TRUTH powered by the four horses, Saibya, his is the wildest and the most Sugriva, Meghapuspa and Balahaka. Tdifficult to control, considering Consider the constituent ele- the size and reach of this animal. ments. The chariot carrying Arjuna, Every touch point with the cus- the horses and the reins are all under tomer builds or breaks a brand. the direct influence of the charioteer, This includes the product itself, Krishna. employees, distributors, customer The charioteer’s job is to steer the service, communication or virtu- horses, so that the chariot can reach ally anything that you can think of, its destination and Arjuna can carry where the customer connects with on his business of war. $% %$ $ your brand. As a brand professional, this Though complete control may visual represents an awesome per- $&$ ' not be possible, it is important for sonification of a brand manager’s the brand manager to steer this as characteristics. And Krishna is the much as possible. Else, there will be greatest ever brand manager. SENIOR MANAGEMENT mishap here can prove to be a great hurdles along the way to your desti- Businesses, since the early ages his is the strongest horse disaster. nation in the consumer’s mind. of trade and commerce have, run on Tamongst the pack. By guiding Take Coke, for example. They The position - brand manager (or brands. And they have always relied the senior management to provide had to pull back the new Coke, any equivalent nomenclature) - is on the brand manager to steer the the right kind of resources, the brand because the brand had a particular the rein. brand to the right destination, in manager would be able to reach the positioning in the consumer’s mind The brand, as a consequence, car- order to ensure that the business can destination with consummate ease. and by trying to change it, they cre- ries the organisation, which is steered remain a going concern, as econo- Just as it is important for the ated dissonance. by the brand manager, powered by mists would call it. charioteer to be a great friend of his What Coke felt was that a slight the senior management and sup- Now, here’s the job of a brand horses, the brand manager shall do change in the offering failed to live ported by the other elements. manager - the brand (chariot) needs well by winning the confidence of up to the brand promise in the con- So, the next time someone refers to be steered through the warpath the senior management. sumer’s mind, thus triggering an to you as a brand manager, it may (the consumer’s mindscape) and agitation. be good to remember the Bhagavad brought to the correct destination OFFERING (PRODUCT AND The key responsibility of a brand Gita. (position in the consumer’s mind). PRICING) manager includes steering the prod- The brand manager has to steer t is important for the offering, uct to fit into the brand guideline. through the consumer’s mind with the Iwhich carries the brand name, to Else, you will have a runaway horse, The author is Head - Marketing, help of four key elements - the horses. live up to the brand promise. A small on which there would be no control. Bharti AXA Investment Managers.
Iodex has for long been associated ant after a hiatus just passed me by. Manoj Deb, executive creative << " # ! with pain removal. So it’s only fair If I recall right, it is a brand of yore director, BBDO India loves the film that the brand extend it to include and could have done some song and for its insight. But he has a prob- Addressing... headaches. dance to build interest among new lem with all that has been shown “On the execution front, I found consumer segments. I don’t know as causes for headache. Raising his grab it, he feels great pain in his back. the exaggeration of ‘sources of pain’ how many people today share the concerns, he says, “Things like a The main idea was: if an opportunity refreshing but I had to strain to same relationship that built it into a television or a child - either crying or is to be grabbed, apply Iodex. catch the objects shown. Also, the formidable brand many years ago,” enjoying with a toy that makes noise approach to the launch of a new vari- she adds. - make up a household and showing RELIEVED? these things as the cause of headache ccording to Sandhya Srinivasan, Simplicity has always been a key element may hurt a certain section of the Amanaging partner and chief audience.” strategy officer, Law & Kenneth, in most of Iodex’s commercials till now. [email protected]
22 afaqs! Reporter, August 16-31, 2010
" # TARUN CHAUHAN I MANAGING PARTNER I JWT << Eager for Action
A calm, composed guy, munching a Bar One, then opens the back door of a truck, into which the guy on A Simple the bike crashes. The girls gravitate towards the boy eating the chocolate. The execution is noteworthy, with Man with a splash of colours, comic-book style static images, and styled text super- imposed on the images. This ‘Use the product; get the girl’ positioning Simple Plan is usually seen in ads for deodor- ants, bikes or cars. About its use in a chocolate brand, Chauhan reasons, “This is a high-involvement category and the youth believe in being them- selves; in fact, they admire people who are always themselves. Thus, this kind of positioning works.” The new campaign for the brand FOTOCORP encourages By Ashwini Gangal Western India!” he exclaims. Chauhan spent a year in Mudra Ahmedabad. “This youngsters to be he door to Tarun Chauhan’s office is never was in 1995,” he recalls. Here, Chauhan was involved themselves. shut. And inside sits a people’s person with with the launch of Core Healthcare and worked on Tan ‘elephantine memory’. Chauhan sees his several others including Symphony Air Coolers, Cera The campaign will be primarily journey so far as a string of relationships, not a series Sanitaryware and Glycodin (an Alembic product). TV, outdoor and digital-led and will of jobs. The man, who didn’t possess a resume until Around 1997 he went back to Hyderabad to join not be continuous it will be rolled out he joined Lowe Lintas back in 2002, now harbours the Saatchi & Saatchi’s Hyderabad operation and spent in bursts. Besides TV, below-the-line responsibility of running JWT’s Mumbai outfit, in the around two years here. “At Saatchi, we launched Tata activation in colleges and point of sales capacity of managing partner and senior vice president. Cellular from scratch. This was during the transition branding is also on the cards. Hailing from a mixed cultural background of mobile telephony in India,” he smiles. (Maharashtra and Rajasthan), Chauhan grew up in In 1997, he moved to Mumbai to join JWT. Here, CAMPAIGN KAAFI HAI? Hyderabad. After studying management from Osmania he set up Thompson Connect and worked closely with he positioning doesn’t seem to University, he started working on - he remembers the the late Anil Bhatia. “I had no clue who he was when I Thave gone down too well with precise date - the 6th of May, 1991. “This was a huge came to Mumbai. After meeting him, I realised he was industry experts. Amit Akali, nation- date for me: my first day at work,” he says. God,” he exclaims. Here he worked with brands such al creative director, Grey, opines, The role of trainee at the Hyderabad as Air India, Glaxo, Johnnie Walker “The ad seemed a bit confused. They operations of a Bengaluru-based agen- and Hindustan Petroleum. say “Upari tashan kyon?” which is cy, MAA Bozell, had a dramatic start. In the early 2000s, Chauhan had somehow like the Sprite position- “I recall my meeting with the agency’s “Cricket a brief stint at Leo Burnett. “Then, ing. Then, they show the guy getting the girls. So, what are they trying to director of finance. I met him at seven Lowe Lintas happened,” he says with say? If you eat Bar One, you’ll get in the evening. At that time, there was taught me to an air of finality. Chauhan was at women? If so, it’s an extremely ‘done’ Lowe for over nine years. During no power in the office, so we met in be humble, route. Chiclets did it fabulously 10 candlelight. He said ‘I’m going to hire what he calls his ‘dream run’ at Lowe, years ago with ‘Chicklets - It works’.” you but come back tomorrow because simple he worked with brands such as Idea “Some great work has been released I don’t know what you look like!’” Cellular, VIP, Bajaj and the Tata in this category recently, including Chauhan laughs. He reminisces that and Group (Tata Tea and Tata Croma). Cadbury’s Shubh Aarambh campaign his salary at the time was `850. What was his most memora- and the Kit Kat Squirrel commercial. At MAA Bozell, Chauhan handled transparent.” ble experience at Lowe? “Working This one just doesn’t match up,” he brands such as Coromandel Fertilizers, with Balki, a walking institution!” he adds. Bakelite Hylam and Raasi Cements. answers. He joined Lowe in 2002 as Shivanand Mohanty, aka Doc, “Working in an advertising agency in those days was vice president and left the agency earlier this year as NCD, Dentsu Communications, fabulous as you got to do everything - from production, president. He remarks that one can take him out of says, “It is great to see Bar One back planning and media work to account management. My Lowe but can never take Lowe out of him. in action. Visually, the film has a lot induction into the business was superb,” he shares. Prior to 1991, Chauhan was a ‘fairly decent’ play- of energy and is striking; even the Chauhan was with MAA Bozell till 1994. Before er. “Cricket taught me to be humble, simple and graphics feel fresh.” quitting, he moved to Bengaluru for a year where transparent; it also taught me the value of team- He, however, adds that the idea he served as accounts supervisor and headed work,” he asserts. His hobbies include horse riding, could have been fresher as ‘Use the a department called the integrated services group. squash, farming (at his Karjat plantation) and reading. product; get the girl’ is a much used After quitting, Chauhan met Srinivas Balram from Chauhan is also involved with welfare work. He pro- formula for many categories. “When Mudra Ahmedabad. Ten minutes into their meet- vides technological solutions to the rural community. done well, with wit and style, this ing, Chauhan was asked the question ‘When can you On the cards is a book that will be a product of his formula works. In this Bar One exe- move to Ahmedabad?’ He grabbed the opportunity, manual typewriter. cution, though, it seems a bit forced,” he concludes. albeit clueless about the location of this strange land. “It will not be about advertising!” he signs off. “I didn’t even know Ahmedabad was somewhere in [email protected] [email protected]
24 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
“We cannot discount the learnings from the local market especially India”
In an exclusive conversation with afaqs! Reporter, MEC’s Stephen Li and T.Gangadhar discuss the performance of the agency in the Indian market, the trends and its growth plans. By Biprorshee Das
tephen Li, chief executive officer, South and Southeast Asia and Australasia, MEC Sconsiders India to be his “spiritual home”. According to Li, his visits, besides reviewing the agency’s business, are also about exchanging learn- ings from the global and Indian markets. afaqs! Reporter caught up with Li and T Gangadhar, managing director, India, MEC as they spoke about the agency’s performance in the country in the wake of recent significant business wins, trends in media planning and the benefits of being associated with GroupM and more. Excerpts from the conversation:
Q: What are the learnings you bring to India, and what are you taking back? Li: You are only as strong as your client. And we have a very interesting, eclectic yet balanced mix of clients; globally, regionally and locally. You have certain agencies that could be domi- nated by more multinational clients, and then there are agencies that are more locally focused. We, at MEC, are very fortunate that we strike a Gangadhar (left) and Li very good balance between the multinational and the local clients. That is true, whether you look at the US, the UK, Singapore or here in India. With that in mind, when it comes to multina- year-on-year reveals that India is clearly head and Li: In spite of the fact that we are the young- tional clients such as a Mercedes Benz or a Colgate shoulders above every other market in the region. est among all the GroupM agencies, or that we Palmolive, there has to be a degree of consistency Even on a global level, if you compare year-on- have had lesser presence on the ground, and that, in the way we deliver work to them. Hence, it is year, the growth rate here in India is probably only till recently, we were among the smaller of the important that we stay joined up. second or third behind some of our larger markets GroupM agencies, we have been entrusted with But when we are dealing with our local clients, in Europe and America. businesses like Reliance and Zee. like say Zee TV here in India, there will be a cer- Gangadhar: I think we have had one of the Let’s face it; clients have choices! And the fact tain way in which we function with that piece of most prolific runs this year, among all agen- that they chose MEC speaks a lot. business. We may not have such clients elsewhere. cies. It started with Zee, Mercedes Benz, and Now that we are far from being the young chal- There could also be some interesting new devel- Colgate among others. And then we won Reliance lenger in the group, now that we have grown up opments - the IPL (Indian Premier League), for Communications. significantly and are more mature; the challenge to example. IPL, in some ways, is a uniquely Indian look forward now is how we retain the beautiful institution. But the way in which MEC India Q: What does GroupM bring to the table? Is melting pot that we have, whilst having a signifi- works with our clients on IPL has really been a there a perception of MEC being an under- cant presence in the market. very strong lesson for all the MEC offices around dog in the group? Sometimes, having that size does become a the world, on how to help clients leverage an Gangadhar: I do not think we are an underdog. baggage. There are certain things that you can do opportunity beyond the usual vehicles. We are one of the lesser known compared to the when you are smaller and get away with, and there These instances help us not to discount the rest. We are also very new. Having said that, in are things you cannot. So, retaining that balance of learnings that we can get from the local market, terms of size, we would be the youngest among who we truly are as an agency, whilst now being a especially when it is a market where we have a the top six agencies today. significant player in the market, is going to be the team as strong as we do in India. We have shown rapid growth in the last two next big challenge. years. We have built our reputation on the back Gangadhar: If you ask me what MEC is all Q: Comment on the performance of MEC of fantastic ideas plus great resources. It is a lovely about, I think we recognise the changes that are India in the APAC region, as well as interna- melting pot of both. happening in the landscape much earlier. We built tionally. We have a unique identity in the market and an organisation to take care of it about two-three Li: India, at the moment, ranks only behind China within GroupM. years ago. In many ways, we are what we call a in the Asia-Pacific region, in terms of absolute We are very different culturally in terms of our ‘future-ready’ agency. size of the market. Having said that, if you look processes, our people and tools. The way we are structured is in line with the at our growth rate over the course of the last 12 In terms of what GroupM brings to the table, I changes that are happening, and we are playing a months, the new businesses that we have won think it is much leveraged. Of course, we have a lot better role in communication planning. and the incremental business we have gained from of shared services. HR is shared; training is shared. existing clients; the absolute growth in our billings That is the GroupM-MEC relationship. >>
26 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
New and notable campaigns across television, print, out-of-home and digital media TELEVISION
TATA MUTUAL FUND ZUARI CEMENT TATA SKY The concept of investments through Tata Mutual Fund’s The commercial uses an elephant to show the strength of The film promotes DTH service’s ‘Once-A-Year Subscription Systematic Investment Plan is pushed with children in focus. the product. An elephant enters a construction site past the Holiday’ where consumers can choose not to pay for the It shows young people shaking their elders out of their age oblivious guard. It steps on a trampoline tied across four service while on vacation. Aamir Khan plays a milkman and old notions of savings and drawing their attention to Tata SIP. pillars made from Zuari Cement performing a ballet in mid- insists on being paid for the entire month in spite of his air, doing flips and somersaults while the pillars stay intact. customer being away on a holiday. Agency: Quadrant Communications National Creative Director: Viren Kamdar Creative agency: RK Swamy BBDO Creative Agency: Ogilvy India Creative Group Head (Art): Bonani Karmakar Executive Creative Director: Sangeetha N Executive Creative Director: Anup Chitnis Film Director: Pervez Ahmed Film Director: Adarsh Gupta Film Director: Prasoon Pandey Production House: Ourja Films Production House: Nirvana Films Production House: Corcoise Films PRINT
THE TIMES SHOPPERS TOYOTA OF INDIA STOP The ad talks about Celebrating Ganesh The ad emulates the Toyota’s quality Chaturthi festival in front page of a leading promise stressing on Mumbai, the creative national business daily safety. It says how is for The Times of to talk about the retail the company runs India’s Utsav Moorti chain’s discount offer over 9,000 safety Sanman, a competition complete with the checks on its auto that judges the best campaign details that components including Ganpati Mandal, the look like news articles. state-of-the-art best idol and the most safety systems in Agency: Contract visited mandal in the every car. Advertising city. Regional Creative Agency: Dentsu Creative Agency: Director: Raj Nair Communications Taproot India Senior Creative Chief Creative Creative Heads: Agnello Dias and Santosh Padhi Director: Kapil Officer: Gullu Sen Copywriter: Chintan Ruparel Sawant Creative Head: Shivanand Mohanty Art: Pranav Bhide Creative Director: Madhavi Kalra Copywriter: Shantanu Chakravarty, Sangeeta Velegar Creative Supervisor (Copy): Meera Ganapathi Art Director: Samson Samuel Art Director: Ketan Mekarta OOH DIGITAL
IDBI FORTIS LIFE INSURANCE AIRCEL AMUL OIL The online ad uses two animation characters named Happy Aircel’s campaign ‘World of Possibilities in Gujarat’, Another topical campaign from Amul, this time about the and Lucky, who highlight the advantages of starting early, commenced on August 26. The ‘possibilities’ in the recent oil spill which happened in Mumbai. especially when it comes to investments. communication refer to the thousands of applications Creative Agency: daCunha Communications available to consumers with Aircel PocketApps. Creative Agency: C2W Digital Outdoor Agency: (Handled internally) Creative Agency: Dentsu Communications Exposure: Mumbai Outdoor Agency: Primesite Exposure: Gujarat
Got some great campaign that has been published recently? Upload it on afaqs! for the world to see. Visit: www.afaqs.com/advertising/creative_showcase
28 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
IMAGINE Gunning for Linearity With the launch of new properties, Imagine is eyeing the top three slots in the GEC space. By Sangeeta Tanwar
magine, in the recent past, created a lot of buzz with its reality shows, such as Rakhi Ka “These shows offer ISwayamwar and Raaz Pichhle Janam Ka. The motive behind experimenting with these reality a new premise, shows was to attract audiences by offering them characterisation differentiated content, as against the usual song- and-dance reality shows. and conflict” launched season of Fear Factor Khatron Ke Khiladi The GEC now claims that it is making an SAURABH TEWARI on Colors. Zee TV has Pavitra Rishta and Agle attempt to bring about linearity in its fiction pro- Janam Mohe Bitiya Hi Kijo. gramming with new launches. Imagine has rolled Tewari asserts the new line-up on Imagine will out two fiction shows, namely Gunahon Ka Devta and conflict. They are more realistic and relatable create a different branding in the fiction space for and Baba Aisa Varr Dhoondo. offerings. It’s a step towards achieving linearity in the channel, similar to what has been achieved by Gunahon...is being positioned to attract male our fiction and non-fiction programming.” the channel in the reality genre. audiences. The show is loosely based on the life With the new launches, Imagine is eyeing the For Gunahon..., the channel is reaching out of the UP-gangster, Shri Prakash Shukla. The top three slots in the GEC space. Tewari reasons to college students in small towns; while for second show, Baba...is a family drama, based on that breaking into the top three shows will help it Baba..., a two-phased, teaser-based campaign will the story of a young girl suffering from a disease, make substantial gains in overall GRPs. be rolled out soon. Imagine will introduce the which affects her marriage prospects. The two fiction shows are up against tough protagonist of the show to the audience through Saurabh Tewari, head, programming, Imagine competition on other GECs. Gunahon... will air at a teaser campaign. Subsequently, the identity of says, “With these two fiction shows, the channel 9 PM, followed by Baba...at 9:30 PM. The popular the girl will be revealed in the first episode of the is taking a fresh approach towards programming. shows in this time band are Bidaai and Yeh Rishta show. These shows offer a new premise, characterisation Kya Kehlata Hai on STAR Plus and the newly [email protected]
TIFFIN BOX
The recent order on music royalties by the Copyright Board has come as a huge reprieve to radio stations. The music companies are, however, not amused. By Sapna Nair
ugust 25 was a momentous day for the - the time starts when the clock’s needle is at the radio broadcasting industry in India. The hour mark) for the music that they played. Copyright Board of the Government of Since that time on, litigation against the music India, put to rest an issue that has been royalty fee started. Broadcasters such as Radio City, loomingA over the FM industry for eight years now. Radio Mirchi and Radio One went to the court. In the ruling, the Copyright Board has stated Other players such as Rajasthan Patrika, Dainik that radio players will now pay 2 per cent of their Bhaskar and Dainik Jagran joined up in 2005. The net advertisement earnings of each FM radio case passed to the Supreme Court, which directed station, from the current rate of `660 per needle the Copyright Board to look into the matter. The hour for all radio stations. story ended - the radio industry hopes - on August While this was music to the ears of the FM 25. The ruling sent the radio stations into raptures, industry, it seems to have hurt the eardrums while the music industry sulked. of music owners and left them fuming. afaqs!Reporter looks at the mood in both camps ALL FOR A SONG and finds out what the ruling has done. usic royalty is the second-biggest cost for Ma radio station at present. According to ‘RETRO’SPECTION an industry observer, Tier I FM stations end up leven years ago, when the first phase of FM paying 18-25 per cent of their revenues as royalty ERadio policy was announced, it was followed to music owners. Other big costs for a radio station “There are a lot of things in the by a flurry of bidding that led to the launch of 28 are the staff cost, constituting 20-25 per cent, Phase III policy such as multiple stations in 12 cities in 2001. Star Group, Mid-Day, premises or tower costs, which are 12 per cent and Zee Group and Times Group were some of the licence fee, which comprises four per cent of the frequency, news and current bidders. The bid was structured in such a way that station’s revenue. affairs, that can help the industry the final amount of the bid was to be paid to the Radio stations pay the royalty to the but none of us were keen because government as licence fees every year. Phonographic Performance Ltd (PPL), which of the royalty issue.” Radio players also had to pay a music royalty protects the sound recording rights of music of `660 per needle hour (for instance 7 AM-8AM, providers. The other important stakeholders in APURVA PUROHIT
34 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
the music royalty business are music owners who and music body (on a proportionate basis) till the have not signed up with the PPL (companies such government appoints a single collection agency,” as T-Series and Yash Raj). The two music com- says Anurradha Prasad, managing director, BAG panies decided to go in for separate contracts with Films and Media and president AROI (Association radio stations, as they hold a large market share. of Radio Operators India). For instance, T-Series’ rates are negotiable if they are based on bulk deals. The company insists that RIFT IN THE LUTE at least 45-50 per cent of the music played on the usic company owners, as was expected, have stations should be from T-Series if the rates are Mlabelled the order as an unfair judgment to apply. and are set to challenge it in court. “Why should I The third organisation that radio stations are base my entire business model on someone else’s supposed to pay royalty to is the IPRS (Indian ability to monetise it? What is the criterion to fix it Performing Rights Society). However, many radio at 2 per cent? The government itself is charging 4 stations do not recognise IPRS (since it protects per cent for licence fee. Why isn’t the government the rights of performing artists and radio does not not subsidising that?” asks Neeraj Kalyan, vice- have live performance) and, hence, do not pay any president, T-Series. royalty to them. The ones who do, have different He believes that internationally this would agreements but approximately pay one-fourth of “Why should I base my entire make sense as the revenues garnered by radio what they pay to the PPL. stations are high as their content variety ranges Though the official rates for royalty (fixed business model on someone else’s from music, news, and current affairs. Rajat Kakar, by the Copyright Board) range from `660-2400 ability to monetize it? What is the managing director, Universal Music India, too is (depending on whether it was paid to all three criterion to fix it at 2 per cent? The disappointed. “We didn’t mind a revenue sharing stakeholders or fewer), the norm, so far, has been concept as long as it had some parity with the rate mostly the lower point. Even this proved steep. Government itself is charging 4 per we were charging,” he states. While Tier I radio stations were able to pay up, cent for licence fee.” And what about the fact that several stations the Tier II and III stations are struggling. Bigger NEERAJ KALYAN had to shut down just because of the high costs networks such as Radio Mirchi and Radio City can of royalty? Points out Kalyan, “All these players - and do - subsidise their smaller stations. Even entered the industry with the understanding that so, around 80-90 per cent of the smaller stations’ happy with this ‘saving’ after having accumulated it is a commercial venture, didn’t they? When they revenues went as royalty fees. “The existing losses over the years. No one is willing to commit can afford a salary of `5 lakh to an RJ, then they needle-hour norm in Sangli (in Maharashtra) themselves on how they will invest this ‘saving’. don’t deserve to be subsidised in any manner.” translates to 80-90 per cent of the revenue. Sangli’s Vineet Singh Hukmani, managing director, In the hearings with the Copyright Board, revenue itself is in the range of `80 lakh-1 crore. Radio One, believes that it was high time the music owners had suggested alternatives to the How fair is it that a fixed fee be paid everywhere?” FM industry in India aligned to global norms. current structure. One of them was to increase questions Apurva Purohit, CEO, Radio City. Internationally, the royalty charged by music royalty collected from bigger stations and look Some stations like Radio Tarang in Hisar, companies is around 0-5 per cent (see table). at reducing it in the smaller stations. “We were Haryana (owned by Singhal Properties) shut down. The current ruling – expected to be in force willing to discuss. But the Copyright Board has Others dealt with the situation in different ways. till 2020 - is plagued by a few ambiguities. There passed its judgment which completely ignores the Early this year, forced by almost-zero ad revenues, is unanimous confusion over whether the ruling troubles of the music industry,” laments Kalyan. many radio stations, especially in small towns, includes all the royalty collecting bodies (PPL, switched off programming completely between IPRS and SIMCA). Some believe that this will ROGER AND OUT? midnight and 5 AM. It translated into savings of be the guideline for all royalty collection across ccording to the players in the radio industry, around `70 crore a year. But going to sleep is not a bodies (including players such as T-Series), while Athis is not only fair but also something that great option as the stations still have to incur other others say this includes only PPL. The Copyright should have happened long ago. They believe that costs like electricity and transmitter-switching off Board is expected to institute a single-point agency the absolute figure method is arbitrary since it does and starting up costs. that will collect royalty from broadcasters and not take into account factors such as, economic Down South, stations operate in a more chaotic further distribute it to other bodies. downturns or the infancy of the industry. environment. Radio stations in the South also “Royalties as proposed must be paid, irrespective They are of the belief that radio stations serve pay royalty to the South India Music Companies of whether the music companies are independent as a great promotional tool for new releases and Association (SIMCA) in addition to PPL, IPRS or represented by licensing bodies. At present, contribute to physical sales of CDs and cassettes and other individual music companies. Regional we will continue to pay separately to each agency and their digital versions (caller tunes, ring tones). radio stations end up paying close to 50 per cent of Besides, radio also popularises old songs boosting their revenues as royalty fee. “Radio provides mass sales of the music labels. reach at a low cost no other medium can offer. ELSEWHERE IN THE WORLD The new ruling has also enthused interest in With the royalty they were asking, we wouldn’t (Music royalty rates in other countries) the Phase III bidding for radio stations, mostly be able to play as much music,” says Monica UK 2-5 per cent of net broadcasting reserved for the small towns. “There are a lot of Nayyar Patnaik, joint managing director, Eastern revenue things in the Phase III policy such as multiple Media, which operates Radio Choklate in Orissa. frequency, news and current affairs, that can help Now, with the reduced cost of airing music, radio New Zealand 1.75 per cent of net broadcasting the industry but none of us were keen because of revenue stations will be able to up their music quotient. the royalty issue,” Purohit adds. Australia 0.4 per cent of gross broadcasting With Phase III, Hukmani says, the market MISSING DUET revenue will expand to 700 towns, from 250 at present. ight from the beginning, radio broadcasters “Music owners should look at the long-term gain. Canada 1.4-2.1 per cent of net advertisement Rwere keen on linking royalty fee to revenue, revenue They will have 500 new stations paying royalty,“ as is the prevalent trend in most countries abroad. he explains. The battle is far from over, with the This ruling comes as a boon. Ireland 1.3-4.7 per cent of broadcasting music owners adamant about challenging the With the 2 per cent of net advertising revenues revenue ruling.Meanwhile, for radio broadcasters it is a as music royalty fee, it is believed - by many milestone and the focus will now shift to the other Hong Kong 0.1-4 per cent of broadcasting revenue experts - that the total music royalties paid up issue - that of the extension of the licence period, every year will now reduce from `100 crore to Russia 1 per cent of broadcasting revenue from the current 10 to 15 years. ` 15 crore or so. At present, radio companies are Source: The Copyright Board [email protected]
afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010 35 IN.COM/REDIFF.COM In the Fast Lane In July, In.com got 15.4 million unique visitors, compared to 13 million on Rediff.com, globally. By Kapil Ohri he latest traffic data churned out by lated under Rediff.com. TOTAL UNIQUE VISITORS (WORLDWIDE) comScore will surprise existing percep- The traffic of numer- Ttions - that Rediff.com is bigger than ous TOI group sites 15000 In.com in terms of unique visitors worldwide. such as Timesofindia. In fact, in what is evidently an established trend, indiatimes.com and In.com has been consistently scoring higher than Economictimes. india- 10000 Rediff.com in terms of unique visitors globally. times. com are clubbed In July 2010, In.com received 15.4 million with the Indiatimes. unique visitors, which is 2 million more than com domain. ( ) Q+++, 5000 Rediff.com (13 million unique visitors), globally. Fifteen million In.com overtook Rediff.com for the first time unique visitors is a in March 2010, when it got 15.7 million unique significant number for 0 visitors, compared to 13.4 million on Rediff. any India-originating D J F M A M J J 2009 2010 com. Since then, it has remained ahead of Rediff. web destination. Will com, while the number of unique visitors landing this number affect the [Media Title] IN.COM REDIFF.COM INDIATIMES.COM on Rediff.com has gradually declined since the global ad spends by beginning of the year. Indian brand managers, Source: comScore Inc. Traffic on Rediff.com dipped from 14 million who primarily believe that unique visitors in January 2010 to 13 million in Rediff and Indiatimes have a stronghold on the Rediff and Google. Media buyers will wait and July. In.com was at 10.6 million unique users in international online audience? watch to see if this is a one off or whether In.com January this year. Prasanth Mohanachandran, co-founder, can sustain this lead.” Not only this, the comScore data even reveals AgencyDigi, says, “From now onwards, the status He adds, “In the NRI markets (especially in that In.com is bigger than another site with Indian quo of media vehicles to reach the international the US), Rediff is particularly strong because of origin: Indiatimes.com (9.4 million unique visi- audience will be challenged. The world suddenly its ‘India Abroad’ section. Media consumption is tors, worldwide, in July). feels bigger than Rediff and Indiatimes. Also, the a habit and habits cannot be changed overnight, Kedar Gavane, director, comScore (India), details of traffic on In.com are available genre- especially when the consumer is slightly older and clarifies that the total number of unique visitors wise, implying transparency for the first time.” has stayed with the brand for more than 10 years. estimated for In.com includes traffic figures of This enables advertisers to finetune or target con- So marketers will be cognizant of the change of various Web18 sites which have ‘In.com’ as part sumers more efficiently through various content guard but also vigilant. They will eventually spend of their domain name. For instance, sites such as genres. where the eyeballs are and where they get maxi- Ibnlive.in.com, Cricketnext.in.com and Tech2. However, Raj Menon, chief operating officer, mum returns.” in.com are included in this figure. Similarly, Contests2win, has a different opinion. He says, In India, Rediff.com had received more than various web pages (including Rediff Mail and “In the short term, there won’t be a major re- 10 million unique visitors while 6.5 million excluding ‘India Abroad’ section) which have jigging of plans by advertisers. In India, the ad unique visitors landed on In.com in July 2010. Rediff.com as part of their domain names are calcu- spend pie is split amongst the big three: Yahoo, [email protected]
TELECOM Consulting Group (BCG) reveals that 23 per cent of online-Indians Becoming Social access social networking platforms. THE TELECOM With increasing need to stay connected, the use of social networking on mobiles has CONNECTION been gaining prominence and telcos are making the most of it. By Yuthika Bhargava ith increasing need to stay Wconnected, the use of social networking on mobiles has been ocial networking is gradually gaining prominence, which is a good becoming the buzzword for news for both network services pro- Sinternet users not just in India viders and handsets manufacturers. but worldwide. It is becoming more For operators eyeing a piece of and more important for people to be the data market to generate higher social networking friendly, over and revenues, social networking came above being internet friendly. as a boon. Handset manufacturers, A research by comScore, a digital too, boast about the number of social market research company, suggests networking sites their devices come that the use of social media in India pre-loaded with. grew 43 per cent in one year to 33 In fact, internet usage on mobile million users in July, making the is mostly limited to accessing social country the seventh largest market networking sites. Tata Docomo for social media, after the US, China, admits that the company noticed the Germany, Russian Federation, Brazil focus of users is to use social net- and the UK. Another report by Boston >>
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Are UGC Contests Less Creative? Most advertisers are running plain vanilla user-generated-content (UGC) contests - in the name of engagement. Do advertisers and digital agencies lack the skill or intent to create interesting contests? By Kapil Ohri 2 .3-.-4- -./0-- ../ 1 - 21 . Co-founder & Director, Webitude President, Digital, Euro RSCG Creative Head, Digital, Rediffusion Y&R Business Director, Digital, GroupM SUSHIL KUMAR FOTOCORP SUSHIL KUMAR THE IMPORTANT POINT WHAT HAS TO BE EVERYONE’S PLAYING CONSIDER THE UGC- IS THAT PICTURE AND CONSIDERED IS NOT SAFE BECAUSE THE BIG VIDEO CALLED ‘A VIDEO UPLOADS OR WHETHER UGC CON- ‘O’ HASN’T HAPPENED HUNTER SHOOTS A CONTENT SUBMISSIONS TESTS ARE CREATIVE YET. IF YOU COMPARE BEAR’ FLOATED BY INVOLVING SHARING FOR THE SAKE OF SOCIAL ADVERTISING TIPP-EX, A BRAND OF AND VOTING ARE BASI- BEING CREATIVE, BUT WITH TV, THERE’S NO CORRECTING CALLY PROCESSES THAT WHETHER THEY ARE UNIQUELY INDIAN IDIOM. FLUID. are used in any UGC activ- effective for the brand. Till that happens, it’ll It shows a hunter who is Many marketers and digital surprised to see a bear appear- ity execution. They are just a agencies are guilty of mistaking be the tried-and-tested. ing at his camp. As he gets ready means to an end and not the the medium as the idea. They feel Fortunately, the online to shoot, the video pauses and end itself. that ‘YouTube is an idea’. It isn’t audience is jaded with the ask users to select if he should UGC contests involving - it’s just a means to an end. If tried-and-tested, and is des- shoot it or not. The hunter picks everyone includes YouTube in the up a can of Tipp-ex, blanks out uploads or voting are popular interaction plan, it is the idea that perate for the strange and the word ‘Shoots’ and asks the with advertisers, consumers will make one brand’s message new. And I can see that hap- viewer to put in a word to choose and social media agencies as stand out from the other. pening, though in small little the ending. they are easy to execute and The problem occurs when islands like the Pink Chaddi I am sure this video campaign marketers and their digital agen- is a result of deeper coordination help brands to build recogni- cy partners mistake the Upload, campaign. of will and skill. In India, adver- tion and visibility faster. share, video, comment tools and I feel sheer numbers - can tisers are using tried and tested In case of UGC, a brand related apps to be their big idea. only happen on mobile. models only to play safe. It is a might need to go the extra These are common tools that will Unless the stakeholders in result of a lack of "will and skill", apply to all interactivity. What but both can complement each mile to create an environment turns the interactive from mere digitally-driven agencies see other in driving innovative ideas. to facilitate users’ creativity by action to real engagement and the value of creative and get A client might drive his digital or providing examples, reference involvement is the quality of the out of lip-service mode, I social media agency up the wall content or simple, do-it-your- idea backing is. don’t see much changing. to deliver a path-breaking UGC Start with an idea that execution while the skill of an self tools for them to exercise addresses a real consumer need The great thing is there’s agency can motivate the adver- their creativity. Therefore, or problem, wrap your brand a bunch of kids out there tiser to create will. it is not the lack of skill or around it appropriately and you who are furiously working intention, but rather the ‘nas- may well have a successful cam- on mobile apps for overseas paign or contest. cent’ nature of the medium clients. They will drive the that is resulting in low-on- change and Indian advertisers creativity programmes. will sit up and take notice.
40 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
SPECIAL INVESTMENT REGIONS GUJARAT THE GREENER PASTURES
Every year, the state tops the list of The top three states having the maximum people getting jobs through employment number of employment exchanges are Uttar With labour- exchanges. A peek into what makes that Pradesh (90) followed by Kerala (89) and intensive industries possible. West Bengal (75). like diamond polishing, “Number of employment exchanges in or the last few years consecutively, Gujarat are nowhere close to the top three textile, petrochemical Gujarat has topped the list of states states having the maximum numbers of and shipping Fproviding job placements through employment exchanges. Neither do we have thriving, there’s no employment exchanges, according to the good manpower in our exchanges,” said A. data of Ministry of Labour and Employment. Malwade, Deputy Director (Employment), looking back for the The state has been recording this feat due to Directorate of Employment and Training, coastal state. the unique approach it uses. Gandhinagar. Irrespective of the number of employment Highlighting what the state does differ- Summits since last four years. The last exchanges it has, Gujarat has been employ- ently that helps it top the charts of most four summits have been commercially ing the maximum number of people every employment friendly states, Malwade cited successful and have attracted investment year. the following: proposals of over $385 billion. The Vibrant In the last three years – from 2007 to Job Fairs – Gujarat’s state employment Gujarat Summits are attended by leading 2009 – the state managed to place 1,78,300; agencies conduct around 450 to 600 global industrialists, business people and 2,17,700 and 1,53,500 workers respective- industrial job fairs throughout the year. a galaxy of international policy makers, ly, through employment exchanges. Out of Job fairs introduce the people to the idea business and political delegations. The the total 8.29 lakh jobs offered across 35 of registering themselves with the employ- summit hosts extensive B2B interactions, states and union territories in India, Gujarat ment exchanges to get relevant jobs. mega exhibition, sectoral seminars and accounted for the lion’s share of 66.2 per Investment Summits – The state govern- conventions and will provide a friendly cent that is 54.95 lakh jobs. ment has been organising Vibrant Gujarat ambience to the business community. Unique approach – The Directorate of Employment and Training, Gujarat fol- lows a unique approach, not followed in other states. While in other states, peo- ple looking for employment opportunities are required to register with the employ- ment exchanges, in Gujarat employment exchanges approach various industries and employers regularly to create a data- base of vacancies. “It’s a regular process, wherein employ- ment inspectors visit district industry centers, do street surveys, issue press notes and write to probable employees,” Malwade said. Other facilities – The state government provides additional facilities like holding training classes for Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribes and women work- PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY: IMAGESBAZAAR.COM
42 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
ers. Free state transport bus passes are in providing crucial manpower LABOUR SURPLUS issued for registered candidates to attend required for these industries. UNEMPLOYMENT the job fairs in their respective districts. The Directorate of West Bengal 6396900 “30 per cent of the seats in state govern- Employment and Training, Tamil Nadu 5565000 ment and public sector undertakings are Gujarat has been in the forefront Kerala 4275500 reserved for women candidates. To facilitate of implementing various skill- Maharashtra 3014300 their employability, female candidates get an building programmes aiming to Uttar Pradesh 2018000 - help people get jobs. According Madhya Pradesh 1946100 to the directorate’s website, cur- Andhra Pradesh 1904700 According to the Directorate General of rently there are 185 Industrial Haryana 945800 Orissa 917600 Employment and Training, the placement to Training Institutes (ITIs) and 41 Gujarat 890500 submission ratio among major states was employment exchanges func- Note: Above figures refer to no. of unemployed registered with state employment exchanges highest in Haryana (20.8 per cent) followed tioning in the state. by Gujarat (19.7 per cent). Over 5,500 people work- “Most of the people in Gujarat are either ing under the directorate are PLACEMENT RECORD self-employed or are business people, lesser imparting training to around STATES 2007 2008 2009 number of workers turn towards public sec- 50,540 people annually and Gujarat 1,78,300 2,17,700 1,53,500 tor jobs. But that does not negate the fact are assisting lakhs of people Maharashtra 8,200 10,800 23,900 get jobs through employment Tamil Nadu 23,800 22,300 16,400 in getting the skilled and unskilled workers exchanges. placed,” said Palash Patel, a recruitment In December 2005, the Kerala 11,000 16,600 14,200 consultant based in Ahmedabad. Directorate of Employment and Uttar Pradesh 3,300 1,600 6,400 Gujarat is fast becoming a vibrant state Training of Gujarat became the Source: Ministry of Labour and Employment with rapid industrialisation and economic growth. Progressive governance, people state to obtain the prestigious ISO 9001:2000 Till May 31, 2010 West Bengal had nearly with entrepreneurial skills and impressive ! - 64 lakh people registered as labour surplus, infrastructure facilities like good road net- ment in the systems, processes, structures " M work, uninterrupted power supply and good and management of the organisation. of unemployment – was about 43 lakhs. telecommunications systems have made the The employment exchanges have been Tamil Nadu came second with over 55 region one of the favourites with investors. important and useful agencies, but now lakh unemployed people. Across India, the In Gujarat, over the last three years, there private enterprises have replaced the public total number of job seekers registered with have been huge investments in various sec- sector as the favoured employer. the employment exchanges was around 3.8 crore. While in other states, people looking for employment What works in favour of Gujarat is that it is a lucrative investment region. With labour- opportunities are required to register with the intensive industries like diamond polishing, employment exchanges, in Gujarat employment textile, petrochemical and shipping thriving exchanges approach various industries and employers in the state, there’s no looking back for the coastal state. regularly to create a database of vacancies. tors including petrochemicals, ports, energy, Some feel that the employment exchanges pharmaceuticals, information technology have lost their sheen in the post liberalisation and other upcoming sectors. phase. These government agencies how- More than 50 Special Economic Zones ever, still remain an important mechanism are coming up at various locations in Gujarat, for lower-category government jobs. further accelerating economic and industrial Since last three years, all the states prospects. and union territories have large number The recent growth of industrial clusters in of people registered with the employment engineering, textiles, agricultural and food exchanges with different vocational capabili- processing, mineral processing and chemi- ties. Though, the left-ruled states like West cals have greatly enhanced the employment Bengal and Kerala have high number of opportunities in Gujarat. In this background, workers registered, their placement records industrial training is going to play a vital role have not been impressive.
afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010 43 MAHUAA MEDIA What’s the News? Mahuaa Khobor is the ninth Bengali news channel to debut in West Bengal. By Sangeeta Tanwar
ahuaa Media has rolled out Amitava Sinha, executive vice- its Bengali news channel, president and managing partner, MMahuaa Khobor, in West Rediffusion Y&R, says, “The Bengal on August 30. campaign has positioned Mahuaa The news channel follows the Khobor as a news channel that will Bengali GEC, called Mahuaa Bangla, cater to the needs of opinionated launched by Mahuaa Media in Bengalis. The entire campaign, July 2010. The group also owns a with nine creatives, makes use of Bhojpuri GEC called Mahuaa TV. the standard Bengali colloquial The news channel has been expression: Ki khobor?’ which lit- launched on the premise of Ki erally means: What’s the news?” Khobor? (What’s the News). The The creative campaign depicts launch campaign for the channel has various stereotypes, touching upon been conceptualised and executed by subjects such as global warming, the Rediffusion Y&R. Shashi Tharoor-Sunanda Pushkar The launch of Mahuaa Bangla marriage and the Commonwealth takes the total number of Bengali Games. Each of these situations sees news channels in the state to nine. a retort from conscientious Bengalis The existing news channels in the belonging to different age groups, market include STAR Ananda, including a young girl and an old Kolkata TV, News Time, 24 woman. Ghanta TV, R Plus, Ne Bangla and The market leader in the Bengali news The launch campaign for the Channel 10. channel has extensively used outdoor As per the TAM data, C&S 15+ space is 24 Ghanta TV, followed by STAR and print media. Leading Bengali (January-July, 2010), the market dailies carried the creatives, besides leader in Bengali news space is 24 Ananda and Kolkata TV. English publications such as The Ghanta TV, with a market share of Telegraph, The Times of India and 40.9 per cent, followed by the No. 2 player STAR the No. 3 player, Kolkata TV, with a market share Hindustan Times among others. Ananda, with a market share of 37.3 per cent; and of 16.8 per cent. [email protected]
" #5 << have. The commercial opportunities believes, “It is about doing things brand presence and build a follower- that social digital media presents are that we normally don’t do from a base, that will keep coming back. Becoming Social huge compared to the traditional marketing perspective. Digital space Kontu adds, “We are not looking ways, especially with most compa- is all about keeping a dialogue open to convert everybody into a Sony working sites. Hence, they launched nies targeting the youth. with the target audience.” Ericsson user; it is more about hav- the pay per website tariff plan. Rithesh Ghoshal, head, market- Ghoshal agrees that the digital ing talkability for the brand.” ing communications, Tata Docomo, space also helps in two way engage- An Idea Cellular spokesperson TWIST IN THE TALE says, “We are by design a youth ment with consumers, which is says, “We have done many consumer ocial networking was always oriented brand and being on the important for any brand. engagement activities on Facebook Sattractive to telcos, and now with internet and interacting with them An Aircel executive says, “The and have received a good response Facebook and Twitter becoming a sends a strong vibe - that we under- main aim is to engage, educate and from the users. Within a short span rage of sorts, this space is becoming stand you and we are one of you. inform consumers about our prod- of time, we have over 94,000 fans on a new advertising frontier for the This is not the case with TVCs.” ucts. From time to time, we hold the Idea network.” telecom industry. Obviously then, networking contests on products to educate the The spokesperson adds, “Social Vodafone, Airtel, Tata Docomo, media has been beneficial for Idea in Virgin, BlackBerry, Nokia, Sony understanding and listening to our Ericsson, name the brand and it has Operators and handset manufacturers tap consumers, and the overall digital a presence on almost all the popular social media to build brand-loyalty and community, which largely compris- social networking platforms. es of the youth. And in building D Shivakumar, MD, Nokia India, interact with the user. effective brand activations and creat- says, “No company can ignore the ing a consumer connect.” digital medium in today’s world. It is sites such as Facebook, Twitter, customer and let them experience There is no denying the fact that important to engage the customer.” YouTube, LinkedIn and others help it. This is a two way communication the social medium is of immense Lenny Musatov, CMO, MTS, companies build a brand, but opera- between consumer and the brand.” importance for everybody who wants says, “Digital marketing cannot be tors and handset manufacturers tap Sony Ericsson believes that it is to maintain contact with the con- ignored. It is the best way to intro- social media to build loyalty for their about getting real feedback from real sumer. It offers marketers endless duce products to the audience.” brands and engage and interact with users regarding what they like and possibilities to promote the product Companies relying solely on tra- the user. what they dislike about the product. and also interact with the consumer. ditional means to reach consumers Anurag Kontu, head of channel The feedback in turn leads to prod- And, telcos seem to be making the are underestimating the impact that marketing, Asia Pacific, and head uct improvement. most of it. the shift to digital media is going to of marketing, India, Sony Ericsson, Another objective is to create a [email protected]
44 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
NEROLAC PAINTS paints, which would enhance the in-home envi- ronment. The advanced products launched by the company includes Nerolac Impressions Eco-clean and Nerolac Excel Total with heat guard. Its entire Following On range of water based products is also low VOC. HM Bharuka, managing director, Kansai Nerolac Paints, says, “We have improved our Shah Rukh Khan is the new brand endorser for Nerolac Paints. He will be product offering to match environment safety. promoting the brand’s eco-friendly decorative paint solutions. News Bureau We felt the need for an ambassador, namely Khan, who reflects this and who could help us effectively t’s been a while now since the ‘Badshah of communicate this to our consumers.” Bollywood’, as Shah Rukh Khan is called, Apart from Bachchan, other film stars who Ibegan following in the footsteps of superstar have endorsed Nerolac products in the past include Amitabh Bachchan. Consider this: SRK starred Mohanlal. Last year, Nerolac Impressions had in the remake of Big B’s iconic movie, Don, in roped in Irrfan Khan and Konkona Sen Sharma as the lead role played by Bachchan in the original. endorsers for some of its variants. SRK also played host in the third season of ‘Kaun Anuj Jain, vice-president, marketing and sales, Banega Crorepati’, the game show hitherto hosted (Decorative), Kansai Nerolac Paints, comments by Bachchan. Khan also went on to endorse several on the marketing initiatives, “Khan enjoys mass brands earlier endorsed by Big B. Navratna Oil appeal. Besides featuring in our new creatives, he being a case in point. will front a series of strategic marketing initiatives Now, Khan has been signed on to endorse for the company.” Nerolac Paints. Interestingly, Big B endorsed the Kansai Nerolac Paints has been manufacturing brand for a short while a few years ago, when festive season, which will see him highlighting the paint for over 90 years, and claims to be among Nerolac was rebranded. In the TVC, Bachchan company’s eco-friendly decorative paint solutions. the top players in the industrial segment, having a played a messiah of sorts for the brand, as a dow- Kansai Nerolac, in the recent past, has increas- turnover of Rs 1,900 crore. The company manu- dy-looking home was transformed with vibrant ingly focused on safer, eco-friendly paints. It factures products such as architectural coatings for paints at the twist of his fingers. claims to use new technology to produce low homes, offices, hospitals and hotels. Khan’s appointment comes just ahead of the VOC (Volatile Organic Compound), lead-free [email protected]
<< " # most prolific agencies that have brought brands and the property together. We cannot... “To affect a Culture is something that is difficult to articulate. You know it is there, but Q: How do you think you stand out change in con- you cannot exactly say what it is. There within the group and in the indus- is a certain ‘MECness’ that is there. try? What is unique about MEC? sumer purchase That is what makes us unique. Li: Our strategic approach towards clients. MEC, globally and in India, pattern and Q: Going beyond the conventions, was one of the first to understand the who sets the benchmark? Is it the core implication of being a true 21st- behaviour, you client pushing the agency or does century media agency, in the sense of the agency show the way? the understanding that we have, and have to engage Li: I think it is a combination of both. how we continue to develop our com- them in a At the end of the day, to use a cliché, munication expertise beyond simply it does take two hands to clap. Clients media planning and buying. conversation.” are getting more sophisticated and If you look at the history of MEC, demanding. However, when we talk we first developed this whole ethos of about pushing the envelope, sometimes active engagement. To affect a change ‘airy-fairy’, I believe that we do have quite a it is not because clients are demanding. in consumer behaviour, you have to engage them unique culture at MEC. I think the way we treat Let’s face it; we still do live in a real, tangible in a conversation. That was something MEC was each other as people is very important. We have media world in many ways, and the client too is in practising a long time before anybody else. a culture, in which if you had to ask myself or a very tangible business world. Every dollar they This is why we were among the first agencies in our global CEO or any of our colleagues that is spend needs to be justified. At the end of the day, it India and other markets to embed special services. MEC a good place to work for; I think you would is just what a lot of traditional media still gives you. So, when you look out there, you are not just get a uniform answer. We do have an enormous In order to get the right kind of impact and looking at media planners and media buyers. You amount of respect for our people. It could be a the right kind of connection with the consumer, are looking at communication experts in sponsor- cliché, but we do function as a family. sometimes it is about looking beyond the obvious. ships; you are looking at interaction and digital All of this translates for our clients as well. But we would never do that without being in con- specialists; you are looking at content specialists. When they get a combination of challenging and sultation with our clients. It is about walking with That is something that is very much in our interesting thinking, combined with the culture them down that path together. It is about agencies DNA - we always try to provide the best 360-degree and ethos that is there, clients respond to that. and clients having a common understanding of solutions to clients. That is why our client attrition around the world their objectives; and a common understanding of Sometimes, clients say that here is the budget is incredibly low. what the broader parameters are of what should and what could be done best with it on TV and Gangadhar: The way we approach problems and and should not be done. press. The easy answer would be to go back with a opportunities and the way we craft our commu- Clients could come to agencies and say that the media plan that satisfies that request. But then, we nication strategy, we are not about media buying same things are being done through the year, and believe that we can work harder for them. Even if and planning anymore. We are playing a much it is time that something different is attempted. it means that we have to sometimes take them out larger game. We are not about the numbers. We Our answer to that is always ‘yes’. There is always of their comfort zones, we are ready to do so. are really about the story behind the numbers. For a different approach to the same problem. Second, and although it might sound a bit example, when it comes to IPL, we are one of the [email protected]
46 afaqs! Reporter, September 16-30, 2010
SAB TV Getting it Straight The channel has to broadbase its offerings to cater to varying tastes of a majority of the TV viewing audience. By Sangeeta Tanwar
AB TV, the family comedy entertainment channel, had reasons to cheer as in Week 32, “The way forward Sits show, Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah, for the channel Plus and Bairi Piya on made it to the Top 10 most watched shows on Colors; Yahaan Mein Ghar Ghar Kheli on GECs - with a TVR of 4.3. is to build on the Zee TV and Jyoti on Imagine. None of the other The show, placed No. 8 amongst the Top 10 success of this shows in the same slot have yet made it to the Top shows on GECs in Week 32, also saw SAB TV 10 shows on GECs. moving from 89 GRPs to 119 GRPs in the same show.” Comparing the success of Taarak Mehta Ka week. The show continued its successful run in BHAVNA JHA Ooltah Chashmah with other shows on more Week 34 as well by garnering a record TVR of popular and widely watched channels including 5.04. STAR Plus and Colors, Ray observes, “When it Launched in July 2008, the show, an adaptation “It means that con- comes to reach, SAB TV’s will be lower than, say, of the Gujarati book by the same name penned by tent is the king and a STAR Plus or Colors. The higher TVR enjoyed author Taarak Mehta, has completed 431 episodes by Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah means that so far. good ratings are the show is watched more intently by viewers Commenting on the success of the show and channel-platform as compared to other offerings in the same time its importance for SAB TV, Amit Ray, president band. Thus, great content on SAB TV has trans- and chief operating officer, Lintas Media Group, independent.” lated into stickiness for the channel.” says, “The popularity of the sitcom establishes AMIT RAY In fact, as per the industry experts, this sticki- that good content and the power of cross pro- ness has enabled SAB TV to fetch a premium motion on network channels translates into sure independent.” for its leading show. A 10-second ad spot on the shot success. It means that content is ultimately The show, airing at 8:30 PM on weekdays, the king and good ratings are channel-platform competes with shows such as Behenein on STAR 6 >>
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