Escolar Documentos
Profissional Documentos
Cultura Documentos
APRIL 11
MARKETING MAGAZINE OF IIM SHILLONG VOL 2, ISSUE 12
COVER STORY
One campaign that has caught my eye during the IPL has
been that of Cadbury’s rejuvenated “Kuch Meetha ho
Jaaye” one. It is a very smart move by Cadbury which is THE MARKATHON TEAM
trying to position Dairy Milk as a post mean dessert snack
which might reap rich dividends. This moves away from EDITOR
the normal positioning as a chocolate for special
Jitesh Pradeep Patel
occasions and festivals.
Markathon has always strived to bring you the best SUB EDITORS
analysis and content related to the domain of marketing.
Gaurav Ralhan
In continuation with this singular objective, Markathon is
proud to announce that we are starting a brand new Kaustubh Rawool
feature from this edition. We have Mr. Martin Lindstrom, Rahul Mantri
Bestselling author and premier Brand Consultant, giving Ritika Nagar
us his wonderful insights about Brands and buying Sria Majumdar
behaviour of consumers. In this month’s edition, we
feature his thought provoking article, Smash Your Brand,
which talks about how a brand’s logos should be designed CREATIVE DESIGNERS
to maintain its identity even when smashed into pieces. Yashwanth Reddy Mandipati
We are bringing this feature as syndication in association Sana Parvez Akhtar
with The Martin Lindstrom Company Ltd. Markathon
thanks them for giving us access to the wonderful article
base.
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markathon | april 2011
CONTENTS
FEATURED ARTICLES
STRATEGIC ANALYSIS
Facebook: An Imminent Threat to Traditional Cinema Halls?
DR. PREETI KRISHNAN |IBS BANGALORE
4
PERSPECTIVE
Social Media Marketing: A new dawn in Marketing Revolution
MANSI GUPTA | DELHI SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS
7
SPECIAL
MARTIN LINDSTROM, AUTHOR OF BUYOLOGY AND BRAND SENSE 10
COVER STORY
BRAND INDIA
SANA AKHTAR |SRIA MAJUMDAR|RAHUL MANTRI| IIM S 14
VARTALAAP
VIVEK MEHRA
MD & CEO, SAGE, SOUTH ASIA 18
WAR ZONE
EYE 2 EYE
Amul in increasingly looking beyond Gujarat for procuring its Milk needs. Do you think this
will add to their huge success story or is it taking a wrong step moving out of its core zone?
21
ANEESH DUBEY|IIT DELHI, NEHA GARG| IIM S
22
SILENT VOICE
The Launch of Minute Maid 100% Juice by Coca Cola after success in Minute Maid Nimbu
Fresh and Pulpy Orange
SPECIALS
ADDICTED
GAURAV RALHAN
23
24
RADICAL THOUGHTS
JITESH PRADEEP PATEL
UPDATES
KAUSTUBH
25
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strategic analysis markathon | april 2011
Did you hear about Warner Brothers’ decision to offer garner Rs. 108.9 billion, overseas theatres Rs. 14 billion,
few of their movies on Facebook? No, not just a few home videos Rs. 11.3 billion, and cable and satellite
clips/teasers from their movies – we are discussing rights Rs. 13 billion. Of these four, clearly, domestic box
streaming of full-length motion films! We are certainly office is the biggest earner for the film industry.
living in exciting times – the world’s biggest social However, in terms of the CAGR, home videos segment
networking site preparing to air movies! is predicted to grow the most (25% CAGR 2009-13)
followed by collections from international theatres
So, Facebook is geared up to serve as a distribution (12.5% CAGR 2009-13). A recent analysis by KPMG too
channel for movies using a rental revenue model. has also confirmed this by revealing that the Indian film
Though this process will initially witness just a few industry has witnessed positive changes in terms of an
movies being aired, it can be expected that, over time, increase in the availability of organized funding, growth
the economies garnered by using this channel would in the number of multiplex screens, and
woo many other film producers and distributors as favor in the international markets
well. Are we, then, standing at the threshold of the translating to good overseas box office
beginning of the end of the collections.
traditional cinema halls as we
know them today? While these four channels of
exhibiting movies have brought
Facebook as a Formidable in growth for the industry (~ 11%
Marketing Channel per annum), these have also
experienced problems in terms of
Forrester Research has not-so-infrequent producer-
estimated that $ 716 million distributor-exhibitor conflicts
would be spent on social media over revenue sharing. Such
in 2011 which would grow to $ 3.1 billion in 2014. At conflicts result in delays, extra costs,
that juncture, social media is predicted to be a bigger and loss for the industry. Therefore, when Facebook
marketing channel than both email and mobile. And steps forward to offer lower costs of distribution and
since Facebook is the biggest and most popular (consequently) better revenues for producers, the
amongst social networking sites (after all, if Facebook industry would go through a certain degree of
were a country, with over 600 million users, it would be disintermediation causing the primary distribution
the third most populous one after China and India!), all channel for movies to take a beating.
traditional channels of distribution would perhaps need
to start preparing their survival strategies. Figure 1 below highlights the traditional film
distribution model as well as the non-traditional
Facebook’s Impact on the Film Distribution Model mediator ‘Facebook’. As can be seen, by circumventing
the channels involving film distributors and exhibitors,
Movies are primarily channelized to viewers through Facebook can lead to a drastic change in the way films
domestic theatres, overseas theatres, home videos, and are distributed, especially if producers make a switch to
cable and satellite rights. For instance, industry such online sites.
estimates and Price Waterhouse Cooper analyses have
forecasted (for 2011) India’s domestic theatres to
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strategic analysis markathon | april 2011
Film Distributors
Film Exhibitors
Film Viewers
Indians’ Growing Demand for Movies market for movies viewing and reviewing to be met and
to constantly grow.
The Indian film industry is one of the largest in the
world. Every year, it releases over 1,000 movies and Four Issues to Contend With
attracts over 3 billion movie goers to the theatres
(regardless of language of the movies). This indicates So, we see that the film industry is growing, social
that we Indians not only enjoy and love movies but also media marketing channels are becoming main-stream,
demand them, regardless of which ‘wood’ (Holly, Bolly, there is growing demand for movies, Facebook is the
etc.) these originate from. 3rd largest country in terms of users, etc. Nevertheless,
ultimately, it is the ‘content’ of a movie that will pull
To address the ever-present demand, the number of audiences to the theatres or encourage them to
multiplex screens in India has definitely increased over buy/rent a home video or watch on cable/satellite TV.
the few years. In 2005, it was reported that India had Therefore, one issue – a critical one – to contend with is
about 340 screens, and by 2010 this has shot up to that even Facebook cannot help a poorly-crafted movie.
1,000. When the content of a movie is weak or uninteresting,
viewers won’t patronize it.
However, the majority of us still regularly watch movies
on VCDs or DVDs. The Juxt Indian Urbanites 2009 Study Another issue is that movies have other substitutes
reported that 59% of SEC ‘A’ and SEC ‘B’, 65% of SEC ‘C’, during certain seasons. For instance in India, during the
68% of SEC ‘D’, and a whopping 85% of SEC ‘E’ regularly Cricket World Cup, IPL, etc. movie ticket or home video
watch movies on VCDs/DVDs (of course, the report sales are found to go through a slump. Similarly, during
does not mention if these are original copies or pirated the FIFA World Cup or Olympics or other similar widely
ones!). The same study also found that close to 60% of viewed shows, the film industry is hit. Using Facebook
respondents (SEC ‘A’ to SEC ‘D’) listed cinemas/films as the exhibitor does not guarantee alleviation from the
amongst their top 5 hobbies and interests. seasonal slumps.
The growth in the number of screens as well as the Studies indicate that piracy is a Rs. 20 billion market in
home videos segment will enable the demand of the India alone and its share of the home video market is
only increasing. Online watching of movies through
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strategic analysis markathon | april 2011
In Conclusion
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perspective markathon | april 2011
In eight months of its grand opening at Gurgaon, Internet, through public portals. But, this is only one of
Kingdom of Dreams, a unique cultural hotspot in India, the many facets of it!
has garnered a popularity that only a few would have
thought of. A close look at its Facebook page and the Another subset of Social Media Marketing is the
fan numbers bear testimony to the fact. Over 130,000 concept of Crowd Sourcing, which revolves around
fans discussing their experiences at the cultural close consumer engagement, taking inputs from those
galleries, making others go gung-ho about visiting the who are to be targeted. This is perhaps what Unilever
place. wanted when it decided to source consumer generated
advertising content in April, last year and decided to
A similar assessment of Facebook page of Pizza Hut with give away 70,000 GBP in prizes. Same is the case with
over 850,000 fans provides new food for thought. Starbucks with over 20,000,000 fans at
Latest World Cup Campaigns, and posts flooded with Facebook, taking public polls and ideas
patrons going gaga over the new and in the process retaining a large
items on the menu, provide a pool of loyalists.
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perspective markathon | april 2011
market arena, roaring to be captured and tamed. So, Generally, it acts like a complement to garner as many
what are the new rules of the Game? Is it a new kind of eyeballs as possible.
consumer involvement model that is based on the
concept of the loyalty loop? Is it the one that draws Now, the question arises that how Social Media
strength from the concept of Buy-enjoy-advocate and Marketing converts these eyeballs to potential
bond? So, are we not looking at a concept which starts customers for the businesses? It also leads one to think
right from the time the consumer buys the product and that is it not too dangerous a thing, considering it leaves
keeps them coming back? Well, the answer to all these the business open to criticism and negative publicity?
questions is an outright YES! Well, Social Media Marketing can be considered as a
double edged sword, a tool that opens myriad of
These are essentially the stages in the Model of Social opportunities to businesses, but may also present
Media Marketing. Well, now the question arises that unanticipated events in store, that may go off the track.
how well this model is able to justify the growing needs So, it is up to the marketer how to carefully cut through
of businesses to go online, where their target audience the competition, to make himself heard! And not just to
is waiting for them to open the doors and embrace the let the products speak, but also to let the customers be
buzz! Does it not hinting towards the effectiveness of heard. This is what ensures the retaining of the pool of
Social Media Marketing? Well, Yes! the loyalists.
Social Media Marketing is generally not taken up by the So, how to ensure that an online marketing campaign
companies as a Standalone Branding Strategy. Often, it does not come under the hammer, and thus, protecting
is undertaken as a Complementary medium to the the brand from negative publicity? One way is to
traditional push marketing approach and advertising, understand why it might be so. Probably, the situation
with intent to catch the customers once they log off might not just be that grave, and might be warded off
from the traditional media like the TV or the print with a little interference. For instance, have a look at a
media advertisements. To put it simply, the link to hypothetical situation at the social media campaign of a
social media in a business’ traditional advertisement is a fast food chain:
way of saying, “See you there”! So, it is right to say that
the job of Social Media Marketing starts from where the Campaign says, “Time to savor sugary delights with our
traditional marketing ends, and not only this, it sews new exciting range of strawberry mousse topped with
the loose ends left in the traditional campaign. soft coconut gratings” Following are the comments
posted by users:
This is justified with a wholesome experience that we
get when we select the phone model that we wish to A: Yummy! I have tasted it and found it really good.
purchase, and the Company website plays the role of a
nearby retail store. Merely advertising the product on B: I second.
TV and print media does not ensure many eye balls
these days. And that is why, companies take special C: Waste of money! The coconut gratings with
care to meet their target audience online, where there strawberry make a poor combination. On top of that,
is no dearth of creativity that can be put to work. They slow service spoiled my date.
know that the consumer these days spend more time
D: I found it terribly good.
watching stuff online than remaining glued to their
television screens. According to a study, an average
E: I second C.
internet user spends 13 hours a week online, excluding
e-mails. However, this does not necessarily indicate that
…suppose a hoard of customers now try to bring on
Social Media Marketing is the only effective medium.
board the criticism, and the product is losing the sheen.
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perspective markathon | april 2011
In such a situation, a little interference from the brand than a standalone strategy, which is to shine in the
saying, “We apologize for the unpleasant experience times to come.
that you might have had with our service. Did you try
our new range of dark chocolate mousse? Probably, you The brand’s strategy has moved on from being
might like it better than the strawberry one”. Such a production and selling oriented to being consumer
response may re-instill confidence in the patrons, and oriented. Bottled Coke improved distribution and better
they feel that they are being heard! bottle design improved convenience and appeal–
brought “affordability, availability and acceptability”.
So, the point that is to be considered is that some But Coke figured an improvement in the same might
times, the customers are only looking for a platform to appeal to consumers more - contoured bottle.
be heard, and vent off their frustration that might come
up with an occasional bad experience with the brand or The strategy now has shifted its focus to ‘3Ps’-
service! So, instead of reacting immediately, it might be preference, pervasive penetration and price-related
advisable to wait and watch, for it may happen that the value. It uses ads and merchandise to build emotional
onset of a storm may be abated by a pleasant cool attachment and has successfully developed an affinity
breeze of positive poll. However, a timely interference over a period of time. Coke welcomed astronauts to
by the monitoring team shall be made in order to make ‘the home of Coca-Cola’. Such campaigns not only
the customers feel that they are heard and they matter! placed Coke in the ‘winning moment’ but also
emphasized the brands ‘belonging’.
Now, let us analyze the Social Media Marketing Model
with respect to Indian Market to explore the scope of it It achieved brand association by playing on the interests
in the times to come. India ranks 4 in the world in terms of its consumers– sports, entertainment and music–
of number of Internet users, after China, United States hence reinforcing the association with celebration and
and Japan. India has over 6% of total world’s population happiness. The latest campaign on Facebook, the
of internet users, and it is only expected to grow, as per ‘Expedition 206’ has three brand ambassadors trotting
Internet World Stats. China has 21.4%, followed by the globe on a mission to find out ‘what makes people
United States (12.2%) which is followed by Japan (5%). happy’. With such promotional campaigns it attempts
This shows that there is a huge scope of Social Media to create a brand essence of optimism and
Market in Indian Market. And the growing number of independence. The channels of communication may
brands showing successful social media presence bears have changed from a simple billboard or signage to
a testimony to this fact. Often businesses try more digital media - the message and the trademark remain
innovative customer engagement activities online, as the same.
witnessed by the New ICC World Cup 2011 Campaign
adopted by Pizza Hut at facebook, gauging the craze for But Coke realized its biggest strength only after it
cricket in India. Another success story is of Pantaloons committed its biggest mistake. Coca-Cola developed
Group with over 520,000 fans at facebook, giving daily hybrid brand architecture, the driver brands and sub-
updates on their new collections and receiving feedback brands, along with Pepsi, ate into Coke’s market. To
from the patrons. And same can be observed in make it worse, Pepsi launched a series of youth
services, with institutions like Career Launcher coming campaigns followed by a Pepsi challenge which proved
up with GD/PI tips, B-school updates and quizzes to Pepsi to have a preferred taste. Coke panicked. After an
keep the MBA aspirants hooked. intense market research it withdrew ‘Coke’ and
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Special markathon
markathon
|february
|april 2011
Martin Lindstrom
Author of Buyology and Brand Sense
MARTIN LINDSTROM is among the foremost Brand Consultants in the world today. He is a 2009 recipient of TIME
Magazine’s “World's 100 Most Influential People” and author of Buyology—Truth and Lies About Why We Buy
(Doubleday, New York), a New York Times and Wall Street Journal best–seller. A prolific traveler, Lindstrom is on
the road 300 days annually dispensing his brand of wisdom to top executives of McDonald’s Corporation, Procter &
Gamble, Nestlé, PepsiCo, Microsoft Corporation, The Walt Disney Company and GlaxoSmithKline, amongst others.
His personal global audience is estimated at over a million people. Lindstrom has and continues to feature in the
Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, TIME, The Economist, New York Times, BusinessWeek, The Washington Post, USA
Today, Fast Company, and numerous other publications. His recent book, BRAND Sense, was acclaimed by the Wall
Street Journal as “…one of the five best marketing books ever published.” Lindstrom's latest book, Buyology, has
been translated into more than 30 languages. More at martinlindstrom.com.
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Special markathon |february
markathon |april 2011
The Coke bottle story reveals a fascinating aspect from The Smash Your Brand philosophy considers every
a brand-building perspective, because in theory all possible consumer touch point with a view to build or
brands should be able to pass this sort of test. So if you maintaining the image of the brand. The images, the
removed the logo from your brand, would it still be sounds, the tactile feelings and the text all need to
recognizable? Would the copy stand up to it? Would become fully integrated components in the branding
the colours, graphics and images standing alone pass platform. Each aspect playing a role as vital as the logo
the text? itself.
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Special markathon |february
markathon |april 2011
Knowing what you’re known for There are only a few brands that would pass the Smash
Your Brand test today. Take a moment to consider it. If
Advertising messages are increasingly cluttering our you were to remove your logo and any other textual
airwaves and print media. The average consumer is reference to your brand name, would your customers
bombarded with an astonishing 3,000 brand messages a still recognize the product as yours? Chances are that
day. As each brand fights to be heard in this cacophony you will find that without the logo and name, your
of the commercial world, it’s vital that they strike the brand loses its meaning. In order to reverse logo
perfect note to stand out. Our use of media itself has dependency, all other elements – colours, pictures,
become more sporadic. Media plays on in the sound, design and signage – must be fully integrated.
background of our busy lives, we have developed
internal filtering systems Smash Your Brand –
that help us switch off. piece by piece
This fragmentation of Smash Your Brand into 12
attention, requires different pieces. Each piece
advertising develop a totally should work independently of
integrated brand message, one another, although each is
optimising every brand still essential in the process of
signal in such a way that the establishing and maintaining a
brand becomes instantly truly smash-able brand. The
recognizable. This presents synergies created across the
the advertiser with pieces will be essential for
enormous challenges. As your brand’s success.
many as 20 per cent of the
tween generation own their Smash your picture
own cell phone, and there's
every indication that this Everything can be smashed –
number is increasing on an even your picture. Since its
annual basis. A large beginnings in 1965, the United
proportion of these phones Colours of Benetton has
are the basic variety with consistently developed a
non-colour screens, less- consistent brand style
sophisticated graphics and identifiable in any size, in any
minimal visual effects. How country and in any context. It
would your brand fare on was Benetton’s intention to
this match-box- sized develop its own unique
canvas? personality. They consider their clothing to be “An
expression of our time”. Their strategy in maintaining
The situation of media fragmentation is further this integrity has been to generate all their own images.
complicated by brand alliances. A large number – close Luciano Benetton explains, “Communication should
to 56 per cent– of all Fortune 500 companies have never be commissioned from outside the company, but
formed alliances in their communications. This fact conceived from within its heart”. Benetton is a brand
alone requires an even larger need for the that would survive smashing. The image and the design
implementation of a Smash Your Brand strategy, is its own statement and is part and parcel of the
because when two brands share one space, the need to Benetton “heart”.
convey separate values and commercial messages in a
limited 30-second spot, two logos alone simply won’t
do the job.
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Special markathon |february
markathon |april 2011
Smash your shape only 13 models got through the production line with the
901 insignia, thereafter it became known as the 911.
Shape is one of the most overlooked branding
components, even though certain shapes clearly speak Peugeot has held the numeric name rights for cars since
of their particular brand. Think of the bottle shapes of 1963. The middle zero gives them a distinction that
Coke, Galliano or Chanel No. 5. Particular shapes have automatically identifies their models as Peugeot – even
become synonymous with certain brands. The Golden if you’re not able to conjure up a mental picture of a
Arches refer to McDonald’s trademark, and they’re 204, or a 504.
consistently present at every outlet in every country all
over the world. Smashing your language
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Cover story markathon |april 2011
BRAND INDIA
Sana Akhtar, Sria Majumdar, Rahul Mantri
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Cover story markathon |april 2011
Country Brand
The strength of a country brand is
A story that has not been told.
measured by the level of awareness,
At least not far and wide familiarity, preference, consideration
enough. At least not loud and perception. However, if one really
wants to know the value of the brand,
enough. Yet it is a magnificent
one has to look at the attributes and the
one. India- twenty eight states, associations of the brand. Well-branded
seven union territories, 1.21 countries are the ones that have a better
billion people, multiple chance at almost anything- be it winning
the bid for the World Cup, or attracting
languages, widespread cultural
more foreign investment- they always
and religious diversity and have a competitive advantage. Countries
countless opinions- can it ever use various strategies for branding- they
be a single unified brand? The use global sports to showcase the
nation, they showcase their culture and
story features the evolution of
heritage or their growth potential
Brand India, its various through brilliant campaigns. Whether
dimensions and then discusses marketing is more important, or a solid
the future of ‘Brand India’- a foundation of good governance,
infrastructure and resources, in the
brand for which, we all are
building of a brand is difficult to say.
ambassadors. However, we can safely say that both
have a very vital role to play in building a
nation brand. Country branding has
many advantages: it defines how its own
citizens as well as the rest of the world
perceive it, and it is this perception
which helps in achieving all the
economic, social and political objectives.
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Cover story markathon |april 2011
Brand India- For the Tourism is another major cause being promoted by the
Government Government. The Incredible India campaign is a
resounding success story. The different states have
The Government has backed India’s branding campaign caught onto this as well and we can see them seeking to
with significant industry assistance. The opening up of get a slice of this pie. This branding is showcases the
India’s markets in 1990s brought forth a huge inflow of rious treasures of nature India possesses and seeks to
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Cover story markathon |april 2011
capitalize on them. There is a still lot to be done though, spending, growth of services, Indian manufacturing
if we are to become a bigger tourist hub. The facilities in trying to establish itself on the global platform, rising
most tourist places are far from adequate and the literacy level with large pool of graduates,
Government should be working on this too, and without infrastructural and communication network growth etc-
this ground work, the campaigns feels hollow. experts say that India is in the same state that China
was in 10 years ago.
Brand India - For the Aam
Aadmi However, when one talks about China, a picture of a
closed and uninviting country is painted, with an
We’ve explored how Brand India has worked for India’s authoritarian government. This is an effect of country
businesses. In the case of the common man, Brand India branding, and it is similar to the case of US after the
has been a double edged sword. Its worked for the cold war. The US wanted to be seen as a leader of free
‘aam aadmi’ in some cases and gone horribly wrong in world, a place where all were treated equally, but it was
others. The mad rush to build multi-lane highways, overshadowed by the second class treatment of African,
towering skyscrapers and Special Economic Zones has Asians and other racism issues. India seems to be
put agriculture and environment on the backseat at learning from the past. The Indian Government is trying
times. to project India’s fringe benefits along with – including
better protection of intellectual property rights,
In the race to position Indian metros as clean with
transparent legislation and high diversity of population.
affluent environments, there have been incidents
where cities like Mumbai have indulged in removing Yet India has a long way to go. It has a lot to do in field
slum dwellers without taking effective relocation of education to attract student migrants and retain
measures. This is not a one off case, but it has been them. Branding includes promotion and here India has
repeated with minor differences in other parts of the to learn from other nations such as China, South Africa
country. The city of Delhi seemed to be under a siege and organize events where people get to know more
when the work for Commonwealth Games 2010 was on about the country. Also, workshops and courses to
going. There was no concern shown for the common study Indian literature, art and culture in cities abroad
public because the Games were ‘bigger’ than the are the need of the hour. Indian medical tourism is
common man. booming, should also not be allowed to tarnish.
There were also reports of food grains being reserved Above all the positives, a major concern that India faces
for export to keep up India’s image and standing as an is security. Branding India is of now use, till the world
exporter when there wasn’t enough supply available to perceives us to be a safe destination to travel to. After
meet domestic demand. These sensitive issues need to all, we all value our lives more than anything else. Also,
be handled in a proper manner and ensure that the government policies for dealing with foreign investment
common man benefits from Brand India as well as are safe at best (after all, we prevented ourselves from
contributes to its success. The Branding has to be an global recession!). This would be a point to highlight ,
inclusive one and not involve alienating its own citizens. enjoying greater FDI inflow, rather than just FII from
At the end of the day, it is the common man who is the stock markets.
true ambassador of Brand India. If he grows, the brand
grows. Else it will just be show without substance, and At the end of the day, the best brand ambassadors for a
Brand India will not sustain its glory for long. country are its people. Individual greatness and success
of Indian companies will drive home to the world that
Through the Looking Glass India is indeed a superpower and a super brand, ready
to take on the world.
In this month’s Vartalaap we feature Mr Vivek Mehra, Managing Director and CEO at
Sage Publications India. Mr. Mehra has been with SAGE India since 2005. Mr. Mehra
has a PhD in Chemical Engineering from the University of London and Bachelors in
Textile Technology. He also has an MBA from the Columbia University. He shares with
us some wonderful insights about the world of publishing, his interesting career and
also some advice for our readers.
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vartalaap markathon
markathon |april 2010
|february 2011
Markathon: You have had a diverse educational never forget the day my first pay check arrived it was
background ranging from Textile technology, Chemical for a princely sum of Aus $145 (about Rs.5000 in those
Engineering and an MBA from the Columbia days). I was in Bangalore visiting my parents then and
University. How has the journey been and how did the spoke excitedly about the first real pay-check in a long
transitions come about? time, especially for something I had done completely by
myself. My father laughed and insisted I was still the
Mr. Vivek: I come from a family of textile pioneers. Silk fool who believed this was a career. I have not
Screen printing was first used (commercially) in India by forgotten how I felt that day and it was the feeling of
my great grandfather. I grew up surrounded by printing hurt that ensured I found my calling.
inks and that is all I wanted to ever learn. When I
graduated I Markathon: Sage has been at the forefront of the
worked for publication industry in India for a long time now. How
what is has the landscape of the Indian publishing industry
today a changed over the years?
power brand
in the US. Mr. Vivek: Publishing in India was an off-shoot of
The MBA owning printing presses. The only real books India had,
was in night came from overseas. There were some publishers in
school (4 India (MacMillan, OUP etc.) that catered to the lower
nights a end textbook market. But as Indians became more
week; the literate the demand for books grew. Printing presses
rest spent
doing a
bartender’s
job in an
Indian
restaurant in
New York).
On my
return to India the joint-family as I knew it was in
disarray. I spent a decade trying to find my calling; from
food processing to selling innovative products, I tried a
lot. In 2000 I discovered technical writing and began
seeking jobs for this. My perseverance led me to an
Australian company that first hired me as a freelancer
editor then a writer and eventually a trainer. In 2005
SAGE discovered me and the rest as they say is history.
became publishers; many times reproducing Indian
Markathon: Can you share with our readers an
versions of popular overseas books. Overseas
incident/moment which you’d call a defining moment
publishers looked at India as a market for ‘remaindered’
for you and your career?
books (a term used to describe books that are sold at 80
Mr. Vivek: My career was going nowhere and I was or 95% of their list price; sometime even sold by
even given a moniker by my family: Padha Likha weight). This sort of book availability led to the creation
Bewakoof. When an Indian won the Booker in the late of neighbourhood lending libraries and bookshops. It
90s I was convinced there was a Booker Prize novel in was only in the late 70s that India started reaching
me. I wrote the book in about 4 months, spent a year critical mass in terms of the number of books being
trying to get it published. Nothing happened. I then bought vs. the availability of books to fuel the demand.
discovered I could still write and make money. I will Printing presses began publishing books and in the last
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vartalaap markathon
markathon |april 2010
|february 2011
decade the retail boom has made overseas publishers within the markets they address! It is true our books are
sit-up and take notice of India’s market. not as glamorous as fiction ones are but there is hardly
a library in South Asia that doesn't have some of our
Markathon: Where do you think the future for Sage content. Marketing as a discipline predates sales. Most
South Asia lies? How do you see the company shaping often a sale is the consequence of good marketing.
up say 10 years down the line from now? Given the territory we cover, it is not possible for us to
Mr. Vivek: SAGE is on track of fulfilling its primary have physical contact with our potential clients. We can
objective – only reach them through messaging about our
becoming a products. And it is in this messaging that marketing
publisher of becomes crucial. With the growing proliferation of the
choice for Net and humans relying heavily on it for information,
books and the role of marketing can only get bigger, better and
journals in faster. SAGE India’s marketing department is at that
the fields it turning point in its life cycle. It is moving rapidly
publishes towards both technological and ideological advances.
in. We Markathon: What would your advice be to
continue to youngsters looking to make a career in the publishing
grow at a industry?
rate of 22%
per annum Mr. Vivek: Publishing is a good career but not for
and I don't everyone. In the fast paced environment dominated by
foresee this commercialism, it is difficult to take the path of a steady
ever falling paced career. Publishing in India is on a faster growth
below this trajectory than that of the rest of the world, but it is
level. painfully slower than say financial services or business
consultancies. At
Markathon: Sage is coming out with the “Legends of some point in
Marketing” series. Can you throw some light on how it everyone’s life
was conceived and how important the series is to comes a time
Sage? when the soul
Mr. Vivek: The series has already seen 2 legends wants more than
already published. The project is the brain child of Prof just commercial
Jagdish Sheth. It began as a gift for his 70th birthday but perks. Publishing
has since become a ‘legendary’ product. SAGE gave it has a lot of
the form you currently see it in and behind the form collaterals that no
came the push to disseminate it as far as possible. SAGE other career
has long been regarded as one of the top publishers in offers. Names are
reference works. This series marks the entry of SAGE often
India into the field on a global scale. immortalized by
appearing in print
Markathon: Sage mainly deals with books with a (mostly books), the crowd that publishers move in are
limited circulation (distinguishing itself from the so allows the cream of society, government and or
called mainstream) , keeping this in mind, what role academia. I can’t think of another career that adds to
does the marketing department play for a Sage job satisfaction the way publishing does; the fruits of
publication? one labour are recorded very effectively.
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war zone | eye 2 eye markathon | april 2011
“There is disparity in milk prices across states and hence Amul’s strategy will not work”
think that it is because Narendra
as ‘The taste of India’; it never was Modi is a good Chief Minister.
the ‘taste of Gujarat’ and hence it is But, a better explanation might
“Amul is The taste of India and will indeed be successful in its endeavours”
Silent Voice
LAST MONTH’S RESULTS
Theme: “The Launch of Minute Maid 100% Juice by Coca Cola after
success in Minute Maid Nimbu Fresh and Pulpy Orange.”
15
specials | ADdicted markathon | april 2011
Ad-dicted
Gaurav Ralhan | iim s
TARGET AUDIENCE: Youth and mobile customers who TARGET AUDIENCE: Children and Indian Middle Class
are jostled by the unwanted services of the mobile Families
operators
POSITIONING: Khane ke baad meethe mein kuch
POSITIONING: Keep It Simple meetha ho jaye..!!
AD AGENCY: Footcandles Film Pvt. Ltd. AD AGENCY: Ogilvy & Mather, India
CONCEPT: The new campaign is developed for the IPL CONCEPT: Three advertisements have been launched
season and is in the form of a stand-up comedy show till now and all are based on promoting Dairy Milk as
with six different episodes to be aired during the a post dinner dessert.
series. The focus of the campaign is describe how Out of three, personally I liked ad showing the family
customers are puzzled with confusing and at the dinner table the most. The film opens with a
complicated products, services and tariff and in the scene of a joint family sitting together at the dinner
end Ranbir comes up with the new plans and services table and a small girl is refusing to have dinner as she
of TATA Docomo which is uncomplicated, dovetailing is more interested to have Cadbury’s dairy milk
with the Tagline “Keep it Simple, Silly !!” chocolate. On being asked about the dessert, she
points out towards the cute little girl and says
VERDICT: Cadbury Dairy Milk. Little girl then licks the chocolate
Catch/Miss – Catch and says “jhoota ho gaya”. The best thing about this
Refreshing! That’s exactly what one feels after seeing commercial is that it makes you feel good due to its
the latest TVC of Tata Docomo. It’s short, sweet and innocence and sweetness.
sends the message across well without much fuss. It is
different from all other Mobile operator VERDICT:
advertisements and the concept of stand-up comedy Catch/Miss – 50-50
has been used to its best. It surely gets a CATCH from The concept of the whole campaign is superb.
me for keeping the storyline simple yet effectively Cadbury struck the right cord when they positioned
communicating the main theme. chocolates as something people should share on
special occasions with their “Kuch meetha ho jaye”
campaign. Now moving on that bandwagon they want
to make people have chocolates as a dessert after
dinner. The strategy is good but all the ads don’t meet
the expectations. Personally I feel one out of the
three ads launched connects with the audience well
and with frequent airing the ad looks repetitive and
people will lose interest.
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specials | radical thoughts markathon | april 2011
The title sounds outrageous, ones being Saina Nehwal, Sania Mirza, Vijender Singh
doesn’t it? Let me explain, I and others. The CWC 2011 win by the Indian team
am as happy as any Indian might hamper this trend and eat into some of the
Cricket fan on the money going into other sports. The prime
tremendous win at the Cricket sportspersons, even at the pinnacle of their sport can
World Cup 2011. It is hardly aim to match the kind of endorsements
undoubtedly a colossal cricketers get. The minuscule pie of these sports might
achievement and Team India get even smaller. This will curtail investments which are
deserves all the laurels it is getting. desperately needed in these sports if India has to make
an International mark in them.
The timing of the win is impeccable for the sport of
cricket. The Cricket World Cup 2011 was touted as “The Another issue is that of youngsters taking up sports. The
Cup that Counts” and it certainly has, in a big way. World Cup win has no doubt inspired many a kid to take
Everyone had rung the death knell for One Day up cricket. The rewards in cricket are humongous
International cricket after the nightmarish 2007 World compared to the paltry sums earned by professionals in
Cup which was wrangled in controversies and boring other sports in India. This is a major put down for any
associate matches (barring a youngster aiming for a career in
few). The most potent factor football, tennis etc. in India. Even if
though was the emergence of money is not an issue, he/she
T20 Cricket and the Indian knows they will neither get the
Premier League. The once slam kind of fame or recognition as their
bang ODI cricket seemed tame cricketing counterparts. The WC
and long compared to its shorter, win will only rub in the feeling of
more entertaining compatriot. being left out for the other sports.
This World Cup has changed all
that, ODI cricket has emerged, I am not trying to say that this is a
almost like a phoenix rising out of new problem. What I’m trying to
its ashes. The matches were say is, though this is an inherent
entertaining and closely fought, problem in Indian sports, the
the viewership ratings were World Cup win might just end up
phenomenal especially where sub-continent matches making it worse by claiming the entire spotlight and
were involved and ESPN has supposedly raked in Rs 800 taking away even the faint glimmers of hope that
Cr of revenues from the advertising spends. ODI Cricket seemed to be on the horizon for other Indian sports.
for now, it seems, is safe and here to stay. And yes, I am a huge cricket fan but I do enjoy it’s not
so lucky counterparts as well.
The timing of the win though, might not be favourable
to the other sports in India – Hockey, Football, Tennis,
Badminton and the likes. Whilst hockey is far past its
golden prime, the others are only now starting to
emerge from the shadows of cricket. There is money
being poured in for the development of these sports by
private companies. There are also quite a few brand
ambassadors from these sports in Indian Media popular
24
specials | updates markathon | april 2011
Bates141 has created a new TVC for Hitachi India’s new Citibank highlights “moments of success”
range of air conditioners. The range of air conditioners for customers with new TVC
have the unique technology that eliminates dust from
Citibank India has launched a new corporate TV
the filter automatically resulting in better cooling and
campaign focused on the bank’s brand purpose which is
preventing unhealthy air. The TVC for the air
creating “Moments of Success” for customers. This is
conditioner shows a robot stepping out of a shower and
the first time that the bank developed a corporate
dancing while it dries itself illustrating how the Hitachi
campaign which focused towards the Indian audience.
air conditioner with the iClean technology cleans the
Publicis Ambience has created the commercial. The new
dust automatically.
campaign focuses on showcasing the brand purpose
which is about working tirelessly to create the best
outcomes for our clients. The new Moments of Success
campaign expresses the emotional connect that
25
specials | updates markathon | april 2011
Citibank has with clients in creating success and percent, effective April, 1, 2011. Besides advertising and
happiness in their everyday lives. A specialist camera branded content solutions, the Times Television
called Phantom that captures high speed shots was Network has scaled its subscription business via the
used to shoot the campaign. Bennett, Coleman Distribution joint venture, Prime
Connect. The Network is also focusing on generating
revenue from syndication and digital streams.
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specials | updates markathon | april 2011
We are inviting articles from all the B-schools of India. The articles can be specific to the regular
sections of Markathon which includes:
• Perspective: Articles related to development of latest trends in marketing arena.
• Productolysis: Analysis of a product from the point of view of marketing.
• Strategic Analysis: A complete analysis of the marketing strategy of any company or an
event.
• International Column: Articles covering latest marketing trends, innovative practices,
branding strategies etc. in the global perspective.
Apart from above, out of the box views related to marketing are also welcome. The best entry
will receive a letter of appreciation and a cash prize of Rs 1000/-. The format of the file should
be MS Word doc/docx.
The last date of receiving all entries is 10th May 2011. Please send your entries marked as
<ARTICLE NAME>_<SENDERS’ NAMES>_<INSTITUTE> to markathon.iims@gmail.com.
27
Please send in your comments/feedback to:
markathon.iims@gmail.com
Visit: www.iims-markathon.in