Adgully Exclusive | The stride of Madison PR's Veena Gidwani

Public Relations has existed since time immemorial in some form or the other. Today it is a full-fledged industry and is something corporations cannot do without. A systematic and organised practice of public relations in India began with the Indian Railways and today it continues in its complete glory. However, this space has definitely evolved over the years and has endured its share of adversities. Adgully converses exclusively with Veena Gidwani, Chief Executive Officer, Madison Public Relations, to understand this dynamic space better.

Having begun her career in advertising as a Client Servicing Executive, Gidwani has had varied and rich experience in this space. "The fairly long stint in advertising gave me rich experience of working on various types of brands from consumer to engineering, consumer durables and services. My next move was to media, first Outdoor and then Print, where I had the opportunity to do work while bringing Airport Advertising to India jointly with a British firm. My foray into PR began in 1995," she said.

She further adds that she has enjoyed every position that she has ever held. "Each change has brought new excitement moving from agency to advertiser, then advertiser to media and media to PR, all of which have been significant milestones in my career," she added.

Madison PR services have clients across industry verticals like FMCG, lifestyle, retail, healthcare, engineering, financial services, pharma, food, lifestyle, tourism and education. Some of their clients include Britannia, P&G, Levi's, Fastrack, Godrej, Elecon, Centrum, Parle Agro, Mills & Boon among others.

Over her many years of experience, she discussed a few learnings from the industry. "In the PR business, while you may take care of the minutest detail in any activity, there are some things completely beyond your control. Many clients tend to make agency decisions purely on the fee, while PR is a qualitative service comprising of many elements which may differ from consultancy to consultancy," she explained. "PR needs as much creativity as advertising if not more and also heavy dose of patience," she added further.

Even post the 2G scam, Gidwani is hopeful and optimistic about the prospect of this space. "The future of strategically conceptualised PR continues to be as bright as ever," she said.

Challenges exist in every realm of any kind of profession. In this space Gidwani says often in various PR processes, there is no control over many elements. "However we are expected to deliver 100% every time. Media often does not appreciate the value that PR professionals bring in getting them important, accurate & timely information, helping them to carry breaking news stories," she stated.

However, Gidwani is of the opinion, that the industry lacks qualified professionals. "Since the industry is growing very rapidly it needs many more qualified and trained professionals, clients who value the contribution that PR makes to building their brands and a strong industry platform," she explained.

In a world that is designed with scams and controversies at every step and in a time, where communication and publicity is crucial, this industry can only march forward. | By Janees Antoo [janees(at)adgully.com]