Week at a glance: News ops in COVID times; Spotlight on PR; Performance marketing

Armed with last year’s lessons, news organisations face the COVID battleground again

As COVID-19 cases see a huge surge across the country again, news channels have put in place standard operating procedures (SOPs) to ensure safety of their employees as well as for the smooth operation, similar to the ones that worked so well for the news operations amid the first COVID-19 wave last year. While the entire world was caught unawares in 2020, this year, there are several valuable lessons from last year that are helping businesses blunt the impact of the disruptions. 

Why branding & performance marketing are viewed as distinct strategies in the mktg mix?

Understanding the customer journey in depth and how they engage with your brand was unheard of in the pre-digital era. To visualise the customer journey, American advertising advocate Saint Elmo Louis came up with the concept of a marketing funnel, defining six stages that a customer went through – awareness, consideration, intent, purchase, loyalty, and advocacy. 

Adapt, Innovate, Repeat – PR in a constant state of flux in the pandemic era

Very few people know that the World Public Relations Congress was hosted in Mumbai in 1982, where we had the father of Public Relations, Sam Black, addressing the convention. So, some early seeds were sown here to recognise the industry and encourage the aspiring professionals to build PR as a robust industry. PR today has evolved and the industry is trying to adapt to the rapid changes that are taking place, especially in the pandemic era, where the role of social media and digital has made deep inroads even as the business is growing and becoming more competitive. 

How Fantasy Cricket is deepening ties with Cricket leagues

Adgully organised a #TwitterChat on April 16, 2021 to understand how fantasy gaming operators have been building their Fantasy Cricket brand on the back of IPL fever. Joining the conversation was an esteemed panel of some of the leading fantasy gaming operators in India:

Amit Purohit, Founder, fantasy Akhada

Hari Narayan, Founder and CEO, SportzXchange

Shashi Kumar, Co-founder & VP - Operations, Fan2Play 

Relevant engagement at all possible touchpoints is crucial for IPL brand association

According to some industry reports, unlike a title sponsorship, which costs almost Rs 100 crore a year (Dream11 spent a reported Rs 222 crore for the one-year title sponsorship rights for IPL 2020), there are other deals that range from Rs 50 lakh to Rs 5 crore for brands to leverage IPL. Here again the rate differs depending on the team brands want to associate with. The favourite teams and winners of the previous IPL may command a premium price for branding. 

Image transformation is not a communications, but a business planning exercise: PR experts

At the christening of our virtual panel, Adgully4um – a series of knowledge webinars conducted via Zoom Video Conferencing, we engaged with experts from the Public Relations industry to discuss the role of ‘Enhanced Social Responsibility’ in the context of the new normal. The discussion was joined by:

Madhu Chhibber, CEO, Madison PR – Moderator

Abhishek Gulyani, Chief Executive Officer, India at H+K Strategies

Ashwani Singla, Founding Managing Partner of Astrum

Nitin Mantri, Group CEO, AvianWE

Nitin Thakur, Director, Brand & Communications, Max Group 

PR in the era of Social Media – Setting new ground rules

At the christening of our virtual panel, Adgully4um – a series of knowledge webinars conducted via Zoom Video Conferencing, we engaged with experts from the Public Relations industry to explore “PR in the era of Social Media – Setting new ground rules’. The discussion was joined by:

Tarunjeet Rattan, Managing Partner, Nucleus PR | Founder - PRPOI | Vice President - PRBI – Moderator

Amit Nanchahal, Associate Director, Corporate Communications, PepsiCo India

Bhaskar Majumdar, Head - Corporate Affairs, Communication &  Digital, Egis India

Kiray Ray Chaudhary, Co-founder & Joint Managing Director at 80 dB Communications and Founder of Aether Marketing

Minita Kumar, Communication Head – India Region, HMD Global

Dr Subi Chaturvedi, Chief Corporate Public Affairs Officer, Zupee

Sujit Patil, Vice President and Head - Corporate Brand and Communications, Godrej 

How latest tech & SOPs are keeping Times Network’s news ops buoyant amid COVID surge

Heralded as #NewsWarriors as the COVID-19 pandemic raged through the country in 2020, news reporters and news networks kept their operations running in very tough and unprecedented circumstances. Several frontline reporters got the COVID-19 infection in the line of duty. There were several reports on the heavy mental and emotional toll that the pandemic was causing among the news personnel – with what they saw out in the field, as well as job and salary cuts. 

TV Ad Volumes register 30% growth in January-March 2021: TAM AdEx

Television advertising put up a strong show in the first quarter of 2021 (calendar year | January-March 2021), with TV Ad Volumes registering a growth of 30%, compared to Jan- Mar'20 and 3% drop when compared to Oct-Dec’20, as per TAM AdEx report. In the span of the last six months, Television Ad Volumes peaked during March 2021, followed by October 2020. March 2021 had 2% more Ad Volumes compared to October 2020. 

How Logitech has kept millennials at the core of their marketing strategy

Logitech India, a leading brand in computer peripherals, recently participated in the joint edition of FDCI x Lakmé Fashion Week for the very first time, which was held around the second week of March. In this interaction with Adgully, SrinivasRao Vishnubhotla, Country Head, Logitech India, in a candid conversation spoke about the brand’s association with well known designer Arpita Mehta and how they plan to expand their product portfolio to meet the discerning consumers with designer products. 

"Risk evaluation & contingency plans for navigating challenging times to gain ground"

In conversation with Adgully, Samir Modi, Founder and Managing Director, Modicare Limited, underlines the key learnings from 2020 and how resilience and agility, coupled with empathy, will help drive organisations to achieve the kind of success they envisage for themselves. 

2021 could well herald a new phase of large IPOs by start-ups: Saroja Yeramilli

Adgully is turning the spotlight on the entrepreneurs who fought against all odds to bring their dreams to fruition in our special series – START-UP STARS. In conversation with Adgully, Saroja Yeramilli, Founder and CEO, Melorra, takes us through her journey as an entrepreneur, the strong headwinds for the Indian start-up ecosystem and much more. 

Conversational marketing will be talked about a lot this year: Arjun Bhatia

In conversation with Adgully, Arjun Bhatia, Chief Marketing Officer, Matrimony.com, speaks about how digital approach to marketing and sales will remain centrestage in the pandemic times, the rise of social commerce, and much more. 

Candid, Abzorb, Clocip make an aggressive bid for larger share of the skincare market

Dusting powder or medicated powders, which are normally prescribed by a dermatologist or a general physician, are easily accessible over the counter from chemist stores. Candid Dusting Powder is the market leader in its category, with a market share of 64% in the medicated powder category. Both Candid Dusting Powder and Abzorb have been quite aggressive in their marketing in recent times, and have taken the celebrity route to promote their respective brands. 

Dentsu Webchutney wins digital mandate for Tanishq

Championing today’s bride’s love for tradition without being bound by the constraints of it, was the challenge that inspired Dentsu Webchutney to take on this latest mandate. The agency aims to chart an aggressive creative growth strategy, which captures the timeless essence of Tanishq. 

dentsu X India wins global media mandate for Galderma

dentsu X India, the media agency from the house of dentsu international, has won the global media mandate of Galderma, the pioneer in dermatology. The account was won following a comprehensive competitive pitch process. As per the mandate, the agency will oversee the media, strategy, planning, and buying for the total portfolio of Galderma products. 

India’s start-up ecosystem will continue to grow & thrive amid the pandemic: Arun Pandey

In conversation with Adgully, Arun Pandey, Chairman & MD, Rhiti Group, speaks about the driving factors of growth in the Indian start-up ecosystem amid the pandemic situations. He also sheds light on how the sports sector forged a deeper and more meaningful connection with the fans in these challenging times. 

TV18 Broadcast reports strong recovery in TV ad-growth in Q4 FY2021

TV18 Broadcast has reported strong recovery in TV ad-growth to high single digits in Q4 FY2021, even as Digital is growing at fast clip. Consolidated EBITDA was up 16% YoY in the COVID year. The network saw the highest ever EBITDA margins at 21%, led by cost controls and innovative measures. 

Carat India appoints Dipika Bhasin as Executive Vice President

Carat India, the flagship media agency from the house of dentsu international, has appointed Dipika Bhasin as Executive Vice President. In her new role, Bhasin will lead the agency’s North & East offices and focus on developing & managing Carat’s senior client relationship in addition to helping the agency drive the growth for its North and East markets. She will report into Anita Kotwani, CEO, Carat India. 

Mobility to travel from metros to Tier 2 & 3 cities is bound to grow: Swapnil Tripathi

Shrugging off the disruptions of last year, businesses and agencies are looking for a strong revival in 2021. Adgully – as part of our annual TRENDING NOW endeavour – has been presenting the strategies and views of a cross-section of industry leaders as they go about reclaiming lost time and market opportunities and build for a stronger future, armed with the lessons of 2020. In conversation with Adgully, Swapnil Tripathi, Chief Business Officer, IntrCity RailYatri, gives an overview of the travel industry in the pandemic era. 

India’s shortform players bring back 97% of TikTok’s user base: RedSeer

According to the latest Report ‘Short-form video- The Rise of Made in India digital content’ by RedSeer Consulting, Indian Shortform apps have successfully retained 67% of the TikTok era users and have onboarded around 30-35% new users over the past year. This has been a result of increased supplier push and aggressive marketing by platforms. 

Uday Sodhi, Jasmeet Singh & Manish Agarwal partner for Founder's Room Capital

Uday Sodhi, Senior Partner, Kurate Digital has partnered up with Jasmeet Singh Gandhi, Head Global Business Development, Clevertap and Manish Agarwal, CEO, Nazara Technologies to launch Founder's Room Capital, which will look at investing in early-stage startups. 

Sometimes we need to be in difficult situations to think out of the box: Suman Varma

In conversation with Adgully, Suman Varma, Chief Marketing Officer, Hamdard Laboratories (Medicine Division), speaks about how the emphasis on holistic wellness, immunity building, and staying safe will continue to be the narrative in the year 2021, as prevention is better than cure.