Week at a glance: Q&A with FBâ€™s Avinash Pant; TRP blackout & ad spends on news

Facebook Live viewership in India has jumped 50%: Avinash Pant

Facebook has been celebrating the power of connections and communities, and how people can do more together than alone through its consumer marketing campaign in India – ‘More Together’. Launched a year ago, the 360-degree campaign has been conceptualised and executed by Taproot Dentsu and Dentsu Webchutney and has gone live in multiple languages across TV, digital, print, radio and OOH.

TRP blackout – Do ad spends on news channels hang in balance?

Adgully had launched its ‘Trending Now’ series a couple of years back to crystal gaze at the year ahead and predict the trends that will dominate the advertising, marketing and media industry. Through our Zoom webinar this Friday, March 26, 2021, some of the leading industry experts discussed the aspects that are influencing marketers’ decision to continue investing in news channels, ad spends in a ratings dark period, the measurement metrics ecosystem and much more.

“Trust has once again emerged as the most critical factor in people’s news choices”

In conversation with Adgully, Zakka Jacob, Managing Editor, CNN-News18, speaks about the thought behind the campaign, how the pandemic has changed the face of news television, news consumption behaviour of consumers and the road ahead.

“The entire aspect of how to manage a crisis has been ingrained in a woman’s DNA”

In this interaction with Adgully, Leena Lele Dutta, Business Head, Sony Pictures Networks India, Kids’ Genre, speaks about how she managed her professional and personal life during the time of pandemic, tackling the various challenges thrown up by the COVID-19 and lockdown situations, what makes women the best in crisis management, and much more.

#GullyChat: Influencer marketing holds the key to brand success in the new normal

While Influencer Marketing has been on the rise in the last few years, the unprecedented global pandemic further widened the scope for Influencer Marketing as behavioural habits changed. Moreover, with the massive transition to digital and online buying in the last one year, consumers are now seeking more information online and there is greater potential of engagement with influencers.

INS to debar erring members not adhering to its rules from MRV system for 6 months

The Executive Body of the Indian Newspaper Society (INS) has once again reiterated that it stands by its decision not to extend DAVP/ BOC rates for PSUs or autonomous bodies’ advertisements, if released by DAVP/ BOC or other agencies.

Including digital dues in print MRV process violates IAMAI agreement: AAAI to INS

The Advertising Agencies Association of India has responded to a notice served by the Indian Newspaper Society about including digital billing as part of the Monthly Review Verification (MRV) process. The AAAI General Secretary Sudesh Kapoor wrote that it is already bound by its commitment to Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and agreeing to INS would be a violation of that agreement.

ASCI embarks on year-long focus on gender initiatives with GenderNext study

The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), in association with Futurebrands, is launching the first ever deep, immersive dive into gender depiction in Indian advertising. The study, ‘GenderNext’, aims to provide actionable insights that can shape the gender narratives in advertising positively.

What the law says on advertising in the Insurance sector in India

Part 26 of the series of articles on Misleading Ads by Advocate Aazmeen Kasad is the third part of a series on Advertising in the Insurance sector in India, and serves to demystify and provide an in-depth understanding of what the law on the same is for advertisements through the Internet or electronic media, how claims related to rating/ ranking and awards should be made, how joint-sale advertisements or co-branding can be engaged in by insurance companies, etc.

India to be fastest-growing market for telecoms ad spend in 2020-2023: Zenith

Zenith predicts that telecoms advertising will grow at an average rate of 4.5% a year to 2023 as its recovers from an 8.7% decline in 2020, according to Zenith’s Business Intelligence - Telecommunications report, published today. Telecoms adspend in the 12 key markets included in the report* will rise from US$17.8bn in 2020 to US$18.7bn in 2021, and then return to its pre-pandemic level of US$19.5bn in 2022.

AI is all set to disrupt businesses in the new normal, but how ready are brands?

The report goes on to state how AI adoption strategies and implementation practices will define the competitive advantage organisations gain as a result. AI offers tremendous growth opportunities for current and future adopters, who can take a centralised federated approach and focus on integrating and scaling across functional units.

Brands gear up for Holi 2021 under the shadow of COVID-19

One would surely recall Holi last year – celebrated under the shadow of rapidly growing COVID-19 cases in the country. Not very long after Holi, the nationwide lockdown was imposed on March 24, 2020. A year later, unfortunately the story is no different. After a very encouraging drop in the number of cases for some months, COVID-19 infection is on the rise again, with lockdowns and restrictions imposed in hotspots across states.

Fierce poll battle comes as a boon for outdoor media in Kolkata

Elections in a democratic country like India are always a fiercely fought battle. And this battle is fought on all fronts and across media platforms. Five states – Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and the Union Territory of Puducherry – are all set to go for polls. Campaigning is on full swing and colourful and crowded rallies are the norm almost every day.

We want Complan’s growth story to be more progressive & forward looking: Tarun Arora

In conversation with Adgully, Tarun Arora, CEO, Zydus Wellness Ltd, elaborates on the thought behind the latest campaign, growth during the pandemic period, increasing the brand’s store footprint and more.

Digitalisation will make consumer experience more seamless this year: Gaurav Sinha

Gaurav Sinha, Head of Marketing & PR, Audi India, recounts the key challenges and learnings from 2021, how COVID-19 has been by far the biggest teacher of our time and the increased focus on customer engagement and Digitalisation.

60% of our new subscribers are coming from regional markets: Anurag Kumar

In conversation with Adgully, Anurag Kumar, Chief Communications Officer, Tata Sky, speaks at length about the ‘Har Ghar Ki Khidki’ campaign and the brand’s efforts to strengthen its positioning in the market.

Online food delivery is here to complement eating out, not replace it: Rohit Gawli

In conversation with Adgully, Rohit Gawli, CEO and Co-Founder, Lokal Kitchen, speaks about how a challenging year like 2020 saw the birth of his entrepreneurial dreams in the form of Lokal Kitchen. No stranger to hyper-growth start-ups, Gawli speaks at length about growing his own business, while at the same time also addressing the social cause of empowering Indian women.

“Collaboration & co-creation - way forward in conducting business in the new normal”

Dr Monica Khanna, Director, K J Somaiya Institute of Management, lists the major trends that will dominate the year ahead, which include collaboration & co-creation, Digital transformation of businesses, Rapid recovery of business opportunities, and more.

OTT content will be subjected to the scrutiny of the Centre: Shashank Singh

The year 2020 has been an eventful one for OTT platforms, particularly from a growth perspective, says Shashank Singh, Founder and CEO, FLYX.

The time is now ripe to drop the idea of a ‘glass ceiling’: Anindita Gupta

In conversation with Adgully, Anindita Gupta, Co-Founder, Scenic Communication, has a lot to share about how women leaders have been proving their mettle against all odds time and again. At the same time, she also hits out at the so-called hostile environment that fails to acknowledge and accept women professionals in certain male-dominated sectors.

The 'Age of With' is going to disrupt businesses over the next 18-24 months: Deloitte

Deloitte India has launched a report on “The Age of With: Humans and machines”. The report highlights about companies harnessing the power of human intelligence with machine intelligence to identify unique advantages through analytics and Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Paid digital promos will be much in demand to do targeted segmentation: Boby Paul

In conversation with Adgully, Boby Paul, General Manager – Marketing, Manoramaonline, speaks about how Digital has helped in scaling up business operations; how brands are evaluating and measuring their performance on digital as a medium and much more.

Customer delight will be a key differentiator for brands this year: Priyanka Prakash

Priyanka Prakash, Director and Head of Online Giving, Marketing & Partnerships at GiveIndia, sees the virtual and digital first world continuing strong in 2021 and most likely making long-term changes to the way brands engage with consumers. She further adds that brands will need to create seamless digital journeys for customers and develop a unique digital footprint to stand out from the clutter.