Category: Brands

Mumbai: TrafficGuard, an Omni channel ad verification platform, which boasts clients like Disney Streaming services, William Hill and SingTel as clients, has announced new client wins and has pushed its revenue to a record high of $3.26 million. The platform empowers brands by assisting them in detecting, mitigating, and reporting digital ad fraud before it hits their advertising budget. 

TrafficGuard’s advanced digital advertising verification solutions and diverse offerings have assisted hundreds of brands in identifying and preventing fraudulent ad clicks, resulting in significant revenue growth and client engagement. The company’s cutting-edge technology further helps brands optimize their digital advertising spend, allowing them to meet revenue targets while maintaining high integrity and transparency. TrafficGuard takes pride in being the world’s first multipoint and Omni-channel platform to examine each stage of the consumer journey and mitigate fraud at the earliest reliable indicator. 

Commenting on the company’s recent success, TrafficGuard CEO & co-founder Mathew Ratty said, “We are thrilled to be a part of our client’s success stories and look forward to continuing to assist them in their growth journey. We have also invested heavily in our people and capabilities to enhance our integrations with technology partners around the world and generate massive sales and opportunities in the future. Furthermore, we are committed to providing our clients with the highest level of protection against ad fraud and delivering measurable results that drive growth and success and overall drive one of the leading metrics in business, LTV:CAC.”

TrafficGuard’s commitment to innovation, pinpoint precision, and client success has made it a trusted partner for businesses across various industries. In addition, TrafficGuard has developed a significant reputational bank on internet traffic through the real-time analysis of over 200 signals that benefit its customers worldwide. This success has resulted in rapid revenue growth and a record trial pipeline along with increased enterprise customer demands, user interface, and other support functions.

Mumbai: After the resounding success of Beautiful Indians season one, Femina and Mamaearth have come together once again to celebrate stories of goodness. A platform to salute inspiring individuals who bring beauty to the world with their good deeds, Beautiful Indians is geared to take this celebration one step further. Season two promises to make the nationwide search for goodness ambassadors bigger and better.

Stepping away from the conventional perception of beauty, Femina & Mamaearth present Beautiful Indians 2023 shines a light on the real essence of beauty, embodying the philosophy that beauty is not merely skin deep, but rather a reflection of the good that we do in the world. By highlighting the goodness stories of individuals, Beautiful Indians aims to inspire us all to strive for a world where beauty is measured by our good deeds.

Whether it’s by teaching the underprivileged, lending a hand to the elderly, or raising your voice to further important causes, we want to hear about it all. From 17 April 2023, the call for participation is open, and we invite everyone to share their own tales of making the world a better place, nominating themselves or someone else. The nominations will be carefully judged by a panel of distinguished goodness ambassadors under three broad categories: ‘People for Good’, ‘Creators for Good’, and ‘Celebrities for Good’.

Sharing his thoughts, Worldwide Media Ltd  CEO Deepak Lamba said, “Femina values the celebration of individuals from all backgrounds and recognises their achievements across various aspects of life. This collaboration between Femina and Mamaearth has created a meaningful platform that not only acknowledges but also honors the inherent goodness in people. In this edition of Beautiful Indians, our endeavor is to expand the notion of how beauty is conventionally perceived.”

Speaking about the initiative, Femina editor-in-chief Ambika Muttoo said, “We are thrilled to be back with the second season of Beautiful Indians, a platform that celebrates the true essence of beauty – the goodness in individuals. After the overwhelming response we received with the first season, we are excited to continue our search for inspiring individuals who make a positive impact on the world through their actions. We believe that sharing these stories of kindness and selflessness can inspire others to spread goodness in their own unique ways. We are excited to collaborate with Mamaearth for the second season and look forward to showcasing inspiring stories from across the country.”

Mamaearth co-founder & chief innovation officer Ghazal Alagh said, “After an overwhelming response for season one, we are back with season two of Femina & Mamaearth presents Beautiful Indians 2023. Mamaearth, as a brand, has been built on the fundamentals of goodness inside and we believe that true goodness is in actions that one takes and not how they look. At Mamaearth, we have always believed that beauty is beyond skin-deep, and our collaboration with Femina for Beautiful Indians is a testament to that. We are delighted to partner with Femina for the second season and to continue our journey of celebrating goodness.”

Every act of goodness counts! So, participate and share your goodness stories with us!

 https://www.femina.in/mamaearth-beautiful-indians-2023/

Mumbai: Myntra has ushered in cricketing phenom and sporting icon, Virat Kohli to join its clique of celebrity brand ambassadors, as the platform stays true to its commitment of elevating the nation’s everyday fashion quotient as part of its “Be Extraordinary Every Day” campaign. The on-boarding of Virat as Myntra’s brand ambassador is set to bring his allure, charisma, and energy to the platform’s brand campaign, while enabling Myntra to tap into his loyal fanbase across the country. 

In the film, Virat is representing Myntra’s diverse range of fashion and lifestyle offerings, from men’s casual wear to footwear, watches, and headphones. With Virat’s effortless style and innate confidence, the ad is aimed to inspire viewers to elevate their everyday look and make every moment extraordinary, driving home the point that one’s style is not just limited to apparels. Myntra’s position as the ultimate destination for fashion and lifestyle is strengthened by its partnership with the celebrated cricketing superstar.

The ‘Be Extraordinary Every Day’ campaign puts the spotlight on Myntra’s ability to offer choices for shoppers across the country, fulfilling their day-to-day fashion and lifestyle needs, and elevating their style game. This includes a wide selection of over 6000 leading international, domestic, and D2C brands, along with a colossal 1.7 million styles across a broad spectrum of price points. Myntra hosts one of the largest collections of branded men’s wear with close to 4 lakh styles from leading domestic and international brands.

In the 30-second ad film, made for digital, TV and social platforms, Virat appears in a unique and never before seen avatar by the audience. He is waiting for his friend at a movie hall, only to be astounded by his friend’s elevated stylish look, which makes the latter look and feel like a star, realized via the branded fashion from Myntra. This creates a strong focus and impression in the minds of the viewers on fashion and lifestyle choices available on Myntra with validation from their favourite celebrities. The ad film thus not only showcases Myntra’s diverse offerings but also celebrates fashion and lifestyle choices that enables users to make every moment extraordinary.

Mumbai: A new-age fashion brand that brings out the culture of Rajasthan with a global vision, Rangeelo is the brainchild of Preeti Udaiwal. Based out of Jaipur, Udaiwal comes from a family of traditional block printers and is inspired by her roots in traditional textiles. She has set her mind towards creating internationally recognisable clothing that is still rooted in culture and is a seamless depiction of a contemporary woman.

Udaiwal said, “The history of Sanganer in print is around 500 years old. The Sanganeri prints are known for their delicate and fine designs, floral patterns, petal motifs and a unique blend of traditional styles of printing. I have always been mesmerised by the craft of local artisans and their precision in block printing. The Rajasthani Ghera and flare is also a beautiful silhouette which I find extremely appropriate for the Indian weather conditions.

We are working with fabrics like Chanderi, Georgette, Cotton, Mulmul, Chiffon, and Organza and techniques like Mirror Work, Tie & Dye, Block Printing, Gota and Thread Embroidery, all of which are carefully handcrafted. We are also reinventing the colour palette associated with Rajasthani culture by including pastel colours in our collection. Rangeelo believes that the number of permutations and combinations that Indian craft and techniques have is admirable.

Each collection of Rangeelo is an ode to the vision of Indian artisans who have taught us the ability to convert a plain, versatile fabric into accentuating silhouettes. We are also a size-inclusive brand as we cater from XS to 3XL and also take custom orders.

Rajasthan is rich in culture and has a lot of untapped potential in terms of fabrics, craft, colours, technique and creativity together. With Rangeelo, we want to bring all of Rajasthan under one canopy and celebrate it in its full glory. The brand has started operations through its own D2C as well as a marketplace like The Loom,” concluded Udaiwal

Sanganer

Mumbai: LG Electronics (LG) unveiled a new brand direction and visual identity, which will shed more light on the value of Life’s Good with a more dynamic and youthful look across all physical and digital customer touch points.

In the company’s new brand communication guidelines shared with employees all around the world, LG outlined the new direction for the brand to be loved by customers across countries and generations, including Gen Z, and ultimately establish itself as an iconic brand. The brand communication guidelines reiterate LG’s core values of ‘uncompromising customer experience,’ ‘human-centered innovation’ and ‘warmth to power a smile.’

The brand slogan, Life’s Good, encompasses the message of how the company enables its customers to enjoy a quality life and indulge in precious moments via LG products, services and communication. And, as the brand mission, the company has pursued innovation for a better life, contributing to the shaping of a better life and future for the planet.

The newly established brand direction includes a revamp of LG’s visual identity, reinterpreting the existing warmth and sense of togetherness of the brand. The company aims to boost interaction with more customers through a new visual identity that adds vitality and interactive elements while putting a new spin on the existing brand image.

In the digital space, the company’s symbol will come to life, engaging customers with a new level of expressiveness. The brand symbol, composed of the letters ‘L’ and ‘G,’ can perform eight unique motions, including nodding, spinning and winking. With its new capabilities, the brand symbol can greet customers with a friendly smile or move along with background music on digital platforms in a variety of witty ways.

In addition to its signature LG red color, the company will be using the more energetic LG active red across all customer contact points. Also, various gradient elements in LG active red, white and black were also introduced, offering variety as they can be applied according to the unique characteristic of each product or service.

The company also designed a new typeface for its Life’s Good brand slogan, which will be used more widely as a brand asset in product packaging. Cleverly integrated into the typeface are shapes inspired by various LG products.

LG’s new brand strategy not only strengthens the company’s unique identity, but signals its willingness and capacity to evolve with generations, along with its unmatched commitment to innovating customer experiences all around the globe. The company plans to utilize its one-of-a-kind brand asset at all customer contact points globally throughout the year.

“Having a strong, consistent brand strategy enables us to better communicate our value proposition and unique identity, which harmonically blends innovation and warmth,” said LG Electronics CEO William Cho. “Implementing the new brand strategy, LG aims to become an iconic brand that resonates with consumers transcending generations and locations.”

Mumbai: Cheesiano Pizza, a popular homegrown, made in India, fresh pizza brand, has announced the launch of its new burger brand ‘Burgerino.’

The brand is currently operating as a cloud kitchen, and plans to open physical stores soon. Burgerino is set to revolutionise the burger industry with its Indian flavors and generous portions that can easily serve as a meal. With Cheesiano alone, the brand served more than 42000 orders last quarter, with Burgerino they are expecting to reach 70,000 orders this quarter.

Burgerino offers a unique fusion of Indian and American flavors that are sure to tantalise your taste buds. The burgers are made with fresh ingredients and come in large sizes, making them equivalent to a meal. Burgerino’s menu includes a range of options, including vegetarian and non-vegetarian burgers, to cater to every taste.

Burgerino is now available for delivery across Pune through their delivery partners, Dunzo, Shadowfax, and Porter. Customers can also order directly from the Cheesiano.com website or through food delivery platforms like Swiggy and Zomato.

“We are thrilled to launch our new Burgerino brand,” said Cheesiano co-founder Sachien Tilve. “We believe that Burgerino’s unique flavors and large portions will be a hit among burger lovers. We are committed to delivering the best quality and taste to our customers, and we are excited to bring our new brand to Pune.”

The launch of Burgerino is just the beginning, as Cheesiano Pizza plans to expand its brand to physical stores in the near future. For now, customers can enjoy the delicious flavors of Burgerino from the comfort of their own homes.

Mumbai: The IPL tournament is a game of fanfare which keeps everyone at the edge – from viewers to advertisers, and even broadcasters. The push and pull from Viacom’s Jio Cinema and Disney Star’s Star Sports is driving the country into a frenzy – not just with regard to viewership, but also with regard to brand ambassadors, brands advertising on these platforms and more. And the war has just begun.

In a confab with Indiantelevision.com, Social Panga co-founder Himanshu Arora discusses why brands want to be associated with the IPL inspite of it being a costly event, about choosing between linear and digital advertising, and more.

Social Panga is an independent integrated creative and digital marketing agency based out of Bangalore. Co-founded by Himanshu and Gaurav Arora, in 2014, the agency has a team of 260+ individuals across various digital and social media services and is among India’s leading digital and social media agencies.

Himanshu Arora is a serial entrepreneur and a seasoned advertising professional with 16+ years of experience. He has worked with numerous brands like Google, Facebook, Nestle, Myntra, Reliance, Coca-Cola, Unilever, Tata Motors, Mama Earth, Accenture, Kimberly Clarke, National Geographic, Zepto and more.

Arora has played a pivotal role in scaling multiple consumer brands and driving them to become big enough to be a Unicorn. From an industry leader to a challenger brand, at Social Panga, Arora has worked with all kinds of profiles.

His love of marketing and all things digital goes back to 2006 when he founded his first company, a content platform for cinema lovers. Post that he founded another one in 2010 in the ed-tech space.

When questioned about Social Panga’s brands that are associating with IPL this year and the kind of partnership they would plan to have with the game and why, Arora reveals, “We are working with a few brands in the health and D2C space and building some exciting campaigns. I will be able to share more details at a later stage during the tournament.”

Edited excerpts:

IPL is undoubtedly a hot property. But associating with it in any way is an expensive affair. In spite of that, a lot of brands want to jump onto the IPL bandwagon. What, according to you, attracts brands to IPL?

IPL offers a solution to every advertising need. It enables marketers and advertisers to efficiently handle all aspects of their brand, including imagery, consumer engagement, and brand linkages, all in one convenient location. This is the key attraction for brands to connect with this property.

Cricket is and has always been a big attractor in sports and IPL as a property has been built nicely. Associating with an event of this level gives a great push to consumer brands. India’s active Internet users are expected to increase by 45 per cent over the next five years, reaching 900 million by 2025. That number is thrice the current amount of internet users in the US. This helps to reach a very new set of audiences, across the country.

This year, one of the main reasons why international corporations like Disney and Viacom were fighting over a game that most Americans would never watch. India has demonstrated a willingness to endure commercials in exchange for affordable rates, so when Jio offers free IPL streaming, more eyes are sure to follow.

Digital is the way forward. But a lot of TV viewers still exist in the country and all are not cord-cutters yet. So what do you vouch for – digital advertising or linear advertising? And why?

Television remains a valuable advertising platform for advertisers targeting diverse audiences across socio-economic classes. IPL 2022 attracted a massive 400 million viewers, surpassing the combined viewership of popular shows like KBC, Bigg Boss, The Kapil Sharma Show, Khatron Ke Khiladi, and Shark Tank by 80 per cent. TV also offers a wide range of regional language content, projected to experience significant growth in the future, driving increased TV content consumption.

This underscores the relevance of TV as an effective advertising medium, with ample opportunities for advertisers to connect with their target audience across all NCCS classes and achieve their marketing goals. Also, linear advertising is slowing down as OTT consumption has grown and a mix of digital and traditional advertising is required.

Advertising for the IPL – in your opinion, will brands gain more from their association digitally (with JioCinema) or on television (with Star Sports)? And why?

Both platforms have declared war against each other to grab the eyes of both audience and the advertisers with campaigns like Shor On Game On with Virat for Star and Digital India Ka Digital TATA IPL with Dhoni, the numbers have come in to show who’s on the lead in the race.

Jio Cinema may have an upper hand in terms of its brand value proposition as it offers a superior experience to viewers with various features like multi-cam viewing, and a 360-degree camera, gaining numbers like 147 Crores views on the opening weekend. With a stadium-like experience on Star TV, the channel gained a reach of 14 Crore on its opening day alone. However, these numbers don’t confirm the percentage of the overlap between the two platforms.

What, according to you, can change the game for brands advertising on the IPL, in any way?

Cricket is a festival for the Indian audience. It goes beyond just a match series, it’s a family entertainer. And now that this media space is open to all brands on both online and offline platforms, we don’t see just FMCG brands in the ad space. Many start-ups like Dream11, Niine, CRED and so on have made massive growth through the cricket season.

With innovative offerings and technological advancements, Jio Cinema aims to revolutionize the sports viewing experience on digital platforms in India. The platform has been focusing on enhancing the consumer bond with multi-camera angles, 12 regional languages, 4K resolution, live statistics and more. With this bond, they can draw more eyes to brands once they figure to tackle CTV advertising to gain higher engagement rates and better ROI. This will be the main game changer for brands advertising this season.

Mumbai: UltraTech Cement has awarded its through-the-line brand and communications mandate to Mumbai-based Brand and Communications consultancy, Tilt Brand Solutions – a part of Quotient Ventures.

UltraTech is a flagship brand of the Aditya Birla Group, and is India’s manufacturer of grey cement and ready mix concrete. It is also the largest single-brand retail chain with over 3000+ stores across India.

Speaking of the development, UltraTech Cement president head-marketing Ajay Dang said, “We are excited about our partnership with Tilt Brand Solutions as we step into our next phase of growth. Their strategic and creative prowess as individuals and as a collective makes them a vital and perfect partner in our journey ahead.”

Quotient Ventures co-founder & group CEO T. Gangadhar added, “We are delighted that UltraTech have entrusted us with this mandate. We are inspired by the company’s vision and ambition, and the opportunity it presents, especially in light of a new and emerging India. We look forward to partnering Ultratech on this exciting journey.”

Mumbai: Rigi, a platform where creators can strengthen their communities, enhance engagement and earn money, has launched their new awareness campaign. This lighthearted campaign, written and creatively directed by Vishal Dayama and Tanmay Bhatt, produced and directed by The Rabbit Hole, stars cricketer M.S. Dhoni, spans across four films and centres on his ambition to learn about content creation from creators like Tanmay Bhatt, Kusha Kapila, Sharan Hegde, and Gaurav Taneja. Along with its tongue and cheek humorous tones, the campaign seamlessly incorporates a call-to-action, urging viewers to download the Rigi app for one-on-one paid sessions with the renowned creators themselves.

The Rigi campaign features MS Dhoni as the brand ambassador, showcasing his transition from cricket to becoming a creator in an attempt to display his expertise in many fields and pass on his years of experience through content creation.

Dhoni seeks advice from creators on how to become a successful YouTuber, educate about edtech/fintech, vlogger, and insta creator respectively. In each humorous video, the content creators recommend Dhoni to join them in a one-on-one paid session on the Rigi app, resulting in a strong and memorable call to action at the end. The campaign highlights the importance of seeking guidance from experts in different fields of content creation and stepping out of one’s comfort zone to explore new avenues.

Speaking about the campaign, Rigi creative marketing head Saptarshi Ray commented, “We are thrilled to launch this campaign M.S. Dhoni on board to showcase the potential of our platform. Our goal has always been to empower creators with the tools they need to connect with their audiences and monetize their content, and this campaign highlights that perfectly. With great partners in Vishal, Tanmay & The Rabbit Hole, we look forward to seeing the impact this campaign will have on our community.”

Rabbit Hole business head Rishabh Khatter said, “At The Rabbit Hole, we take the opportunities to elevate a campaign very seriously and with so many great stakeholders and pieces of the puzzle coming together, things just fit right. With Rigi championing the share of voice in the creator and community building space we have faith that this partnership will triumph.”

Directed by The Rabbit Hole’s very own Dipro Ghosal and produced by Apurva Gabhe, Kalpesh Dubey, Bhumit Shah and Account Managed by Pooja Dua. Together, the team has executed a series of engaging and humorous films that highlight the benefits of Rigi’s platform and showcase Dhoni’s journey to learn from some of the top content creators in the industry.

Mumbai: Summer season is officially here. And nothing speaks about the onset of summer like the soft drinks war. This year Pepsi, 7UP and now Fanta revamped their logos and Campa has made a comeback with its rebranding. 

Without this actually being a game of chronology, this year, it all started with PepsiCo’s first move – the rebranding of 7Up – it happened in February. With Reliance acquiring a 50 per cent stake in Gujarat-headquartered Sosyo Hajoori Beverages (SHBPL) which owns the brand Campa, the former announced a comeback of the brand Campa Cola in the beginning of March.  Come end of March, and behold, cola major Pepsi came up with a new logo. And now very recently it’s Fanta which has unveiled its new logo.

Indiantelevision.com spoke to ad industry mavens to figure out how the soft drinks brands are raising the temperature this summer with their decisions and more.

The heat, which is not so soft anymore

What’s the soft drinks war going to be like this summer, with so much happening by these brands?

Brand strategist and Brand-Building founder Ambi Parameswaran is of the opinion that the summer of 2023 should be interesting in the soft drinks industry. “For the last few years, the classic carbonated beverages have been under pressure from non-sugar non-carbonated drinks on one end and from high caffeine drinks like RedBull. With the entry of Campa there is bound to be a lot more excitement in the carbonates beverages sector.”

Brand Consultant and BBH & Publicis Worldwide India former CEO Subhash Kamath points out that the summer months are always a critical season for all soft drink brands, with fierce competition for share of the consumer’s throat. “I don’t see this year being any different, in that sense. But I do hope we’ll get to see some great advertising from them this season. It’s been a few years since I saw some really good ads in this category, especially in India.”

Garage Worldwide CEO Sanjay Deshmukh understands that Pepsico and Coke control 80 per cent market share. Because the whole GenZ has grown up with them. “Campa’s re-entry will generate some interest plus the assumption of nostalgic value. But this generation hasn’t tasted it at all. Campa tried in 2018 also. I think the communication of Campa this time will play a big role. It will have to be seen whether they can lure enough consumers to taste it. It will be a war of communication spends more than a price war. Though Reliance has their own distribution channels, but both Coke and Pepsi have tons of loyal customers. This time I guess it will be a longer war because Reliance can also match America’s spends.”

The consumer psyche

With such a strategic decision of so many soft drinks brands looking at rebranding/revamping their identities this year, how is it going to affect the perception of the consumer?

“The collective noise may stimulate consumption and get the sector to register high growth once again. Logo and identity changes are also part of the refreshment and will play a role. More importantly, the availability of new flavours, and deeper and wider distribution will all help the sector,” Parameswaran elucidates.

Kamath expresses that rebranding or revamping a brand’s identity isn’t a small decision. It needs a lot of thought and it’s a very strategic decision. Also, just changing the logo or the packaging isn’t an end in itself. It needs to be part of a larger narrative that the brand takes to its consumers. “Are you needing to refresh your identity to symbolise a new vision or purpose? Are you trying to contemporize the brand because your earlier logo was starting to look a bit fuddy-duddy? Are you trying to overcome a negative? Or are you just trying to inject some newness into your brand for a young audience, who thrives on newness?”

“In the case of the recent soft drink brands, we’ll need to see why the change has happened and what the new narrative is, if any,” he adds.

Deshmukh explains that Pepsi has always been a bold, challenger brand. And from time to time they re-invent themselves. “Fanta had different identities in Europe and America. Sprite had very fragmented communication in different countries. Since the digital world doesn’t have any boundaries, the consumers will experience seamless common communication and identity platform. So change won’t affect the brand perceptions so much. But we’ll hear some debates in the social world about which logo looks better. I mean old or new.”

Good, bad or ugly?

According to these experts, whose rebranding/revamping exercise is the most appropriate and will work for the brand?

Parameswaran sheds light saying that while Coke and Pepsi may have some market share erosion they will benefit from market expansion.

Kamath feels that that’s a difficult one to answer because from the outside, one can’t really opine on the strategic reason for the revamping/ redesigning.  

“The new 7-up logo seems to be just a minor tweak from the older one. So is the case of Fanta, where the font etc remains the same. But interestingly, they’ve dropped the ‘leaf’ in the logo, which has been with them since the ’80s. It’d be interesting to know why.

In Pepsi-Cola’s case, the new design seems more revolutionary and a clear departure from the logo they’ve used for the past 12-14 years. Ironically, the new logo seems to be similar to the one they used in the ’90s. Am sure they have a strong reason for that.” 

He goes on, “Which of these revamping/ redesigning initiatives will work will depend on the new narrative the brands present this summer. So we’ll have to wait & watch.”

“I think both Pepsi and Fanta are appropriate. Pepsi always pushes cultural movements and trends forward. The new logo looks more modern, bold and futuristic. Fanta in European markets looked more or less like the new one. It’s more spontaneous and portrays brands for all ages than for teens alone,” wraps up Deshmukh.