Category: MAM

MUMBAI: In a bid to beat the summer heat, Lux has relaunched its four body wash variants under the new Lux Body Wash range. The range is available in 125 ml and 250 ml packs and is priced at Rs 45 and Rs 80 respectively.
 
The 4 variants are White Glamour, Silk Nourishment, Soft Luxury and Uplifting Firm.
 
Said Lux Ambassador Priyanka Chopra, “I am very glad to take my association with Lux a step further with the launch of these four luxurious Lux Body Wash variants for the summer season. I am honored to be appointed as the face for this new range and I would really urge all you women out there to experience this new variant and feel your skin become soft and supple.”

MUMBAI: In a bid to expand its digital business division, brand activation agency Candid Marketing has appointed Arunabh Biswas as associate creative director for its Mumbai office.
 
“Biswas‘s experience proves his ability to provide the right direction to our expansion. Over the next year, Candid will be at the forefront of digital activations,”says Candid Marketing VP content & planning Amrita Kumar,

Says Biswas, “Today‘s age of communication is getting increasingly concentrated around the digital world. It is a constant ground of innovation and apt use of knowledge. Candid has been regularly creating campaigns which re-define innovations in the activation space. With its entry into the digital space it has a new aim, the agency bring forth the values that have led it thus far.”
 
Prior to this, Biswas was Web Chutney creative consultant. He handled brands like Airtel, Metlife, Maruti Wagon R, KFC and Makemytrip.com.

Over the last year Candid has grown by over 40 per cent, providing on ground activation strategies to clients like HUL, Nokia, ESPN Star Sports, Cadbury, Pepsi, Star TV and Mars Foods.
 

MUMBAI: HDFC Standard Life, associate sponsor of Rajasthan Royals in the third season of Indian Premier League (IPL 2010), has unveiled a new campaign.

While Leo Burnett has conceptualised and scripted the campaign, it has been directed by Sanjay Shetty from Opticus.

The new campaign, airing across TV channels from 22 March, features Rajasthan Royal players – Shane Warne, Yusuf Pathan, Munaf Patel, Kamran Khan, and Swapnil Asnodkar.
 
HDFC Standard Life EVP and head marketing Sanjay Tripathi said, “Our association with Rajasthan Royals is aimed at bringing to the fore our common values – self respect or living life with head held high. And the campaign is a natural outcome of our effort in propagating the values of self pride, confidence, and self belief.”
 
Additionally, HDFC Standard Life has several activities including financial planning sessions for the young players in the Rajasthan Royals team and on-ground initiatives in the coming months.

MUMBAI: Triton Communications has bagged the creative duties of The Vini Group, a venture promoted by Darshan Patel.
 
Says Patel, “For Vini Group we undertook a qualitative and quantitative research for five to six months to understand consumer needs because I firmly believe that insights are critical for product development.”
 
“I have worked with Triton for many years and know their capabilities, their ability to create communications that work with our target audience. My comfort level with the Triton team is an added bonus,” adds Patel.
 
Triton Communications director Munawar Syed said, “Patel is clear of his objectives and understands the role of advertising in creating and building brands that have a rational and emotional connect. We are delighted to be back with him.”

MUMBAI: The Indian advertising industry is set to grow at a CAGR of 14.1 per cent to touch Rs 426.9 billion in 2014, says a recently released Ficci-KPMG report.

The report notes that amidst an uncertain economic environment and low industry sentiment that prevailed in 2009, the Indian advertising industry managed to almost sustain its media spend levels of 2008, falling marginally by 0.4 per cent to stay at Rs 220.3 billion (Rs 221.2 billion in 2008) for the calendar year.
 
 
With the market picking up in the second half of 2009, the advertising industry is expected to grow by 12 per cent in 2010 to reach Rs 246.9 billion.

“While the worldwide advertising forecast for 2009 was estimated to fall by 5.5 per cent, Indian advertising revenues were not subjected to similar reductions. The marginal fall of 0.4 per cent was not pervasive across media platforms,” the report notes.
 
Television and Internet advertising managed a growth of 7 per cent and 25 per cent respectively, whereas other platforms registered a de-growth of over 5 per cent.

The year 2009 brought in focus on the bottom line margins and greater consciousness on discretionary spend amongst advertisers.

In segment wise distribution, television is expected to garner a greater percentage of the total advertising revenues and constitute the largest share of the overall media spend eventually.

While print continued to dominate advertising spend in 2009, it lost a fraction of its overall market share to other mediums. Despite a 4.6 per cent fall in advertising revenues, agencies continue to be bullish on print advertising in 2010 and 2011, the report states.

In 2009, with declining spot rates and an increased focus on market expansion, the total number of advertisers increased by 7 per cent on print and 11 per cent on television. Compared to 2008, both regional print and television gained a larger share of advertising volumes while national players marginally lost their hold.

Some interesting points in the report are that the advertising spends by Real Estate, InfoTech, Financial Services, Retail and Apparel sectors fell significantly in 2009 while that by FMCG, Telecom and Education are believed to have increased over 2008. However, the distribution of advertising spends across categories saw some shift. Several FMCG brands including Coke and Pepsi joined the online advertising platform.

Also, IT and Telecom players continued their digital spend while the share of BFSI sector in online advertising volumes declined. Education, which largely dominates advertising on print media, found coverage on national television and radio. The luxury segment which had until recently restricted advertisements to English newspapers and magazines, saw television and OOH campaigns for niche brands such as Mont Blanc.

For other Asian markets such as Singapore, Hong Kong, China, Japan and Philippines, advertising spend over the last few years has accounted for approximately 1.2 to 3.5 per cent of the GDP. However the share of advertising spends in India remained in the low range of 0.4 to 0.47 per cent. So, with India’s GDP expected to grow at nearly 7 to 8 per cent in 2010, the outlook for the year looks to be more promising with advertising growth returning to double-digit levels.
 

MUMBAI: The Indian Premier League (IPL) and Topps, which works in the area of sports and entertainment collectables worldwide, have announced a long term partnership to launch a range of new collectable products and trading cards for the IPL in 2011.

Topps has been the market leader for collectable trading cards since inventing the modern trading card in 1952.
 
As part of this association, Topps will introduce a range of IPL collectables that will include stickers, albums and trading cards, which will be sold both at the retail stores and digitally. Topps will support the partnership with a substantial marketing campaign, including TV and sampling initiatives as well as a nationwide ‘Game Play demonstration tour’, which will allow children to play and swap their IPL collectables.

IPL COO Sundar Raman said, “This alliance with Topps – the world leader in collectables, is part of our effort to actively engage IPL fans across multiple platforms. Collectable trading cards are an integral part of any fan experience globally and through this partnership we are happy to introduce Indian fans to this unique and exciting global concept. There have been numerous instances where collectable trading cards of famous players have become invaluable to their owners. I am certain that this association with Topps will set a trend in world cricket for others to follow.”
 
Topps chairman Michael Eisner says, “Topps trading cards and stickers are, around the globe, an integral part of the history and heritage of many sports. Our relationship with the IPL today marks the start of a new era for IPL cricket fans that will enable them to connect with their sport, their team and their heroes through the medium of Topps products. The IPL is the most successful and exciting sports league to have been launched in the last 20 years and I am thrilled that Topps will be part of it”.

MUMBAI: English Premiere League (EPL) club Manchester United has signed a five-year multi-million dollar sponsorship deal with telecommunications group Telekom Malaysia (TM).

The deal will make TM the integrated telecommunications partner of the Old Trafford club in Malaysia. 
 
Manchester United enjoys a large fan base in Malaysia and this deal will help raise their profile further. TM was also an official partner for Manchester United‘s Asia Tour in 2009. Both the deals have been brokered by sports marketing agency Total Sports Asia (TSA).

Manchester United CEO David Gill said, “Anyone who went on our tour of the Far East last summer knows the strength of feeling that Malaysians have for the club. Over 40,000 attended our training session and another 40,000 came to the second match in Kuala Lumpur, despite only having 48 hours‘ notice of the fixture.”

Last summer, Manchester United signed a four-year shirt sponsorship deal with the insurance giant Aon Corporation. Aon will replace US insurer AIG, which is restructuring itself having received a $150 billion bail-out from the US government. 
 
The new sponsor will appear on Manchester United‘s shirts from the start of the 2010/11 season.

Gill also used the partnership announcement as proof that the club owners, the Glazer family, had a long-term commitment to the club in the face over ongoing fan support for a rival takeover bid by the Red Knights consortium.

“We will be around for the length of this deal and many more in addition to that. This demonstrates the strength of the club. It is a long-term partnership for five years. It doesn‘t get much media coverage but the very fact they have come in and are able to do these deals benefits us. We can reinvest that money back into the team,” Gill added.

MUMBAI: In a major goof up, an advertisement placed in newspapers by the Railways has marked Delhi in Pakistan and Kolkata in the Bay of Bengal.

In January this year, a ministry ad had made a serious goof up wherein a full-page advertisement was published in a national daily on the occasion of National Girl Child Day. It carried a photograph of former Pakistan Air Chief Marshal Tanvir Ahmed along with photos of Kapil Dev, Virender Sehwag and Amjad Ali Khan. The ad also had the pictures of the United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and the Women’s and Child Development Minister Krishna Tirath.
 
This time, the ad is one step ahead and has put the national capital in Pakistan.

The advert was published by the Eastern Railway to announce inauguration of luxury tourist train ‘Maharaja‘s Express‘. Ironically, the piece was about Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee flagging off the train on Saturday.
 
A small box inside the advertisement panel showed the train route from Kolkata to Delhi via Gaya, Varanasi, Bandhabgarh, Khajuraho, Agra and Gwalior. However, the small map of India showed Kolkata in the Bay of Bengal and Delhi in Pakistan.

After the blooper, Eastern Railway public relations officer has apologised for the ad and has suspended the advertising agency.
 

MUMBAI: Business Branding Network (BBN) International, a global federation of ad agencies, will commence its India operations with Eggfirst.

As a part of the new arrangement, Eggfirst will don a new avatar: Eggfirst BBN India.

Eggfirst, on account of the tie-up, will have access to BBN’s knowledge resources and patented communication tools, lending a global edge to Eggfirst’s communication approach. Moreover, Eggfirst’s clients can make most of the extensive global network comprising 26 agency members in 32 locations with 1,500 advertising professionals.
 
Eggfirst BBN India CMD Ravikant Banka said, “’Think global, act local’ is a cliché now but we hope to make it our underlying philosophy. We are glad to be a part of an international network. However, we will have true celebrations only when we use the network to deliver more value to our clients in terms of incisive strategies and world-class creative. We have already started work for a large medical diagnostics equipment brand.”

Jeff Wedeward, part of Executive Board of BBN International, said, “We are committed to providing successful support to global brands on local basis in terms of local execution, local understanding and most importantly, local passion. Eggfirst, its clients and prospects will be able to take advantage of 1,500 working communication specialists placed in 26 agencies in 32 locations in almost every country having a viable economy.”
 
Gudmund Semb, who heads BBN-Germany, added: “India has tremendous importance for the BBN organisation in terms of international reach, knowledge and business opportunities. I look forward to a significant presence in India through Eggfirst and its team.”

Started in 1987, BBN is a global organisation with 26 member agencies across 32 locations on the globe. It has $568 million of gross billings and $85.2 million in revenues. 
 
Founded in 2004 by Ravikant Banka, Eggfirst BBN India is a full service ad agency with two delivery centres in India. With more than five years experience, Eggfirst now has more than 55 people and has serviced over 200 clients. Some of the key clients Eggfirst has worked for include Star Group, Eureka Forbes, Oberoi Mall, 3 Global Services, Honeywell, DBS Bank and TCS.

MUMBAI: After seeking temporary refuge in South Africa last year, the return of the Indian Premier League (IPL) to India was expected to shore up ratings. But, despite reach going up, the ratings for the popular T20 format has stayed flat.
 
The IPL clocked an average TVR of 5 for the first three matches, same as last year, according to Tam data for All-India market. For the inaugural edition, the ratings were higher at 5.6.

In IPL3.0, the first match between Hyderabad and Kolkata got a rating of 5.9. The second match, which started at three in the afternoon between Mumbai and Rajasthan on 13 March, fetched a lower rating of 3.7. The third match between Punjab and Delhi on the same day got a rating of 5.4. 
 
Despite the impressive music acts and Bollywood presence, the opening ceremony only got a rating of 2.6 on 12 March.

In digital homes, the first three matches got a rating of 6.9 while the opening ceremony got a TVR of 4.2.

On the reach front, the IPL has locked in 37 million viewers for the first three matches, up from 29 million last year and 26 million in the first year. 
 
According to Tam data for the first five matches, the top advertisers were Vodafone Essar, Samsung and Videocon Industries. The top on-screen advertisers were Jaquar, Hyundai and Hero Honda.

The top brands were Vodafone Cellular Phone Service, LG Infinia Full Led, Tata Docomo, Max Newyork Life Shiksha Plus and Airtel Cellular Phone Service. On screen, the top brands were Artize, Hyundai, Jaquar, Hero Honda CBZ Extreme and Videocon Mobile Phones.