ITV

Category: Media and Advertising

  • Publicis Media India makes key restructure and appointments

    Publicis Media India makes key restructure and appointments

    MUMBAI: Publicis Media today unveiled structure and leadership appointments for its organisation, as announced Publicis Media, India CEO Anupriya Acharya. As per the announcement,

    Mallikarjun Das (Malli) has been appointed Group CEO of Starcom India. His team will include Sarfaraz Khimani, Co-CEO Performics.Convonix, Pallav Jain, Co-CEO Performics.Convonix, Basabdatta Chowdhuri who now takes on the role of national COO, Starcom India.

    Furthermore, Tanmay Mohanty has been appointed as Zenith India Group CEO., with Performics.Resultrix MD Mayoori Kango in his team.

    “One of the greatest strengths of our new organization in India is its team of leaders, all of which have proven track records within our system. They have been integral in accomplishing what we have in the last 2-3 years and now committed to setting strategy and charting the course for the new organization,” Acharya said.

    She added, “The new structure that follows the framework of the global vision is fully equipped to fit the future and best serve our clients. It is a fresh opportunity to simplify our organisation, invent more modern approaches to gain effectiveness and efficiency, introduce structures for greater collaboration, and drive new levels of client value and delight”.

    Publicis Media, India will consolidate its agency brands: Starcom Mediavest, Zenith Optimedia, Equinox, Performics, Convonix, Resultrix, Ninah, Newcast into four agency brands that are in line with the global structure, namely: Starcom , Zenith, Mediavest | Spark, Optimedia | Blue 449

    In this new model, the agency network names of Starcom Mediavest Group and ZenithOptimedia Group are retired to better enable a flatter organisational structure. VivaKi capabilities will be fully integrated into Publicis Media’s Global Practice model. Performics will remain Publicis Media’s global performance marketing brand and scale within all agency brands.

    Apart from the two CEO appointments for Starcom India and Zenith India, other key appointments the media agency giant announced are as follows

    Dnyanada Chaudhari will lead Publicis Media Exchange

    Santosh Ghosh will lead Data, Technology & Innovation

    Aarti Bharadwaj will lead Analytics, Research & Insight

    Gautham Pingali will lead Business Transformation and Content

    Communications will be led by Anushree Chandran.

    At a Publicis Media India level, Rajesh Viswanathan is appointed Chief Financial Officer, Saswati Sinha is appointed Chief Talent Officer.

    Starcom Chairman Hanley King has moved on to a global role within Publicis Media, his role is taken over by Malli

    Zenith Managing Director Hari Krishnan is also moving on to pursue other opportunities. Comments Anupriya, “We thank Hari for all his contributions and wish him the best. Another key appointment in Zenith, under Tanmay’s leadership will be announced in due course.”

  • Housing.com bets on advertising dollars from the real estate industry

    Housing.com bets on advertising dollars from the real estate industry

    MUMBAI: Earlier in May, real estate portal Housing.com had stirred up the market after announcing a 200 percent revenue growth month-on-month with a target to hit USD 10 million by the end of this financial year. For those who have been following the company’s progress since its inception in 2012, the figures show a great improvement since the start-up’s nationwide launch in 2015.

    After co-founder Rahul Yadav’s exit from the company made several headlines last year, a cloud of uncertainty was hanging over the real estate tech giant. Acting quickly to counter this and wave away any doubts from investors, the company made a slew of upper management changes – right from the CEO to the CMO of the company.

    Along with this came a sharp shift in the company’s business strategy. Housing.com users could no longer look apartments for rent on the site; it was solely dedicated to buying and selling of properties.

    “We never thought of ourselves as a classifieds company or a mere listings aggregator. We are much more than just a search and discovery platform. We are a true product and tech company which is using technology to solve the real estate buying and selling problem in India,” clarified its chief marketing officer Nikhil Rungta, who joined Housing.com in November last year.

    This new focus on buying and selling strengthened the portal’s opportunity to monetize itself through advertising. With close to 4 million visits per month, Housing.com is now one of the largest online platforms in India. If the figures shared by the company are to be believed, Housing.com has a larger reach than many English dailies in the country. So naturally there is an opportunity for the real estate companies to use this platform to promote their brand and their projects amongst a target audience, which has a very high intent towards buying property.

    The company launched a series of digital advertising products for developers and brokers to provide maximum customer exposure and return on investment for their home sales efforts.

    The new strategy seemed to have clicked for the company, to churn out 200 per cent growth in revenues each month. “We are delighted with the response we are seeing in the market and are confident about the company’s revenue position in the future. To achieve such a strong performance when the real estate sector is going through tough times is a testament to the value that Housing.com as a company and platform is delivering to stakeholders,” said Housing.com CEO Jason Kothari.

    Divulging on the types of different products Housing.com has to offer to its client, Rungta shared, “From products which help in brand building to performance products which drive leads and sales. For example, we recently launched India’s first ‘Privilege Price Card’ (PPC) for the real estate sector. It is a unique product that helps buyers get access to some of the best deals and special prices on properties across India enabling them to buy their dream home. We believe that the PPC has the potential to transform the way homes will be bought and sold in India, both, for homebuyers and developers.”

    In addition, the company offered customized digital marketing services to large developers to more effectively and efficiently drive home sales and build developer brand equity. There are also new innovative products being piloted that are slated to launch next quarter.

    “Our builder and broker partners get access to high intent homebuyer audience on Housing.com. This makes their marketing very targeted and helps build the brand consideration amongst people who are relevant and are looking to buy or sell a home,” Rungta added.

    The CMO also pointed that a shift in the mind set the otherwise traditional real estate industry has also helped Housing.com to penetrate further into the market.

    “While the industry is traditional but the mind-sets are becoming very modern. Builders and brokers have realized the importance and role of digital in the homebuyer’s journey and they do not want to miss out on this key touch point. Even Google pointed out recently that over 50 percent of the prospective buyers start their search online,” he shared.

    While Housing.com is busy finding advertising solutions for its clients, it hasn’t been farsighted about its own marketing strategy. Earlier heavily visible through OOH medium, the portal launched its first TVC, which was later continued on the digital platforms as well.

    “We recently launched a set of video stories called ‘Yeh ghar meri jaan’ stories. 70 percent of our budget is directed towards Digital, 20 percent towards traditional media and 10 percent is for experimentation on new / emerging media,” explained Rungta on the breakup of its advertising budget.

    With the ambitious target of USD 10 million, Rungta assured that Housing.com will continue to pay keen attention to three core areas while marketing, namely: attracting the right and high intent audience, Engaging them with relevant products and listings, and retaining them by becoming their trusted partner in their journey of buying a home.

  • Housing.com bets on advertising dollars from the real estate industry

    Housing.com bets on advertising dollars from the real estate industry

    MUMBAI: Earlier in May, real estate portal Housing.com had stirred up the market after announcing a 200 percent revenue growth month-on-month with a target to hit USD 10 million by the end of this financial year. For those who have been following the company’s progress since its inception in 2012, the figures show a great improvement since the start-up’s nationwide launch in 2015.

    After co-founder Rahul Yadav’s exit from the company made several headlines last year, a cloud of uncertainty was hanging over the real estate tech giant. Acting quickly to counter this and wave away any doubts from investors, the company made a slew of upper management changes – right from the CEO to the CMO of the company.

    Along with this came a sharp shift in the company’s business strategy. Housing.com users could no longer look apartments for rent on the site; it was solely dedicated to buying and selling of properties.

    “We never thought of ourselves as a classifieds company or a mere listings aggregator. We are much more than just a search and discovery platform. We are a true product and tech company which is using technology to solve the real estate buying and selling problem in India,” clarified its chief marketing officer Nikhil Rungta, who joined Housing.com in November last year.

    This new focus on buying and selling strengthened the portal’s opportunity to monetize itself through advertising. With close to 4 million visits per month, Housing.com is now one of the largest online platforms in India. If the figures shared by the company are to be believed, Housing.com has a larger reach than many English dailies in the country. So naturally there is an opportunity for the real estate companies to use this platform to promote their brand and their projects amongst a target audience, which has a very high intent towards buying property.

    The company launched a series of digital advertising products for developers and brokers to provide maximum customer exposure and return on investment for their home sales efforts.

    The new strategy seemed to have clicked for the company, to churn out 200 per cent growth in revenues each month. “We are delighted with the response we are seeing in the market and are confident about the company’s revenue position in the future. To achieve such a strong performance when the real estate sector is going through tough times is a testament to the value that Housing.com as a company and platform is delivering to stakeholders,” said Housing.com CEO Jason Kothari.

    Divulging on the types of different products Housing.com has to offer to its client, Rungta shared, “From products which help in brand building to performance products which drive leads and sales. For example, we recently launched India’s first ‘Privilege Price Card’ (PPC) for the real estate sector. It is a unique product that helps buyers get access to some of the best deals and special prices on properties across India enabling them to buy their dream home. We believe that the PPC has the potential to transform the way homes will be bought and sold in India, both, for homebuyers and developers.”

    In addition, the company offered customized digital marketing services to large developers to more effectively and efficiently drive home sales and build developer brand equity. There are also new innovative products being piloted that are slated to launch next quarter.

    “Our builder and broker partners get access to high intent homebuyer audience on Housing.com. This makes their marketing very targeted and helps build the brand consideration amongst people who are relevant and are looking to buy or sell a home,” Rungta added.

    The CMO also pointed that a shift in the mind set the otherwise traditional real estate industry has also helped Housing.com to penetrate further into the market.

    “While the industry is traditional but the mind-sets are becoming very modern. Builders and brokers have realized the importance and role of digital in the homebuyer’s journey and they do not want to miss out on this key touch point. Even Google pointed out recently that over 50 percent of the prospective buyers start their search online,” he shared.

    While Housing.com is busy finding advertising solutions for its clients, it hasn’t been farsighted about its own marketing strategy. Earlier heavily visible through OOH medium, the portal launched its first TVC, which was later continued on the digital platforms as well.

    “We recently launched a set of video stories called ‘Yeh ghar meri jaan’ stories. 70 percent of our budget is directed towards Digital, 20 percent towards traditional media and 10 percent is for experimentation on new / emerging media,” explained Rungta on the breakup of its advertising budget.

    With the ambitious target of USD 10 million, Rungta assured that Housing.com will continue to pay keen attention to three core areas while marketing, namely: attracting the right and high intent audience, Engaging them with relevant products and listings, and retaining them by becoming their trusted partner in their journey of buying a home.

  • ‘Feel Yourself’ for Breast Cancer awareness by Ufaan.org

    ‘Feel Yourself’ for Breast Cancer awareness by Ufaan.org

    MUMBAI: “There are various subjects in our society that needs to be talked about to normalize them” says Ufaan.org founder Vikram Tyagi. The digital production house and YouTube channel Ufaan.org has been in news for a while with prominent online portals sharing their content for social change videos. Recently, it has rolled out a short film for breast cancer awareness, called Feel Yourself. The film promotes awareness about regular self checkups for breast cancer, as these could be the first alarm call to save from a potential health hazard.

    ​public://ufaan.png​

    The film has garnered many eyeballs within a short span of release and has been shared by ,many prominent portals. “My mother has been through the disease and she first got to know about the disease through self-checkup. Through this video, we are attempting to convey a message simply that, it is better to be aware than regret later.” added Tyagi

    Ufaan.org is entirely dedicated to social causes videos. It has produced content around various serious issues like Nikah halala, according to which a divorced Muslim woman is forced to marry another man and have sex with him, before she can remarry her first husband. Male equality with a campaign called #screwequality. One of Uffan’s pioneer work was every mother’s worst nightmare, the film that spoke about child molestation and touched many hearts. The channel has focused on several similar matters.

    ​public://ufaan 2.png​

    Brands like UrbanClap has joined hands with ufaan. Recently, UrbanClap offered free photoshoots for LGBT couples, ufaan produced a beautiful LGBT campaign around the offer, which was well received. Ufaan has also produced many videos for digital platforms like ScoopWhoop among others. Also, ufaan has been associated with Oxfan to conduct a social experiment on male-female equality.

    The channel claims that awareness videos play a vital role in awakening youth towards things that should be changed and online content is the best medium to get people talking about such issues. “By creating such content on media, we want people to open up to taboos that society has created. Such videos are liberating the society” claims Tyagi.

    ​public://ufaan 3.png​

    According to the sources, the in house production of short films can cost between Rs. 40,000 to Rs. 70,000. The actual cost could however vary and depends mainly upon production requirements. The channel’s promotion strategy is that its prime focus is content. “We try to make simple content that people can relate to and it can get viral.” said Tyagi. ufaan also asserted that it does not involve in paid online promotion as that does not help videos reach the right audience. It focuses on viral elements and enhance the potential of the video.

    The major revenue model  is brand collaborations and production hiring. The channel claims that it is not focused on monetary gains at the moment but is emphasizing on brand building. “Our aim is to be referred for our genre of content” said Tyagi.

    public://ufaan4.png

    Feel Yourself is an in-house production for ufaan. The film is produced by Vikram Tyagi, directed by Surya and shot by Arjun Kukreti. It has been shot in Delhi. The channel plans to come up with some big brands tie-ups in a couple of months. However names could not revealed due to contract closure.

  • ‘Feel Yourself’ for Breast Cancer awareness by Ufaan.org

    ‘Feel Yourself’ for Breast Cancer awareness by Ufaan.org

    MUMBAI: “There are various subjects in our society that needs to be talked about to normalize them” says Ufaan.org founder Vikram Tyagi. The digital production house and YouTube channel Ufaan.org has been in news for a while with prominent online portals sharing their content for social change videos. Recently, it has rolled out a short film for breast cancer awareness, called Feel Yourself. The film promotes awareness about regular self checkups for breast cancer, as these could be the first alarm call to save from a potential health hazard.

    ​public://ufaan.png​

    The film has garnered many eyeballs within a short span of release and has been shared by ,many prominent portals. “My mother has been through the disease and she first got to know about the disease through self-checkup. Through this video, we are attempting to convey a message simply that, it is better to be aware than regret later.” added Tyagi

    Ufaan.org is entirely dedicated to social causes videos. It has produced content around various serious issues like Nikah halala, according to which a divorced Muslim woman is forced to marry another man and have sex with him, before she can remarry her first husband. Male equality with a campaign called #screwequality. One of Uffan’s pioneer work was every mother’s worst nightmare, the film that spoke about child molestation and touched many hearts. The channel has focused on several similar matters.

    ​public://ufaan 2.png​

    Brands like UrbanClap has joined hands with ufaan. Recently, UrbanClap offered free photoshoots for LGBT couples, ufaan produced a beautiful LGBT campaign around the offer, which was well received. Ufaan has also produced many videos for digital platforms like ScoopWhoop among others. Also, ufaan has been associated with Oxfan to conduct a social experiment on male-female equality.

    The channel claims that awareness videos play a vital role in awakening youth towards things that should be changed and online content is the best medium to get people talking about such issues. “By creating such content on media, we want people to open up to taboos that society has created. Such videos are liberating the society” claims Tyagi.

    ​public://ufaan 3.png​

    According to the sources, the in house production of short films can cost between Rs. 40,000 to Rs. 70,000. The actual cost could however vary and depends mainly upon production requirements. The channel’s promotion strategy is that its prime focus is content. “We try to make simple content that people can relate to and it can get viral.” said Tyagi. ufaan also asserted that it does not involve in paid online promotion as that does not help videos reach the right audience. It focuses on viral elements and enhance the potential of the video.

    The major revenue model  is brand collaborations and production hiring. The channel claims that it is not focused on monetary gains at the moment but is emphasizing on brand building. “Our aim is to be referred for our genre of content” said Tyagi.

    public://ufaan4.png

    Feel Yourself is an in-house production for ufaan. The film is produced by Vikram Tyagi, directed by Surya and shot by Arjun Kukreti. It has been shot in Delhi. The channel plans to come up with some big brands tie-ups in a couple of months. However names could not revealed due to contract closure.

  • Women encouraged to challenge set norms in new Vivel campaign

    Women encouraged to challenge set norms in new Vivel campaign

    NEW DELHI: Through a unique message, personal care brand Vivel has launched a  #AbSamjhautaNahin campaign with a television commercial aimed at asking women to challenge the compromising way of life.

    In the TVC, the protagonist voices her soft yet firm “Ab SamjhautaNahin!” and depicts just one of many uncomfortable situations that a woman often encounters.

    The aim is to raise its voice addressing the specific issue of pre-conditioned mindsets for women, leading them to compromise at various stages in their lives

    Chief Creative Officer: Vivek Rao

    Directors: Subir Chatterjee & Namita Roy Ghose

    Production Company: White Light Moving Pictures Limited

    The TVC has been conceptualised by L&K Saatchi & Saatchi to present an everyday situation faced by modern day Indian women at workplace and to communicate the brand message that every gaze, every thought that suggests women being weaker or less than equal needs to be shattered.

    According to the concept, “We have all heard the fable about the mighty elephant tethered by a mere rope, unaware of its inherent strength because it was conditioned into believing that the rope was enough to hold it back. In a similar vein, women in India from a very young age have been taught to conform to societally accepted ways of life. Moulding her thinking and behaviour to fit within the prescriptive boundaries of the way others want to see her.  A social conditioning that leads to a life of restrictions, a life less lived”.

    As the campaign unfolds, it will provoke in women the realisation of this latent conditioning, inspire them to challenge status quo and therefore maximise their potential and live fuller lives.

    Law & Kenneth Saatchi & Saatchi CEO & Managing Partner Anil Nair said: “Not every day we get an opportunity, especially in the personal care category to creatively amplify a brand’s strong point of view. This is a ‘what we believe in’ campaign and we sincerely hope that we can inspire women to say #AbSamjhautaNahin in their own unique way