MAM

Influencer marketing is content: AnyTag’s Shuchi Sethi

Published

3 years ago

August 14, 2023

Mumbai: Influencer marketing as a tool is only growing leaps and bounds with each passing minute. The global influencer marketing industry was pegged at six billion dollars in 2020 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 32 per cent to reach 24.1 billion dollars by 2025. The Indian influencer marketing industry is pacing ahead quickly too. It stood at Rs 900 crore in 2021 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 25 per cent to reach Rs 2,200 crore by 2025.

In a confab with Indiantelevision.com, AnyTag business head Shuchi Sethi discusses the influencer marketing industry, the regulations that have been brought in for the same, the criteria that AnyTag has in place to utilise an influencer for their clients/brands and much more.

AnyTag, an influencer marketing platform that ranks among the top 10 industry players in India, is a tech-driven business for AnyMind Group that combines a powerful influencer marketing and social media analytics platform with influencer marketing experts and strategists across Asia, providing marketers with an end-to-end solution for all influencer marketing activities.

The AnyTag platform enables users to discover, activate, manage, track and attribute influencer marketing activities, providing users with access to over 170,000 influencers and influencer data points globally, and helping them understand more about the performance of their social media activities and followers. Marketers can leverage end-users, nano-influencers, micro-influencers, macro-influencers and top stars for their influencer marketing campaigns.

Sethi is an influencer marketing expert with more than six years of experience who currently leads Anymind group’s AnyTag influencer program in India. She has consulted multiple brands on influencer marketing and content creation campaigns that led to success stories. Previously, she led the business for Buzzerati (Fork Media), was a part of the influencer marketing team at Cheil India, and managed the flagship series for Samsung.

Discussing AnyTag coping with the effects of the pandemic, Sethi says, “Well we had started shop during the pandemic; we came into existence in the Indian market in 2020 right when it was the peak of the pandemic. I would say we have done a good job despite handling everything remotely.”

AnyTag has bagged a few of the most prestigious clients in the market, including Hul, YouTube, Pinterest, which is a global client, BOB, GMR, Nature 4 Nature, and McCain. The influencer marketing platform has also won a few awards for its client – Dabur.

Sethi couldn’t stop stressing the significance of content in influencer marketing, “Influencer marketing is content – that is what it is right now!”

Talking about the approach that AnyTag utilises for building more engaging influencer marketing campaigns, she points out, “Ideas and treatment are the only things that will set any brand apart, and that is exactly what we thrive on.”

Unlike people who think that influencer marketing caters only to the young, Sethi understands that every set of audiences is on a content consumption binge. Different mediums can be used for different sets of audiences.

And she is definitely not the one to shy away from challenges. “What is work without challenges, right? There are challenges, but nothing that is not solvable; we thrive to be better each day and hence create a better ecosystem for our clients.”

Edited excerpts:

On defining the difference or drawing a similarity between influencers and content creators

Well to be honest there is a very thin line between the two. Traditionally, influencers were KOLs, or key opinion leaders, who would be experts on subject matters and would influence the buying behaviour of a certain consumer since they were people who had risen from the common man. Content creators, on the other hand, are people who create content around a certain genre for people to watch and learn. But these days even KOL are content creators and content creators are influencers because of the content format that they are reaching their audience in.

On the major concerns that your clients come up with

There are different concerns for different categories. When we talk about mega and macro influencers, there are very few issues that we face. But when it comes to nano and micro-influencers which is the most important category in order to build authenticity, we face major concerns like content quality, and influencers promoting competition brands within a very short span of time.

On the criteria that you follow for allotting an influencer to a client/brand

There are a lot of criteria that we look into. The first and foremost factor is what the TG of the brand is and who the audience is that they actually want to speak to. Post which we get into qualitative & quantitative analysis. Qualitative being content quality, non-controversial and various other guardrails defined by the brand. Quantitative being engagement ratio, CPV, and audience of their follower base.

On the evolution of influencer marketing over the years

The influencer marketing space has really evolved over the past decade. From us promoting a brand through Twitter trends, to us legit creating organic content for brands. It is indeed very interesting how influencers are now used as brand advocates, which is the way forward for any market. The content created by influencers is not used as a one-off thing or a silo activity; rather, it is being used as branded content, with Instagram helping the brand to be able to promote content. It has become much easier for brands as well to use influencers and content creators wisely.

On AnyTag’s USP and differentiation

We at AnyTag are not just any agency that would go to a client with execution capabilities; we act as a brand advocate and suggest what could be their next big campaign. Ideation, along with data, is what we offer to our brands.

Talking about differentiation, we are a people-driven company, we understand our brands and their needs. With the great relationship that we also share with our influencers, we completely handle everything from end to end. From ideation to literally hand-holding, it is the treatment which sets us apart.

On the regulations that have been put in place for influencer marketing and its effect on clients/brands

I think it’s great that there are rules and regulations in place; the consumer has the right to know if the content is branded or not. A lot of bigger brands had already been doing it, but now that it is a rule, churning out content that looks organic has in fact added to the creativity and helped us create better ideas, which in turn is beneficial for the brand.

On the constantly increasing role of influencer marketing in the promotional mix

Well, if we look at the blue chip companies, they were spending about 15 per cent of their digital budget on influencer marketing, which is ever-growing and ever-increasing. Considering the gestation period in influencer marketing is high, it takes time to show results, so you cannot expect results in a jiffy. Also, influencer marketing is purely brand awareness and brand building, which are subjective for a lot of marketers.

On influencer marketing in India vs globally

India is still a developing country, but influencer marketing here is quite mature. We don’t operate like a developing country. But since this is a market which has five tiers with every tier having a different content consumption state and buying capacity, influencer marketing is different for every tier so much so that even the mediums are different. India is one of the biggest markets for influencer marketing, but again, there is a lot of leakage with a small number of players.

On the influencer marketing trends in 2022, and which are expected to be witnessed in 2023

A few trends that picked up in 2022 and will be prominent in 2023 would be:

· Specialties influencers would be given more importance.

· Nano & micro as a category will grow exponentially

· Regional content will pick up a lot of pace.

· Content creators will themselves become brands and live shopping will play a major role.

· More control over branded content

· Comeback of long-form content

· More transparency

On the innovations in the influencer marketing arena in 2022, and also which are expected to disrupt the market in 2023

YouTube shorts would definitely disrupt the market. Influencers have actually started gathering data for themselves in order to create better content and this is going to be the new norm.

Brands

Netflix India names Rekha Rane director of films and series marketing

Streaming giant bets on a seasoned marketer who helped build Amazon and Netflix into household names

Published

2 weeks ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Netflix has put a proven brand builder at the helm of its films and series marketing in India, naming Rekha Rane as director in a move that signals sharper focus on audience growth and cultural cut-through in one of its most hotly contested markets.

Rane steps into the role after seven years at Netflix, where she has quietly shaped how the platform sells stories to India. Her latest promotion, effective February 2026, crowns a run that spans brand, slate and product marketing across originals, licensed content and new verticals such as games.

A strategic marketing and communications professional with roughly 15 years’ experience, Rane has spent much of her career building technology-led consumer businesses and new categories, notably e-commerce and subscription video on demand. She was part of the early push that introduced Amazon.in, Prime Video and Netflix to Indian homes, then helped turn them into everyday brands.

At Netflix, she most recently served as head of brand and slate marketing for India from March 2024 to February 2026, leading teams across media and marketing for global and local content portfolios. Before that, as manager for original films and series marketing, she led IP creation and go-to-market strategy for titles including Guns and Gulaabs, Kaala Paani, The Railway Men* and The Great Indian Kapil Show, spanning both binge and weekly-release formats.

Her earlier Netflix roles covered product discovery and promotion in India and integrated campaign strategy to drive conversations around the content slate, product awareness and brand-equity metrics.

Before Netflix, Rane logged more than three years at Amazon in brand marketing roles in Bengaluru. There she handled national and regional campaigns for Amazon.in, worked on customer assistance programmes in growth geographies and contributed to the go-to-market strategy for the launch of Prime Video India.

Her career began well away from streaming. At Reliance Brands in Mumbai, she worked on retail marketing for Diesel and Superdry. A stint at Leo Burnett saw her work on primary research for P&G Tide, mapping Indian shoppers’ paths to purchase. Earlier still, at Orange in the United Kingdom, she rose from sales assistant to store manager, running a team and owning monthly P&L for a retail outlet.

The arc is telling. As global streamers fight for attention in a crowded Indian market, executives who understand both mass retail behaviour and digital habit-building are prized. Rane’s career sits at that intersection.

For Netflix, the bet is simple: in a market spoilt for choice, sharp marketing can still tilt the screen. And with Rane now leading the charge, the streamer is signalling it wants not just viewers, but fandom.

Brands

Orient Beverages pops the fizz with steady Q3 gains and rising profits

Kolkata-based beverage maker reports stronger revenues and profits for December quarter.

Published

2 weeks ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: A fizzy quarter with a steady aftertaste that’s how Orient Beverages Limited, the company that manufactures and distributes packaged drinking water under the brand name Bisleri closed the December 2025 period, as the Kolkata-based drinks maker reported improved revenues and a healthy rise in profits, signalling operational stability in a competitive beverage market.

For the quarter ended December 31, 2025, Orient Beverages posted standalone revenue from operations of Rs 39.98 crore, up from Rs 36.42 crore in the previous quarter and Rs 33.53 crore in the same quarter last year. Total income for the quarter stood at Rs 42.24 crore, reflecting consistent demand and stable pricing across its beverage portfolio.

Profit before tax for the quarter came in at Rs 3.47 crore, a sharp improvement from Rs 1.31 crore in the September quarter and Rs 0.39 crore a year ago. After accounting for tax expenses of Rs 0.79 crore, the company reported a net profit of Rs 2.68 crore, nearly three times the Rs 0.99 crore recorded in the preceding quarter.

On a nine-month basis, the momentum remained intact. Revenue from operations for the period ended December 31, 2025 rose to Rs 117.66 crore, compared with Rs 106.95 crore in the corresponding period last year. Net profit for the nine months climbed to Rs 5.51 crore, more than double the Rs 2.18 crore reported in the same period of the previous financial year.

The consolidated numbers told a similar story. For the December quarter, consolidated revenue from operations stood at Rs 45.06 crore, while profit after tax came in at Rs 2.06 crore. For the nine-month period, consolidated revenue touched Rs 133.57 crore, with net profit of Rs 4.49 crore, underscoring the group’s improving profitability trajectory.

Operating expenses remained largely controlled, with cost of materials, employee benefits and other expenses broadly aligned with revenue growth. The company continued to operate within a single reportable segment beverages simplifying its cost structure and reporting framework.

The unaudited financial results were reviewed by the Audit Committee and approved by the Board of Directors at its meeting held on 7 February 2026. Statutory auditors carried out a limited review and reported no material misstatements in the results.

In a market where margins are often squeezed by input costs and competition, Orient Beverages’ latest numbers suggest the company has found a reliable rhythm not explosive, but steady enough to keep the fizz alive.

MAM

Washington Post CEO exits abruptly after newsroom cuts spark backlash

Leadership change follows layoffs, protests and a bruising battle over trust.

Published

2 weeks ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: When the presses are rolling but patience runs out, even the editor’s chair isn’t safe. The Washington Post announced on Saturday that its chief executive and publisher Will Lewis is stepping down with immediate effect, bringing a sudden end to a turbulent two-year tenure marked by financial strain, newsroom unrest and public backlash.

Lewis’s exit comes just days after the Bezos-owned newspaper announced sweeping job cuts that triggered protests outside its Washington headquarters and a wave of anger from readers and staff. While newspapers across the US are grappling with shrinking revenues and digital disruption, Lewis’s leadership had increasingly come under fire for how those pressures were handled.

The Post confirmed that Jeff D’Onofrio, a former Tumblr CEO who joined the organisation last year as chief financial officer, has taken over as CEO and publisher, effective immediately. In an email to staff, later shared by reporters on social media, Lewis said it was “the right time for me to step aside.”

The leadership change follows the announcement of large-scale redundancies earlier this week. While the Post did not officially confirm numbers, The New York Times reported that around 300 of the paper’s roughly 800 journalists were laid off. Entire teams were dismantled, including the Post’s Middle East bureau and its Kyiv-based correspondent covering the war in Ukraine.

Sports, graphics and local reporting were sharply reduced, and the paper’s daily podcast, Post Reports, was suspended. On Thursday, hundreds of journalists and supporters gathered outside the Post’s downtown office in protest, calling the cuts a blow to public-interest journalism.

Former executive editor Marty Baron described the moment as “among the darkest days in the history of one of the world’s greatest news organisations.”

Lewis defended his record in his farewell note, saying “difficult decisions” were taken to secure the paper’s long-term future and protect its ability to publish “high-quality nonpartisan news”. But his tenure coincided with growing scrutiny of editorial independence at the Post.

Owner Jeff Bezos faced criticism for reining in the paper’s traditionally liberal editorial page and blocking an endorsement of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris ahead of the 2024 US election. The move was widely seen as breaking the long-standing firewall between ownership and editorial decision-making.

According to a Wall Street Journal report, around 250,000 digital subscribers cancelled their subscriptions after the paper declined to endorse Harris. The Post reportedly lost about $100 million in 2024 as advertising and subscription revenues slid.

While the wider newspaper industry continues to battle declining print advertising and the pull of social media, some national titles have stabilised. Rivals such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times have managed to build sustainable digital businesses, a turnaround that has so far eluded the Post despite its billionaire backing.

As Jeff D’Onofrio steps into the role, the challenge is stark, restore confidence inside the newsroom, win back readers who walked away, and prove that one of America’s most storied newspapers can still find its footing in a brutally competitive media landscape.