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Tag: eBay

  • Divya Chadha returns as head of marketing for Amazon Music India

    Divya Chadha returns as head of marketing for Amazon Music India

    MUMBAI: Divya Chadha, one of India’s most dynamic marketing minds, has struck a new chord—this time with Amazon Music. After a six-year symphony at Spotify India where she scaled listener love and podcast adoption, Chadha has returned to the Amazon fold as head of marketing, based out of Mumbai.

    With stints at eBay, Amazon.in and Spotify already under her belt, Chadha brings a treasure trove of brand-building battle scars and a marketing mindset that’s as sharp as it is strategic. From powering up Amazon Great Indian Sale and Mr & Mrs Verma to orchestrating Spotify’s rise in India’s music and podcasting game, she’s played it all—mass media, user acquisition, podcast evangelism, trust-building, and category creation.

    Her Spotify run was marked by memorable campaigns driving both free and premium user base growth, top-of-mind brand recall, and a noticeable uptick in subscriptions and podcast listenership. At Amazon, she had earlier shaped India-first brand narratives like Adjust No More, Apni Dukaan, and Try Toh Kar, and even led Amazon Fashion’s #MustHave push.

    Before she turned into a full-blown marketing maestro, Chadha was also part of the merchandising and campaign ecosystem at eBay, where she helped scale direct marketing to over 20 per cent of revenue and crafted category-level storytelling across fashion, home and lifestyle.

    Now back in Amazon, this time with rhythm and reach in mind, she’s all set to amplify Amazon Music’s voice in a noisy, competitive Indian streaming market.

    Let the music—and marketing—begin.

  • Sociowash scales Mumbai operations with bigger office space

    Sociowash scales Mumbai operations with bigger office space

    Mumbai: Leading integrated advertising agency, Sociowash, reinforced its commitment to the city that never sleeps by moving into a bigger office space in Andheri.

    Founded in 2015 by Pranav Agarwal and Raghav Bagai, Sociowash, headquartered in Delhi, extended its operations to Mumbai in early 2020 with a team of five. Over the last four years, the agency’s Mumbai team has grown 20x to 100 talented professionals and has secured new business with clients like Tide, eBay, Ambi Pur, Oral-B, LEAD, Old Spice, Viacom18, and more.

    The new, larger workspace offers Sociowash Mumbai the flexibility and space, to meet the needs of its growing clientele while offering the necessary infrastructure an ultra-fast-paced and collaborative work environment requires.

    Sociowash co-founder Pranav Agarwal said, “We are super excited about the speed with which the team is growing and expanding in Mumbai. Moving to a dedicated space will enable our growing team to collaborate more effectively, fostering creativity and efficiency in delivering exceptional ad campaigns for our clients”

    Sociowash co-founder Raghav Bagai added, “Sociowash is home to some exceptionally talented individuals who are passionate about what they do. This growing team of highly motivated and passionate individuals inspires us to achieve greater milestones and push boundaries together. The Mumbai office is a huge feat for us as it reflects a growing demand for our services and the dedication and talent of our team members. We will strive to keep moving onwards and upwards.”

     

  • Nishant Nayak becomes FanCode’s chief product officer

    Nishant Nayak becomes FanCode’s chief product officer

    MUMBAI: Digital sports fan destination FanCode from the house of Dream Sports, has appointed Nishant Nayak as its chief product officer (CPO). He will lead the product strategy to realise FanCode’s vision of becoming the largest sports fan platform in the country.

    Prior to joining FanCode, he was based in Berlin, Germany as Zenjob head of product. He brings with him over 20 years of global experience in product & technology. His expertise lies in leading end-to-end product functions for eCommerce marketplaces like eBay, Flipkart, Zalando, and Zenjob, with a focus on aligning products with the brand vision & strategy including market expansion. 

    FanCode co-founder Yannick Colaco said, “We’re pleased to welcome Nishant into our FanCode family. He joins us as a core member of our leadership team and will help us accelerate towards our ambition of becoming a 10 crore+ strong community of sports fans.”

    Nayak said, “As an avid sports fan myself, FanCode’s mission to build India’s biggest digital sports fan destination is a truly exciting challenge. I look forward to working with the highly talented FanCode team in building a personalised and engaging experience for sports fans everywhere.”

  • WPP acquires Cloud Commerce Group to strengthen its commerce offering

    WPP acquires Cloud Commerce Group to strengthen its commerce offering

    Mumbai: International advertising group WPP has acquired Cloud Commerce Group (CCG), a UK-based technology company that helps brands to market, sell and deliver their products across e-commerce platforms and marketplaces globally, such as Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and Wayfair.

    CCG will merge with Wunderman Thompson’s global network offering, Wunderman Thompson Commerce, a platform that aims to support brands across the e-commerce journey including the connection of customer acquisition and multi-platform commerce with inventory, warehousing, and partnerships.

    CCG helps brands market, sell and deliver to customers working with some of the most widely-used online marketplaces, while also supporting European retailers and wholesalers through its software integration. It also works with brands such as Ford, IBM, Mars, and Mondelez. The multi-channel e-commerce software platform employs over 100 people across Europe.

    This acquisition reflects WPP’s ongoing investment into strengthening its commerce offer for clients and is aligned with the group’s accelerated growth strategy and focused M&A approach, building on existing capabilities in the areas of experience, commerce and technology, stated the company.

    “Clients look to WPP to help them market, sell and fulfil across multiple e-commerce channels and marketplaces,” stated WPP CEO Mark Read. “With over £1 billion in revenue transacting through its platform, Cloud Commerce Group already has demonstrable scale and success in managing the complex omnichannel commerce needs of global brands. I am excited about how CCG’s expertise will further strengthen the breadth and depth of our commerce offering to deliver growth for our clients.”

    Founded by Mark Hallam and Stuart Forrest in 2015, the e-commerce solutions company is headquartered in Lancaster, England and will see its 100-plus employees across Europe join WPP as a result of the merger.

    “The team at WPP are excited by our existing roadmap for developing the Cloud Commerce Pro platform and expanding our marketing services through Cloud Seller Pro and, with the investment and experience WPP bring in growing businesses, we will be able to achieve those goals faster and take on new integrations and markets,” said the statement.

    “This acquisition by WPP is the next step of the journey for CCG and we are excited about the opportunities this will present to our hard-working team and growing customer base,” it added.

  • Guest column: Brandsville beckons ‘genuine’ empathy

    Guest column: Brandsville beckons ‘genuine’ empathy

    GURUGRAM: The article is inspired by the great recent occurrences in Brandsville and published in the interest of all creative thinktanks in our fraternity.

    WhiteHatJr lost its battle too soon. But it has jolted us marketers to think and analyse. The takeaway of the entire episode is that consumers are as well informed as the brand and can’t be considered naïve no more. An implication of information technology, it is one of the first times when we saw an uprise in India’s burgeoning knowledge society. Empathy is an aptitude that enables us to feel and express what someone else is feeling. It is something that is offered and brands have an advantage there.

    Consumers simply don’t want to purchase products. They want to make connections and relationships. There are many factors that add meaning and purpose to a brand, and they can all be derived from one source – empathy.

    Today’s consumers are not only interested in consuming content. Rather, they are actively seeking out content that prompts change, in both themselves and the world around them, allowing brands to build an emotional connection with their audience.

    The ability to think about the world from someone else’s point of view is an absolutely critical quality that content marketers must possess. The sanctity of a brand’s empathy is in creating a shared journey with the target audience. When we start interacting with our customers in a more personalized way, it will make them feel special. That catalyses brand value.

    Brands’ Dos and Don’ts for 2021

    The brand should act on the value to treat consumers as people (Well, this should be followed at all times nonetheless). Brands should demonstrate the values through supportive actions for all stakeholders.

    The brand should not get involved only in virtue signalling, which is only backing an idea to look good in public. It implies the brand entering a hibernation without communicating with the consumers, signalling an overly opportunistic behaviour in times of uncertainty.

    eBay prides itself on its rich history of launching small businesses and had an idea to make it a bit easier for these smaller organisations to make it through this tough time. To help out during the Covid2019 outbreak, eBay in California, started its ‘Up & Running’ program, an accelerator program pledging $100 million in support for small businesses and making eBay Store free for three months. With this support offered by the brand the small businesses will have a better chance of surviving the pandemic. The program will help them connect at a personal level with the aspiring entrepreneurs and it is equally impactful than an ad campaign.

    Some famous brands have also used this key ingredient in their branding recipe to add a purpose. Ogilvy’s Cadbury advertisement released during Diwali starts with a most intriguing line: “Not just a Cadbury ad.” The brand has tried to reach out to 1,800+ local retailers, across 260+ pin codes, whose businesses are promoted locally through this ad. The brand has been effective in evoking empathy among small businesses, who have received the worst blow of the pandemic’s economic fallout.

    The campaign is a great step to show that the problems faced by the people are understood by the brand. An assurance that it will do whatever is within its reach to help them out.

    Empathy branding isn't just a ‘feel-good’ technique

    Empathy allows marketers to step into the shoes of their target audience so they can better understand and respond to their wants and needs. Many times it is not just the core product offering at all. Emotion is like the lighthouse that guides the boats of consumer’s brand loyalty and their buying decisions. We have to create and algorithm that the consumers relate with and then create the marketing content which will put across the brand’s message in the most impactful way.

    One way to connect with consumers is to present an image of ‘realness’ This creates compassion and connection, presenting a brand as ‘just like you.’ Brands are using this very secret ingredient of empathy as a cherry on top of the cake.

    Empathy is about ringing the right chord with the individual’s emotions. Nike has a legacy of identifying and narrating inspiring stories of the indomitable human spirit. The sports brand's 2020 viral campaign received great praise online for its message of inclusiveness and perseverance as organised sports were immensely affected by the pandemic.

    The Covid crisis has created a very different situation for consumers of the travel industry. In August this year, Makemytrip came up with a digital campaign ‘Azaadi Wali Feeling' coaxing travellers to plan those much-delayed trips. Yet, it didn’t ripen enough for the traction desired. OYO Rooms took up the task around the same time to bring back consumer confidence with safety and hygiene towards travel. It launched the campaign ‘Road Tripping’ – Dekho Apna Desh. The articulately planned campaign hit the TG well and was rather engaging.

    At the end of the day, the simplest version of understanding what a brand is, is what your customers feel about you, what makes the company unique and understanding what the biggest needs and values of the customers are. Empathetic marketing follows the golden rule: "Do (treat) unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Let us remember that social distancing is for humans, not for brands.

    (The author is integrated marketing specialist at Topline Consulting Group. Indiantelevision.com may not subscribe to his views.) 

  • Alex Schultz named new Facebook CMO

    Alex Schultz named new Facebook CMO

    NEW DELHI: Facebook has named its former VP – product, growth, and analytics Alex Schultz as its new CMO. The news comes after former CMO Antonio Lucio moved on from the global social media giant last month to dedicate his time to “diversity, inclusion and equity.”

    The announcement was made by Schultz in a Facebook post, in which he wrote, “I am super proud to be Facebook’s next CMO. Antonio Lucio has left huge shoes and a great team behind and I’m really excited to get stuck in with them. I hope to build on this and bring my experience in segmentation, targeting, and measurement to bear as we work to reach people more meaningfully through our product.”

    Read more news on Facebook

    Schultz has been associated with Facebook since 2007, working across roles, starting off as an analyst. Prior to that, he was associated with eBay as marketing manager and also ran a  few websites of his own. 

  • eBay signs MoU with Uttar Pradesh govt for ‘One District One Product’ program

    eBay signs MoU with Uttar Pradesh govt for ‘One District One Product’ program

    NEW DELHI:  eBay today signed an MoU with the government of Uttar Pradesh for its ‘One District One Product’ program. The MoU will enable MSMEs in Uttar Pradesh to leverage eBay’s cross border platform and sell internationally across 190 countries. As part of the MoU, eBay will not only promote local art and crafts but will also help in skill development and self-employment.

    This association will enable ODOP sellers and traders to seamlessly undertake e-commerce retail exports to over 190 markets in the world through a globally established marketplace platform.

    To empower indigenous crafts and goods and support them with a competitive edge, eBay will offer special schemes (pricing and other benefits) curated specifically for sellers and traders associated with the ODOP cell. In addition to this, eBay will train and provide sellers with requisite knowledge and skill-set about various aspects of online retail including listing products online, shipping policies, and product descriptions amongst others to undertake transactions with audiences across the globe.

    Government of UP additional chief secretary (ACS), MSME & export promotion Navneet Sehgal said, “the government is working to catalyze entrepreneurship and creating an ecosystem that promotes better market for outputs, such as handicrafts, leather products, wood & metal craft. At the same time, the MSME sector needs a bridge to swiftly tap hitherto unexplored opportunities and sell indigenous products in the international market.  This is where the role of companies like eBay becomes pivotal. By leveraging partnerships with rural MSMEs and artisans, eBay, like our other eCommerce partners can help ODOP aligned artisans explore endless opportunities across the spectrum of indigenous skills. In order to achieve ‘Make in India’ greater heights, partnerships like these will play an important role in amplifying the multi-sectoral role that MSMEs can play. I hope eBay will also help us to become a global hub for exports of handicrafts and other goods”.

    eBay India country manager Vidmay Naini said, “We are delighted to partner with the Government of Uttar Pradesh’s One District One Product program. Being a true marketplace, eBay has always recognized the immense potential and scope of MSMEs and artisans from across Indian markets. Through this association, we are delighted to introduce the sellers and artisans from Uttar Pradesh to a world full of opportunities across the globe. We will work in conjunction with the state government to further bring about modifications in policies hereby boosting e-commerce retail trade from Uttar Pradesh.”

    “We are strongly in favor of the Hon’ble Prime Minister’s appeal to be local for vocal and promote Indian entrepreneurs globally,” added Vidmay Naini.

    eBay will work closely with Government of Uttar Pradesh ODOP team to onboard sellers and expand their business globally. The association will also allow eBay access to relevant government bodies, industry, and trade associations and initiate meaningful dialogue to ease the norms for e-commerce retail exports in India.

  • eBay launches #LocalToGlobal Campaign

    eBay launches #LocalToGlobal Campaign

    Mumbai: In line with our Hon’ble Prime Minister’s appeal to Indians to be self-reliant, eBay in India has launched #LocalToGLobal campaign to encourage Indian MSMEs to expand their businesses globally. #LocalToGlobal campaign is part of a larger narrative planned by the brand to showcase the cross-border e-commerce opportunity to homegrown businesses encouraging them to start selling globally.

    The campaign was kickstarted by highlighting “India Se Duniya Tak” narrative with a series of specially curated creatives across its social media handles. The narrative revolves around eBay’s vision of taking Indian products beyond borders and to every nook and corner of the world by creatively accessorizing famous International landmarks with classic Indian elements.  

    As a part of the campaign, eBay has also created a video montage featuring sellers (especially MSMEs and artisans) who have established a global footprint by leveraging the platform. It is also focused on how these sellers feel empowered by eBay in fulfilling their global aspirations. The video ends with the call-to-action for Indian sellers to join forces with eBay to grow their businesses across the globe and fulfil their aspirations to be global entrepreneurs.

    Commenting on the launch, Mr. Pavan Ponnappa, Head – Growth Categories, Shipping & Marketing at eBay said, “eBay has been at the forefront of fostering the culture of entrepreneurship in India. The #LocalToGlobal campaign aims to highlight the potential for Indian products, build awareness among Indian small and medium businesses of this opportunity and the role that the eBay marketplace can play in realizing this business opportunity. There has been a seismic shift in consumer behaviors in the wake of the COIVD 19 pandemic that is seeing growing demand for e-commerce across the globe and Indian MSMEs should capitalize on this by expanding their businesses, thus giving a much-needed push to the economy. We are glad that our marketing service provider Clevertize has been able to translate our vision into this precursor campaign and bring it alive in the most creative fashion”.

    Mr. Sagar Nidavani, CEO, at Clevertize said, “What started as a small topical idea to support #VocalforLocal translated into a beautiful extension called #LocalToGlobal. If 21st century belongs to India, Export has to take the center stage. The campaign captured the imagination of the Indian sellers and got many of them to aspire to sell their products across 190 countries through eBay marketplace platforms. The campaign has reached more than 1 Million Indian Sellers already, with many of them expressing their interest to sell on eBay. This is a step towards establishing eBay as the preferred platform to export for Indian sellers”.       

    To view the video, click on the link:

    YouTube: https://bit.ly/YT-eBay-Seller-Local-To-Global-Montage-Video

    Facebook: https://bit.ly/FB-eBay-Seller-Local-To-Global-Montage-Video

    Instagram: https://bit.ly/Insta-eBay-Seller-Local-To-GLobal-Montage-Video

    LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/LinkedIn-eBay-Seller-Local-To-Global-Montage-Video

  • Brands bullish this festive season but not for Navratri

    Brands bullish this festive season but not for Navratri

    MUMBAI: Marketing mavens are aware that a majority of brand spending in India takes place between August and December every year because of a range of festivals that dot this period. It begins with Raksha Bandhan and chugs ahead with Ganesh Chaturthi and gathers steam in September with Navratri, Durga Pooja and Dussehra, only to move at a superfast speed during Diwali, until the calendar year ends. Indian consumers are in a celebratory mood, flush with cash, courtesy employment bonuses.

    The past 10 months have, however, been different. The reason: the double whammy of demonetisation and the rollout of goods and services tax (GST) put the brakes on optimism. Both forced brand custodians to zip up their ad purses and postpone any spends until customers had money to splurge and the entire GST process – which commenced on 1 July 2017 – panned out.

    Net result: even the months of August 2017 and early September 2017 have seen sedate brand activity. Questions are being asked whether marketers are ready to let their hair down during Navratri 2017 to get consumers back to spending on goodies ostentatiously?

    Indiantelevision.com got in touch with a clutch of marketers and agency heads and the consensus was that a majority of national brands are going to go easy on both, Navratri and Dussehra, but they are going to go hell for leather during Durga Pooja and Diwali, allocating a large chunk of their ad and promotional budgets during these two periods.

    Even in Gujarat, which normally goes into marketing overdrive during Navratri,  there will be some amount of softness this year between 21-29 September.

    “Navratri is clearly the biggest festival in Gujarat which is bigger than Diwali in terms of activations and promotions. It is a big period for Gujarati channels (national and local) as all major FMCG brands, automobile brands and local retailers want to make the most of this season but the spends will be soft this year because of GST and demonetisation,” says a media expert.

    Navratri event organisers in Mumbai and Gujarat had to struggle this year to find sponsors mainly due to the fact that real estate and telecom categories, which otherwise are heavy advertisers during the nine-day festival, shied away, unlike previous years.  The real estate sector was relatively cold as a majority of the developers are busy getting their houses in order to comply with the stringent requirements that new real estate regulations that have been thrust on them by RERA. Adding to developers’ relative lack of enthusiasm is the GST rollout.

    Says a media buyer from a leading agency: “Navratri this year will see a lot of local and retail advertising rather than multinational players. This is a great opportunity for local and small brands to promote themselves on the venue or via various BTL activations at a reasonable cost which otherwise would be priced very high.”

    Indeed, some savvy companies are stepping in to take advantage of the opportunity and spend on the various garba events that have been organised across Mumbai and Gujarat. Thousands gather on various grounds in these two states to dance to the rhythms of dandiya stars — Falguni Pathak, Parthiv Gohil, Preeti Pinky, among other. These events are normally aired on the local cable TV channels as well as on some of the handful Gujarati language channels.

    Consider:

    * ONE Broadband, Hinduja Group’s Flagship Company for Telecom Data Services for Consumer & Enterprise Segments will be offering unlimited 10mbs free Wi-Fi service to the devotees during Navratri season across Maharashtra and Gujarat.

    * Residential, commercial and real estate company Ruparel Realty is the title sponsor for Mumbai’s Navratri Mahotsav 2017 while Colors Gujarati is the television partner for the event. Gujarati queen Falguni Pathak will be seen performing at the event for nine days.

    * Ride hailing app Uber will provide lucky customers with a free gift hamper which consists of free passes for Radio Mirchi Rock n Dhol garba event in Gujarat along with two dandiya sticks.

    * Online e-commerce platforms  Flipkart, Amazon and Ebay have also announced their big sales to commence the festive season encouraging people to buy more products online. The sale on these platforms began yesterday and will go on for a week.

    Dentsu Aegis Network chairman and CEO – South Asia Ashish Bhasin told Indiantelevision.com that there’s no reason to worry, however, as overall he sees the festive season spends this year growing 20 per cent over the last year even as the advertising budgets for the whole year will expand 10-12 per cent. What this means is that the last quarters of this year should contribute heavily, and help make up for the losses during the previous quarters.

    Bhasin notes that consumer goods, automobiles and FMCG  sector are going to go all-out with campaigns to seduce India’s fast-burgeoning middle class.

    A media planner adds that brands are actually drawing up massive plans and there’s actually going to be a shower of spending (mainly by categories like automobiles, real estate, jewelry, electronics along with e-commerce)  this festive season as most of them have got over the demonetisation and GST issues.

    That should be music to most media and TV ad sales professionals who have been toiling away, struggling to meet their ad sales targets.