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  • GUEST ARTICLE: Why advertising industry is the best tool to fight against raging inflation?

    GUEST ARTICLE: Why advertising industry is the best tool to fight against raging inflation?

    Mumbai: Everyone is talking about inflation these days. The cost of living is rising, and people are struggling to make ends meet. In such an unstable economic climate, it’s more important than ever for businesses to stay afloat. And one of the best ways to do that is through advertising.

    Advertising helps businesses by creating demand for their products and services. It also educates consumers about what’s available on the market and how to make informed purchase decisions.

    Inflation can be a daunting challenge, but with the right advertising strategy, your business can weather the storm. Advertising plays a key role in fighting inflation by creating demand for goods and services. When people are aware of new products and services, they are more likely to purchase them, which increases demand and ultimately helps to keep prices stable.

    Advertising also helps businesses promote special sales or discounts that can help reduce the cost of goods and services.

    How does advertising help fight inflation?

    Advertising is not just a powerful tool to sell products and services; it is also an effective weapon to fight inflation. By keeping demand high and stimulating competition, advertising can help keep prices in check and prevent them from spiralling out of control.

    When inflation is high, advertising can encourage people to shop around for the best deals on items they need. This helps keep overall prices down as businesses compete for customers. Advertising can also help businesses keep their prices in check. By publicising special offers and discounts, businesses can entice customers without having to raise their prices. It can also inform consumers about special offers and discounts that may be available, helping them to save money on purchase prices.

    Advertising can also help bring new products and services to market quickly, which can help break the cycle of inflation by offering consumers more choices and driving down prices.

    Ultimately, advertising is a key part of any economy and plays an important role in keeping inflation under control. When used correctly, it can be a powerful tool for businesses and consumers alike.

    What are some examples of successful advertising campaigns that fought inflation?

    Inflation is a major problem in many countries around the world, and advertising can be an effective tool to help fight it. There are a number of successful advertising campaigns that have been used to fight inflation, and here are just a few examples:

        The “I Defy Inflation” campaign by Coca-Cola in 1974 was a very successful way to fight against rising prices. The company placed ads featuring a can of Coke with the words “I Defy Inflation” printed on them, and this helped to increase sales and combat inflationary pressures.

        Another great example is Procter & Gamble’s “P&G Cares” campaign from 1985. This campaign featured ads that showed how P&G products were helping families save money on their grocery bills. The campaign was very effective in combating inflationary pressures and helping people save money.

        A third example is Nike’s “Just Do It” campaign from 1988. This famous slogan helped inspire people to get up and take action, even in the face of adversity or tough economic times. The slogan was very effective in combating inflationary pressures and helping people stay positive during tough economic times.

    These are just a few examples of successful advertising campaigns that have been used to fight against inflation. Advertising can be a powerful tool to help combat this problem, and there are many more examples out there of companies and brands that have used it effectively.

    Conclusion

    In the current day and age, inflation is a huge problem that many countries face. Advertising can be used as a powerful tool to help fight inflation. By using advertising, businesses can increase consumer demand, which in turn will help stabilise prices.

    Additionally, advertising can help promote products and services that are new or on sale, which can encourage people to spend more money. Overall, the advertising industry is a great way to help combat inflation and should be used more often.

    The author of this article is Wing Communications CEO & founder Shiva Bhavani.

  • GUEST ARTICLE: Why do brands need to be more vigilant about brand infringement attacks?

    GUEST ARTICLE: Why do brands need to be more vigilant about brand infringement attacks?

    Mumbai: The meaning of brand safety has evolved over time for marketers. In traditional marketing, a marketer’s focus was to ensure their trademarks and copyrights were protected.

    When it came to brand safety, brands primarily focused on making sure their advertisements appeared in a safe environment.

    With the evolution of the digital era, things became complicated for brands. Today, brand safety is more than just safe ad placement. It has grown to the point where it is necessary to take the right measures to combat infringement attackers who target unsuspecting and trusting customers of the brand.

    The evolution of threats in the digital era

    As digital technology took a revolutionary leap, fraudsters also took bigger and smarter steps to con marketers. They have used the digital realm as a medium to steal the trademarks and intellectual property of brands and use them against them.

    In most cases, this digital theft leads to the theft of money or information from people who are loyal to the brand.

    The fraudsters look for one loophole to seep through the brand’s protected assets and use them for their own benefit. And with the evolution of the digital arena, fraudsters are becoming smarter. With time, infringement attacks have gone beyond just tampering with the intellectual property of a brand.

    Some of the evolving infringement threats looming on the brands are:

    ATO attacks: The fraudsters have mastered the skill to replicate and misuse the brand’s domain, website, and logo. They have broadened their level of attacks from just intellectual properties to stealing the brand’s consumer data.

    One of the highest-growing infringement threats to brands is account takeover attacks, where a fraudster gets access to a person’s online account. Generally, the fraudster takes over the account of the user and locks them out of their own account. According to a recent report, ATO attacks have increased by up to 90 per cent in the past two years.

    The consequences of the ATO attacks are not limited to consumer data leaks. It leads to the brand losing the trust of a loyal customer. When a user’s account is compromised, they are unable to access the brand’s website or services.

    The user’s data is a gold mine for fraudsters, as they use it to steal payment details and make purchases. Either the money is directly taken from the accounts or the points on shopping sites and apps are used to buy goods and services.

    While the pandemic has caused a surge in ATO attacks, it has also made it necessary for brands to be more vigilant to protect their consumers’ data. To bring trust and safety to the entire customer experience journey, brands must take charge and ensure consumer data protection.

    Fake customer care numbers: Fraudsters have hacked not only consumer data but also brand customer service numbers. With the growing demand for being online, brands have started putting their customer care numbers online. And the con artists have discovered yet another winning pot from which to profit.

    The number of cases where people have been duped by a fake customer care executive has increased. When a consumer searches for the number online, they find the customer care number available. But here is the catch.

    The fraudsters put fake customer care numbers under the name of a legitimate brand. And when consumers call on these numbers, they are often fooled into transferring money.

    Eventually, the fraudster gets the money, the consumer loses the money, and the brand name used to dupe them loses its reputation without their knowledge.

    Spam emails: The search engine is no longer necessary because fraudsters can now enter the inbox without raising suspicion. The fraudsters can use a brand’s email template, and logo to reach out to their consumers, just like a legitimate brand. In most cases, they lure users with things like an “extravagant offer” or an “urgent message” to take quick action.

    Usually, the user is either asked to share their personal information in exchange for the offer or asked to download an app or visit a website. When the user takes the action, the fraudsters get access to their information and can misuse it for their own gain.

    This is a wake up call

    As digital marketing is set to take new leaps, cyber risks are also looming in the digital era, which is going to impact both brands and their loyal consumers. And with the growing threats, the need for brands to incorporate a shield for their new digital world has become a necessity. Thus, the brands have to go beyond the traditional definition of brand safety. To uphold the brand’s reputation, the brands have to focus on a solution to protect not just their brand but also their consumers and stakeholders.

    The author of this article is mFilterIt director and co-founder Amit Relan.

  • GUEST ARTICLE: New trends in the video production market 2022

    GUEST ARTICLE: New trends in the video production market 2022

    Mumbai: There is no doubt that video marketing is the most engaging medium to connect with consumers and is also enthusiastically embraced by the masses.

    A recent report indicates that YouTube has experienced a 20–30 per cent increase in views, and social media videos have reached an all-time high, with 56 per cent of consumers watching more videos each month on social media platforms. While video production is gaining momentum, the focus is not limited to humorous skits or influencers. Rather, there are several companies dedicated to creating videos that deliver value to their customers. 

    In a recent study, four out of ten internet users follow brands that interest them (and are considering purchasing from). Also, 35 per cent of YouTube views are attributed to brand-owned videos, and 70 per cent of e-commerce brands have increased their advertising budgets for videos.

    Looking closely, we have found the following trends in marketing video production that are expected to continue into 2022 and beyond. 

    ●     Short-form video

    The short-form video has gained traction across almost all content platforms, including Instagram Reels, Snapchat, and YouTube Shorts. There is a likelihood that this trend will continue, with videos becoming “snackable,” which means they can be consumed between other forms of content in a short attention span.

    When it comes to what needs to be served to the consumers, a marketer needs to be able to achieve more within a shorter period of time. In most cases, you will have less than 30 seconds to catch your audience’s attention and explain your point. Fortunately, video allows you to achieve this. Visuals, audio, and text can be combined effectively to communicate a shorter message. 

    Let’s take a look at a few best practices for short-form video production:

    ●     The first few seconds matter – Gain their attention right away to prevent them from swiping or clicking away.

    ●     Don’t forget mobile – As over 75 per cent of video content is viewed on mobile devices, it is essential to use mobile-friendly links and vertical formats for viewing. With the latest video technology, it is even possible to create videos that adjust based on the device used by the viewer.

    ●     Posts affect where it goes – Keeping in mind that different websites and apps have differing content styles that work best and often have different audiences when making videos is essential.

    ●     Animated Explainer Videos

    Animation explainer videos enable you to capture your audience’s attention while maintaining it throughout the video. The most appealing aspect of animated explainer videos is that they showcase your brand’s personality in an enriching and informative manner.

    Many companies worldwide continue to use animated videos to promote their products and services. Animated videos are also used for various purposes, such as educating customers, training new employees, and many others.

    Moreover, since more and more people are viewing videos on their mobile devices, creating videos that are optimised for smaller screens is paramount. Forecasts indicate that animated explainer videos will become more popular as a form of video marketing by 2022.

    ●     Shoppable social media videos

    A shoppable and interactive video marketing strategy will dominate the video marketing segment in 2022. A viewer can be a part of the story or message by participating in the video. You may receive a different result if you click on the other objects that are projected on the screen.

    There may also be questions or choices you must make that have an impact on the video’s plot. Over the years, shoppable videos have also evolved. In 2022, shopping videos will significantly increase the interaction level among their customers. As a result, shoppers will have an easier time, and conversions will increase dramatically.

    Shopping can be performed directly from the video, hence there is no need to leave the site. This trend is unmatched in popularity.

    ●     Webinars and live streams

    A live stream or live webinar has become an increasingly popular way of sharing content in the past few years. It is a great way to increase brand awareness and traffic to your website, and it allows your followers to interact directly with you.

    Combining this approach with the podcast offers you the opportunity to leverage multiple channels for marketing purposes. Apart from this, businesses and content creators can use live webinars to generate leads and sell products.

    If you plan on conducting live webinars, you should invest in a good-quality microphone.

    ●     Vertical videos 

    If you scroll through social media feeds, you will notice that most videos are vertical in nature. The orientation of a vertically oriented video differs from that of a horizontally oriented landscape video.

    In 2017, Snapchat and Instagram began supporting these videos, and their popularity has continued to increase with TikTok. In vertical videos, the viewer may see more of the subject’s face than in horizontal videos. Moreover, they may feel closer to the matter as the camera is closer to their faces.

    This eventually makes it ideal for sharing on social media platforms, where users scroll through their feeds and wish to view quick, engaging videos. However, this video style is likely to remain popular for the foreseeable future.

    ●     User-generated content

    There is no doubt that marketing strategies rely heavily on user-generated content, and video content is no exception. User-generated content is one of the top trends in video marketing for 2022, and YouTube’s ability to attract and retain users indicates its effectiveness.

    According to studies, user-generated video content receives ten times as many views as branded content. The good news doesn’t stop there: once users land on a site via UGC, they spend twice as much time as they used to on the previous content. It is also well known that user-generated video can convert users into customers at a rate almost double that of static content.

    Video UGC also increases the likelihood that these users visit an e-commerce site and make a purchase by 184 per cent, and makes sure that these users spend 45 per cent more on the e-commerce website. This approach is particularly effective in industries that heavily rely on user opinions, such as travel and health.

    Even if your company does not operate within these industries, video content generated by users is a practical part of your video marketing strategy for 2022. 
    Final Thoughts

    It is undeniable that the trend of using video content in marketing has continued over the past decade. To succeed in digital marketing, you must have a detailed understanding of video marketing trends. No matter if you are a professional videographer or not, you should be familiar with the use of video content in marketing and design. You will see incredible results if you incorporate it into your online marketing strategy. Take advantage of all the trends and statistics related to video marketing on our website. This would aid your marketing campaigns and social media efforts to ensure that your prospects remain engaged with your content.

    The author of this article is GPPL co-founder and managing partner Anjali Chauhan.

  • GUEST ARTICLE: Crisis communication: Planning for the worst; hoping for the best

    GUEST ARTICLE: Crisis communication: Planning for the worst; hoping for the best

    Mumbai: Few situations test an organisation’s reputation as brutally as a crisis. Corporations and crises go hand-in-hand. Whether the effect is instant or sustained over a period of time, a crisis affects stakeholders both inside and outside the organisation. Customers grow anxious. Employees get nervous. Management gets interrogated. Shareholders get impatient. Competitors sense an opportunity. The media increases scrutiny. The pressure is high, and the stakes are higher. It is in critical times like these that organisations should be able to seamlessly switch from their current marketing communication to hard-core crisis communication.

    On any given day, organisations pay utmost care, attention, and tact to build their brand image. But, when a catastrophe hits, crisis communication becomes the lifeblood of the brand, ensuring that the reputation and image of the organisation are maintained. From a communications standpoint, a crisis attracts public scrutiny, threatening the brand’s ability to conduct business. Preparation and sound judgement become critical for survival.

    In today’s time, real-world catastrophes play out on all media and all platforms second-by-second, requiring prompt crisis communication. A crisis invites negative media mentions across the board: press, social media, TV, and radio. Hence, the response has to be multichannel. People want news and information in a crisis. During such times, if information is unavailable or inconsistent, people feel unsure about what they know or hear and are on the lookout for a credible and transparent message to guide them towards a positive future.

    But they usually don’t navigate directly to the organisation’s website for news and information; rather, they actively search and scan through multiple sources. Brands should be cognizant of this and ensure that they are serving this need. All marketing budgets and all focus should be shifted to relevant crisis communications and content so that all dangers of fake information are thwarted and damages are limited. In such scenarios, an empathetic ear is what is required.

    Showing empathy during a crisis is crucial. One of the more debated tenets of crisis communication is that someone involved in a crisis must be prepared to empathise and even publicly apologise for the events that have transpired. Taking responsibility means communicating what an organisation is doing to remedy a situation that the media and the public are holding the organisation accountable for. People want to hear from the brand, but more importantly, they want to be heard and shown that their feedback is taken into consideration. In addition to this, something tangible needs to be done to help people. Brands need to be able to walk the talk. Consumers tend to remember the brands that have helped them through rough times. This increases brand stickiness when the bad phase passes.

    Additionally, brand communication should always have a transparent and authentic tone. Hollow promises do more harm than doing nothing. While brands have plenty at stake during a crisis, communication with sincerity and not promotion tugs at people’s hearts.

    Crisis communication is designed in a way to keep people safe, help them adjust, and cope emotionally. In a crisis, people’s information needs to evolve. So should a good communicator’s messaging. Different forms of information can help listeners feel secure and connect to a deeper sense of purpose and stability. Brands should send out simple messages—a lot of messages—through all communication channels, including in-app messages, video messages, podcasts, broadcast, print, social media, or any other media, to sort out the chaos for all. Keeping crisis communication simple and easy-to-consume for everyone will ensure acceptance. As with all communication, messages in times of crisis should have a clear objective and be relevant and tailored to the target audience.

    Also, in times of crisis and change, highlighting an organisation’s competency is important. Stakeholders need to be reminded that all unprecedented situations will be handled meticulously. Crisis communications should be share-worthy and something to remember in the times to come. In addition, word-of-mouth helps spread a brand’s message and reach a wider audience. Colleagues should be encouraged to share the message internally and externally wherever relevant.

    Crisis communication is an art. With a sound strategy, it is capable of navigating the organisation smoothly through choppy waters. In times like these, the best way is to communicate, communicate, communicate.

    The author of this article is PayNearby chief marketing officer Jayatri Dasgupta.

  • GUEST ARTICLE: Top trends shaping the gaming industry

    GUEST ARTICLE: Top trends shaping the gaming industry

    Mumbai: Today’s gamers are accustomed to exploring realism-based 3D environments and interacting with hundreds or thousands of other players in real-time, a far cry from the blocky, unsophisticated sprites that many of us played as children. The infrastructure set up by game creators to make this possible is based on some of the most cutting-edge technology, including super-fast 5G and cloud networking, as well as powerful processors.

    Some major trends in the gaming industry are: 

    1. Cloud gaming

    The majority of the major video game developers now offer their titles through cloud-based subscription services. As long as gamers have smart TVs and small streaming devices, they won’t need to keep purchasing and upgrading pricey, power-hungry hardware and keeping it in their homes. The cloud data centre serves as the hub for everything, and streaming video is the result that is delivered to households.

    Furthermore, the continued adoption of lightning-fast networks like 5G will lead to a time when more people than ever will be able to access this new method of game delivery. All things considered, even though it’s not a given that specialised home gaming systems will vanish from our lives, 2022 is a year when business leaders will increase their investments in their vision of a streaming, cloud-based future.

    2. Virtual reality

    Over the previous five years, VR gaming has rapidly grown in popularity. One of the most thrilling gaming experiences of the coming year is anticipated to be provided by VR. Consumer headsets are becoming more and more accessible because of the declining cost of hardware. Additionally, they benefit from being able to operate both alone and when linked to a gaming PC to take advantage of the latter’s specialised skills to offer even more realistic and visually sophisticated VR experiences. Cloud VR may become a reality soon, further shrinking the size of headsets.

    3. The metaverse

    Millions of gamers now assemble in virtual worlds to participate in every sort of entertainment, and this concept of in-game worlds expanding to include various forms of entertainment will surely have a significant impact on the gaming business and culture in 2022. The largest franchises and games will increasingly reinvent themselves as “platforms,” enabling a considerably wider variety of user experiences. Others will find space in these worlds to participate in networking, conversing, or other sorts of shared interaction.

    The benefit of retaining users on their platforms will be seen by game developers, who can do this by increasing their loyalty as subscribers or by turning them into a captive audience for advertisers of all stripes. 

    4. NFTs and blockchain

    In a rather contentious move, a number of major game developers announced plans to incorporate non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as a mechanism for players to win, earn, and trade exclusive in-game items. Some of these initiatives may start to materialise in 2022.

    Not all gamers are on board with the concept, especially because many believe that these tokens are a waste of energy. This is because the complex blockchain algorithms required to run them require a lot of processing power. However, it’s likely to become a reality because game publishers have stated that they believe the convergence of gaming and NFTs has a bright future and that they are willing to pay money to accomplish it.

    The proliferation of ‘play-to-earn’ games that give players cryptocurrency rewards for participating in regular play is another emerging trend.

    5. Esports

    Esports mostly refers to the evolution of video games to incorporate elements more frequently found in professional sports, such as live audiences, tournaments, leagues, sponsorships, and paid athletes. Esports will be included in a significant international multi-sport competition for the first time at the 2022 Asian Games, where they will make their official debut as a competition. Esports experienced a boom in popularity during the covid pandemic, as it did with many other forms of digital entertainment. In 2021, it earned over one billion dollars in revenue for the first time, primarily from media rights and sponsorship, and it is anticipated that it will reach nearly $2 billion in revenue by 2022.

    Furthermore, 73 million viewers watched the League of Legends World Championship final in 2021, a 60 per cent increase over 2020, and it is anticipated that this record will once again be broken in 2022. This proves that video games have indeed developed into spectator sports, and over the upcoming year, we should expect to see both an increase in the number of professional players and a rise in prize money.

    The author of this article is Glued founder Vikram Narula.

  • GUEST ARTICLE: Artificial intelligence: The key ingredient to boost the growth of the advertising industry

    GUEST ARTICLE: Artificial intelligence: The key ingredient to boost the growth of the advertising industry

    Mumbai: For a layman, the term “artificial intelligence” is usually associated with robots and voice assistant software like Alexa and Siri or Elon Musk’s self-driving cars. Many people don’t think about the scope of AI beyond these concepts. However, the aforementioned use cases of AI are just the tip of the iceberg.

    In reality, the power of AI cannot be summarised in a few words or applications, as an infinite number of AI-enabled tools and interfaces are working behind the scenes to make the lives of consumers and other stakeholders a lot easier.

    This is especially true in the business world. AI has played a pivotal role in putting products and services in front of potential customers through social media or other means, even though it wasn’t widely recognised or understood. An impactful form of marketing, AI-enabled advertisements present themselves before customers only after learning and assessing their online preferences, shopping behaviour, and other necessary inputs.

    And soon, the fast-emerging advertising industry realised that the days of manually asking for customer inputs are behind us, as AI can do this job in the background. This was just the beginning of an AI hurricane that swept the advertising world off its feet. Automation technology evolved, and so did its applications.

    Against this backdrop, we will discuss AI’s role in the advertising industry and its advantages in-depth. Without further ado, let’s dive in!

    The emergence of adtech: A comprehensive overview

    If there’s one industry with a genuine case of AI fever, that is advertising, aka adtech. From the desktop sidebar ads in the 1990s to mobile advertising and the user recognition capabilities of CTV marketing, the advertising industry has evolved dramatically over the past two decades. Everywhere the eye can see today is likely an advertisement. One can thank the internet and new technologies like AI and ML (machine learning) for this drastic change.

    Gradually, as remote access to stable internet connections and the widespread distribution of smartphones and smart televisions increased, the pathway to video and online ads became clearer. Some significant industry experts believe that the launch of the iPhone and the consequent smartphone market growth played a considerable role in augmenting the acceleration of adtech, specifically online advertising.

    A 2021 InMobi report revealed that programmatic mobile video ads had registered a 194 per cent increase in India. This proves the widespread adoption of video ads as a more effective source of advertising than others, as they are better at connecting and engaging with the audience. But this is just one example of the new wave that enveloped the advertising industry and pushed it toward the path of unprecedented success.

    The latest tools and approaches are taking the adtech world by storm

    Interactive ads: Going over and beyond

    Interactive advertising is a contemporary marketing technique that enhances customer participation. The primary focus is to ensure that consumers engage with and interact with the ad, directly or indirectly, and provide real-time feedback on the relevant campaign. The idea is to not limit the audience from viewing the ad but to make them feel its presence and relevance. There are different ways to implement interactive advertising. Here are a few pioneering examples:

    1. 3D impact: A solution that offers immersive experiences to consumers by leveraging advanced animations to deliver multiple messages in one video. Utilising this, advertisers can improve customer brand recall, enhance the ROI, and make a high impact.

    2. 3D wobble: A solution that delivers compact and efficient information through a comprehensive UX powerhouse. It adds a noteworthy twist to ads and increases user engagement, brand conversion ratio, and click through rate (CTR).

    3. Shoppable unit: A solution that appears as a deck inside a conversational flow. It allows customers to swipe and check out the sequence of product images. This is an effective solution for brands gearing up to streamline their sales and marketing strategies.

    CTV advertising: Think bigger

    Connected TV advertising (CTV) is a type of advertising approach placed on any smart TV with the facility to connect to the internet. CTV essentially depends on a large TV screen, which enables advertisers to engage audiences in a linear TV-like environment.

    It allows advertisers to create a one-to-many relationship with the audience (propelled by co-viewing) compared to other advertising methods where advertisers establish a one-on-one relationship with their target customer base. There are several ways to implement CTV advertising. Here are a few suggestions:

    1. Split screen: The split screen technology offers viewers a non-disruptive, non-intrusive, side-by-side creative display. This ensures that consumers don’t miss any key details or pay attention to the content they are consuming while consciously or subconsciously watching the display ad.

    2. Brand assimilation: By harnessing the power of mighty brand assimilation, advertisers can manipulate visual effects and place brands in a place where they get seen by customers seamlessly and effortlessly.

    3. Persuasive overlay: This approach includes a contextualised and commercial interactive video that connects with the audience through powerful content. The video is created in such a fashion that consumers can quickly connect the display with the brand.

    Wrapping up

    The use cases, solutions, and approaches mentioned above clearly demonstrate that AI is not the distant future of adtech but its present. This remarkable technology plays a crucial role in helping advertisers deliver highly engaging and non-intrusive ads while providing incremental revenue to publishers. Additionally, given that AI can automatically generate the ad while keeping customer preference in mind, advertisers don’t need to engage their manual workforce for such tasks and can easily concoct their next ad campaign.

    AI has made it incredibly easy for advertisers to leverage its many benefits while simultaneously saving money and optimising efficiency to a noteworthy extent. Adequately handling this can improve the overall effectiveness and ROI of ad campaigns, making the entire concept more rewarding.

    The author of this article is VDO.AI founder and CEO Amitt Sharma.

  • GUEST ARTICLE: Marketing innovations being done by alcohol companies to reach consumers and the challenges

    GUEST ARTICLE: Marketing innovations being done by alcohol companies to reach consumers and the challenges

    Mumbai: Allied Blenders and Distillers (ABD) is the largest Indian spirits company and the third largest by size in the country.

    At ABD, we think differently. The category makes you do so, as many avenues open to consumer products marketers are not available, despite being a trending industry with consumers and a very significant revenue generator for governments. We simply can’t advertise in the media, and therefore communicating product benefits or special offers is not part of our plan. However, what it does achieve is to make marketers in alcoholic beverage organisations absorb a lot more human insights, which play a role over time in building brand personalities and positioning. Many successful brands have been able to build their communication skills, albeit over time, to engage with consumers in different ways and create a story.

    A marketer in the alcohol beverage industry must be multi-faceted and equally adept at alcohol marketing as well as other categories critical to creating a surround, such as music, other performing arts, lifestyle, or large and small experiential events. The marketer should be able to join the invisible dots to create a big picture while working on every detail. The person should also be able to wade through a very strong regulatory environment for actual product labels and mandatory requirements as each state has a different set of rules which change almost every year.

    In India, the alcohol consumer does visit the retail and on-premises (bars, pubs, etc.). Engagement in these places is positive. While it’s low on time in traditional retail, modern trade allows for browsing and a better consumer experience. On-premises is great for engagement as the consumer is there for an extended time. Brand visibility, awareness and recall are also achieved through sponsorships, mostly of sports and performing arts, with line extensions, which must be played by a rulebook. Communication has added responsibilities in this category, and all major organisations understand that well.

    The best way to engage consumers is through product innovations. India is primarily a whisky-consuming country, other than a couple of states in the South, which predominantly drink brandy. Limited editions, flavours, low alcohol products, craft spirits and beer are all finding their feet and engaging new consumers. It builds curiosity in a category that is normally close to the hearts of its consumers.

    ABD has just launched some very disruptive products with Srishti Premium Whisky with an infusion of curcumin, the active ingredient of turmeric or haldi. Interestingly, the infusion has no change in the sensorial; that is, in taste, aroma, or colour.

    At ABD, we also launched Sterling Reserve B7 Whisky Cola. We’ve used the award-winning whisky blend and infused it with cola to add a zing to every drinking occasion. The whisky cola mix retains the colour of whisky in the bottle, in a glass with water, soda or when consumed as a shot. It is sure to appeal to the younger audience.

    The ABD MetaBar is the first ever. It’s our presence in the metaverse, and we put out our recent mainline launch of ICONiQ White Whisky first on the MetaBar prior to our physical market launch. It exemplifies how innovative thinking as a marketer can push different routes and position a brand and a company differently while opening our minds to a future that is almost unreal but so very real.

    The author of this article is Allied Blenders and Distillers chief strategy, marketing and business development officer Bikram Basu.

  • GUEST ARTICLE: Mobile OEM advertising solutions are helping D2C brands ace their performance marketing game this festive season

    GUEST ARTICLE: Mobile OEM advertising solutions are helping D2C brands ace their performance marketing game this festive season

    Mumbai: Due to conservative market behaviour since March 2019, covid-19 has restricted businesses from taking a full-scale marketing approach. However, mobile user penetration has grown enormously since the same period in India due to the increase in usage of internet services and the affordability and economic viability of smartphones. The upsurge in the use of mobile technology has led to an accelerated growth in the consumption of D2C mobile apps. Moreover, with mobility and in-person interactions returning to life in 2022, consumer behaviour toward D2C brands is also drastically growing.

    As the festive season in India is about to hit the roof, D2C brands are expected to garner significant attention and demand, and consumer sentiment looks upbeat, particularly in tier I & II cities. For these brands, the expectation of such seasonality means growth in revenue through performance marketing, as consumer brands during special promotions and festivals in India are proven to generate more business.

    Boom expected in the post pandemic era…

    As per the ‘Second Festive Pulse Survey by The Trade Desk/Nasdaq: TTD,’ there will be a 68 per cent increase in Indian shoppers this festive season with nearly seven in 10 shoppers intending to shop on D2C sites. While observing the current trends, there is increased competition between D2C brands as they become more focused on their ad spends to maximise growth during this festive season despite the concerns over rising inflation.

    App marketing opens up avenues to acquire loyal users for D2C brands…

    Indian D2C brands are thriving with an omnichannel marketing avatar that includes a mix of DOOH, TV, and digital ads using search and social, print, and more. While measuring the success of traditional marketing methods is difficult, one can effectively measure the ROAS (return on ad spend) with performance marketing through mobile OEM (original equipment manufacturer) app marketing.

    Leveraging OEM app marketing strategies to acquire users during this peak festive period can give D2C brands a more lucrative ROAS and increase user engagement. In addition, with mobile OEMs, D2C marketers can tap into untapped audiences and help them unlock a newer and more efficient revenue stream.

    Mobile OEM advertising offered by mobile OEMs such as Xiaomi, Huawei, Oppo, Vivo, and Samsung can help D2C brands with enabling app discoverability: D2C brands can leverage appographic targeting to target users with similar apps and unique app interests beyond the category during the festive season.

    Appographic targeting with mobile OEMs is potent in providing high-value users and acts as a powerful strategy for app marketers.

    Better Visibility: To increase ad visibility during special promotions or festivals like Diwali in India, D2C mobile apps can take full advantage of “app store featuring” with display formats such as Splash and Interstitial ads. In addition, mobile OEMs offer unique ad placements for special shopping and discount cards during the festive season.

    Increased re-engagement: Few mobile OEMs offer down-the-funnel re-engagement for m-commerce apps with special placements during the festive season to regain static users who have been inactive on the app. For such occasions, featured custom placements are highly recommended for increased brand awareness. In addition, D2C apps can also get consultations about the kinds of creatives that best work for the festive season to get the maximum reach and engagement.

    Getting the most of your app marketing strategy for ‘22 festive season…

    While developing creatives for display ads, app marketers must be highly attentive to ensure that their brand resonates with the colour scheme and fonts. It best helps the users identify and engage with the brand. Secondly, since mobile media buying inventories get increased bidding from app advertisers during the festive period, D2C marketers need to book high-impact branding placements on a timely basis. Before the pricing increases, D2C marketers need to plan media buying effectively. Equally important is to explore PMP deals at private marketplaces with mobile OEMs where app marketers can bid on high-performance-based suggested inventories.

    As consumers buy more from brands directly from the brands’ websites or apps, D2C brands should rightfully leave no stone unturned to scale their app marketing efforts and get some fresh eyeballs with a positive outlook on engagement and retention.

    The author of this article is AVOW co-founder Ashwin Shekhar.

  • GUEST ARTICLE: Performance based tracking platforms are ensuring customer centricity and empowering them to grow their business at scale

    GUEST ARTICLE: Performance based tracking platforms are ensuring customer centricity and empowering them to grow their business at scale

    Mumbai: Across geographies, the performance marketing ecosystem is constantly growing and has become more complex over time. It has witnessed fast-tracked growth on the sidelines of both the rise of SaaS platforms and the popularity of affiliate networks. According to Emarketer, total digital ad spending is projected to reach $526.17 billion by 2024, up from $332.84 billion in 2020. The onset of the pandemic made businesses take notice of monetary resource allocation like never before. As a result, in the post-pandemic era, new age tracking platforms enable businesses to make data-driven decisions and scale their operations at the most competitive price points. All this has been made possible by offering the highest level of automation, which continues to empower companies and ventures of all sizes with the tools they need to stay competitive and scale their business.

    Need for tracking platforms to put customers at the centre of all of their actions

    The current market offerings provide limited data insights and require substantial manual work. There are still ample numbers of cases where account managers spend a large extent of their working time conducting repetitive tasks such as approving offers, notifying clients, or creating Excel tables to derive insights. Performance tracking platforms need to listen to customer feedback and, based on that, build their technology stack. Equally important is to remember that every client has different needs and requirements, and they need to be provided with tools so that marketers can successfully measure and optimise campaigns at an affordable price.

    Understanding the four key ways of demonstrating customer centricity and its impact on business growth.

    Never before has it been more important for performance tracking platforms to give customers the freedom to adapt technology to their needs while also reacting to post-pandemic changing environments. This includes modifying, filtering, and enhancing events in real-time.

    Businesses should be given a broad range of tools instead of a one-size-fits-all solution. At the same time, providing clients with full control over their traffic to prevent fraud is indeed the need of the hour.

    Clients should have all their marketing needs in one platform. Automation is key to streamlining processes and giving clients more time to focus on high-value tasks that will grow their business.

    In this regard, performance tracking networks should make critical analytics consistently available on a marketer’s dashboard, making it easier and faster to view performance and take action when necessary. By ensuring customer data reliability through the platform’s comprehensive data display, tracking networks can enable agency partners to have all their data accessible from a single dashboard. They should provide customers with real-time information and innovative automation to give customers time to focus on analytics, strategy, and scaling their business.

    Tracking platforms should strive towards putting customer value at the centre of all of their actions. It is imperative to understand the needs of every customer in order to derive the potential value that they can expect from using the tracking platform.

    Last but not the least, right from onboarding to daily operations, offering customer support services at the highest standard is just as important as the innovative tools and technology that help businesses to scale. These are two sides of the same coin: the innovative technology needed to help businesses scale, and a support service that helps them get the most out of a tracking platform. The onboarding process should be personalised for each client, ensuring that they get the most out of the platform’s innovative tools. Separate dedicated onboarding sessions play a crucial role in helping customers get familiar with their way around the tool from the very beginning. Once clients get familiar with the tool, focus should be put on understanding their use cases to help reiterate key features (such as the automation engine and optimization features) that set the chosen platform apart from other market players. Providing short explainer videos that directly showcase certain features—from how to set them up to refining them for a client’s specific purposes and more – is yet another useful route.

    Time and again, it has been proven that a customer-centric approach empowers marketers to scale their companies, resulting in satisfied customers. If tracking platforms can continue to focus on innovating reliable technology while also putting in place excellent customer service, they can certainly help in accelerating their clients’ business growth.

    The author of this article is Yogeeta Chainani, co-founder & chief executive officer (CEO), Swaarm.

  • Guest article: What to know about the modern marketing playbook in the era of web 3.0 and AI

    Guest article: What to know about the modern marketing playbook in the era of web 3.0 and AI

    Mumbai: For quite a while now, two terms have been making very speedy rounds in marketing circles-web3.0 and artificial intelligence. This new wave of the internet is set to disrupt the way marketing is done globally, commanding quick and agile systems. The reason: this is where the consumers of the future are. As marketing tactics change along with the advent of the digital revolution, new standards will be established at the same time, drastically altering modern marketing.

    What is web 3.0, and what are the new trends it brings to the table

    The third generation of the internet, or web 3.0, integrates data in a decentralised manner to provide a quicker and more individualised user experience. Constructed with the help of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and the semantic web, it uses the blockchain security system to improve privacy and provide an immersive experience with a marketing opportunity. So, businesses stand to benefit from an online presence here, and marketers will get a stronger opportunity to connect with their target customers.

    Web 3.0’s degree of functionality has been attained in the previous two web generations. Its technical ancestor, known as web 1.0, was born in 1989 and reached its prime in the 1990s and early 2000s. Then came web 2.0, which reached its maturity in the middle of the 2000s and introduced the novelty of collaborating and communicating online.

    A rich and interactive marketing experience

    A marketing challenge today is delivering a hyper-personalised experience at a time when users are expected to have more control over their data. And it indicates that reaching out to both present and future consumers will soon become more difficult. Users now create information on the internet as well as consume it, which is helpful for marketing. Here is where web 3.0 components such as AI help make sense of the massive creator data.

    Web 3.0 marketing uses the rapidly changing internet to improve results. For instance, marketers can examine customer chats using natural language processing technologies. AI has also been utilised to further personalisation, particularly in the areas of online content rendering and presentation, the delivery of e-commerce goods, and automated customer assistance. A greater symbiotic link between humans and machines will lead to more web 3.0 features having a significant impact on marketing. Besides this, the other brilliant arms of web 3.0 are NFTs and the metaverse, which is an all-consuming version of the internet that uses tools like virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) to work, play, and amuse others in a 3D environment.

    How to market effectively on Web 3.0

    Any kind of creative work can be represented by NFTs, giving advertisers the opportunity to reach consumers with a range of interests. They can be implemented into customer loyalty programmes where participants are given the chance to acquire exclusive products. This is being done to perfection by brands like Taco Bell, Macy’s, and Budweiser.

    Immersive surroundings, virtual user identities, and a working virtual economy are all distinctive aspects of the Metaverse. Its objective is to mirror physical environments and lives in digital form, thus enhancing human potential. The metaverse offers marketers the chance to connect with consumers in a brand-new setting where they are fully engaged. Businesses will have the ability to increase their reputation by highlighting the assured security of blockchain transactions.

    Web 3.0/AR & VR are being touted as game-changers in modern marketing. Given its immersive and ‘phygital’ nature, interoperability, and collaboration capabilities, however, an ongoing commitment to the platform is key. Many web 3.0 principles are still up for dispute.

    Web 3.0 is still being defined as a whole since there isn’t a single, agreed definition of what it exactly is. In other words, we are creating the aircraft while we fly. Despite this, there is no denying that web 3.0 is changing the way that the modern corporation interacts with its clients. In addition to the numerous potential advantages for early adopters, marketers should be actively involved in the process of establishing this next phase of the internet because they have a duty to future generations. Numerous companies have begun experimenting in this realm, including brands like Airtel, MakeMyTrip, Amazon and Swiggy.

    In one classic example Alpenliebe brand house which comprises candies, pop & Eclair collaborated with Nickelodeon’s annual awards property – Kid’s Choice Awards which screened in the metaverse. Hosted at Decentraland which is one of the biggest metaverse platforms globally, the brand organized a quirky entry for its participants where they were asked to form their own ‘’Avatars’’ upon registrations. A slime pool, a blimp pool, slime fountains & fun slides also appealed to the kids. The metaverse event was mobile friendly which delivered an immersive user experience and created good brand value.

    Again, for companies like Starbucks, technology need not alienate us. To quote Tata Starbucks director of marketing, category, loyalty and digital Deepa Krishnan, who is also a jury member at MMA India Smarties 2022, the future will be all about marrying technology with purpose, experiences, and value by getting to know consumers, their interests, and preferences and making their lives simpler through deep analytics, harnessing multi-point data and insights.

    Five years ago, marketers were beginning to shift more spends online through advertising and digitisation, notes Krishnan, adding that the pandemic hastened that significantly. “The future will be about bringing the offline experience online. It is going to be about humanising the digital. People realise and appreciate the power of human connections and are increasingly craving community-driven engagements. How a brand connects with its consumers is still very much significant and will always remain paramount,” she adds.

    Revolutionising the marketing and advertising industry

    The future customer won’t be susceptible to today’s issues, such as obtrusive marketing and inadequate data protection, thanks to a solid foundation. But for businesses looking for success in the new era of the internet, AI and the metaverse-based research technology will not only introduce them to the developing web 3.0 marketing but will also give them access to the consumer and market intelligence necessary to grow a company.

    The author of this article is MMA India country head Moneka Khurana.