Tag: Indiantelevision.com Webinars

NEW DELHI: The Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) and the representatives of the news genre have often been at loggerheads; the latter having several complaints regarding how the measurements work. From sample size to data points, everything has been a cause of concern for most of the channel owners and editors. Now, several marketers have raised another important point in the narrative, expressing how they would like the industry ratings, including the IRS ratings, to be more frequent. 

At a recent webinar on brand safety hosted by Indiantelevision.com, presented by BBC World News and BBC.com, Future Group CMO – FBB Prachi Mohapatra pointed out that ratings remain at the basis of all the math they do to create their marketing strategies and decide their marketing pies and it would really help the cause if they are more regular. 

“I really want to have data that I can rely on completely and not have to act on my gut feeling basis the data of the past week or the past few months,” she said. 

PolicyBazaar head of marketing Samir Sethi also insisted that the data should be as real-time as possible so one doesn’t have to wait for the completion of a campaign to gauge its success.

“I think all advertisers and agencies would want the data to be as frequent as possible because that will aid in instant decision making. If I know about the ratings six months later or two months later, it gets less valuable,” explained Wavemaker CEO – South Asia Ajay Gupte.

He went on to add that TV channels could potentially lose out to digital modes of marketing, where the data can be tracked and measured practically instantaneously. “It's about having data which is relevant and which is robust and which is to the day because the channels today are also competing with Google, Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter, where the data is almost real-time.” 

Parle Products senior category head – marketing Krishnarao S Buddha agreed that there is a dire need of a frequent matrix but he highlighted that content should also be taken into consideration to create a differentiation when it comes to picking channels to put ads on. 

Initiative CEO Vaishali Verma, while acknowledging that there are certain brands that prefer buying news as a commodity and plan their spends basis TRP, said there are some that also see the content and its authenticity. 

Mohapatra added that along with the individual content of the channel, another factor contributing to their marketing decisions are the fellow brands that are present on the channel. “Looking into the adjacent space helps us create a multiplier effect for the sales. Therefore, it is very important to put your brand in a space that is relevant for you and your category.” 

However, when it comes to picking content to put ads on, Sethi emphasises that brands should be non-partisan. “If somebody believes in a certain media outlet, he is still a potential customer. Toxicity is a different thing, but when it comes to the leaning of a channel, I think businesses should not pick a side. The world has always been divided and it will continue to be. Our aim should be to be present where the customer is.” 

The panel also discussed other hot-button issues like the need for 24-hour news channels, and how advertisers are seeing the current news media. 

NEW DELHI: The news television industry has been getting a lot of negative publicity these days, the prime reason being the inflammatory content they are airing. Not just viewers, but several advertisers and marketers have also highlighted their discontent with the journalism these channels are doing and some brands have already started pulling out their ad monies. While most people put the blame for this on the rat race for TRP and viewer interests, Parle Products Pvt Ltd senior category head – marketing Krishnarao S Buddha voiced an intriguing thought – do we really need 24-hour news channels these days?

“I don’t think that the content degeneration on news channels happened recently. It’s been worsening for a few years now. I think the days when we had just Doordarshan, which had only three bulletins running, we had more semblance of propriety in the news content. I really want to understand whether there is a need for 24-hour news channels, from a programming perspective. If there is enough news happening across the globe that it requires multiple 24-hour news channels to cover,” he pointed out. 

He added that this “mad requirement” of filling content slots for 24 hours has forced news channels to go overboard and serve content that is not only toxic but is also non-relevant. 

Buddha was speaking at the recent brand safety webinar hosted by Indiantelevision.com in partnership with BBC World News and BBC.com. Other speakers on the panel – moderated by Indiantelevision.com founder, CEO, and editor-in-chief Anil Wanvari – were Wavemaker CEO – South Asia Ajay Gupte, Future Group CMO – FBB Prachi Mohapatra, BBC Global News MD India Rahul Sood, PolicyBazaar head of marketing Samir Sethi, Accenture MD supply chain, network, and sales operations Shekhar Tiwari and Initiative CEO Vaishali Verma. 

Contrary to Buddha’s view, Gupte stated that he doesn’t feel that there is more supply than demand for news in the current scenario, and it makes complete sense from a business perspective to have multiple 24-hour news channels. 

Said he, “At the end of everything, this is a marketplace, which functions on the basic objective of demanding profitability. To achieve that, there needs to be an equilibrium in demand and supply, so that the pricing remains fair. I believe that there is really not more supply than the demand in the market right now. This is only from the business perspective and how the market forces generally work.”

Buddha insisted that in that case, channels really need to work on their content strategies and come up with smart fillers based on investigative journalism. 

“There is a stark need for creating differentiators within news channels based on content. If there is virtually the same telecast happening on each channel, then there is nothing much to differentiate them,” he interjected. 

Gupte too agreed that news has a responsibility to serve and it defines the culture and thinking of any nation. “It is definitely important for networks to ensure that the content is right. It will create a better market too, in terms of delivery. People will then have the option to consume the content that suits them better. I would leave it to the channels to decide the content.”  

Tiwari added that channels need to have the right strategy, the right talent, and the right investors to ensure great content. “There is a need for a good 24X7 independent news channel that covers current affairs, sports, entertainment, and everything else. Then we will have better content provided. It shouldn’t be working under the pressure of its investors or a government for that matter.”

The panel highlighted several important factors that are contributing to the erosion of faith in news channels by advertisers and marketers. Vaishali Verma also highlighted that three out of ten clients of her agency have already said no to advertising on news channels, and the industry is in dire need of a course correction. 

NEW DELHI: News channels have always been a big part of the media mix for any advertiser; they enjoy a sizeable share of eyeballs and have been known as a brand-safe space to be present on. However, in the past few months, advertisers have become gravely concerned by the controversies around news content, as well as the TRP manipulation scandal that has come to the fore. The existing news space, especially on TV, has called for a strong inspection on advertisers’ part, and a few of them have already pulled out ad money from some channels.

In a recently concluded Indiantelevision.com webinar called “Is Your Brand Truly Safe: Decoding The Right Brand Equity With The Power Of Trust” — powered by BBC World News and BBC.com, and moderated by Indiantelevision.com founder, CEO, and editor-in-chief Anil Wanvari – leading marketers and advertisers unanimously agreed that their faith in news television has eroded to a great extent.

Sitting in the panel were Wavemaker CEO – South Asia Ajay Gupte, Parle Products Pvt Ltd senior category head – marketing Krishnarao S Buddha, Future Group CMO – FBB Prachi Mohapatra, BBC Global News MD India Rahul Sood, PolicyBazaar head of marketing Samir Sethi, Accenture MD supply chain, network, and sales operations Shekhar Tiwari and Initiative CEO Vaishali Verma.

Verma claimed that three out of every ten clients of hers has already said no to advertising on news channels.

“As a consumer of news, I can say that the content has been sensationalised, there is no investigative journalism left, and as a result, we are seeing brands taking a different route when it comes to their media mixes. There definitely has been a loss of credibility,” she said.

Tiwari noted that news is not news if one needs to go and validate it, but today the consumers are forced to do that. This has resulted in the lack of credibility that advertisers are also taking into account.

Sood added that the environment around news television has been such of late that he can no longer proudly flaunt his association with the industry. “This says a lot about the state of media right now.”

Buddha, whose Parle products will no longer advertise on some of the top news channels in the country, said, “News channels are going overboard, the content is toxic and the news they show is really not relevant. I do not want my brand to be seen with the content that these channels are peddling.”

Earlier, news channels used to be a big part of their media mix given the credible and brand-safe environment that they created, shared Mohapatra. “The two core factors for us have been the viewership the news genre generates and the credibility it has, but if that is being compromised, we will definitely rethink our media mix.”

However, not all brands are wary of their presence on any form of content, be it good or bad, in news media.

Verma highlighted that every brand has its own lakshman rekha (boundary) that it follows. “Some brands have taken out their ad monies and that was absolutely right on their part. Some are still continuing to advertise and it is only because the medium is still relevant to them. They have their audience consuming that content.”

Gupte, in the same vein, reflected that each news channel serves the content that their audience likes viewing. “It is delivering what is being consumed. And if there is a collective movement where people dismiss this kind of content and stop viewing it, the viewership will go down and it makes sense from a business perspective.”

PolicyBazaar’s Sethi agreed and pointed out that news is a competitive genre and there is significant advertising demand there. “For a product category like ours where primary customers are male, we get that reach from news channels.”

However, he added that news channels cannot shy away from their responsibilities of being a credible and trustworthy source of valid information.

But could the continued association with ‘problematic’ news content impact the brand equity at large?

The panel agreed that it has a long-lasting impact on any brand’s image and equity as customers are more sensitive and sensible these days. At the same time, it also depends on the level of association the advertiser has with the channel or a particular piece of content.

Gupte stated, “The impact on brand equity hugely depends on the level of association. For example, it’s more difficult on platforms like YouTube where a single advertiser might be visible on the whole duration of the content. Also, it depends on the brand too.”

Sethi added, “Obviously a sponsor is much more deeply associated with the content than someone who is doing vanilla spot advertising with maybe 20 other brands.”