NEW DELHI: Godrej Consumer Products has reported that demand trends in key categories remained stable in the quarter ended 31 December 2020.
In India, the company expects to deliver a second consecutive quarter of close to low double-digit sales growth, driven by higher than mid-single digit volume growth. This is led by soaps, which is expected to deliver strong mid-teen growth. Following a sharp recovery, hair colours is also expected to deliver mid-teen growth. Household insecticides seem likely to deliver close to high single-digit growth.
“We continue the robust scale up of our personal and home hygiene category,” the consumer goods maker said in a statement.
Indonesia is expected to register a very marginal decline in constant currency sales. This is impacted by challenging macroeconomic variables, a gradual recovery in the air fresheners category, and high competitive intensity in the wet wipes category.
In Africa, USA, and the Middle East, growth momentum continued and the company may deliver high teen constant currency sales growth, a second consecutive quarter of double digit sales growth.
It expects sales growth in Latin America business to remain strong in constant currency terms. Godrej’s SAARC business has also continued to deliver healthy sales growth.
“At a consolidated level, we continue to leverage our category and geographic portfolio well, and expect to deliver a second consecutive quarter of close to low double-digit sales growth,” the company added.
Mumbai: Reverse Thought Creative Studios takes web development a notch higher by developing a clean, precise and to-the-point website for Allcargo Logistics – India’s largest integrated logistics company. Envisioned to be a business-enabler, the new website displays their full suite of offerings and showcases capabilities to their vast customer base. Visitors now have quick and easy access to a one-stop-shop for their logistics needs. Reverse Thought is a complete digital creative agency specializing in digital marketing, content creation, still photography, web & app development, motion graphics, video creation.
For Allcargo Logistics, the agency has designed a carefully planned, easy-to-use website which presents relevant information, allows users to access services and complete logistics-related transactions, and also helps them get quick responses to a range of queries. Reverse Thought has also integrated Allcargo’s proprietary digital platform ECU360 as well as other digital logistics tools with the website.
“We are happy with our experience of working with the Reverse Thought team and appreciate their proficiency”, said Allcargo Logistics senior VP marketing and corporate communication Alok Roy.
“The opportunity to work on this project for Allcargo Logistics has added a feather to our cap. Not only did we get to work with a major corporate and logistics brand name, but also had the opportunity to get an idea about the array of services the logistics sector provides”, says Reverse Thought Creative Studios creative director Tushar Garg.
Reverse Thought caters to clients like Amalgamated Plantations Pvt Ltd, Goodricke Tea, ICICI Prudential Pension Funds Management Co. Ltd, Aditya Birla Group & Sun Pharma to name a few. They specialize in digital & social media marketing, content creation, still photography, web & app development, motion graphics, video creation and all it takes to build, promote and market a brand.
With the vision to be seen amongst the top 10 boutique digital agencies in India, Reverse Thought is on a mission to keep delivering excellent results to businesses, with the help of existing and emerging digital opportunities.
MUMBAI: BharatPe has onboarded Sumeet Singh as the general counsel and head – corporate strategy. The appointment will further bolster the leadership team at BharatPe, which currently is a mix of renowned professionals across industries.
Singh is a seasoned legal professional with 10+ years of experience across leading law firms including AZB& Partners, DSK Legal and Amarchand Mangaldas. He brings deep understanding of legal, compliance, regulatory and structuring aspects of multiple sectors including non-banking financial, retail, e-commerce, FMCG, digital media and technology.
Singh, who is expected to join BharatPe soon, is currently a partner at Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas, New Delhi, having joined the erstwhile Amarchand Mangaldas Suresh A. Shroff in 2013 from AZB. He has actively represented some of India’s biggest e-commerce, retail entities, financial companies and start-ups. Recently, he was part of the core team advising Reliance Retail Ventures in its acquisition of the entire retail, wholesale, logistics and warehousing business of Kishore Biyani's Future Group. He has also been advising Norwest Venture Partners (a US$ 9 billion investment fund) in all their recent investments in India including in Xpressbess, OFB Tech, Ess Kay Fin Corp, Veritas Finance etc. He has been an advisor to Grofers since its early days leading their fundraising work.
Additionally, Singh represented Indiamart on its pre-IPO fund raising. His other marquee representations include clients like Nestle, IFC, Inshorts, IDFC Alternatives Ltd (now Global Infrastructure Partners), Qatar based Q Invest, Raine Group and NewsCorp.
BharatPe co-founder and CEO Ashneer Grover said, “2020 has been an exciting and solid growth year for BharatPe. As we get ready to welcome 2021, I would like to welcome Sumeet to the team. Sumeet will be the first partner at a major law firm to join a start-up. I’ve known Sumeet professionally and personally for five years and there is no one better to steer BharatPe on its goal to be India’s first true digital bank. He will be responsible for corporate strategy, compliance, licensing, equity and debt deals, ESOP schemes, cap table management and preparation for eventual listing.”
Singh added, “I am excited to join Ashneer and his solid team of CXOs as they build out a truly differentiated and capital efficient fintech at BharatPe. The way BharatPe has broken away from the fintech crowd to create a solid business, bodes well for the future and I am honoured to contribute to this amazing growth.”
NEW DELHI: Lagom. A single word that succinctly sums up the Swedish ethos of moderation in everything. But when it comes to home furnishings retailer Ikea’s India operations, they have been anything but lagom.
Ikea recently inaugurated its second store in India in Navi Mumbai on 18 December with an aim to create a better everyday life for those with big dreams and slim wallets. Unlike the mega launch marked by much fanfare in Hyderabad in 2018, where people flocked to the store in huge numbers, Ikea had to maintain an in-store limit this time in keeping with Covid2019 protocols. Despite restrictions, the opening of 5.3 lakh+ sq ft store was still a huge hit, as the in-store visit slots were pre-booked heavily. Even though it was challenging, the brand managed all the preparations for the store at the height of the pandemic.
“One of the biggest challenges was how do we create the buzz and excitement of a new store and manage to control the crowds and ensure they enjoy a safe shopping experience. We are really happy to say that we managed to achieve this well and our store is off to a good start,” said Ikea India marketing head Amitabh Pande.
Despite being a global brand, India has not been an easy ride for Ikea. It reported net loss of Rs 720 crore in the financial year ended March 2020. On the positive side, its net sales grew 64.68 per cent to Rs 566 crore in FY 2019-20, up from Rs 343.7 crore in the previous fiscal. The furniture retailer needs to create trust, and accessibility for the brand in the Indian market. Unless people are convinced that they are buying a superior product at Ikea at an affordable price in comparison to the traditional store from where they used to purchase furnishing products, they will never adopt the brand. One of the major tasks for the brand is to get consumers to sample its store and catalogues. So, the big marketing challenge in India is ‘How do you build an iconic brand in a new market?’
Pande said, “Ikea is an extremely well known and iconic brand in the rest of the world, whereas in India it started from the ground up. India is a new market, where we get to explore understanding people’s life at home and then based on that connecting deeply and meaningfully with our customers.”
Call it Swedish stoicism, but Ikea’s plans for the Indian market remain undeterred even in the wake of the pandemic. The management continues to believe in the long term vision it has. “We continue to believe in building the brand in India and spending in marketing is a big part of that. We have no plans in altering the existing marketing budget for 2021,” affirmed Pande.
The brand has a long term vision for the Indian market. It has already invested Rs 7,000 crore in India, across its two stores and several fulfilment centres. It is now working towards opening outlets in cities like Bengaluru and New Delhi along with smaller stores in other cities. Ikea continues to focus on opportunities to grow the business in existing channels and through opening new channels and units.
The brand has also ramped up its marketing activities in the last two years, releasing several campaigns across multiple mediums to focus on what role Ikea plays in a consumer’s home. These creatives mostly talk about how consumers can purchase multiple products from Ikea at an extremely nominal price.
Pande shared that the core focus on Ikea’s marketing strategy has always been to create a better everyday life for ‘the many’ and not just the few. The products signal that there is something for everyone, no matter their age, lifestyle or size of wallet. “In India we have translated the global Ikea vision into a local positioning that we refer to as ‘make every day brighter’. At the heart of it, it is about delivering well designed, functional and affordable products that speaks to the existing and changing needs from the life at home of the many people in India. It involves delivering a satisfying customer experience at our store and online. It involves our ‘people and planet positive’ sustainability agenda and what we do for our communities.”
Ikea is constantly optimising its media mix based on the needs of the campaign and is closely working with its partners to get the best ROI for each media.
“Our ATL strategies are driven by two main aspects. The first is based on building the long-term positioning of our brand as a unique, trusted and meaningful brand. Secondly, it is about activating our existing customers with new reasons to come to our meeting points repeatedly through the year- both online and offline. We have an annual calendar that we follow based on the overall marketing plan for the year,” explained Pande.
Social media is a big part of the brand’s overall communication and media strategy. It is present across all platforms – Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, and LinkedIn and is also working with social influencers.
“Our approach is that of sharing unique Ikea communication and content, specially curated and created for social media, with a high frequency engagement with our customers. Our content is driving inspiration around life at home ideas and solutions to make a better everyday life. As well as showing our entire range of affordable home furnishing solutions for people to choose from for their needs at home,” he added.
Ikea will continue to evaluate each media and medium before betting big on it. The brand claims to have built a strong, loyal base in a very short time that comes back to it repeatedly through the year, in stores as well as on its e-commerce website ikea.in. The company has also commenced e-commerce operations in Hyderabad, Mumbai and Pune.
Pande concluded by sharing his learnings from 2020 and pointed that humans are finally realising that they cannot get away with everything. “We are being forced to re-evaluate our ways of living on this planet, expanding our presence at the cost of nature, consuming the limited resources, creating a society that is unequal and even irresponsible. I would like to believe that we have been set on a more humble, reflective and conscientious path, in terms of how we live.
One of the learnings that industries have had is about moving from ‘consumption-led growth’ to ‘purpose-led growth’. What this means is being clear on the purpose of our brands, he added.
“As I see it, consumption has been the fundamental building block for all modern economies. To the extent that so many of us believe that consumption = happiness. Brands and businesses are built on growing consumption year after year. But once we start questioning this fundamental growth driver, then how do we move forward. This is a key question we all need to answer,” Pande signed off.
New Delhi: Havas Media India in collaboration with Innocean Worldwide and The Viral Fever (TVF) has rolled out a digital-first smart campaign for Hyundai’s Grand i10 NIOS.
Hyundai drives the comeback of India’s popular family web series The AamAadmi Family Vacation Special, a TVF Originals by The Timeliners. Being the first family web show, it breaks away from the oh-so-dramatic and cliché TV daily soaps and lends a fresh take into the modern Indian family, its aspirations and hardships that is well-portrayed by the characters in a simple yet realistic manner, giving it a new-age perspective.
The three-part series unfolds the story of a middle-class Indian family, the everyday conflicts they face and their journey into buying the family’s first car. The show not only seamlessly integrates the brand’s messaging and its features but also highlights the comfort, convenience and flexibility of owning a four-wheeler for a commoner and urges the audience to take progressive steps by making smart choices in today’s dynamic new-age world.
The campaign is amplified through various in-show integrations, social media engagements, contests and more.
Hyundai Motor India director sales and marketing Tarun Garg said, “Hyundai is always looking for platforms to connect with our audiences in the most unique ways. This collaboration is an example of Hyundai’s commitment to create stronger connections with our customers and be a part of their daily experiences. The AamAadmi Family perfectly weaves in the brand’s ideology of smart cars for smart Indians. We truly believe that the Grand NIOS with its segment-leading features and technology is the perfect choice for the smart millennial customers.”
Innocean Worldwide joint MD Vivek Srivastava said,“With the dominance of the digital screen in the engagement matrix of brands with consumers, the content-based integrations have become an integral part of communication outreach. It’s effortless, unobtrusive yet impactful in seeding the soft and hard aspects. This initiative with TVF for Grand i10 Nios is a living testimony to this new strategic normal. The AamAadmi Family series not only helps us embed our client’s message in the digital milieu, plus it does so in a very relatable family context.”
Havas Media Group India CEO Mohit Joshi said, “At Havas Media, our endeavour is to provide meaningful experiences and build meaningful brands by capitalising on the most meaningful media. ‘The AamAadmi Family’ show by TVF perfectly captures the reflection of our society, showcasing the real-life conflicts which not only makes it an earthly watching experience for the audience but also strikes the right chord with Hyundai Grand i10 NIOS TG. Every character in the show has created a special connection with the audience allowing the brand to seamlessly integrate its brand promise and drive brand affinity. We are excited about this collaboration with TVF in driving the shared endeavour for Hyundai and we look forward to scaling new heights with many more meaningful offerings.”
NEW DELHI: FMCG major Marico has posted strong performance with double-digit volume growth in its India business in Q3 2021. In an investor update on BSE, the company has shared an update on the overall summary of its operating performance and demand trends witnessed in the quarter ended 31 December 2020.
The quarter was characterised by a faster than expected recovery in consumer sentiment in India, aided by the festival season and a declining Covid2019 graph. The company registered strong performance across its portfolio with general trade continuing to grow healthily and rural markets staying ahead of urban. In the new age channels, while e-commerce continued its stellar run, modern trade fared better in Q3 after a soft first half. CSD continued to decline, albeit improving sequentially.
Revenue growth was in tandem with volume growth. Parachute Coconut Oil delivered ahead of its medium-term aspiration. Saffola Edible Oils continued its growth momentum, delivering double-digit volume growth. Value added hair oils also exhibited strength with a broad based sharp recovery across sub-segments leading to overall double-digit growth for the category. The foods portfolio continued to witness exponential growth in line with the near-term aspiration, backed by strong performance in both the base foods and the new product launches. There was a steady revival in discretionary categories with the premium personal care portfolios witnessing improving trends sequentially, however, still posting a modest decline on a year-on-year basis.
The quarter was also characterised by inflationary pressure in key raw materials necessitating cutting back of some promotions and taking effective price increases across both Parachute and Saffola edible oil portfolios. The company expects to deliver a healthy profit growth on the back of various cost optimisation initiatives and judicious A&P spends.
International business had a resilient quarter with high-single digit constant currency growth, led by double-digit constant currency growth in Bangladesh and recovery in few other markets.
Marico maintains an optimistic outlook for the rest of the year provided the Covid2019 and the economic situation continues to improve. The company remains steadfast in its medium-term aspiration of delivering sustainable and profitable volume led growth, building on strong brand equity across core franchisees and progressively driving and scaling up new engines of growth.
In Q2 2021, the company increased its advertising spends, taking it back to its pre-Covid2019 levels. While its food segment, Saffola, and Parachute performed well, the brand also launched several new products during this time.
NEW DELHI: In a big boost to the Tamil film industry, the state government on Monday issued a new directive removing the 50 per cent cap on occupancy in theatres.
Cinema halls in Tamil Nadu can now operate at 100 per cent capacity while following the standard operating procedures issued by the government. Precautionary measures will also be screened from time to time to spread awareness among the audiences.
The order comes days after actor Vijay and theatre owners requested chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami to allow theatres to function at their full capacity.
Back in October, the ministry of home affairs had released guidelines wherein film theatres were only allowed to operate with 50 per cent seating capacity to ensure social distancing.
Tamil Nadu is the first state to allow cinema halls to operate at 100 per cent capacity. The 50 per cent cap, however, still remains in neighbouring states. In fact, only last week, the Kerala government gave its nod to re-open theatres with 50 per cent capacity with Covid-safety protocols in place.
However, the film industry continues to be hit as no big Bollywood releases are coming to the silver screen.
New Delhi: Rob Leathern, Facebook's chief of advertising integrity, who handled the company's ad products, stepped down earlier this week after serving the social media giant for over four years.
He announced the development in one of his tweets where he also thanked his colleagues and talked about the great experience that he had at Facebook.
After almost 4 years, I made the difficult decision to leave Facebook, and 12/30/20 was my last day at FB. I've had a great experience in a difficult, fun, fast-growing and impactful role at the company working with amazing people. I was honored to call them colleagues! (1/12)
Leathern has been in the tech, product, adtech space for over 15 years and was responsible for building the team at Facebook.
Talking about his future endeavour Leathern tweeted, "What's next? While I'm not going to be working on ads directly, it will be a part of what I work on as I will be staying in the tech/data/privacy space. I will share more about where I'm going in the next week or two," without disclosing where he headed next.
He also talked about the great work that his team did on US elections and many other projects.
NEW DELHI: Twitter is a reflection of what’s happening in the world and what people are talking about. Over time brands across categories have leveraged Twitter’s ad offerings and influence to strengthen their presence among audiences. This year, as businesses pivoted to digital-first campaigns, Twitter emerged as an indispensable partner to launch something new and to connect with consumers. The constraints of 2020 encouraged brands to be more creative, thoughtful and personal, resulting in campaigns that warmed the heart and left people wanting more. Let’s look back at some brands and campaigns that stood out and made a difference with their Twitter salvos:
Best brand for speaking out and standing up: Axis Bank for #ReverseTheKhata
While nearly every industry was drastically impacted in 2020, the worst-hit were local vendors and small businesses, with many being pushed to the brink. Axis Bank took up the cause and asked people to #ReverseTheKhata, referencing the bond between customers and their corner shop through the maintenance of a ‘khata’. The khata is based on the trust and loyalty shared between the two parties. The campaign showed us different moments on the relationship between customers and small businesses, projecting the various emotions that bubble up from the simple statement – Khate mein likh do – urging people to reverse roles and support vendors who have continued to serve us while keeping our accounts. The campaign used a clever and relatable insight, connecting with its audience in an authentic way, making it the best brand for speaking out and standing up.
Small businesses have always supported us with credit transactions and kept their khatas open for us. Now it’s our turn to #ReverseTheKhata, by paying them in advance and helping them reopen! #DilSeOpenpic.twitter.com/vy0yIfgpLC
We love to watch our favourite series and films on Netflix and look for the best recommendations, including on Twitter. Netflix India built on this insight and launched #NetflixMatchmaker. This innovation allowed a customised bank of emojis to serve fans a personalised experience on Twitter, helping them decide what to watch. So, how does it work? When someone tweets an emoji with the hashtag #NetflixMatchmaker, they are rewarded with a content recommendation tied to that specific emoji. For example, tweeting a gift emoji might send a recommendation for a holiday movie. Netflix knew there would be an ongoing demand for recommendations, so #NetflixMatchmaker pops up every weekend to help people match their mood to what they could enjoy streaming. This is why they had the best #OnlyOnTwitter campaign this year.
Looking for some suggestions that s̶l̶e̶i̶g̶h̶ slay?
Tweet with the options below and #NetflixMatchMaker will send a film your way!
Best brand that brought the stadium to the phone: Star Sports
To make up for the lack of on-ground sports experiences, Star Sports turned to Twitter to bring fans closer to all the sporting action, especially on two key occasions – the Indian Super League (ISL) and the Indian Premier League (IPL).
During the ISL’s #TrueLove campaign on Twitter, Star Sports invited football fans to send in tweets with messages for their favourite footballers. At the trophy-lifting ceremony of what was a thrilling finale between ATK FC and Chennaiyin FC, these love-filled tweets presented in a physical form as Twitter-confetti and were showered upon the winning team covering them with #TrueLove for this one-of-a-kind activation.
Do you have a message for your favourite #HeroISL team in the Final?
For the IPL, Star Sports cued people in for the opening match through reminders on Twitter, activated by the Heart-To-Remind functionality. The brand also changed their Twitter username to ‘Star Sports at 7:30 PM’ to mark the time slot as the viewing time for the IPL.
Their consistent usage of Twitter to connect fans to the games they love made Star Sports the brand that brought the stadium to the phone.
Best campaign celebrating fandom: Samsung India for #GalaxyS20PlusBTS edition
While launching the #GalaxyS20PlusBTS edition, Samsung routed its campaign towards the massive BTS fandom on Twitter. The brand launched a custom BTS quiz to engage with the K-pop band’s ARMY on the service who could put their love to the test and even stand to win a pair of the Galaxy Buds+ BTS edition. This carefully targeted campaign not only reached its audience but also had them glued to their Twitter timelines through a series of promoted tweets with creatives featuring various members of the band. The BTS edition campaign was part of a sustained promotion plan for the S20+, with the global launch event achieving millions of views worldwide. Samsung India’s clever use of Twitter to connect with their consumers made it the campaign that best celebrated fans.
Galaxy & BTS unite! Introducing the exclusive #GalaxyS20PlusBTS Edition in stunning Haze Purple colour. Take a fun quiz to test your fandom. Hurry! Galaxy Buds+ BTS Edition up for grabs. T&C apply: https://t.co/79M3u2gMIU#Samsung
Best brand connection to the couch: Amazon Prime Video for #Mirzapur2
#Mirzapur2 hype on Twitter was real, evidenced by the many tweets begging Prime Video for the second season. As the OTT service finally prepared to premier the series, it decided to count down to the launch along with eager fans, and host a watch party to finally answer everyone’s wishes and get people watching (and reacting) together. Through a carousel events page, the brand curated a timeline of all conversations around #Mirzapur2 and also rolled out exclusive content leading up to the big day. A ‘Mirzapur throne’ emoji was also launched to fuel excitement.
Bhaukaal is nearing and we want you to be a part of it!
But that was not all, following the watch party, the show’s characters were leveraged to engage the audience via a personality test pairing people with their favourite #Mirzapur characters when engaged with the tweet. Their thoughtful end-to-end integration and celebration of such a popular show earned them the title of best brand connecting all of us to our couch.
If Twitter was #Mirzapur, which character would you be? Go ahead and click on 'Try Now' to find out!
Best brand for pivoting when it counts: Uber India for #MoveWhatMatters
At a time when everyone was being encouraged to stay put, Uber India, a brand that is built on doing the opposite, responded in just the right way. Playing off their slogan to #MoveForward, they suggested we #MoveWhatMatters. The brand echoed what we were hearing from public health authorities, asking people to stay home and stay safe, while their drivers continued to serve India’s essential workers. Moreover, the ride-hailing app also urged people to come out in support of their driver-partners who had also been impacted by the pandemic and set up the Uber Care Driver Fund. In a time when people needed to be assured of their safety, Uber India made its priorities clear.
Over 75,000 families have already been reached out to, thanks to your contributions to the Uber Care Driver Fund. On behalf of the driver community, thank you India. There are many more who need our support. #MoveWhatMatters. Contribute here: https://t.co/ILnKRJ1FTYpic.twitter.com/6rjYJlHjV6
Best virtual launch: Hyundai India for the TUCSON launch with #TheNextDimension
Hyundai India moved ahead and launched its new TUCSON via a magnificent (virtual) event called #TheNextDimension. Hyundai adopted a three-phased strategy for the launch; it acquired an active viewership through the Heart-To-Remind functionality, which reminded people to tune-in for the launch; it took over the service’s premium real estate with a promoted trend and livestream to maximise visibility, and to wrap up the launch it tweeted highlight videos from the event which were injected into people’s timelines via promoted tweets, making sure nobody missed the action. Despite not taking place on-ground, this campaign by Hyundai proved that launches can be as successful virtually. The live event recorded over 1 million views in the first 12 hours itself, making it a winner in the best virtual launch category.
Fintech start-up Cred was all over Twitter timelines in the best way. Launching its first-ever campaign with a series of videos, the brand made a strong impact, reaching new customers. The campaign was spearheaded by some of the strongest voices in the public space, including the founder himself. Moreover, picking up on a trend around nostalgia, they worked with some of the most iconic talent from the 90s and early 00s including, Govinda, Bappi Lahiri, Madhuri Dixit Nene, Anil Kapoor, Udit Narayan, and others in a creative way, ensuring mentions of CRED on Twitter reached new highs.
Restaurants may have been closed to visitors earlier this year, but delivery services like Zomato made themselves indispensable. And maybe because Zomato was experiencing it themselves, they knew just what to say to keep people on Twitter engaged. Keeping up with cultural moments and trends, the food delivery app stayed connected with its audience through conversations that were fun, light-hearted, and more often than not, perfectly hilarious. From being excited about a cricket match to being grumpy because of hunger pangs, Zomato engaged with its audience in one-on-one banter, replying and engaging with tweets. Adopting a sensitive voice, yet full of personality, the brand built its own community of followers making it the best brand voice on Twitter this year.
Since the test launch of Fleets in June, several brands have embraced it with content designed especially for the format. IndiGo stood out by engaging with its followers through consistent and coherent messaging via Fleets. Adhering to the needs of its patrons, the brand has been using the format to keep passengers informed about flight schedules and other real-time updates. Their diving into this new Twitter format gives them the title of best brand Fleets!
NEW DELHI: Countless cups of coffee and hours of brainstorming lead to that one great creative idea that justified the brief from the brand. This used to be the scenario at a creative agency prior to Covid2019. However, with the outbreak of the pandemic, this process moved online and the entire creative industry was working from home.
It took a while for admen (and women) across the world to adjust to the new normal, but soon they did and it was full steam ahead. Despite challenges and adjustments, the agencies continued to deliver cutting-edge work that impacted people and made them think about the product and service. The creative teams also steered through the production challenges. In the initial days of lockdown, they created several films from the confines of their homes. Once the lockdown was lifted, production resumed slowly. IPL 2020 definitely gave a huge fillip to the industry as multiple brands released fresh creatives across mediums.
There is no doubt that 2020 has been an extremely tough year for the advertising industry, but it has also made them rethink, realign and push themselves to think out of the box and deliver stellar creatives.
Here’s a rundown of some of the top ads of the year.
· Burger King Moldy Whopper
Just before the pandemic struck the world and forced people to social distance, Burger King came up with an ad campaign that broke all rules of food and QSR promotions. The fast-food chain released a video of its flagship burger, the Whopper, decomposing and becoming covered in mold over the course of 34 days. The shock factor was to generate buzz about its new initiative to launch preservative free burgers in the US market. The film went viral and elicited an opinion from everyone.
· HDFC Hum Haar Nahi Maanenge
In order to spread hope and positivity amid the nationwide lockdown imposed in the country, HDFC bank released a song #HumHaarNahiMaanenge to celebrate the resilient spirit of citizens who are standing strong while also following guidelines to fight the Coronavirus. Through the campaign, the bank also aimed to draw attention to the importance of coming together for a cause and supporting more people during these tough times through the PM Cares Fund.
· Nike You Can’t Stop Us
The campaign gave hope to people in such trying times, especially with the cancellation and postponement of sporting events. The ad highlighted the power of sports and how it has the ability to bring us together and become agents of change. With a powerful narration and an equally stunning voiceover by Megan Rapinoe, the ad transcended all boundaries and became viral. It was touted as one of the finest pieces of editing.
· Amul – Dragon
The cooperative brand which has been releasing interesting topicals for over 40 years came up with another interesting piece where the Amul Girl stops a dragon. The ad was a take on the Indian government’s crackdown on Chinese apps and companies in light of the Galwan valley standoff. The creative piece was widely circulated and liked by the people even though a section of social media objected to it.
Cred took IPL 2020 by storm with its six-film campaign featuring eminent Bollywood personalities like Madhuri Dixit, Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff, Govinda, Bappi Lahiri and others auditioning for a brand ad. The films started conversation and generated recall for the brand. Despite being not-so-humorous, the ads caught the public’s attention. The idea behind the campaign was to scale up the service and reach larger audiences.
· Dream11 IPL
The fantasy sports app bagged the title sponsorship of IPL and launched a massive campaign on television with Indian cricketers like MS Dhoni, Jaspreet Bumrah, Rohit Sharma and others. The ads were funny and self-aware, as common people in the film took a dig at the brand ambassadors while playing gully cricket. For instance, one girl stopped Bumrah from bowling because he was too fast. The ads clicked and people signed up to sample the platform, hence, the campaign was successful.
· Tide Ayushmann Khurrana
Tide introduced its latest brand ambassador Ayushman Khurana and launched a new campaign with him. The actor played the role of all the family members in the film and his part reminded audiences of his role in the Bollywood flick Dreamgirl. Of late, Khurrana has become extremely popular on the back of several hits, which has helped him secure several big brand endorsements.
· PhonePe
The digital wallet brand embarked on a marketing blitz with new brand ambassadors Aamir Khan and Alia Bhatt. The campaign included a series of humourous ads that showcased different features of PhonePe. The film was staged in a police station set up and kept very simple for the users to understand and adapt PhonePe as the mode of payment in their daily lives. The brand has been active throughout the year and spent heavily on advertising. It has been working towards scaling the number of app users across the country.
· Chotu
Children are god’s voice and a reflection of his greatness. However, if we look around a lot of children are called ‘Chotu’ and employed in menial, backbreaking and dangerous jobs. Dentsu Impact in association with My Choices Foundation and Saregama Caravan launched an eye-opening film on Children’s Day focusing on their struggles. The film showcased how children’s basic rights, education, dignity, hope and most of all, their childhood is snatched away from them, every single day. Currently, millions of child labourers are employed across the country in various segments like homes, factories, and construction sites. It evoked a sense of guilt and shame in many viewers, who’re familiar with these scenes but chose to ignore it.
· Facebook – More Together – Pooja Didi
The social media giant has been focusing on small businesses and trying to bring them on the platform. This year on Diwali, it launched a seven-minute-long film which was the story of Pooja Didi, a milk centre owner, who employed those who had lost their jobs due to the Covid2019 pandemic. The film showcased how employees used Facebook to engage with and bring customers to the milk store. It reflected the power of connections and people coming together to help, support and celebrate with each other.
· Cadbury Celebrations Hyperlocal Ad
For Diwali 2020, Cadbury Celebrations launched a unique initiative that provided an advertising platform to local retailers whose businesses were impacted by the pandemic. It created a data-driven campaign platform ‘Not Just A Cadbury Ad’ that included 1,800+ local retailers across 260+ pin codes in Mumbai, Delhi, Lucknow, Indore and Pune. The chocolatier developed an algorithm that served an ad customised to the viewer based on his geo-location. The film displayed small stores that changed based on the location in which the ad was being viewed. Therefore, a person viewing the ad in Pune would be guided to small stores in Pune, in their vicinity. Cadbury custom-designed hundreds of versions of the same ad, with the relevant geo-targeting based on pin codes.
· HS Kalekar Jewellers
Most jewellery brands accentuate a woman’s femininity by portraying her in the traditional roles of wife, mother or daughter. However, Kolhapur-based H S Kalekar Jewellers highlighted her strength and indomitable spirit. The ad titled Har Beetiyan Ko Ab Durga Banna Padega (Every daughter must become a Durga) sent a message that every woman should take her safety in her own hands. The commercial began with a young girl walking alone on a deserted street and stalked by a biker. The distressed girl changes her course, and spots an old lady sweeping on the road sides and takes her broomstick and proceeds to threaten the man in pursuit. The girl manoeuvres the broomstick at high speed in nunchuck-style, which is an advanced form of martial arts. Intimidated by her martial art skills, the eve-teaser runs away. The ad ends with the girl walking through the empty streets fearlessly and leaves a strong social message.
· HUL Glow and Lovely Glow ko na roko
In the wake of the #BlackLivesMatter revolution, HUL was forced to change the name of its flagship product from Fair & Lovely to Glow & Lovely to avoid any controversy. It released a new campaign called Mere Glow ko Na Roko featuring popular hip hop and rap artist Dee MC who narrates her journey of overcoming obstacles and urges other women to not let anything stop them from pursuing their dreams. Through the inspiring lyrics of #GlowkonaRoko, Dee MC equates ‘glow’ with her identity, which comes from her work, her determination, and self-assurance. The campaign was more than necessary because a new brand name meant a slight change in positioning and it had to be immediately communicated to the audiences.
· Tanishq Baby Shower
The jewellery brand launched a film around the baby shower ceremony in a Muslim family for a Hindu daughter-in-law. Though the film was simple and passed the message of peace and harmony, it was met with severe backlash. However, it did help the jeweller gain a lot of eyeballs on the back of controversy. Eventually, it was forced to pull the film down.
Tanishq has officially withdrawn their ad after being trolled viciously. Here's why this is a very sad state of affairs, and context from other such ads that were trolled (and some, withdrawn) https://t.co/Nb0cSiTPHXpic.twitter.com/sn3IMBqdmC
The sleep and home solutions company launched a witty and topical video that encapsulated the trials and tribulations of 2020. It came at an opportune time to wrap up the highs, the lows, the untoward surprises and the eventful twists of 2020 and resonated with what people went through during the year.
The video was a raging success among netizens, as it struck an instant chord with people whose lives have been turned upside down due to the pandemic and being cooped up at home. Using the hashtag, #BhaadMeinJaa2020, some claimed that it captured the emotions of the year aptly while others declared it was the best video of 2020.
