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Tag: MediaCom

  • MediaCom bolsters leadership team with key appointments

    MediaCom bolsters leadership team with key appointments

    New Delhi: MediaCom has strengthened its senior leadership with the appointment of Shekhar Sharma as managing partner (north and east) and Averill Sequeria as chief product officer.

    In his new role, Sharma will be responsible for the offices, clients, and growth. An accomplished Integrated marketing professional, Sharma has experience in managing large media investments from global clients to large Indian conglomerates across different verticals.

    “With over 25 years of diversified experience in media and marketing, his expertise ranges from crafting a media strategy, bringing in an insights-based approach to sharpen the strategic planning and deliver ROI for clients,” said the agency in statement.

    In his previous stint as a vice president for platform services in GroupM, he has been instrumental in spearheading a digital-first approach for brands varying from global to large Indian conglomerates and mid-sized businesses.

    Whereas, GroupM alumni Sequeira will lead ‘Seeing the Bigger Picture’, a MediaCom Creative Systems wherein they use the power of data to bring together media and creativity.

    “She is an original thinker, working to bridge the worlds of data, digital media, strategy, and creativity. Her formative years were spent in developing audience insight tools and specialising in Marketing ROI/econometric modelling. In this decade of digital transformation, she has passionately championed the customer experience journey, with creative solutions using data and technology,” stated the agency.

    MediaCom south Asia CEO Navin Khemka said, “Today brands want to communicate quickly and effectively, and we believe that together with our new appointments, we will be able to deliver more powerful work for our clients. With having Shekhar and Averill as a part of our team, I am convinced that they’re uniquely positioned to successfully drive the company and are here to put their best foot forward towards offering the best solution to our clients and strengthening our portfolio.”

  • Ariel’s #SonsShareTheLoad is WARC’s most awarded work for media excellence

    Ariel’s #SonsShareTheLoad is WARC’s most awarded work for media excellence

    Mumbai: Ariel India’s 2019 #ShareTheLoad campaign has made it to the most awarded work for Media excellence in the WARC list for the year 2020. World Advertising Research Centre (WARC) is an online marketing intelligence service that provides an independent benchmark for excellence in creativity, media, and effectiveness.

    Ariel started the #ShareTheLoad campaign in 2015 to address the inequality that exists within Indian households. As the social debate evolved, the brand continued to bring different perspectives and launched the third edition of the campaign in February 2019. The Sons #ShareTheLoad urged parents to raise the next generation as equals and teach their sons important life skills like laundry, cooking, etc. The TVC raised the pertinent question – “Are we teaching our sons what we are teaching our daughters?”

    P&G India CMO & VP – fabric care Sharat Verma said, “We started off by raising a pertinent question on 'Is laundry only a woman’s job?' back in 2015. We have kept the conversation alive all these years to continue to create awareness around the issue. With Sons #ShareTheLoad, we urged parents to teach our sons what we have been teaching our daughters over decades. We will continue to leverage our brand as a force for good and make laundry the face of the change we are trying to drive across the country.”

    The digital film garnered over 83 million views in partnership with Mediacom as the media partner. A mother-son fashion show was also organised in Chandigarh to drive home the message of teaching the sons of today basic household chores, where mothers sported clothes washed by their sons.

    Mediacom CEO south Asia Navin Khemka said, “It’s a moment of great pride to see our work getting recognised globally. We are proud to be an ally in this social change with Ariel and P&G India, not just now but since the start of #ShareTheLoad in 2015. Together, we aim to address the inequality that exists in Indian households and continue to work in that direction even now.”

    The Load Lockdown film- 

    Link season 4- 

    Link Season 3 – 

    Link Season 2- 

    Link- Season 1- 

  • Will IPL 2021 prove to be a brand marketer’s delight?

    Will IPL 2021 prove to be a brand marketer’s delight?

    NEW DELHI: The countdown has begun for one of the biggest cricketing events – the 14th edition of Vivo IPL 2021. The sporting extravaganza will return home after two years following a stellar show in the United Arab Emirates last November.

    The season is all set to kickstart on 9 April in Chennai with a high octane clash between defending champions Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore. But once again, all the matches will be played in empty stadiums, with no enthusiastic fans to cheer their favourite teams. The second wave of Covid2019 continues to pose a challenge, as the league recovers from a pandemic-hit 2020.

    However, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said it is confident of hosting the IPL at home with the health and safety of players and all people involved being paramount. How will this arrangement pan out for the brands and advertisers, who have pinned high hopes on the league? Will there be an impact on TV viewership, with restrictions eased across most parts of the country and people back in offices? Will IPL 2021 be able to sustain the momentum it built last year?

    Some of these questions will take center stage at IPL 2021: Brand marketers' delight? – a virtual roundtable to be hosted by Indiantelevision.com today. An esteemed panel of representatives from media and advertising agencies will deliberate upon the potential power of the league and the opportunities it holds for brands and the M&E industry, as it looks to make a comeback on its home ground.

    The panel will comprise of Mediacom national buying head Srinivas Rao, Byju’s head of marketing Atit Mehta, dentsu India chief executive officer Anand Bhadkamkar, Initiative (IPG Mediabrands) south head & vice president Priya Iyer, and Indiantelevision.com’s founder, CEO & editor-in-chief Anil Wanvari.

    The virtual roundtable will begin at 3:30 pm on 7 April and will be live-streamed on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. Join us for stimulating conversations and interesting insights on the potential power of the IPL as it returns with its 14th edition.

  • Durga Puja: Advertisers optimistic as demand returns

    Durga Puja: Advertisers optimistic as demand returns

    MUMBAI: By now it’s evident that the Covid2019 pandemic is not going away anytime soon. After spiralling caseloads – ravaged the economy, and played spoilsport with travel plans – scary ol' Corona seems to be on the wane in time for the festive season, though it’s too early to celebrate outright. But with the markets rallying and consumer sentiments surging, brands and advertisers are sniffing the air hopefully, even as they tread with caution. 

    Every year, several categories like FMCGs, apparel, auto, e-commerce and consumer durables become the biggest spenders during the Durga Puja-Diwali stretch. The query their marketing teams puts up is not ‘how much?’ but ‘why not?’ This time around, the question is: how brands plan to advertise in the year of Corona.

    However, the Tata group owned fashion and lifestyle chain Westside has braced to make the most out of the circumstances. The brand’s ‘What’s Your Festive’ campaign focuses on all the products, right from clothing, cosmetics, footwear to  home décor. For the campaign, Westside has created four festive installations, each of which spans 15 seconds in which viewers can catch a glimpse of everything that it offers.

    Westside customer head Umashan Naidoo explained, “The films are directed by the very talented Devang Desai and the cast consists of Westside employees, customers and designers from the ethnic wear brand. After all, who better to advocate style and share the joy of their products but the creators themselves? We believe that these are real people with the aspirations of the brand at heart.”

    Read more news on Durga Puja 

    The films are meant to uplift spirits and have nothing to do with hard selling, said Naidoo, adding in an aside that the sparkling diyas featured in the video are part of a CSR project started in 2003 by Simone Naval Tata herself.

    As the options for big outdoor displays and activities are limited, brands are shifting to the digital space to keep their connect with customers alive. For instance, Fortune the Adani Wilmar group's Fortune brand has been running a digital campaign called Pet Pujo for the last three years to engage consumers. The brand’s media & strategy head Sanjay Adesara said: “This year, we have given it a twist keeping the current Covid situation in mind. From the last 3-4 years, we were doing a separate digital activity outside. This year also we are keeping it digital.”

    Adesara also shared that the trends in the West Bengal market during the pre-Puja period are similar to last year’s: there’s been no dip in additional grocery buying and shopping for clothes and personal care products.

    Kolkata is a major market for RSH Global-owned Joy Personal Care. CMO Poulomi Roy is of the view that from November onwards, things are going to pick-up in the northern part of the country, especially before Diwali. The skincare maker has launched a new campaign ahead of Durga Puja in West Bengal. As part of the campaign, the brand released the peppy, upbeat music video Dugga Elo featuring ten popular Bengali celebrities which captures vivid moments that highlight the vibe of pujo. Intended to create a festive mood and keep the spirit alive, the campaign song will be played out on television, radio, OTT platform and social media platforms of SVF Brands.

    Observing that while the personal care segment such as hand wash, soap, sunscreen segments had gone down during the initial phase of the lockdown, Roy said one category that witnessed a boost was luxury products.

    “People have stayed back at home and instead of spending outside, they have actively been indulging and taking care of themselves by using  personal care  products,” she added. The disruption that happened at the outset of the pandemic affected the company's supply chain but as things are getting back to normal, the demand is steadily returning.

    Experts echoed the sentiment, saying consumer demand has definitely picked up in the past 15 days. Experimental and cross-shopping is on the rise, especially for categories such as cosmetics, lingerie and home décor. They project that brands which have the best style, value, availability, and experience will surely witness growth.

    Tata CLiQ CMO Kishore Mardikar noted that since people are still on guard against contracting the virus, there’s been a lull in out-of-doors puja activity, especially shopping. Instead, they’ve switched to online to purchase their discretionary needs along with daily essentials. Broadly, there’s been an accelerated digital adoption this year,  with increased exploration and buying in all the categories including fashion and electronics.

    Looking to capitalise on this shift, the primary focus of Tata CLiQ is on audiences that have higher intent/consideration to purchase and thereby engage with them to catapult traffic to the platform. The company's marketing plan during the season is positioned around the theme of gifting.

    “This year our focus is to drive transactional efficiencies and hence our marketing choices are dictated mainly by digital media complimented with engagements via our social platforms,” Mardikar added.

    Even after Covid and government-mandated guidelines to check it, brands have improvised, adapted and are desperately trying to overcome all the challenges. Will they get to have the last laugh? Or will the Calcutta High Court's direction to make all pujo pandals in the state 'no-entry zones' prove to be their undoing?

    MediaCom chief growth officer Soumak Banik paints a not-so-rosy picture of the situation. “When you talk about Durga Puja or event festivities, the maximum of the money goes on ground. This time that is itself cut down, taking a huge hit. Even if the entire outdoor budget is lesser, it will impact advertising fundamentals at the end of the day,” he said.

    The festive season is an auspicious time in terms of sales for businesses across the board and marketers leverage this opportunity with promotions galore. This year, the festivities may be subdued and the volume of ads may be low, but brands are not down and out for the count. They're trying to reach out to customers in new ways and formats.

    “There is cautious optimism in the air. Brands are planning activities and are expecting offtakes to happen,” summed up Havas Media Group MD India Mohit Joshi.

  • Network appoints Harish Shriyan & Amit Ray as executive directors

    Network appoints Harish Shriyan & Amit Ray as executive directors

    Network Advertising has appointed Harish Shriyan and Amit Ray as Executive Directors. Shriyan was earlier group CEO of Omnicom Media Group and has played a key role in establishing Omnicom Media Group in India. Prior to that, he held leadership positions in MediaCom. He has managed portfolios of global giants like Renault, Nissan, HP, Volkswagen, Beiersdorf, Vivo, Sony Pictures, Johnson & Johnson among others. The Indian clients he has managed include conglomerates like Tata Motors, Kotak Mahindra, Arvind Mills, and Parle Agro. Shriyan is extremely adept at building teams and growing businesses and excels at adding a ‘startup’ mentality to his teams.

    Ray ushers in an expansive mindset honed on multinationals like Unilever and Nestle and Indian corporations like ITCand Reliance Jio. He has headed the media function in agencies like Mudra and been on the client side holding a leadership position at Reliance Infocomm. Ray has been the longest-serving chairman of the technical committee at the MRUC. 

    Shriyan said, “I am really looking forward to working in a truly Indian, completely independent agency; not limited in its capacity to do the right thing by global dictats. I aim to assist the Network in growing to its true potential. I am also excited with the opportunity to work closely with brand strategy and creative teams because I feel this integration can truly provide a competitive edge to the client’s business. I have been impressed with the rigour in Network’s approach and am eager to add my effort and contribution.”

     Ray said, “I was drawn by Network’s process of talking ‘business first’. Their holistic approach resonated with my beliefs. There was a feet-on-the-ground demeanor and a willingness to be utterly candid with the client. I have always believed in focusing on how the solution proposed works for the client at a business level, and at Network, I feel there has been a meeting of minds.”

    Network Advertising MD Vinod Nair said “We feel fortunate to induct someone like Harish with such invaluable experience in running a large, multifaceted media company. Harish understands deeply what it takes to build organizations. His perspectives and values, both on business and people, match ours. This is a welcome addition to Network. On the other hand, Amit is very passionate when it comes to finding the optimum solution for clients. He has an extremely analytical mind, fantastic at spotting trends and decoding the stories behind numbers. Amit always dwells on what makes sense for the business first. That perspective is going to prove a precious asset in our forward journey.”

    “These inclusions create a powerhouse of talent within Network. They allow us to design customized solutions for clients, regardless of the investment side. They help us to truly provide an integrated, well-rounded approach when it comes to helping client’s grow their business” said Nair.

  • MediaCom bags media mandate for Lionsgate Play

    MediaCom bags media mandate for Lionsgate Play

    NEW DELHI: Following a competitive multi-agency pitch, GroupM’s media agency MediaCom has won the media mandate for Lionsgate Play in India.

    As their full form AOR, MediaCom will be responsible for the media strategy, planning, buying and implementation for all media as per Lionsgate’s requirements. The last year has been exciting for MediaCom with a couple of big wins, with Lionsgate adding another feather in their hat. 

    The account will be managed and supervised by the MediaCom Mumbai office.

    Lionsgate is a global content platform whose stellar range of films, television series, digital products and linear and over-the-top platforms are available to audiences around the world. Lionsgate Play is the global giant’s most recent OTT service offering in India, which features internationally acclaimed content such as Twilight series, Hunger Games, Wonder, Now You See Me, John Wick series, recently Oscar-nominated Knives Out and Bombshell to name a few to the Indian audiences.

    Lionsgate South Asia MD Rohit Jain said, “This is an exciting year for Lionsgate Play. We will be launching our B2C app soon and aim to reach out to the maximum number of audiences with the right media mix. We are glad to partner with MediaCom and are confident about their result-oriented approach.”  

    MediaCom South Asia CEO Navin Khemka says, “Content consumption has witnessed unprecedented growth in the last couple of years more so over the last few months as a result of the lockdown. Lionsgate Play has some great content in their arsenal. Being the first OTT platform in the country to also focus on offering key Hollywood content in region-specific language will definitely make the right connect with the Indian consumer. We look forward to creating an unmatched brand experience for them.”

  • “Covid2019 has shown how supply is critical to marketing”: MediaCom’s Soumak Banik

    “Covid2019 has shown how supply is critical to marketing”: MediaCom’s Soumak Banik

    NEW DELHI: Despite the calamitous Covid2019 situation, TV channels and producers have steeled themselves and are rolling out fresh programming. The good news is that inventory fill rates have gone up. What needs improvement is the pricing of the purchase by media buyers from agencies. Almost every TV channel vertical – news channels included – are also in a similar position on the rate front. In the first episode of 'TV Buying: Agreeing to a new normal’, Indiantelevision.com founder CEO & editor in chief Anil Wanvari spoke to MediaCom chief growth officer Soumak Banik.

    According to Banik, the Covid2019 era has changed the intercommunication between clients and brand. He said, “This is the time where we are not just partners but advocates and it's more about being connected, staying together and giving more value-added services. The amount of conversion, from an agency to a client level, has almost increased by 50-55 per cent. The current time is teaching us to be an advocate to our partners and look together on how to revive the business and find solutions.”

    “In the last three months, the intent of consumer confidence has gone down terribly. Supply and distribution have been affected; businesses have got fluctuated. In proportion relatively, the marketing budget has slipped down,” he said.

    Banik explained that the crisis due to the pandemic has led brands to slash their marketing spends. “Most brands where business and volume targets are linked to the media budgets, the marketing initiatives got a fragile cut and now that the business is reviving, advertisers have started showing interest and looking on how to get back to the market.”

    Meanwhile, as India is in semi-lockdown, viewership and engagement are back in a full swing.  So, the confidence and positivity among the advertisers are likely to get a boost. He said, “TV and original content are back and will see reach and relevance back to the position soon. TV is gaining back its own reach now and so advertisers are looking to make a comeback. In the last four weeks, almost 45-50 per cent of filled rates are coming back to television.” 

    Speaking about how supply has become a priority in today’s time, Banik emphasised, “As marketers, we always kept demand marketing at the funnel and neglected supply, but this time we have learned how supply is critical to marketing as a funnel. In today’s time, supply has become a new demand and new marketing and we started looking it at more rigorously.”

    According to him, there are many brands that did not advertise in the lockdown period, but sectors like e-commerce, OTT and FMCG are highly focused this time.  “Consumer-centric supply demands model has increased. FMCG as a category has grown up by 45 per cent, while auto has gone down eight per cent. E-commerce has gained traction, almost 35 per cent in the last few months.”

    Banik believes, “Brands in India need reach and for that, we need to go back to the television. Q3 will be an opportunity for us to revive. The basic funnel of doing business in India in any category is about reaching to the direct distribution channels. No brand can live without the reach of television. In the coming months, IPL and the festive season will begin and we could see advertisers spending high on TV.”

  • Lalit Agrawal moves on from OMD India, joins ZEEL

    Lalit Agrawal moves on from OMD India, joins ZEEL

    MUMBAI: Senior media professional Lalit Agrawal joined Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) in April after ending nearly a decade-old stint with OMD India. He has joined as vice president – sales planning and strategy, as updated on his LinkedIn profile. 

    Prior to that, Agrawal was serving as senior vice president in OMD India. He has worked across the media vertical including Times of India, Star India, Mediacom, and Group M. 

  • MediaCom announces key leadership appointments in Mumbai

    MediaCom announces key leadership appointments in Mumbai

    MUMBAI: MediaCom has further strengthened its leadership team, with the announcement of key appointments and role changes in the Mumbai team.

    Vishal Shah has joined as managing partner, MediaCom West. In this role, Vishal will be leading MediaCom’s West clients excluding P&G.

    Rachana Monteiro has been elevated to lead one of MediaCom’s key portfolios – agency lead on the P&G business.

    Shah has been an entrepreneur and was running his own start-up before joining MediaCom. He has also worked with leading agencies like Madison, Starcom and UM extensively on strategic media planning, buying and implementation before moving to the client-side at The Kraft Heinz Company. He has also worked with iconic brands like Carrefour, Ford Motor, McDonald’s, Complan, Glucon-D, Ferrari, Lindt, Asian Paints, Monster.com, etc. Vishal has been responsible for the stellar growths of brands like Nycil and Heinz while heading their marketing teams.

    Rachana Monteiro has been associated with MediaCom since 2013, previously as senior business director, a key driver behind the success of team P&G. With over 18 years of experience in media management, Rachana has a deep operating understanding of the telecom, banking, travel categories, apart from FMCG. She has been associated with leading agencies like Carat, Maxus, Lodestar, Starcom and key brands like Philips, Disney, Tata Telecom, Vodafone, Heinz, BlackBerry, Axis Bank, etc. in the past.

    MediaCom South Asia CEO Navin Khemka says, “It is great to have such talented leaders in our Mumbai team. Known to be a brand change agent, I am confident that Vishal’s appointment will help grow MediaCom’s existing and potential clients and will add immense value to our media offering. Rachana, on the other hand, has been a passionate leader and I am delighted to see her grow and take on a larger role within the company. I am certain that team P&G is stronger and together this passionate team will help in growth to the next level.”

    Vishal Shah says, “MediaCom is known for its people-centric culture. I am looking forward to work with the immensely talented team at MediaCom. My immediate tasks would be drive growth for MediaCom West along with adding more value to the existing clients.”

    Rachana Monteiro says, “It’s a pleasure and privilege to be leading a prestigious portfolio like P&G. My stint at MediaCom has been very rewarding and I hope with the support of my fantastic team and client, we can take P&G to the next level of growth.”