MUMBAI: COVID-19 pandemic is threatening lives across the globe. It has brought the entire economy and people’s life at a standstill. During this crisis, essential service workers are the ones who are risking their health so that society can function smoothly. FCB Ulka ECD Anindya Banerjee expresses his gratitude towards healthcare providers and other essential services personnel for their support during this crisis.
Tag: Novel Coronavirus
-
Consumers don’t want brands to stop advertising despite COVID-19: Kantar study
MUMBAI: Consumers don’t want brands to stop advertising and it must not be exploitative, says Kantar's new study. Majority also believe that coronavirus must not be exploited to promote a brand.
The study seeks to gauge urban India’s sentiments, behaviours and expectations from brands during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As consumer behaviour shifts dramatically and an anxious India waits it out, the new study provides brand owners the answers to burning questions like:
· What are people thinking, their major concerns, fears and expectations
· How the current crisis is impacting purchase behaviour
· Implications for brands and marketingIn the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, urban India has emerged deeply anxious with a strong need for reassurance and stabilisation. Some highlights of the study are:
Expectations from brands
A “New Normal” is gradually forming. If you don’t build desire, we will learn to live with less, indicates the Kantar study.
· Brands are expected to be a trusted source of accurate information (28 per cent)
· Consumers don’t want brands to stop advertising and it must not be exploitative
· 71 per cent believe coronavirus must not be exploited to promote a brand
· Brands must show how they can be helpful in the new everyday life (79 per cent)
· Inform about their efforts to face the situation (77 per cent)
· Offer a positive perspective (74 per cent)
Urban India sentiments and behaviour· Despite a significantly lower number of cases and death toll compared to many nations, India has a high score on the concern index at 57 per cent.
· Day-to-day disruption bothers India more 69 per cent when compared to:
o Health concerns at 48 per cent
o Economic recession at 18 per cent
o Financial preparedness of the nation at 47 per cent· Standing at 54 per cent, India supersedes the global average of 34 per cent when it comes to expecting a speedy recovery
· We are optimistic attitudinally, but behaviours are contrary. Driven by high concerns for scarcity, 51 per cent India is stocking up for worse, mainly essentials.
· Going by the current scenario, shared mobility is likely to take a hit; the numbers are heavily skewed towards a complete stop on usage of public transport (55 per cent), taxis/ride-hailing apps (35 per cent), domestic air travel (58 per cent), domestic railway travel (57 per cent) as opposed to private vehicles (17 per cent).
Kantar’s COVID-19 Barometer India study was conducted among 1100+ sample across 19 cities and 15 states. The respondents are men and women above 18 years and belong to NCCS A and B. The data collection was done through 19 – 22 March.
-
Life is much more than mad rush: Smile India’s Shifa Maitra
NEW DELHI: The novel coronavirus pandemic has left the whole world in a lurch with people going through a tough time. Quarantined in homes, there is a lot of regular hustle that the working class is missing these days but according to Shifa Maitra, the creator of ‘Smile India’ podcast for IVM, what these days of social distancing are rightfully teaching the world is that life is much more than being in mad rush all the time.
Currently working from home, Maitra feels it is a welcome change to not rush to work through maddening city traffic. However, she makes sure that she is well dressed and works regularly and takes brisk walk during the breaks.
She is looking at the brighter side as she does with her podcast. Speaking about the same, Maitra told us, “The idea behind the podcast was that as Indians we put a lot of premium on goodness and values. But somewhere across all the media, be it newspapers or television, or social media, we are only hearing the negatives. We are only discussing what is going wrong. But there are many things that are happening right as well. I thought there is a need to highlight that.”
She reveals that listening to podcasts like hers and watching meaningful and educational content, which many creators are working on for these times, one can look at things differently and relax a bit.
She also lauded the efforts that medical practitioners and several other people are making to contain the virus. “When you are sitting and cribbing about the fact that you can’t go to movie hall, there are a lot of people who are leaving their families behind and are working in hospitals.”
Maitra concluded that people should use this time productively and not let their spirits go down.
-
Brands keep up positivity during Covid-19 pandemic
MUMBAI: As millions of people across the world are isolating themselves inside their homes to fight the spread of novel coronavirus, the need for positivity assumes far more significance. This might look like an unusual time to talk about positivity. Nevertheless, positivity remains the main ingredient to create a healthy recipe of not giving up in crisis.
People posting messages on social media brands are coming forward to bring a positive sentiment among people during these troubling times. And amidst the global challenges posed by COVID-19, brands are trying to spread positivity through various campaigns.
Mankind Pharma has come up with #Thanksforbeingmyfamily – a short film that showcases the hard work done by doctors and medical staff for the society.Mankind Pharma CEO Rajeev Juneja says: “With the exponential rise in coronavirus cases in our country, we should acknowledge our medical fraternity like doctors, nurses and paramedics for their fighting spirit and selfless services. Let’s all of us follow required guidelines and help them by taking care of our own self.”
#Thanksforbeingmyfamily resonates everyone's thoughts of saluting the medical personnel, who are not giving up even in the adverse situation.
The COVID19 virus has been affecting hundreds of thousands of people and is having a growing impact on the global economy.
Says Metro vice president – marketing and e-commerce Alisha Malik: “At Metro Brands, the safety of our customers and employees is at the top of the priority list. All necessary safety measures like regular cleaning, sanitization, creating awareness among staff, work from home, setting up helplines internally and many other measures have been taken to ensure the safety of employees. We have also implemented all the best-known safety guidelines available for both employees and customers. It’s extremely important to keep employees motivated as well. Hence, we have been constantly motivating our employees, working from home, to utilise this time to enhance their own skills.”
Private radio network 93.5 RED FM has launched an on-air initiative ‘Care Karona’ that puts the spotlight on spreading authentic information about Coronavirus. Amidst the ongoing global health crisis, it has become more important to protect and safeguard everybody irrespective of their professions. With a similar vision, RED FM is encouraging its listeners to become facilitators of correct information by educating their maids, and drivers who are in direct contact with people to contain the ripple effect of virus.
Sarva founder and Diva Yoga co-founder Sarvesh Shashi said, “The Coronavirus outbreak has left many of us worried and restricted to our homes. Although our physical studios are currently non-operational, we have launched special online classes and a gratitude feature for those who wish to stay at home and practice. The classes are not only meant for our members but anyone and everyone who wants to continue their fitness regimen despite being unable to venture out. These are aimed at three things – physical fitness, immunity building and anxiety management. Both SARVA and DIVA yoga are utilising technology in the best possible way to help people achieve this and tide over the crisis.”
Housejoy CEO Sanchit Gaurav has launched a Virus Fumigation Service for offices and homes. “The products we use have proven to be highly effective in curbing the spread of 65 strains of viruses, 400 strains of bacteria and 100 strains of fungi. We are currently providing free services to a few old-age homes and hospitals and in the process of creating a brief guideline for anyone wanting to sanitize their homes."
“We at Munchilicious take this opportunity through our social media posts to create awareness and communicate directing our consumers to stay safe, stay at home and eat healthy. The major purpose is to focus on angles like social distancing, healthy eating and pro tips which are the most needed in this kind of pandemic. It also intends to provide a solution to the eating patterns for all those who are working from home because of this pandemic,” adds SOCH Foods LLP founder Rohit Pugalia
Joining the bandwagon is Schindler India, a provider of escalators and elevators. It has launched an additional employee assistance programme called 'Schindler cares' – a wellbeing initiative.
Speaking about the initiative, Schindler India and South Asia chief people officer Shubha Arora says, “As a leader in employee engagement, we recognise the link between happiness, wellbeing and fulfilment for achieving productivity at the workplace. Schindler India values the wellbeing of its employees and we understand that preventive measures need to be taken to fight this current outbreak of COVID-19.
“Our employees and their families through our Employee Assistance Programme ‘Schindler Cares’ can access wellbeing services confidentially. We are pleased to have partnered with Santulan, and their team of experts to help provide guidance and counselling to deal with life’s expected and unexpected events,” said Arora.
-
XYXX mandates social distance, suspends e-commerce website until further notice
MUMBAI: Covid-19 has made us all sit up and realise how unpredictable the world we live in is.
XYXX as a brand has always strived to be customer first and work towards serving their customers to the best of abilities. In this time of global pandemonium however, it is time to value human life and safety over all else.
As citizens, while we expect the government to act swiftly, we need to realise that we are the carriers and no government can do anything if we don’t do our bit.
XYXX has mandated corporate employees to work from home starting last week. The brand has ensured the best of safety and sanitation standards for manufacturing, packaging and back office teams.
XYXX believes the need of the hour is for the delivery partners and personnel to also be home, safe with their families. While everyone has occupied the safety and comfort of home, XYXX supports their delivery partners by avoiding risking their lives just to fulfill their call of duty and getcustomers, their favourite products in time.
Starting today, XYXX has made a statement that their website – https://xyxxcrew.com/ will be closed for online orders until the local government considers it safe to do so.
While this would mean loss of business, the brand believes in their partners, employees and extended teams to be hale and hearty, XYXX ensures to bounce back with renewed vigour once this crisis is averted
This premium apparels and innerwear brand will remain available on ‘support@xyxxcrew.com’ for any immediate queries striving to honour all commitments while prioritising the health, safety and economic security of every single person in employment with them.
Addressing the pandemic, the brand stated, “This is unchartered territory for us, the country and the world at large. We can only rely on compassion and resilience to get through these times. We thank you for your patience and cooperation. In our business – the front end delivery people like packaging staff and delivery personnel who still manage all this for customers are significantly impacted. We are trying our best to reach out and see how we can help them.”
As all of us are aware of the Covid-19 crisis and the brand is confident everyone is already taking precautions, following advisories from WHO and respective governments. XYXX is in fulll support to be responsible and find a way to help others as well, especially the people on the frontline and the ones who could be on the social and economic fringes.
-
The sunny side of corona outbreak
MUMBAI/NEW DELHI: Lunching together digitally; employees taking ownership of their work with a lot of seriousness and passion; and people getting plenty of time to be with their families…
These are some of the positive outcomes of the impromptu and mostly self-imposed work-from-home system put in place by companies all over India in view of the coronavirus pandemic.
Across the country, central and state governments are taking measures to limit people from travelling and encouraging companies to offer work-from-home options. Large technology firms were among the first among the lot to switch to remote working for all their staff.
Indiantelevision.com asked industry experts about their work-from-home measures during this critical time.
Dineout co-founder and CEO Ankit Mehrotra said: “In the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, we’ve been actively implementing social distancing, sanitisation and even self-quarantine policies for the last two weeks. Our teams across all cities will be working from home until 31 March 2020. Our sales teams have also been advised to focus on virtual training and client support for the next two weeks. In fact, our teams are also having lunch together digitally! In such challenging times, we continue to work together to overcome operational hurdles by leveraging technologies like Google Hangouts, Slack and Google Meets to stay connected virtually and ensure continuity of work.”
For many, work from home is a completely different experience altogether. There is an overload of screen time, dozens of hangout calls, and a few dozen more WhatsApp groups. However, in these testing times employees are taking ownership of their work with a lot more seriousness, dedication and passion. “The reporting structures are well defined and there is a seamless flow of information because of the SOPs set. We, as founders, have a bird’s eye view of who is working on what and what project is consuming how much time. Ease of allocating time commitments to projects is easier. More importantly, the world was greener and cleaner this week and team got a lot of time to spend with their families,” says White Rivers Media chief executive officer and co-founder Shrenik Gandhi.
Big Trunk Communications managing director Bharat Subramaniam thinks that as the coronavirus has taken the world by storm, businesses all over the globe are resorting to innovative ways and acting responsibly to prevent the spread of this infectious disease. He believes that it is their duty as leaders and entrepreneurs to thoroughly understand the risks involved in continuing operations without taking any stern and serious measures.
“In times when communication mediums have strengthened fourfold with the advent of digital transformation, it has facilitated great opportunities in the WFH model. We follow the "Make Big Happen Everyday" culture and believe in going the extra mile for our esteemed clients in challenging situations like these. All in all, work-from-home has worked well and has been a win-win situation for both employees and employers,” he says.
According to Alchemy Group chief business officer Pankil Mehta, the COVID-19 crisis has brought a change to everyday routine. However, there is no hindrance in terms of work getting done.
“Speaking specifically about Alchemy Group, we have consciously invested time and effort in ensuring our technology and processes are such where teams can work efficiently even when they are not sitting under the same roof. However, from a morale perspective, things have slowed down and one can tend to feel a little less productive considering they are at home all day. We, as a team, ensure we maintain daily routines and try and stick to deadlines like any other day in the office. In the current scenario, I have also urged the team to take sufficient breaks and rests throughout the day and most importantly stay safe.”
There, however, is flip side to it. While there is a lot of buzz about the advantages of work-from-home, such as spending more time with family, focusing on other priorities, and less unproductive travel time, the reality of business seems to be different. People will engage less with each other, critical decisions will be deferred and strategic investments will be reassessed until the impact and the scale of the slowdown is understood in the weeks and months to come.
According to Update Geotarget chief strategy officer Samarjeet Reen, this time can be utilised to upskill yourself, learn something new about your industry, exercise, read books. And more importantly, practice societal empathy.
He adds: “We have a very large count of informal blue-collar services and micro/small retailers, which includes home delivery, house maintenance, etc. All of them add to our personal productivity, and they are at extreme risk. While we look after our own health and business, we must ensure that small service providers and retailers get adequate support to deal with containment due to Covid-19, and income sustenance, so they can get back on their feet quicker. Societal empathy and responsibility should be the highest priority, more so for the better-placed industry leadership.”
In Mumbai, all private corporates and establishments will be completely shut for the next couple of days. Production/manufacturing processes which require continuity may function at 50 percent staff strength. Those who do not comply by the order will face action under section 188 of the Indian Penal Code. In fact, those who flout the ordeal can be jailed for six months or fined, or both.
On a similar note, the Karnataka government had issued an advisory, asking companies to adopt work-from-home policies whenever possible in view of the COVID-19. In the wake of this, FCA India has asked over 50 per cent of its staff to work from home.
ITC has asked a certain section of its staff, majorly from the novel coronavirus-affected regions like Maharashtra, Kerala, Delhi-NCR and Bengaluru, to work from home.
Earlier, Hindustan Unilever asked its 4000+ employees globally to work from home as well. It, in fact, advised on-field sales employees to virtually connect with customers.
(If you would like to get featured in our range of positive stories during the COVID-19 crisis, reach out to us right away!)
-
From Fevicol to Dettol, brands play active role in creating awareness on COVID-19
MUMBAI: As confirmed novel coronavirus cases have reached 167 in India, brands across different sectors have started creating social awareness campaigns to educate consumers about the disease. Streaming giant Netflix, Zomato, Hindustan Unilever’s Lifebuoy, Reckitt Benckiser’s Dettol and Amul, among others, have joined the bandwagon to stay relevant and express solidarity with people during COVID-19 scare.
Lifebuoy
Sensing the fear among people, personal hygiene brands have started posting precautionary tips. HUL’s Lifebuoy has been actively promoting the use of alcohol-based hand sanitizer to stay safe. The campaign was praised for its message, as it mentioned key competitors such as Dettol, Lux, Godrej No 1, Santoor in its ad and urged people to buy any product which is easily accessible to them.
Dettol
Reckitt Benckiser, a consumer health and hygiene company, has launched a Paigham-e-Sehat campaign around its brand Dettol. To drive behaviour change communication, the programme is aimed at 550,000 Madrasas across India. Prior to this campaign, Dettol in partnership with TikTok launched #HandWashChallenge to raise awareness about washing hands.
@urvashirautela Wash Hands and Stay Cool ##HandWashChallenge @dettol_india
Amul
Dairy brand Amul never misses a chance to stand out. For instance, the brand featured a topical ad with Amul girl washing hands as the caption read ‘Better saaf than sorry’. The ad appeared on all social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
#Amul Topical: Precautions against the Coronavirus! pic.twitter.com/kdilfocb0f
— Amul.coop (@Amul_Coop) March 3, 2020
Fevicol
Fevicol is known as a brand which has mastered the art of ‘moment marketing’. During the times of COVID-19 scare, Fevicol tweaked its iconic logo of two elephants and increased the distance between them to convey the message of social distancing.
Social distancing made simple
#CoronaVirus #FevicolKaJod #MazbootJod pic.twitter.com/wf8WF9TxmE
— Fevicol (@StuckByFevicol) March 17, 2020
Zomato
Zomato’s Deepinder Goyal through his twitter handle talks about the precautionary measures taken at Zomato.
Here is what we are doing as precautionary measures to address COVID-19.
Contactless food delivery is already available on the @zomato app through our ‘delivery instructions’ feature. An app update over the weekend will make this explicitly clear to everyone. pic.twitter.com/HJ012g5zfH
— Deepinder Goyal (@deepigoyal) March 13, 2020
Viviana MallViviana mall in its social media campaign urges people to spread information and not panic.
It has collated a few important tips to protect ourselves from COVID-19.Mad Over Donuts
MOD through its social media post builds confidence among people by talking about the hygiene maintained while preparing food. It has mentioned how the entire staff wears gloves and masks while cooking.
Balaji Motion Pictures
With the COVID-19 pandemic becoming increasingly prevalent around the globe, Ekta Kapoor’s Balaji Motion Pictures requests people to stay indoors.
Red Chillies Entertainment
Red Chillies Entertainment through its post explains the importance social distancing.
A little caution today can give us a healthier tomorrow!
Maintain #SocialDistancing and stay safe. #Coronavirus #COVID19 #CoronavirusPandemic pic.twitter.com/NlV2HREOxa— Red Chillies Entertainment (@RedChilliesEnt) March 18, 2020
Treize Communications
As the novel coronavirus outbreak grows, companies are asking their employees to work from home for their safety and work efficiency. Treize Communications brings in some tips for making work from home easy and fun.
Viacom18
Viacom18 in through Instagram post are educating people to stay safe amidst novel coronavirus scare. They have set out certain precautionary measures to create awareness around the disease
-
OOH ad industry could take a hit due to COVID-19
MUMBAI: The pandemic of COVID19 continues to take a toll on every possible industry; the advertising world is no exception. With people being asked to stay indoors, the impact on the OOH industry could be huge. Though the cases are currently restricted to just a few cities in the country, further escalation could damage the OOH segment.
Laqshya Media group CEO Atul Shrivastava says: “OOH ad spending could feel a negative impact if the social distancing and isolation measures that have emerged in some cities expand to larger territories. Consumers in India with significant numbers of reported COVID-19 cases are already actively avoiding large public places and gatherings, and that may eventually impact advertisers’ willingness to advertise there as well. For now, however, we are not making any other major adjustments to our business forecasts because of the COVID-19 outbreak. Our forecasts are for the full year, and there is still a strong possibility that the virus could be contained in the coming months, allowing for a rebound in H2 2020. Most of the times, the bulk of ad spending takes place in the latter part of the year for the holiday & festive season.”
Meanwhile, the impact of COVID-19 is likely to cause a significant growth in viewership on YouTube, OTT platforms and television. This will come as an alternative to the 3-hour travel journey each day.
"With the disappointment of IPL being postponed, OTT and other online content platforms will be the only space. People will catch up with series, movies and podcasts they have missed and explore new content. Online classes will prosper as people may set out to learn a new language or skill, as will a lot of the content on YouTube, especially children's content as parents will try to find a way to keep kids indoors and busy,” says GoBisbo Broadcasting Network founder Shakir Ebrahim.
Akund Communications founder Sadiya Khan differs in her view. She says that considering the self-imposed isolation that we are all moving towards, people in the coming days would spend more time at home with family while watching news channels. Most online content that's viewed on mobile devices in transit would be a second priority to this.
“As consumers try to keep themselves informed and entertained at home, advertisers too would bring down ad spends on online platforms and opt for mainstream coverage,” she further adds.
The spread of coronavirus has caused a sense of unprecedented uncertainty for Indian advertising. The ad world is already pivoting and adapting a few measures as a result of the outbreak. Overall brand spending could take at least a temporary hit, and agencies and brands need to think proactively about how to tackle the situation.