Tag: print

Ad spend to remain bullish this festive season

Mumbai: After two Covid-impacted years, the mood among consumers and advertisers for the festive season is a lot better. Media agencies expect a decent uptick in ad spends.

The overall sentiment is positive. iProspect India executive vice president Kaushik Chakraborty explains, “Unlike the last two years, this festive season will be far more exciting. We can expect brands to encash on the positive sentiment. While media spends will be primarily driven by TV and digital, print and OOH spends will also grow,” he tells Indiantelevision.com.

He explains further that there has been a robust growth in ad spends during festive seasons in the last three years. “In 2021, the growth was more than 20 per cent as compared to the previous year. Although the inflationary pressure will impact overall consumer sentiments, we can expect a 10 per cent plus growth in media spend this festive season.”

The key categories that will witness a strong push in demand are e-commerce, automobiles, e-wallets, BFSI, and retail.

“Normally, festivities contribute around 40 per cent of AdEx. A similar trend will continue this year. The bulk of the spending will happen till Diwali, and post that, advertisers will rationalise spending,” he says.

When asked about the impact of startups being under pressure to conserve cash, he points out that startups contribute less than 13 per cent of overall AdEx. “Traditional advertising players will contribute during the festive seasons, while seasonal advertisers will continue their spending.”

IPG Mediabrands chief investment officer Hema Malik says that ad spend growth will be 10-15 per cent. Print, radio, cinema and out-to-home (OOH) are bouncing back. She expects the print media’s festive season ad spend growth to be over 50 per cent. “This will be the first festive season in three years without restrictions. The festive season will be celebrated in full-swing on-ground. Earlier, there were issues with masks, fewer places to visit and timings. The market should see a good pick-up currently.”

However, Malik highlights that television ad spends during the festive season will be flat due to the Indian Premier League (IPL) that happened last year. The annual advertising budget was diverted to IPL promotions. Also, the upcoming Twenty20 World Cup in Australia will take place after Diwali, which is an appropriate time and cooling-off period for advertisers. Hopefully, things will pick up in the advertising market and advertisers will likely increase their spending.

“Companies discontinue campaigns after Diwali and take a break. There will also be a struggle due to the disappointing IPL viewership recently and also the mediocre performance of India in the Asia Cup. It will be difficult to watch the Twenty20 World Cup on television. The challenge for television is that viewership has been steadily declining. The numbers are unexplainable. It is becoming a deterrent to price revisions. This has been a perennial issue for a couple of months now,” Malik tells Indiantelevision.com.

Elucidating further on the startup situation, she says, “Startups are facing a slowdown that is another challenge for television and digital media. Big sports properties will come under pressure. Other categories will fill up the gap, and selling inventory will not be an issue. The issue is whether those companies would be willing to spend as much as startups who have a target reach.”

Filling up inventory is never an issue for television, Malik explains further. It is yield maximisation that will be the challenge. The startup issue will also have an impact digitally. “The dampener is the startups and new-age companies that are under a slowdown this year. That is impacting the advertising mood and AdEx growth, she adds.

She adds that a few categories are firing, but not all. She expects categories like confectionery, paint, and jewellery to do well. “They will come back in full force. Retail is expanding into more areas. E-commerce will also be there,” she concludes.

September 22, 2022
61% consumers watch online video content like YouTube/OTT on their mobile/home TV: Axis My India Sep CSI Survey
Mumbai: Axis My India, a leading consumer data intelligence company, released its latest findings of the India Consumer Sentiment Index (CSI), a monthly analysis of consumer perception on a wide range of issues.

According to reports, 20 per cent of consumers are planning to shop more this festive season. On media consumption, 61 per cent mentioned that they watch online video content either on their mobiles or connected TV. 32 per cent mentioned that they notice advertising on TV, followed by digital (26 per cent). An interesting observation was on app usage. On average, nine apps are used by a smartphone user.

The net CSI score for September, calculated by percentage increase minus percentage decrease in sentiment, is at +10, from +9 last month, reflecting an increase of one point. The sentiment analysis delves into five relevant sub-indices: overall household spending; spending on essential and non-essential items; spending on healthcare; media consumption habits; and mobility trends.

Key Findings:
- Overall, household spending has increased for 61 per cent of families, which is the same as in August. The net score, which was +52 last month, has increased by +1 to +53 in September.
- Consumption of media remains the same as the previous month, i.e., 19 per cent. The overall net score, which is -1 in September, also remains the same.
- Mobility has increased for seven per cent of families, representing a one per cent increase over the previous month.
- Spending on essentials like personal care and household items has increased for 46 per cent of the families, which is an increase of one per cent from last month. The net score, which was at +26 this month, has increased by +3 to +29.
- Spending on non-essential and discretionary products like air conditioners, cars, and refrigerators has increased for seven per cent of families, which reflects an increase of one per cent from last month. The net score, which was at nil last month, has improved to +2 this month. This could reflect the spirit of the festive season approaching.
- Consumption of health-related items has increased for 37 per cent of the families, which reflects a decrease of one per cent from last month. The health score, which has a negative connotation i.e., the less spent on health items, the better the sentiments, has a net score value of -23 for September, as compared to -24 last month.
On topics of current national interest:
- In an attempt to understand consumers’ engagement with mobile apps, the survey discovered that, on average, consumers have nine apps on their smartphones. 16 per cent use a minimum of 4–8 apps on their smartphone, and 22 per cent have more than eight apps. A significant 24 per cent mentioned that they use a feature phone.
- In order to determine which medium advertisements are more likely to be noticed, the survey discovered that a majority of 32 per cent notice ads on TV, while 26 per cent notice them on online media. It was also discovered that only 17 per cent notice ads on social media platforms, 15 per cent in print, six per cent in outdoor and two per cent on radio.
- The survey further revealed that a majority of 61 per cent watch online video content like YouTube or OTT on their mobile/home TV.
- Digging deeper into the festive spirit, the survey shows that 20 per cent plan to shop more this festive season compared to last year. However, 32 per cent plan to shop the same as last year.
- According to the Axis My India Consumer Sentiment Index Survey, 48 per cent of consumers shop/purchase more products during the festive season as compared to the rest of the year.
- Exploring farmers’ sentiments towards new tractors, the survey found out that 10 per cent are planning to purchase new tractors in the coming year, while three per cent and two per cent plan to do so within six months and three months, respectively. For reasons like smaller land size, renting, or affordability, a significant 86 per cent of farmers don’t own a tractor.
The survey was carried out via computer-aided telephonic interviews with a sample size of 10014 people across 32 states and UTs. 68 per cent belonged to rural India, while 32 per cent belonged to urban India. In terms of regional spread, 23 per cent belong to the northern parts while 24 per cent belong to the eastern parts of India. Moreover, 29 per cent and 23 per cent belonged to the western and southern parts of India, respectively. 59 per cent of the respondents were male, while 41 per cent were female. In terms of the two majority sample groups, 32 per cent reflect the age group of 36-year olds to 50-year olds, while 31 per cent reflect the age group of 26-year olds to 35-year olds.

Axis My India chairman and MD Pradeep Gupta said, “After compromising the past two festive seasons because of the pandemic and its related constraints, this year consumers are expected to shop more during festivities. One can already witness a slight increase in expenses across essential and discretionary products. Further improvement in mobility sentiments highlights the fact that more and more people are enjoying the stores’ and malls’ experiences of discovering, shopping, and gifting.”

He further added, “This sentiment is also extended among the Indian farmers, wherein a significant percentage of 15 per cent intend to buy a brand new tractor in the next one year. This is thus a crucial time for the Indian advertising business as spending is expected to bring a lot more returns than usual. As more and more people (61 per cent) are watching online video content (YouTube/OTT) on their mobile/home TV and thereby noticing ads across TV, online and social media platforms, it is of utmost importance for the media industry to tap the right medium for addressing differentiated consumer needs.”
September 5, 2022
Asci releases ‘sector report card 2021-22’: Ad violations by top six sectors

Mumbai: The Advertising Standards Council of India (Asci) has recently released its annual complaints report for the financial year 21-22. The report provided information on the complaints examined and advertisements handled by the self-regulatory organisation. The report processed 4,184 advertisements across mediums including print, digital media and television.

The significance of the digital ecosystem was reflected in the fact that 48 per cent of the ads that Asci processed were published digitally, 29 per cent of the complaints that were filed concerned influencers, and the top six violative categories showed the emergence of sectors like gaming and cryptocurrency.

The report also delves into the specifics of the advertisements examined, the types of complaints, the results of the ads processed, and the involvement of influencers and celebrities in each sector. Education, with 23 per cent increase in comparison to last year, remains the single largest violative industry, followed by gaming (472 per cent increase) and personal care (261 per cent increase).

Education

ASCI discovered 23 per cent more violations in this category during fiscal years 2020–21. The edtech category accounted for six per cent of the 1,728 ads checked. In total, 90 per cent of these advertisements were in print. 1.2 per cent were broadcast on television, 8.8 per cent were digital, and 0.1 per cent were distributed through other mediums.

Nine ads featuring celebrities were found to be misleading, and 12 more were added with influencer disclosure violations.

Only one per cent of the ads were rejected, while the other 99 per cent required modification. Under the procedural outcomes of cases requiring modification – 17 per cent had informal resolution, 83 per cent were upheld.

The report stated, “Most of the violative claims against the education industry were pertaining to leadership, awards and rankings, and job guarantee claims. Comparative superlative claims like highest success, lowest fees, etc, and performance outcome claims like best results, success assured were also common. In addition to these, there were a significant number of money back guarantee claims, usually clubbed with result-oriented or outcome-related claims.”

Gaming

The gaming industry grew by 472 per cent in fiscal years 2021-22 compared to the previous year. Asci, in total, looked into 383 cases in this category. Where four per cent of the records were not valid, three per cent were dismissed, and 94 per cent required some modification. 11 per cent of ads were upheld while 89 per cent of them had an informal resolution: not contested.

In total, one per cent of these advertisements were in print. One per cent was broadcast on television, 99 per cent on digital, and none were distributed via other means.

Eight ads featuring celebrities were found to be misleading, and 22 added with influencer disclosure violations.

“Most violative claims in the gaming industry were pertaining to leadership, guaranteed winnings, prize money assurance and safety, security & privacy claims. Other claims like consumer trust – trusted by three billion users etc., and comparative claims like win better, Xtimes more winnings were also seen,” said the report.

Personal Care

Surprisingly, Asci’s total number of ads checked increased by 261 per cent in the previous fiscal year, to 531. As per the report, four per cent of these were nullified, five per cent dismissed, and 91 per cent required modifications.

While 69 per cent had an informal resolution—not contested, 31 per cent were upheld. Four per cent of these ads appeared in print, six per cent on television, 88 per cent in digital, and two per cent in other mediums. Four ads featuring celebrities were found to be misleading, and 371 ads were found to be violating the influencer disclosure code.

In the report, Asci stated, “There were various claims made in the advertisements looked into under this category. Most of the violative claims were pertaining to product performance. Owing to the ongoing pandemic, we saw a number of protection and prevention claims, particularly those claiming protection from germs like viruses and bacteria. Besides these, there were comparative claims, ingredient performance-led claims, natural and organic product claims, leadership claims, consumer trust and recommendation by experts claims.”

Healthcare

The previous year saw a surge in Covid cure/protection claims that settled as the pandemic progressed, resulting in a 20 per cent decrease in ads seen by Asci on a fiscal year basis, from 967 to 775 in FY’22.

The procedural outcomes of cases are: while 19 per cent had an informal resolution—not contested, 62 per cent were upheld, and 19 per cent were in DMR/Covid violations. Adding to that, 0.3 per cent of complaints were not valid, 1.7 per cent were dismissed, and 98 per cent required modification.

Five ads featuring celebrities were found to be misleading, and 15 more were found to be violating the influencer disclosure code.

The medium split of the platforms where these ads are published is: 75 per cent of these ads are in print, three per cent on television, 21 per cent in digital, and one per cent in other media.

According to the report, the majority of the most egregious claims in the healthcare industry concerned leadership, awards and rankings, and comparative claims, particularly in clinics and hospitals. Treatment assurance claims were also fairly common. For drugs and medicinal products, claims of cure, prevention, and protection were the most common. Health condition reversal and product performance claims were among the other violative claims noted. There has been a rise in the occurrence of natural ingredient or procedure-led treatment or cure claims.

Food & Beverages

ASCI found a 31 per cent increase in violations in this category during fiscal years 2020–21. Asci, in total, looked into 373 cases. As mentioned in the report, 16 per cent of these advertisements were in print. Seven per cent were broadcast on television, 73 per cent were digital, and four per cent were distributed through other means.

The procedural outcomes of cases requiring modification recorded 53 per cent informal resolution: not contested and 47 per cent upheld. Adding to that, two per cent of complaints were not valid, 14 per cent were dismissed, and 84 per cent (two cases are currently sub-judice) required modification.

The number of ads featuring celebrities found to be misleading and violating the influencer disclosure code is two and 131, respectively.

The report said, “Almost every product sub-category under F&B had immunity boosting claims along with ingredient benefit and product performance claims. Comparative claims, leadership claims, and health and disease risk reduction claims were also common. Like many other categories, there was an increase in claims pertaining to protection from and prevention of various diseases caused by viruses and bacteria. Other claims included awards and rankings, natural source/organic foods, consumer trust, and quality claims.”

Virtual Digital Assets (VDA)

The Asci report highlighted that advertising in this category had not been so prominent in the previous years. Therefore, the recorded number this year included only 394 ads in the process, of which four per cent were invalid, one per cent were rejected, and 95 per cent required modification.

Additionally, while 53 per cent were informal resolution: not contested, 47 per cent were upheld.

None of the ads featuring celebrities were found to be misleading this year. The number of violations in influencer disclosure stood at 385.

The medium split of the platforms where these ads are published is: one per cent of these ads are in print, one per cent on television and 98 per cent in digital media.

The report added, “Most of the advertisements looked into under this industry were influencer disclosure cases, where influencers were talking about how to navigate the VDA platforms or sharing information about the category and how the platform is easy to operate. From some of the ads that made misleading claims, leadership and consumer trust claims were most common. Guaranteed earnings and performance comparisons with other modes of investment like gold and stock investment are followed. The other commonly found claims revolved around promoting the category through referral programme claims like ‘refer a friend and win’.”

July 21, 2022
TV Ad volumes of real estate sector rose by 68% in January-May’22: TAM AdEx report

Mumbai: Ad volumes of real estate category on television rose by 68 per cent during January-May’22 over January-May’20, while the growth was 42 per cent more than the corresponding period last year. According to a TAM AdEx cross media report on the real estates sector, advertising volumes for the category saw an increase of 2.8 times on radio during the period as compared to the same period in 2020, even as advertising space in print medium grew by two times during the same period. Ad insertions of the category on digital medium during the January-May’22 saw a rise of 5.5 times.

On television the top 10 advertisers accounted for over 40 per cent share of ad volumes during the half-yearly period in 2022 with the advertiser Subha Gruha Projects (India) having the greatest ad volumes in the category, with 9 per cent, as per the report. 300 exclusive brands advertised under the category as compared to 2021. 20-40 seconds and greater than 20 seconds ads together added 83 per cent share of the category’s ad volumes, the data indicated.

News genre was the most preferred for the sector in the TV medium, with the genre alone hogging 82 per cent of the category’s ad volumes share followed by general entertainment category (GEC) in the second position. The best three channels got 97 per cent of advertisement volumes’ share for category in January-May ’22.

News Bulletin was the foremost well-known program to advanced properties-real estate category brands on TV, with the top two program genres i.e. news bulletin and interviews/portraits/discussion together adding 66 per cent of the category’s ad volumes.

In the print medium, Kedia Real Estate was the best promoter within the categories with two per cent share of ad space during January-May ’22. The top ten advertisers accounted for 15 per cent share of ad space. Over 6,000 brands were present in print during January-May’22 among which the top 10 brands had 9 per cent share of ad space. During the period, over 4,500 exclusive brands appeared under the properties-real estates category compared to Jan-May’ 21. English dialect was on top with 37 per cent share of ad space with Hindi following close behind with a 31 per cent share.

Meanwhile, Kedia Real Estate was the top advertiser in radio too. The top ten promoters added 25 per cent share of ad volumes amid Jan-May ’22. The top ten brands added 18 per cent to the overall advertising space of the category on radio. Over 590 brands advertised exclusively during January-May’22 over January-May’21.

In digital, the top ten advertisers had 42 per cent share of ad insertions during January-May’22 with Skandhanshi Infra Projects India being on top of the list adding 19 per cent share. Display Ads had more than 98 per cent share of category ad insertions during January-May’22. Also, among the digital platforms, desktop display topped with 57 per cent share of ad insertions followed by mobile display with 39 per cent share, as per the report.

July 15, 2022
AVGC fastest-growing sector in South Indian M&E industry; TV leads by share: CII

Mumbai: The South Indian media and entertainment (M&E) sector, with a market value of around Rs 70,000 crore and a share of 40 per cent, will play a critical role in assisting India to follow a sustainable path to becoming the world’s largest credible marketplace, with M&E contributing two to three per cent to the country’s GDP. The findings were revealed in the CII Southern Region’s report titled ‘Regional is the New National – Way Forward for the South Indian Media & Entertainment Industry.’

Television continues to occupy a major 45 per cent of the South India M&E market share. By the end of 2022, it is expected to be worth Rs 33,100 crore, with a 10 per cent compound annual growth rate. The south Indian TV sector had a market size of Rs 36,000 crore in 2019, which dropped to Rs 29,000 crore in 2020 because of the Covid-19 epidemic, but recovered to Rs 30,100 crore in 2021. It is expected to grow even more in the coming years, reaching Ra 33,100 crore in 2022 and surpassing 2019 by 2024.

Subscriptions continue to be the most lucrative source of revenue for television, followed by advertising and programming. According to industry estimates, TV stations in South India earned Rs 25,200 crore in subscriptions, Rs 9,360 crore in advertising, and Rs 1,440 crore in programming in 2019. Due to the pandemic’s impact, these figures fell in 2020 to Rs 20,300 crore for subscriptions, Rs 7,540 crore for advertising, and Rs 1,160 crore for content-based revenue.

AVGC is the fastest growing sector in the South Indian M&E industry, with a CAGR of 30 per cent. It is expected to account for up to 10 per cent of the overall M&E sector by 2030. The budget allocation for VFX in high-budget films is expected to rise to 30-35 per cent by 2023, up from 25-30 per cent currently.

Establishment of a state-of-the-art 30,000 Sq ft Centre of Excellence in Whitefield, Bengaluru, and the construction of Image Towers in Hyderabad, which is a 600,000 square feet dedicated space for the AVGC-XR sector, has contributed to this growth.

More than half of the films released in the last year were in one of the four south Indian languages. The South Indian film industry has also produced some of the most successful box office hits in recent years. It is expected to be worth Rs 6050 crore by the end of 2022, with a compound annual growth rate of 13 per cent.

Southern films have performed exceptionally well on OTT platforms, and they are among the most watched films in Indian cinema. With a compound annual growth rate of 25 per cent, the South Indian streaming and digital media market is expected to be worth Rs 16,200 crore by the end of 2022, nearly two-and-a-half times the film revenues. Disney Hotstar, Amazon Prime, Zee5, Netflix, and SonyLiv are aggressively establishing themselves in the southern states.

The South Indian print industry market is expected to be worth Rs 9,900 crore by the end of 2022, with radio, digital, OTT, and music following close behind. Further, South India’s five states account for 286 of India’s total 1369 radio channels, accounting for a 21 per cent share of the total radio pie in India.

“South India has continued to play an important role in the evolution of the M&E industry, owing to the popularity of vernacular content, rapid digitisation and connectivity, an evolving ecosystem, global viewership, and personalisation,” the report stated. “Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Karnataka, the five southern states, have been at the forefront of leading the transformation of India’s M&E sector.”

“The growth story of the South Indian M&E sector, like that of the rest of India, continues to be unique and multimodal, with digital and traditional media co-existing and growing with very different underlying trends,” it added.

April 11, 2022
Keep your brand ‘Top of Mind’ with DTH advertising

Mumbai: As the home to nearly 68.89 million active direct-to-home (DTH) subscribers, India has witnessed significant growth in DTH advertising. With this top DTH service providers like Tata Play are also ramping up their game as an effective ad medium for brands.

According to an expert from the marketing and communications industry, presently 30-35 brands out of 50 prefer DTH to advertise their products and services.

Interestingly, the medium has attracted brands across categories, from banking giants like SBI and Axis Bank to the leading automobile brands like BMW and Honda.

Realme, who partnered with Tata Play, formerly Tata Sky, for advertising, sees DTH as a traditional advertising medium with high potential to connect the brand to communicate with audiences in tier 2 and 3 areas.

From providing direct entry to homes and enabling them to deliver messages to their target audiences, DTH has emerged as an effective communication channel for brands to enjoy top-of-mind recall.

“It’s the opportunities and advantages of DTH that has attracted the retailers to advertise on this powerful medium,” said AliveNow founder & CEO Advith Dhuddhu. “At the same time, DTH is highly clutter-free and provides exclusive space to the advertisers to engage their target audience.”

While ads on digital platforms lose exclusivity due to distraction, DTH helps deliver targeted messages. It allows brands to connect with their audience when in a happy environment, mostly when they’re calmly sitting and watching TV at their homes.

At the same time, the attention span on DTH ad mediums is higher. Patanjali Ayurved COO-media & communications Anita Nayyar feels that DTH as an option that helps unmissable attention from the audience will always be sought after by brands.

DTH’s growth as an advertising medium

However, DTH has not suddenly become a popular platform for advertising but has been relevant ever since its inception. If we look back to 2010, when DTH subscribers were barely half of the present number, the platform was still seen as a strong advertising medium among retail brands. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that DTH has always been among the top choices of media planners, according to experts.

Over the years, DTH has developed its own set of audiences which makes DTH advertising an interesting option, noted Nayyar.

She credited the present growth of DTH advertising mediums to the halt on other major advertising platforms due to the pandemic. For instance, the consumption of newspapers fell during the first lockdown, so did print advertising. But television still registered 9-10 per cent growth, which is evident for the growth of DTH too.

How did DTH platforms level up the game?

DTH companies are also doing their bit to harness the medium’s potential. For instance, Tata Play, with over 23 million connections has had associations with more than 100+ brands, including Swiggy, RealMe, Lotus Herbal, over the past 15-18 months. Buoyed by the advertisers’ response, Tata Play has rolled out various mediums for advertising over the last few years.

This is not it, Tata Play advertising medium has a whopping reach to over 80 million individuals, which makes it a favorite of brands. The platform offers multiple ad mediums to brands to connect directly with the viewers.

S&S banner is a notable ad medium by Tata Play. The S&S banner appears on the screen every time the channel is swapped. It provides the advertisers an exclusive presence for a minimum of one hour – appearing on every channel swap. It also ensures an average of 35 million impressions delivered on any time band! Over time, many brands have come forward to reap benefits from its S&S banner ad medium. From Paytm to Realme and from Honda to Swiggy, brands across the spectrum have been leveraging this feature with great interest.

The ad medium also turned out to be very effective for the financial sector. For instance, The State Bank of India, which is known for its strategic marketing, collaborated with Tata Play in the festive season.

According to The State Bank Of India VP- media strategy & operations Shweta Sinha enhancing visibility and evoking recognition with a niche audience is an advantage that the bank eyes on while advertising on DTH. “For instance, Tata Play’s S&S banner is a great platform to inform consumers about a new product/service launch, with its clutter-free delivery of the brand message,” said Sinha.

The State Bank of India leveraged this feature for the Yono Shopping Festival which is targeted to a particular segment with superlative offers and discounts. “Advertising on Tata Play helped us to get a very high reach build up with effective results, making our campaign a success. At the same time, the S & S banner helped us to mark our presence in every DTH household. As our campaign was about a festive sale, we had a very crisp message to deliver- the date of sales and the discount offers, thereby S&S banner turned out as a best-suited platform for our campaign,” added Sinha.

Axis bank too collaborated with Tata Play to leverage the benefits of S&S banner medium. With this, it is quite evident that DTH advertising is significantly booming in the BFSI sector too.

Another brand, which rolled out its campaign on S&S banner said DTH was a perfect choice for the campaign, which was targeted to the Indian middle-class household who spends a significant amount of time watching television. “We rolled out the campaign at a time when the entire nation was under lockdown, and other advertising mediums like OOH became immaterial. We also realised that our targeted households spend two to three hours on television every day so we decided to not opt for any other medium and go with DTH,” said the brand’s spokesperson.

DTH also provides ample advantages over other advertising mediums in terms of cost. The ad rates for advertising on other mediums are skyrocketing when compared to the advertising expenditures on a DTH service. Nayyar also feels that DTH will remain in the race, co-existing alongside other options.

As far as cable TV is concerned, which happens to be a direct competition to the DTH, operators like Tata Play offer audience measurement and monitoring, giving brands the confidence to invest ad money than cable.

Sharing her thoughts on the future of DTH Ad mediums, Nayyar said, studying and working from home is a new normal, as long as these phenomena are prevalent, the relevance of DTH will continue to rise at a high pace.

The time is now for the brands that have not yet taken the DTH route. As experts believe it to grow even bigger in the coming years, reap the benefits for your business.

February 25, 2022
Acko launches new print campaign for its paperless service

Mumbai: Acko, a new-age insurance company has released a print campaign with Ogilvy India to communicate the advantage of using its paperless services over traditional insurance providers, to the digitally-savvy youth.

Insurance companies in India are known for the truckloads of paperwork they make their customers fill for submission for their records. The hassle of obtaining a claim becomes a huge hindrance because of this. As a result, paperwork becomes an enormous and a real pain point for insurance holders.

Acko wanted to exaggerate the pain point. In this case – paperwork. “We created a setting of the typical brick and mortar offices in India – in a decrepit state, with piles of files and folders. Through this execution, we represented how horrifying the paperwork with other insurance companies is to customers – as opposed to the smooth, paperless process that Acko offers,” said the brand in a statement.

Ogilvy India (South) chief creative officer Mahesh Gharat said, “With Acko, there is zero paperwork. Our creative idea and execution was born out of this simple product insight. We wanted to dramatise the pain point and highlight the horrifying experience one has to go through while dealing with traditional insurance companies. To see the campaign come alive on print was truly gratifying. Acko believed in the idea, and to see brands like Acko investing in the craft and not just the message, is great to see.”

January 11, 2022
Recovery on track: Print ad volumes surges by 93% in Q3 shows TAM AdEx

Mumbai: Continuing the path to recovery, print media has witnessed a 93 per cent increase in ad volume in the July-September period, over its previous quarter. The surge in ad volume was led by the services and education sector, according to AdEx India, a division of TAM Media Research, a TV audience measurement agency.

Print media was hit hardest during the pandemic, with ad volumes dropping 47 per cent during the second Covid wave. The overall advertising spends had dropped 43 per cent to Rs 10,350 crore last year from Rs 18,164 crore in 2019. The recent growth in ad volume has come as good news for the newspapers and magazines after a tumultuous period, which had to face shut downs, and mass lay-offs last year.

The analysis also showed that the print ad volume recorded a 37 per cent growth over the same period last year. At least 20 out of the 27 sectors in print media saw positive growth during the three months, compared to the same period a year back.

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Among the top growing categories, ‘Ecom –Food/Grocery’ showed the maximum rise in Ad Volumes with twelve times the growth in Jul-Sep’21 over Jul-Sep’20. From the retail sector, clothing/fashion and consumer durables/home appliances entered the top-ten list with a positive shift in their ranks. Four out of the top-10 growing categories were from the retail sector which saw 4.6-fold growth in the one year under review.

The research firm monitors over 700 newspapers and more than 180 magazines, and found that LIC emerged as the top brand in Jul-Sep’21 followed by Maruti Car Range. Aakash Byjus and Winzo Games were the new entrants in the Top 10 list of Advertisers. Two among the Top 10 brands were from ‘Auto’, ‘Education’ and ‘Personal Healthcare’ sector. The Top 100 brands accounted for nearly 29 per cent share of Print Ad Volumes.

‘Jacket-Full Page’ ads had 31 per cent share in the total ad Volumes followed by ‘Full Page’ ads with 24 per cent share during Jul-Sep’2, according to the report.

Sales Promotions covered 29 per cent of Print Ad Volumes during Jul-Sep’21. Among the various sales promotions used in Print, ‘Multiple Promotion’ grabbed 47 per cent share followed by ‘Discount Promotion’ with 34 per cent share, said the report.

December 6, 2021
Nearly 40 % readers discontinued newspapers during pandemic, shows Havas Media report

Mumbai: Covid-19 proved to be a game-changer for Print as a medium in India. The multiple waves of the pandemic and the subsequent lockdowns disrupted the production and distribution of newspapers and magazines across the country. Yet, despite the lack of readership data and interrupted circulations, Print emerged as one of the most credible sources of information for most consumers, brands, and marketers, during these volatile times, found Havas Media Group in its latest research.

The Group released its latest whitepaper bolstering its focus on investing in – Meaningful Media – “Media That Matters”. The report attempts to decode the effectiveness of print as a medium and the shifts in readership behaviour during the pandemic.

According to the report, close to 40 per cent of the readers discontinued newspaper subscriptions during the pandemic, mainly due to factors such as the risk of infection and change in media consumption patterns. However, the time spent reading newspapers increased significantly, especially in the age group of 41-50 years.

Approximately, 15 per cent of the readers shifted to regional or vernacular publications, on the heels of trust and tenability, giving way to some interesting trends. For instance, in the South, nearly 60 per cent of readers sought Print as a medium to gain more knowledge, while in the West, around 33 per cent of consumers read newspapers to find local news, according to the report.

The report also reveals that there was a huge uptake of news apps. Around 57 per cent of the respondents of this study use news apps. Apart from being a daily habit, some of the top reasons for reading newspapers continues to be gaining more knowledge, staying updated about current affairs and improving language skills. Content related to science & technology, global affairs, and health remained some of the preferred and most-read sections following general news.

While Television and Social Media were found to be the most credible source of news, print followed closely at the third position.

The research involved Stratified Random Sampling from YouGov’s proprietary panel which consists of over 2,00,000 active panelists in India, aged between 21-50 years, male and female with a current subscription to at least one daily newspaper spread across 14 key cities in India.

Print drives highest efficacy for automobile industry

“A category-wise deep dive on the effectiveness of the medium for advertisers and marketers revealed that Print plays a key role in influencing brand perception, from Quality to Price to Trust, especially within the Automobile category,” says the report.

Some of the findings specific to the auto category revealed that Print has the highest effectiveness in driving brand awareness, of nearly 55 per cent for first car intenders. For repeat intenders, Print helps drive brand preference across the funnel. Car advertisements were the second most recalled after mobile phones (higher amongst repeat intenders).

Maruti, Hyundai and Tata Motors ranked highest among the most recalled auto brands. Consumers paid higher attention to advertisements in newspapers, and only 10 per cent skipped them.

Apart from the auto industry, Print continues to be the preferred source of medium to drive efficacy for other categories like smartphones, finance, and education as well. And even though the print medium saw a dip in readership, owing to the pandemic, the consumer expectation continues to grow stronger in newspapers in terms of content and not just news.

“This is the resurgence story of Print in India,” said Havas Media Group, head of strategy, Sanchita Roy said, “With the onset of the pandemic in 2020, the Print sector suffered a huge loss especially on the back of the cancellation of subscriptions and other reasons. Hence, it became pertinent to understand not only the consumer shifts that was happening in the media ecosystem but also understand if Print continued to be as effective as before in impacting business outcomes. Despite the short-term de-growth, Print is back with a bang. It continues to be one of the most trusted and credible mediums that helps influence brand perception.”

September 9, 2021
Throwback Thursdays: A look back at game-changer ad campaigns over the years

Mumbai: IndianTelevision.com kicks off its Throwback Thursdays series where we go into flashback mode to revisit brilliant ad campaigns created over the years – one campaign at a time. Be it in Print, Television, or Digital (in the recent past)- the medium is irrelevant so long as the messaging was crystal clear and the execution fantastic.

And what better campaign to kickstart with, than one considered by many ad gurus as one of the greatest ad campaigns of all times – and one that broke new ground and changed the rules of the game.

It’s the 1960s ‘Think Small‘ ad campaign for the Volkswagen Beetle.

Product: Volkswagen Beetle car

Agency: Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB)

Country: United States

Year: 1959

Think Small was one of the most famous ads in the advertising campaign for the Volkswagen Beetle, art-directed by Helmut Krone, the copy written by Julian Koenig.

However, there was nothing small about the campaign’s aspirations!

Consider this. The first Beetles arrived in the United States in the 1950s. Volkswagen had hired the Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB) ad agency to create a campaign that would introduce the German car to the US market.

A lot was working against the Beetle. It was small and plain in comparison to the big, flashy cars that Americans were obsessed with, at the time. Also, it was awkwardly shaped (which later led to it being dubbed the “Beetle”). And to make matters worse for its sellers, this was at a time when following World War II the anti-German sentiment was at a high. The initial reception to the car was expectedly lukewarm.

Here’s how an ad agency changed the car’s fate.

In 1960, DDB launched a game-changing campaign called “Think Small”, that promoted the car’s diminutive size as a distinct advantage to consumers.

The black & white campaign encouraged drivers to “Think Small.” DDB revolved the print campaigns around the car’s ‘small’ form and focussed on minimalism. It contradicted the traditional association of automobiles with luxury and big size, keeping simplicity at its core.

This is why most of the print ads from this campaign and others that followed had a lot of empty white space with a small, stark picture of a Beetle, followed by a copy that matter-of-factly listed the compact car’s advantages in an irreverent, even self-deprecating manner.

Each ad that followed in the series stood on its own, highlighting the car’s strengths while not trying to hide its possible weakness. And they were so cleverly done that they left the readers keen to watch out for the next one.

Even more notably, the ads were modestly unpretentious and emphasised as much on the intelligence, frugality, and essence of the Beetle’s buyer as they did on the car itself. The smart copy asking ‘Do you earn too much to afford one’, is a case in point- implying that don’t let your money (or its excess thereof) come in the way of buying a good car!

This tone of dry humour became a hallmark of Volkswagen Beetle ads, even later in its Television commercials. The ads effectively made the case for why owning a small, oddly-shaped car (in other words: thinking small) actually made sense, managing to show the consumer the bigger picture.

And the rest, as they say, is history or rather the stuff that advertising lore is made up of.

The Volkswagen Beetle Print Ads shook the automobile industry and the marketing landscape of the 1960s and over the next several years, VW became the top-selling auto-import in the US.

Doyle Dane Bernbach’s Volkswagen Beetle campaign was ranked as the best advertising campaign of the twentieth century by Ad Age, in a survey of North American advertisements.

The distinctive but simple print campaign and the equally brilliant ones that followed it, brought widespread attention to the car, imbibing the Beetle in pop culture for years to come.

It did much more than boost sales and build a lifetime of brand loyalty. The ad, and the work of the creative minds behind it, changed the very nature of advertising, becoming known as one of the most legendary campaigns of all time.

June 24, 2021