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Tag: S Yesudas

  • NTO ambiguity resulting in ad rev drop for small broadcasters, niche channels

    NTO ambiguity resulting in ad rev drop for small broadcasters, niche channels

    MUMBAI: Just when it felt like the dust on the NTO had settled, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) came out with yet another consultation paper reviewing the order, seeking more fundamental changes in channel pricing and bouquet formation. As clarified by TRAI chairman RS Sharma, while the regulatory body does not plan to revise the pricing framework, it is surely looking at fine-tuning the existing parameters as consumers are facing certain issues because of the current set of rules.

    This has once again left a big question mark on the fate of broadcasters and might have a bigger impact on advertising revenues as well.

    Y&A Collective co-founder S Yesudas told Indiantelevision.com that this uncertainty over the tariff order and channel pricing will impact nice channels the most, resulting into a dip in their revenue.

    He said, “The biggest sufferers will be niche channels, particularly those which are mid and bottom-rung. Even as the power to choose rests with consumers and the general mindset of sensitivity for the paid-for options resulting in those always taking precedence, the snacking-in viewership will reduce.  Between the two time periods, pre-new tariff order to July 19, there’s apparently already a drop of approximately 7 per cent of the total TV impressions. This will consequently mean revenue reduction.”

    HyperCollective founder and CCO KV Sridhar (Pops) also agreed that the past few months have seen a dip in the revenues for broadcasters, barring a few big ones, because of many reasons like the economic slowdown and growth of digital bouquets, along with the NTO.

    “The NTO is putting a lot of pressure on the broadcasters and some easing out is required, maybe not so suddenly but definitely. The bigger groups like Star and Sony can survive in the turmoil, but it is difficult for smaller groups, especially independent channels and some regional channels,” he said.

    TheSmallBigIdea CEO & co-founder Harikrishnan Pillai shared that this ambiguity over the tariff might result in advertisers taking their money to digital platforms than spending on television.

    He said, “One needs to reckon that any industry with fluttering policy fuels questions on its stability. While TV broadcasting is the most robust of all mediums, the effect of such policy-based tremors cannot be ignored. Especially by smaller TV channels, which already are fighting for eyeballs. It is likely that they might be ignored by the advertiser for other lucrative digital options. Investment into fresh content might take a back seat, which might further make it difficult for certain channels to attract advertisers on the back of new shows."

    Sridhar also noted that the loyalty of the consumer is with the content and not the channel. If they can access the same content on OTT platforms or other media, they will not want to spend on purchasing the channels.

    He further elaborated, “Advertisers are interested in viewership only. Also, they would play their ads during the content that is relevant to them. They are not going to place an ad on your channel even if you offer cheaper slots, or guarantee greater reach. Every advertiser is looking for relevant content now. If the content is not good, your channel will drop. OTT, therefore, is a big hindrance for the broadcasters in getting revenue.”

    While the tariff order seems to be generating problems for the broadcasters, Yesudas feels that it will be beneficial for the marketers and advertisers. He said, “Marketing and adverting industry will only stand to gain from this as there will be further consolidation of the viewership pie.  While the top-rung channels will find a place in almost all media plans (with reduced  cost per contact) the mid-and bottom-rung channels which no longer can only stay focused on transactional and passive advertising time selling will also embrace true innovation in helping clients solve certain marketing challenges within a segment of consumers, they can influence.”

  • Y&A Transformation launches Snippet Digital, a first of its kind digital agency

    Y&A Transformation launches Snippet Digital, a first of its kind digital agency

    Y&A Transformation today announced the launch of Snippet Digital a full-fledged digital marketing agency, founded on the premise that digital is technology first, combined with creativity, media science and brand thinking. The company will operate under the Y&A collective banner, which will soon be launching other specializations as well. The executive board of Snippet consists of Tarun Mitra, a technology expert, Ram Gudipati, an experience brand strategist and S Yesudas, a media expert with collective experience of over 75 years. The agency also aims to provide executive education on Digital Business Leadership, particularly to equip the senior management at the clients’ end to get much more from their digital investments.

    Tarun Mitra an IIT Delhi alumni comes with a strong background and experience in technology business, growing internet startups and marketing services. Ram Gudipati has in-depth understanding of consumers, brands and marketing communications. S Yesudas brings with him deep understanding of data, media sciences and how consumers across demographics consume media both offline and online.  All 3 have worked on various brands across different life stages and produced work which have won client trust as well as industry recognitions.

    Commenting on the launch of Snippet, S Yesudas, Co-founder said “Most clients that I have spoken to are of the opinion that majority of digital agencies do not bring the maturity to consider different perspectives and explain the same to clients through meaningful conversations. The discussion is largely centered around digital execution.  While Google has moved beyond the gate-keeper status to a destination in itself, most agencies haven’t moved beyond traditional SEO practices.  Organically engaging with consumers searching for products and services near them is fully owned by the directory services/yellow pages. This not only reduces discoverability but compels a client to even pay for his own data, as the clients’ GMB even belong to these service providers.   Our aim is to add some grey-hair perspective to clients’ investment and help build curiosity, pride and purpose for the digital natives in the team so that they start exploring rather than just exploiting”

    Tarun Mitra, Co-founder, Snippet Digital, adding to the agency offerings said, the future in digital is changing as we speak and soon the era of augmented creativity will replace conventional process of digital creative development. Therefore, our efforts are in building a very strong technology orientation, which will get balanced with human wisdom. In addition to our investment in top quality engineering resources, mostly coming from IIT, Mumbai, our resources include creative professionals, story tellers, digital strategy experts, planners and implementation specialists. We have already forged alliances to deliver programmatic solutions and location-based services integrating mobile technology.  Although nascent, we will even be employing data science, AI and predictive analytics capabilities with a view to ensuring our clients’ investments do not end up at click-farms”

    Talking about how brand and creative thinking will heighten the overall customer experience, Ram Gudipati, Co-founder, Snippet Digital  said “Unlike the current practice on digital which is one brand and many stories, more like the spray and pray approach, our focus will be one brand, one core story and different manifestations of the same, platform specific. We will help our clients spot the signals before they become the trend, rather an adding to the noise on the trends.  Snippet has already started working with the Hinduja Group, Hillcart Tales, a premium tea brand, Chitralekha Group, media owner with 70 years of reader engagement, LOL Surprise dolls, Paw patrol and a whole host of brands within the toy’s category.  We are in advanced level of conversation with two other large corporates”

  • S Yesudas launches Y&A Transformation

    S Yesudas launches Y&A Transformation

    MUMBAI: S Yesudas, former MD and co-founder of Triggerbridge and MD Vizeum (Dentsu Aegis) has launched his new venture, a business transformation company, Y&A Transformation.

    Y&A is a pureplay business transformation company and works with the vision of helping enterprises erase the legacy #BestPractices mindset to build the #NextPractices in the areas of digital, tech, data, content, customer centricity, marketing ROI, organisation culture and CSR/sustainability.

    Talking about the road ahead, Yesudas said, “We are very fortunate to have the support of clients who believe in our philosophy, from day one. As a result, the operation kickstarted with some revenue; unheard of, otherwise. We are building very agile, collaborative, innovative and adaptive framework, tools and processes, which are detailed on our website www.ynatransformation.comWe will help forward-looking clients with all the necessary support to get the very best out of the ever dynamic digital ecosystem where speed is the necessity. We don’t believe data in its current avatar allows clients to take bold and beautiful decisions on customer centricity. And we believe, most attributions being tracked to paid efforts are contrary to the reality of the testimonial economy.  We find it funny when “targeted” and “exposure” are used in the same breath. We are here to make a big difference to clients and compel the agencies to re-think.”

    S Yesudas has spent over two decades in the media business, where he helped launch agencies, for Lintas, Dentsu Aegis; scaled up existing ones, for TrikayaGrey,  RK Swamy BBDO and Initiative Media, both in India and overseas markets. He added immense value to his clients, built front-running managers, two youngsters from his team even represented India at the Cannes way back in 2008 and he also received many industry recognitions. He has been a jury member for various industry awards including the Festival of Media and Spikes Asia.

    Yesudas is an avid cyclist and a marathon runner.

  • Yesudas’s triggerbridge to launch ‘Un-News Hour’

    Yesudas’s triggerbridge to launch ‘Un-News Hour’

    MUMBAI: More often than not, negative and disturbing news dominates prime time television and suppresses the good that happens all around and hence paints a rather cynical picture of society. With an aim to bring these positive stories to the fore, triggerbridge -the unagency by S Yesudas, in partnership with Ajit Nair and Amit Tripathi, has planned the ‘Un News Hour.’

    “It is a one-hour prime time news capsule across English, Hindi and all other vernacular languages, which will air only happy news of human achievements, however small or big the achievement might be,” explained media veteran and entrepreneur, Yesudas.

    “With every other noise that’s being made everywhere else, this in my opinion, will be an equalizer of sorts, and will be a huge opportunity for those unsung heroes to be recognized, day after day and a big ground of motivation for many more to embark on such initiatives,” he added.

    When quizzed about the choice of the title for the initiative, which has indirect reference to Arnab Goswami’s flagship ‘News Hour’ Yesudas shared, “While there was no inspiration from Arnab, I can’t deny the potential of Arnab himself owning up both the News Hour, which is about debate on hot topics in the country and the Un-News Hour, which is just simply happy news to triggerhappy conversations. I have interacted with Arnab and he is a very different human being personally, gentle, soft spoken, intuitive and brilliant. Un-News Hour will give him an opportunity to portray his actual personality where he doesn’t have to lose his cool or get upset with people who are covering up etc”

    While the idea is definitely noble, due to lack of proper planning and participation such social initiatives seldom see the light of the day. To this Yesudas commented, “I don’t think any genuine initiative ever fails. If there are hidden agendas, yes it will, much like how Free Basics failed and odd/even (Delhi) succeeded. Both happened around the same time, the former began with so-called support and the later with all the negativity possible. But it is the purity in purpose that made odd/even a success. The attempt here is to motivate people by raising their awareness to the wonderful things that are happening around them. As a dear friend of mine said it is strategy without a map. And yet each element is beautifully tied into each other through human knots of kindness.”

    Putting the scale of the initiative in perspective, one can’t help but wonder how triggerbridge planned to cover the costs. “I’m looking for support from clients to cover the actual expenses, not for advertising, but for them to be known for doing something much more meaningful for the people of India. I am happy to say there have been people calling in offering their support in various ways. I got a call from an institute that trains in cinematography, with many trained camera units. They offered to become part of our cause. I have had a doctor calling up offering support. Many friends are waiting in line to offer all kinds of support. I’ve also tweeted the PM, celebrities like Amitabh Bachchan, requesting each to give the initiative wings,” explained Yesudas.

    The entire concept is heavily dependent on partnerships with channels and networks that believe in the cause. “I’m talking to all possible channels. I know this is disruptive and this is not for someone who is only focused on transactions. We are sure to align with a few like-minded people. Conversations are ongoing as we speak. Within two to three weeks we will be able to share names of concrete partners and the status report,” Yesudas concluded.

  • Yesudas’s triggerbridge to launch ‘Un-News Hour’

    Yesudas’s triggerbridge to launch ‘Un-News Hour’

    MUMBAI: More often than not, negative and disturbing news dominates prime time television and suppresses the good that happens all around and hence paints a rather cynical picture of society. With an aim to bring these positive stories to the fore, triggerbridge -the unagency by S Yesudas, in partnership with Ajit Nair and Amit Tripathi, has planned the ‘Un News Hour.’

    “It is a one-hour prime time news capsule across English, Hindi and all other vernacular languages, which will air only happy news of human achievements, however small or big the achievement might be,” explained media veteran and entrepreneur, Yesudas.

    “With every other noise that’s being made everywhere else, this in my opinion, will be an equalizer of sorts, and will be a huge opportunity for those unsung heroes to be recognized, day after day and a big ground of motivation for many more to embark on such initiatives,” he added.

    When quizzed about the choice of the title for the initiative, which has indirect reference to Arnab Goswami’s flagship ‘News Hour’ Yesudas shared, “While there was no inspiration from Arnab, I can’t deny the potential of Arnab himself owning up both the News Hour, which is about debate on hot topics in the country and the Un-News Hour, which is just simply happy news to triggerhappy conversations. I have interacted with Arnab and he is a very different human being personally, gentle, soft spoken, intuitive and brilliant. Un-News Hour will give him an opportunity to portray his actual personality where he doesn’t have to lose his cool or get upset with people who are covering up etc”

    While the idea is definitely noble, due to lack of proper planning and participation such social initiatives seldom see the light of the day. To this Yesudas commented, “I don’t think any genuine initiative ever fails. If there are hidden agendas, yes it will, much like how Free Basics failed and odd/even (Delhi) succeeded. Both happened around the same time, the former began with so-called support and the later with all the negativity possible. But it is the purity in purpose that made odd/even a success. The attempt here is to motivate people by raising their awareness to the wonderful things that are happening around them. As a dear friend of mine said it is strategy without a map. And yet each element is beautifully tied into each other through human knots of kindness.”

    Putting the scale of the initiative in perspective, one can’t help but wonder how triggerbridge planned to cover the costs. “I’m looking for support from clients to cover the actual expenses, not for advertising, but for them to be known for doing something much more meaningful for the people of India. I am happy to say there have been people calling in offering their support in various ways. I got a call from an institute that trains in cinematography, with many trained camera units. They offered to become part of our cause. I have had a doctor calling up offering support. Many friends are waiting in line to offer all kinds of support. I’ve also tweeted the PM, celebrities like Amitabh Bachchan, requesting each to give the initiative wings,” explained Yesudas.

    The entire concept is heavily dependent on partnerships with channels and networks that believe in the cause. “I’m talking to all possible channels. I know this is disruptive and this is not for someone who is only focused on transactions. We are sure to align with a few like-minded people. Conversations are ongoing as we speak. Within two to three weeks we will be able to share names of concrete partners and the status report,” Yesudas concluded.

  • Industry veterans gear up for Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon

    Industry veterans gear up for Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon

    MUMBAI : The city is already counting down the days to the biggest annual sporting extravaganza that Mumbaikars look forward to — the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon, which is scheduled to take off in the wee hours of 17 January.

     

    Be it the health minded ones or the record breakers or even those who simply run for a cause , every year the footfall at the marathon has only seen an upward growth. Several reports say that this year the figures may go up by four – five per cent. 

     

    With Mumbai as the stage, it is inevitable that several media personalities will also be taking part in the event, apart from the big names from other industries like finance and technology. 

     

    Familiar faces from media, advertising and marketing world who are expected to continue their tradition of running for the marathon include Grey Group India chairman and managing director Sunil Lulla, Ideas@bharatkapadia.com founder Bharat Kapadia and triggerbridge managing director and co-founder S Yesudas amongst others.

     

    Yesudas confesses his life has been very hectic given his new portfolio as an entrepreneur and the launch of his new venture. Yet, he wouldn’t give Mumbai Standard Chartered Marathon a miss for the world. In fact, he recalls how he barely made it to his last year’s agency conference in Bangkok just to run for the marathon.

     

    Having said that, he adds, “I wouldn’t go all out this year unlike my previous runs for the marathon. The reason is my injured right knee.” Because of which, Yesudas hasn’t been active lately in preparing for the marathon.

     

    “I participated for the Trivandrum Marathon in November, but since then I haven’t been running much. To get good timing, practicing long runs is a must, therefore this year I will be taking it easier,” Yesudas explains.

     

    It isn’t just Yesudas whose Mumbai Marathon will be marred a bit by injury. Well known marathon runner from the industry HDFC Life senior executive vice president Sanjay Tripathy will also skip running the full marathon due to the same. Nevertheless, Tripathy can’t help count us down the reasons why one should take running up. “Running is my passion and I have a torrid love affair with it! Running for a marathon has taken me beyond my comfort zone and helped me relax, take control over my mind and stay focused on a day to day basis,” shares Tripathy.

     

    “I have been training myself since 2003 to participate in marathons all over the country. Every year I work on increasing my intensity and distance while reducing the amount of time. Unfortunately, this year, I will be unable to participate in the marathon as I had a bad fall on my knee a month back. A stress fracture in the femur of my left leg will keep me out of running for a good eight to 12 weeks. But injuries are a part and parcel of a runner’s life and I am determined to come back stronger,” he adds.

     

    Industry veteran and well known marathoner Kapadia is up for the challenge this year as well. Last year, he managed to bring down his run time to 2 hours 12 mins from 2 hours 17 mins in the previous year. He hopes to beat his own record this year as well. “This will be my ninth year running in the Mumbai Marathon. My regular practice sessions are up. I usually start three and a half months before the D-Day. Right now I am going easy on running and concentrating on the right diet. The first three days of the week was protein heavy diet, while the next three days will be carbohydrate heavy,” shares Kapadia, who adds that he stopped long runs last Sunday to give his body rest.

     

    Having said that, Kapadia doesn’t run after ranks or timings in a marathon. “I personally keep three things in mind when running a marathon. Firstly my target is to complete the entire run; secondly I make sure I have fun on the way; and lastly to keep myself injury free,” he says.

     

    Grey Group India’s Lulla too plans to enjoy the marathon with his friends rather than keeping an eye on the clock while running. “I am doing stretches and abs to keep myself flexible for the time being,” he informs. 

     

    “This year the marathon isn’t about setting goals and breaking personal record for me. Been there and done that for the last few years. This year is about enjoying the run. I have been in and out of the city the entire year and hence hardly had the time to practice and prep up for the marathon. Not that it bothers me as this year my prime motive is to have fun with my friends who run together with me. I plan to take it slow and easy, saying hello to everyone on the way and maybe even clicking several picture to commemorate the day.”

     

    In fact, to mark the day and instil the idea of running for just fun, Lulla and his group of friends will be sporting T-shirts with #quickie written on it.

     

    While few familiar names are staying off the track this year, Yesudas doesn’t expect that to effect the footfall at the marathon, nor the industry’s representation in it. “I have a feeling several new faces will be seen running this year. I know that several of my friends within the industry have been gearing up to make their debut,” he says.

  • S Yesudas plays a whole new ball game with triggerbridge

    S Yesudas plays a whole new ball game with triggerbridge

    MUMBAI: Of late there has been much talk about going beyond the sales driven take on advertising among the agencies. The focus should shift back to building brand identity, if brands have a long term vision in mind.

     

    It would have been great if the talk truly reflected the industry’s concern over the matter, but, alas, much of that is lip service according to S Yesudas, the former managing director of Vizeum.

     

    The need of the hour, he feels, is to break this pattern that agencies are so used to, and bring in some disruption in the ecosystem. This is precisely what he plans to achieve with his entrepreneurial venture triggerbridge.

     

    Backed by his expertise in media business for over two decades, Yesudas partnered with Ajit Nair of MX Advertising and Amit Tripathi from IdeateLabs to form this ‘un-agency,’ which has managed to create quite a buzz in the industry ever since its launch earlier this month.

     

    Prior to kick starting his new startup venture, Yesudas was known for his successful stint at Vizeum India as managing director, preceded by Grey Worldwide, Lintas/Initiative Media and R K Swamy BBDO/Media Direction. Interestingly, he was Vizeum’s first employee and built it to a successful position with its current 55 employees within a span of four years.

     

    With an impressive portfolio like this, is it easier to handle his new role in a start up? To find out, Indiantelevision.com got in touch with the man himself.

     

    Here’s what he had to say:

     

    What sets triggerbridge apart from other players in the market?

    We are the ‘unagency’ and are free of all the bondages as that of an agency. The big and basic difference is, our reason to exist is not to help our clients “spend” their marketing resources, but to help their brands build bridges of relevance with consumers in various ways through our philosophy of True Vertexing.

     

    We look at the core of the brand, human insights, storytelling, technology and data and help itself express truly in order to carry the well aligned consumers along as the brand moves to the highest peak, the vertex. Consumers are human beings is a fact that’s forgotten in the world of transaction. We cater to all brand owners who are looking for much more than just short term sales from their consumer relationships.

     

    Few agencies have taken the ‘brand first’ route as well. What is your take on them?

    I’m sure brand love is a dinosaur concept to many. Those who talk about the same, pretend it can be created by the effect and weight of their “advertising” investments including endorsements and other sponsorships. I would leave triggerbridge, the unagency, for our clients to judge us.

     

    What disruptive ideas does triggerbridge have in store for its clients?

    There’s disruption in everything we do. Firstly, we are not just a service, but a product as well. Among the set of products is a platform that aggregates storytellers and technology producers for the benefit of brands. Our focus is the brand in its entirety and not specific specialised solutions. We also have a unique structure of a creative advisory board, which consists of real storytellers like authors and theatre artists along with a business board that consists of members of the board of other companies as well as venture capitalists. We are also looking at a whole new measurement of SoV and SoE as Share of Vision and Share of Empathy as against the transactional Share of Voice and Share of Expenditure.

     

    Since triggerbridge is a product as well, what is the target group or clientele you are looking at?

    Every brand owner who is interested in looking beyond short term results and those who actually believe that the future of commerce is brand commerce, would be a triggerbridge client. 

     

    What is the one thing that the industry is lacking currently?

    I believe lot of agencies today pay lip service to brand building and focus their energy and attention on “selling” their specialised silos to clients for better profitability. Once you create a need and everyone is doing that, the advertisers, knowingly and/or unknowingly will keep following the pattern.

     

    Most often computers create the strategy to connect with humans with emotions. Then it is a mad rush to justify Share of Voice (SoV) and Share of Expenditure (SoE). The result is increasing instances of ad avoidance and the agency then offers one more specialisation to “catch” the consumer’s’ attention. The circle keep going on. We will fill the very vacuum of zero brand love for most brands, by first helping the brand owners understand the purpose of their brands. We will also help them articulate that through executions that will create multi – sensorial impact on the consumers

     

    Can you mention one recent campaign that you think lacked brand identity?

    One campaign that comes to mind is what Pepsi did during IPL, getting consumers to feature in its ads. It was a gimmick that I presume they spent top dollars on. And I personally don’t think it worked at all. They could have done things to bring together larger Pepsi communities across the country, very meaningfully, who interacted with each other in a sustainable manner as they shared their love for the brand, at much lesser cost and left enduring impressions on the consumers. But again this is purely based on their stated purpose/intention.

     

    Tell us about your partners and what they bring to the table in triggerbridge? 

    Ajit Nair has been running a very successful full-service advertising business, MX Advertising, for a quarter of a century and has built many brands through that journey. Amit Tripathi has been running a leading digital business, Ideate Labs for 15 years. I have been in the media business for over two decades.

     

    Our vision, purpose and the conviction about the future of communication business converged at the same point. I also don’t think there could have been a better combination than this which brings all aspects of the communication business together.

     

    What is your target for the upcoming year?

    We have not set a revenue or profit target. Money will follow good and differentiated work that will produce actual results. But we have a five year blue print with clear milestones to eventually see a good part of the “advertising” market practice True Vertexing. 

  • S.Yesudas steps down as Vizeum India MD, replaced by Shripad Kulkarni

    S.Yesudas steps down as Vizeum India MD, replaced by Shripad Kulkarni

    MUMBAI: In a turn of events, S.Yesudas has stepped down from his position of Vizeum India managing director. Stepping into his shoes is industry veteran Shripad Kulkarni, who will be reporting to Dentsu Aegis Network south Asia chairman and CEO Ashish Bhasin. Not just this, Kulkarni will also join the Dentsu Aegis Network India executive council.

     

    Meanwhile, Yesudas will now focus on content and analytics, while continuing to report to Bhasin.

     

    “I am really happy to be leading Vizeum India. The sheer dynamism of Vizeum as a brand excites me. The One P&L philosophy of the Dentsu Aegis Network opens great opportunities for us and will help push Vizeum to the next level,” said Kulkarni.

     

    With more than 25 years of experience across various media specialisations, he has worked in agencies such as Carat, Contract, Clarion and O&M. Prior to joining Vizeum, Kulkarni was Allied Media CEO, a Percept Group company.

     

    Bhasin said, “I am very pleased to welcome Shripad as the MD of Vizeum India. With the wealth of experience that he brings in and the thorough knowledge of the business that he has, I am sure Vizeum India will touch new heights under his leadership.”

     

    “I also want to thank Yesudas for the great job that he has done in helping start Vizeum operations in India from the scratch and bringing the agency to the level, at which it is today. I have no doubts that he will equally excel in the new opportunities. Shripad now has a great platform to take Vizeum India to the next orbit because our ambitions for Vizeum India are tremendous,” he added.

  • RECMA names Vizeum as ‘World’s Fastest Growing Media Network’

    RECMA names Vizeum as ‘World’s Fastest Growing Media Network’

    MUMBAI: RECMA has named Vizeum as the world’s fastest growing media network in its ‘Overall Activity Billings 2014’ report published this week.  Across the 16 global agencies assessed by RECMA, Vizeum increased activity billings year-on-year by +29.1 per cent, 9 per cent more than the second ranked agency.

     

    Vizeum managing director Indian subcontinent S Yesudas said, “It is indeed a matter of pride for all of us that Vizeum has achieved this great recognition in such a short span.  This belongs to our passionate and committed team and the ever-supportive clients. Vizeum was launched in India towards the end of 2009.  We have already been able to carve out an interesting niche for ourselves within five years. We are on the path to achieving excellence in everything we do.”

     

    The top 5 growth rates of ‘Overall Activity’ Billings 2014 are:

    1-     Vizeum + 29.1 per cent

    2-     BPN + 20 per cent

    3-     Arena + 12.3 per cent

    4-     MediaCom + 11.5 per cent

    5-     Dentsu media + 11.1 per cent

     

    In absolute volume, Vizeum increased its OA Billings by + $m 2183 (the 3rd highest growth).

     

    Launched in 2003, the network has now grown to 65 offices in 45 markets.   The agency was founded by Thomas Le Thierry in France, who was later appointed the agency’s global president in 2013.

     

    The network manages global clients from seven global hubs in London, Los Angeles, New York, Paris, Singapore, Tokyo and Wiesbaden. Key wins for the network in 2014 included ABinBEV (Europe), Burger King (Europe) and Shiseido (Global).  Vizeum also expanded its relationships with Sonos, Ikea and BMW in new markets.

     

    Key wins in India during 2014/15 include: BMW, Jet Airways, HDFC, Hindware, Allied Blenders and Distillers, Saint-Gobain, Jet Privilege and Viacom 18 Media.

     

    Thierry said, “We have achieved this impressive growth through our single-minded focus on making innovation in media create value for clients.  We have built a consistent network which now has real momentum.  This growth helps us to keep the agility required in the fast moving environment. It’s the only way we can credibly remain on the edge of the industry doing best in class work for our clients.”

  • Hindware adopts unique strategy to launch TVC with Shah Rukh Khan

    Hindware adopts unique strategy to launch TVC with Shah Rukh Khan

    NEW DELHI: Bathroom products brand hindware has launched a new TV commercial starring brand ambassador Shah Rukh Khan for its premium collection hindware Italian Collection in an innovative fashion.

     

    Bringing in Bollywood flavour, hindware launched a teaser campaign starring Khan two days prior to the final airing of the TVC that ran across a range of television channels without revealing the product range. This generated excitement for viewers to watch the movie that premiered on Star Plus on 7 June.

     

    The final TVC was unveiled by Nach Baliye’s anchor on Star Plus during the airing of the dance reality show. Before taking the commercial break, the host ran the teaser, discussed SRK’s new obsession and asked the viewers to stay-on to find out the whole story. Then the full 75 seconds long TVC was played out. The host continued discussing with the judges about bathroom inspirations and said in conclusion, “Not only SRK, but the whole country could keep admiring bathrooms so stylish.”

     

    Hindware’s shift from product centric focus to becoming a complete bathroom solution provider brand is captured in this new TVC, which highlights the brand’s vision and approach of revolutionising the bathroom space.

     

    HSIL Ltd vice president marketing V Krishnamurthy said, “This was our first campaign after signing on SRK and we wanted to ensure the launch of the TVC is conceptualized differently. Working closely with our media agency, Vizeum, we managed to pull off something very different. In this interesting TVC, we have aimed to reinforce the message how hindware Italian Collection leaves even superstar Shah Rukh Khan awestruck. The bathroom in itself becomes the centre of attraction, mesmerizing SRK to find new ways to revel in its beauty and beautiful products.”

     

    Vizeum managing director – Indian Subcontinent S Yesudas added, “It took a lot of coordination and efforts to pull this through. Without an ever-supportive client this would not have been possible. I’m also thankful to the Star TV management for making this happen. Congratulations to the entire Vizeum Team for making this project a reality.”