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Tag: Sahil Chopra

  • iCubesWire bags digital mandate of Janhit Jagran

    iCubesWire bags digital mandate of Janhit Jagran

    MUMBAI: Digital agency and product development organisation, iCubesWire, has bagged the digital mandate of Janhit Jagran, the initiative of Dainik Jagran. The agency will be responsible for building strategies, creating campaigns, media buying, and handling social media accounts of the brand namely Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter.

    Commenting on the win, iCubesWire founder and CEO Sahil Chopra said, “We are delighted to onboard another prestigious client to our kitty. Janhit Jagran opens doors to newer opportunities as their beliefs and objectives differ from what we have on our plate right now. Working for a brand that strives for the social welfare of the society will be exhilarating & we are geared up to put our best foot forward.”

    Jagran Prakashan senior VP – strategy, business development and brand Basant Rathore said, “We are pleased to partner iCubesWire and believe they are well placed to handle the digital mandate for our Janhit Jagran programme. This programme encourages social entrepreneurs to come up with ideas that have the potential to tackle some of the biggest challenges we face in contemporary times. I truly believe that iCubesWire will intensify the digital presence of the brand.”

    Janhit Jagran is an initiative for social entrepreneurs that focuses on seven concerns of the society namely educated society, water conservation, managing population, poverty eradication, women empowerment, environment conservation, and healthy society. The initiative invites individuals to submit a project idea that solves these societal problems through entrepreneurial, creative solutions.

  • Guest Column: Impact of artificial intelligence on programmatic advertising

    Guest Column: Impact of artificial intelligence on programmatic advertising

    Programmatic advertising is a method of utilising software to buy digital ads. It is easier for media buyers to go through an auction-based process instead of manual negotiations for displaying their ads on digital platforms. It is one of the most innovative methods of advertising which facilitates the buying and selling of digital ad space.

    On the other hand, artificial intelligence (AI) is the concept of replicating human intelligence in machines the potential of which, in turn, is unlocked by human intelligence. AI undoubtedly adds immense value to marketers.

    Machine learning has revolutionised media trading & programmatic algorithms based on volumes of data. AI incorporation enhances the targeting capabilities as individuals can be targeted based on behaviour & preferences and other programmatic interactions. Ads can be personalised based on location, demographics, interactions etc. Precision targeting is required for global reach of programmatic advertising. AI is allowing advertisers to dramatically boost the efficiency of their campaigns. Programmatic uses AI technologies to make better budget decisions for advertisers. When AI is applied to programmatic advertising, it can navigate on its own, as well as provide minute insights thereby enhancing the effectiveness of the campaign exponentially.

    The basis of both programmatic advertising & AI is data analytics. With the effective amalgamation of AI in programmatic advertising one can dynamically score user, accurately differentiate, bid on valuable customers & drive efficient conversions. The brands need to embrace the power & opportunities that AI bots & digital assistants provide. The search has improved drastically with the inception of AI algorithms. As per a report, the AI market is predicted to grow more than 47 billion dollars by 2020 which is a massive rise. It can also enhance the look and feel of ad creatives which can be designed to catch the attention of the viewer.

    Real-time bidding can be facilitated with AI in programmatic advertising. Automation brings advertisers closer to the goals that are set by the brand. As per statistics by Zenith marketing forecasts, by 2019, 67 per cent of display advertising will be traded programmatically. Before the onset of programmatic, the process of digital ad-buying was slow & monotonous. The marketers had to negotiate for ad placement wherein they had to compromise upon cost, space or results. The need to sort this recurring issue paved way for programmatic advertising & to automate the process further, AI was incorporated with it. Thus, ad buying has now become more effective, efficient, cheaper & result-oriented. AI enables the option of whom to show the ad, when & where instead of simply negotiating the ad space. Many brands are banking upon programmatic advertising for lead generation across the globe. Right from FMCG to BFSI to real estate& tourism & hospitality, it has become a favourite of the brands.

    The future also looks promising for AI enabled programmatic advertising as in times to come, through the process of machine learning audience profiling will be finalised on its own. There would be no need to use programmatic tools for filtering audience, in fact, it will evaluate customers’ behaviour and display ads accordingly.

    (The author is CEO and founder, iCubesWire. The opinions expressed here are his own and Indiantelevision.com)

  • iCubesWire launches Innovation Centre NXT

    iCubesWire launches Innovation Centre NXT

    New Delhi: iCubesWire, India’s leading technology performance driven digital agency, today announced the launch of their Innovation Centre called NXT. The launch integrates new age solutions for the digital industry thereby offering diversified ad solutions to the clients and partners. The centre will incorporate futuristic solutions from the domain of Artificial Intelligence & Augmented Reality. Amongst other solutions, rich media for customized creative demands & software development kit for customized audience will be its beneficial components. The Innovation Centre is first of its kind which will give the brands numerous innovative ad solutions to pick & choose from, while planning for campaigns.

    iCubesWire caters to 500+ clients and is optimistic about disrupting the industry with this avant-garde launch. Along with their flagship offerings on performance marketing & full-service digital agency solutions, iCubesWire’s Delta and Instatalk are also pacing up efficaciously in the market.

    Expressing delight over the launch, Sahil Chopra, Founder & CEO, iCubesWire, says, “This is a vital launch for the industry as an entity. There are ample agencies and networks granting overlapping services and the need to devise an innovation cropped up which incorporates them together towards a fresher approach. This requisite formed the base of developing NXT. We are excited and are asserting for it to be a game changer.”

    Aditya Singh, Chief Operating Officer, iCubesWire, adds, “With cutting-edge modifications coming to a stall in the industry, innovation should be a pre-eminent & recurring process. We are enthusiastic about the launch and are certain that the brands will be equally excited to dive into the farsighted offerings that NXT promises to deliver.”

  • YES Bank opts for iCubesWire’s AI solution

    YES Bank opts for iCubesWire’s AI solution

    MUMBAI: In an industry first in the BFSI sector, YES Bank has opted for iCubesWire’s AI enabled solution, Instatalk, which provides an accurate platform for the customers to interact instantly with the brand and seamlessly suits their requirements.

    YES Bank country head Rajat Mehta said, “As a new-age, technology-enabled bank, we are always exploring new opportunities to innovate and tie-up with partners that can help to increase our brand presence digitally. We are happy to explore the possibilities with iCubesWire and incorporate their AI solution Instatalk, a new-gen product which is the quintessential bridge between the user and the brand. The bot engagement integrated with the campaign strategies will elevates the rate of user engagement for our display campaigns”.

    iCubesWire founder and CEO Sahil Chopra added, “YES Bank is a pioneer in the BFSI sector to create a customisable savings account and we are more than excited to have tied-up with them for an AI enabled campaign. It is a great opportunity for us to bank upon and we are certain the integration will prove fruitful for the brand as well as the users thereby strengthening their loyalty towards the bank. We are keen to explore the digital domain with YES Bank.”

    With the rising neck to neck competition in the BFSI sector, it is paramount to keep up with the pace and innovate better means to impart customer experience. This is when Instatalk becomes the ideal fit in the swift digital world. 

    Through this campaign, YES Bank aims to enhance the user engagement and curtails the long process for queries revolving around savings accounts.

  • iCubesWire expands operations to London

    iCubesWire expands operations to London

    MUMBAI: iCubesWire, India’s one of the leading performance marketing networks, full-service digital agency, and a product development organisation has announced the amplification of their services by extending the operations to London. The office in London will mark their noteworthy entry in the foreign market, post a successful continuity in the Indian sub-continent with the head-office in Gurgaon and branches in Mumbai & Bengaluru.

    The expansion targets the diverse flourishing markets and aims to cater to the brands that have a robust presence in the international markets which are looking for state-of-the-art digital innovative solutions.

    iCubesWire, with its PAN India presence has a thriving list of brands in its kitty like Amazon, Paytm, Central Park, R K Marble, Konica Minolta, Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, MakeMyTrip, Printronix, Myntra, to name a few. With an enthusiastic team of 100+ employees working across geographies, they have experienced a pattern of phenomenal growth. Besides performance marketing & agency domain, iCubesWire has also forayed into technology vertical with Instatalk – an AI enabled digital innovation, which facilitates two-way communication instantly, and Delta – a one-of-a-kind Unified Digital Suite for A to Z digital marketing requirements. 

    The integration of Instatalk & Delta has proven beneficial for the brands and the customers in India, and iCubesWire plans to see similar results in the market overseas. The unified digital technologies, performance marketing, digital media marketing and social media marketing will impart 360-degree solutions to the brands for a notch-higher presence in the digital domain.

    Expressing excitement over the expansion, iCubesWire, CEO and Founder, Sahil Chopra said, “We are glad to begin our journey into the global market with London, the business hub of the world. It is a moment of great pride that we are now venturing into the international market after operating successfully in the Indian sub-continent for nearly a decade. We are ready to take up new challenges and opportunities that will come our way and are keen to leave lasting impressions with our remarkable strategies. We are aware that the acceptance and inhibitions of the brands and customers might vary from India and thus, we are eager to widen our horizons.”

  • iCubesWire launches Delta, a Digital Marketing Suite for Marketers

    iCubesWire launches Delta, a Digital Marketing Suite for Marketers

    MUMBAI: iCubesWire, a full-service agency and leader in performance marketing, creatives, AI and social media, recently announced the launch of ‘Delta’, a digital marketing suite for marketers. The product aims to solve the biggest challenge for digital marketers – providing one platform for entire digital marketing spectrum. With Delta, a SaaS based engine, a single login is required to access the dashboard which chronicles all digital marketing reports and data under respective modules. It is a path breaking innovation which will prove to be beneficial for the clients, agencies and the entire marketing ecosystem.

    Commenting on the launch, iCubesWire, CEO, Sahil Chopra says, “Having observed a huge gap in providing a seamless contact and data exchange between the client and the agency, we were certain that the onset of technology could bridge this gap, which was the need of the hour. This intrigued us to create a platform that streamlines the work and provides for a consistent flow of information between the marketer and the agency. The deep insights led us to create Delta as an industry solution. We are excited to launch this revolutionary product in the market which can be embedded by all the brands to keep a comprehensive track of the work.”

    In simpler terms, Delta can be understood by its similarity with a ‘cellphone’ which integrates all the applications within a device thereby curtailing the need to access miscellaneous devices. It is a SaaS based application which caters to a wide plethora of tasks segregated by tabs on the panel. Starting from social media ad management, ORM & listening to audit analysis, competition study, influencer marketing, SEO search, creative library, etc., it has access to all the data and reports under one roof. Delta also has an in-built CRM which enables the clients, agency and vendor to be in sync with the job sheet progress and follow a process of transparency. These verticals have an autonomous tab assigned to them with the aim to consolidate the chores seamlessly and integrate the progress under one panel.

    Speaking of the innovation, Central Park, GM Marketing, Suneet Singh says, “The industry lacked the unification of multiple ecosystems which now and again lead to haphazard marketing management. Being a marketing professional for over 19 years, I realized there was an ardent need for a platform which consolidates the entire to and fro process within the marketers, agency and likewise, and helps with seamless data flow and munching. Delta, as devised by iCubesWire, seems to be the solution which will streamline the work effortlessly. We are keen to start integrating it in our work process and hope for a smoother functioning of day-to-day tasks.”

  • iCubesWire bags digital mandate for AMB Group

    iCubesWire bags digital mandate for AMB Group

    MUMBAI: iCubesWire,a digital marketing solution and concept provider has bagged the digital media mandate for AMB Group, a renowned real estate developer of Delhi NCR. 

    iCubesWire will be responsible for driving and delivering the overall digital marketing requirements of AMB Group. The entire mandate covers social, ORM, listening, search, technology, digital creative and other media duties.

    iCubesWire CEO and founder Sahil Chopra says, “We are delighted to add yet another prestigious account to our kitty. We are geared up to present out-of-the-box ideas which will uplift its brand presence digitally and helps meet their desired goals. It is a great opportunity for us and we look forward to a splendid start.”

    AMB group director Manoj Sethi adds, “We are excited to onboard iCubesWire as our digital partner. With their innovative ideas & pathbreaking strategies, we are certain to soar new heights in the digital world. We look forward to maintaining a healthy relationship with them.”

  • Union Budget 2018: Industry expects govt to favour consumption

    Union Budget 2018: Industry expects govt to favour consumption

    MUMBAI: Union Budget 2018 has snuck up on us. This Thursday, the government will unveil its budget for fiscal year 2018-19 and many market watchers are expecting a slew of incentives for businesses. After a difficult year, some course correction is certainly on the anvil. Here’s what some of the leaders in the industry had to say:

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    “In the rapidly changing landscape, we believe that the distinction between telecom, IT and broadcasting technology has disappeared and that a convergence of these sectors is required. A positive consideration of this demand in the 2018 budget will certainly help in the rapid growth and generation of substantial employment in our country. Also, similar to the telecommunications sector, television broadcasting organisations including direct-to-home (DTH), cable services and headend in the sky (HITS) require huge investments in setting up technology and distribution networks and, as such, are ‘asset-rich’ organisations. Hence, just like in the software and telecom sectors, it is necessary to allow for the carry-forward of losses in the case of amalgamation or merger of companies in the broadcasting sector.

    For the budget 2018, we are also hopeful that the government will issue a clarification stating that transponder hire charges are not ‘royalty’ in order to avoid protracted litigation.” 

    — Indian Broadcasting Foundation president Punit Goenka 
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    “I anticipate that the Union Budget of 2018 will drive growth and whenever the economy grows, the advertising industry benefits. I see a particular thrust from the government in the areas of infrastructure development as well as for rural development. We have had a reasonably good monsoon, rural economy is starting to look up and another push in the same direction  will significantly benefit all consumption-led sectors, including FMCG, which are heavily advertised.

    I think the government will make efforts  to ensure that there is more money in the pockets of the common man, hopefully by giving some relief on the income tax front and will use technology for better tax compliance, thereby keeping the fiscal deficit under control. The fiscal deficit is very important from the point of view of controlling inflation.

    Specifically for the advertising industry I hope that there are some simplifications around the services part of GST that are announced. While GST has been a progressive step for the country, my feeling is that the services sectors  were relatively less focused upon and hence the step that was supposed to simplify indirect taxation has actually ended up complicating it significantly, particularly for advertising agencies that operate out of different cities and states and service clients who may be based all over the country. Under the thrust of the government for ease of doing business, I hope this issue gets addressed. The advertising industry doesn’t mind paying the taxes but needs simplification of processes, which are taking away too much of unproductive manpower and blocking working capital.

    Over all I feel that India is poised to see  good economic growth over the next 10 years and a little bit of help from the government policies, through the Union Budget of 2018 will further help the economy outperform the rest of the world.”

    —     Dentsu Aegis Network chairman and CEO (South Asia) Ashish Bhasin
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    “The announcement of Union budget is just around the corner with discussions & debates being conducted around it. There is hush-hush regarding the assumptions when everyone is expecting a positive release. As far as digital is concerned, besides the allocation of budgets on Digital Infra Development, there is a need to initiate a few reforms. Digital is the fastest growing sector of India and should be highly benefitted from the Union Budget.

    As per my understanding, budgets should be allocated to PSUs for investing in digital marketing. This will lead to a win-win situation as for the organisation the digital mediums will help gain recognition and support. While the digital agencies will spread awareness and educate the audience about the benefits of the organisation. Even the digital organisations paying taxes dutifully should be recognised well and given the right opportunities to flourish.

    Even on a personal level, the entrepreneurs who are platinum taxpayers should be given certain advantages as a reward for their contribution towards the nation. Any individual paying heavy taxes on time should be entitled to such benefits which could be in the form of a card similar to the other identity cards we have. This will not only be a welcomed move, but it will also ignite the zeal among the others to be a part of that category thereby benefitting the country.

    However, what the budget is going to be will be interesting to witness and I hope for some reforms that help the digital sector in various ways.”

    — iCubesWire CEO and founder Sahil Chopra
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    “Given the NDA Government’s strong intent to drive reforms, we definitely anticipate some rationalisation in tax structures and strengthening of related  infrastructure. While the GST council has already taken some proactive measures, we hope the Government will reemphasize on a roadmap for simple and business friendly GST compliance and administration systems. More importantly, over the course of next few months, initiate all necessary constitutional amendments to ensure that there are no other State or Local Body Taxes, as they defeat the very purpose of bringing uniformity in tax structure, while ensuring proper input credit for taxes. 

    For the accelerated growth of the start-up sector and economy at large, it’s important that the push for digitisation should continue with more vigour. Initiatives by the Government including waving MDR on debit cards on transactions upto Rs 2,000 really go a long way in attaining this objective and we hope, on similar lines in post-budget period, rationalisation mechanisms are introduced around credit cards rates as well–which will continue to be a major mode of payments. UPI should be made more cost effective and should be given a much larger push to increase its adoption in India. 

    We do expect the Government to take up and address IT infrastructure and allied issues this year, taking into account some serious issues that are being faced by the entertainment/media sector such as Piracy. The IT laws must be strengthened to address the root cause for these issues that are constantly causing a substantial hit to the overall revenues for the sector.” 

    — BookMyShow head of finance Mitesh Shah  
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    “In this budget, we look forward to the government focusing on the upliftment of the rural economy and job creation. 49 per cent of the Indian population is engaged in the rural economy. More money in their hands will lead to rebalancing of media spends by corporates that provide goods and services to the rural market. This will be a positive for the advertising industry.”

    —     iProspect India CEO Rubeena Singh
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    “India’s hospitality industry is one of the key drivers of growth of its service sector. With a turnover of USD 71.53 billion in 2016, it accounted for 9.6 per cent of GDP and was the third largest foreign exchange earner for the country. The sheer volume of business it is generating makes streamlining GST on hospitality imperative for Budget 2018.

    Government has somewhat eased its taxation policy by downward revision of rates or rationalization of tax slabs, however, a more detailed approach for resolving issues that still plague GST is required. For instance, IGST in not available to Hotels, tax is calculated on declared rather than actual tariffs, luxury travel and stay are taxed at considerably higher rates, food and beverages sector suffers from the loss of input tax credit, all of which increase costs for end-users and subliminally disincentivises consumption. With experts predicting overall industrial growth between 100 and 200 per cent in next couple of years, 2018 should see a significant expansion in HORECA industry; hence it would be highly beneficial if government would fuel this growth with some planned tax benefits.

    Hotel industry is highly capital intensive. Granting infrastructure status to this sector would enable hotels secure long term loans at competitive rates, which would help reduce room tariffs. Facilitating loan availability to small and medium enterprises under Mudra scheme with easier accessibility and larger outlays and granting tax benefits to remote businesses can further help the industry.

    In addition, leading hospitality industries around the world revolve around a core group of highly skilled individuals – an area where India still lacks. Benefits of creating and maintaining a talent pool of skilled manpower would be significant. Were government to allocate some portion of the budget to this area, it would go a long way in making India the global leader in the hospitality sector.”

    —Pursuite.com CEO Amit Shukla