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Tag: Sowmya Iyer

  • #ProtectChildhood: Manforce takes a stand against child pornography

    #ProtectChildhood: Manforce takes a stand against child pornography

    MUMBAI: From losing your innocence to safeguarding it, Manforce Condoms has undergone a sea-change in its brand messaging. In its latest ad campaign, the sexual wellness giant has taken up cudgels against the spread of child pornography in the country.

    Titled #ProtectChildhood, the video tells parents to be cautious, keep an eye on their kids and try to look for truth beyond what they see.

    “If we don't keep an eye on our children, someone else will. Children spending more time online unsupervised, makes them vulnerable to grooming and sexual coercion,” the ad says in a stark warning.

    According to India Child Protection Fund (ICPF), there has been an alarming rise in the demand for child pornography material since the Covid2019-induced lockdown was enforced in India. The largest pornography website in the world has registered 95 per cent growth in traffic from India compared to pre-Coronavirus times, the ICPF claimed.

    At the same time, children are spending more time on the internet, especially with the new normal of online classes. Through this video campaign, Manforce aims to raise awareness about the rise in child pornography and shed light on the current situation.

    In the last few years, Manforce has shifted its communication strategy to come across as more ‘socially-responsible’. It took the internet by storm in 2017 for its campaign #ShutThePhoneUp, which aimed to generate awareness about the risks associated with recording one’s private moments on the phone.

    In the commercial condom category, most brands at a point of time focused their marketing on the theme of carnal pleasure and the messaging in their ads was heavy on sex appeal (think Sunny Leone on a beach). But now they have switched gears and are going for a ‘woke’ image by promoting safe sex or breaking the stigma around socially-sensitive issues.

    According to Sowmya Iyer, founder and CEO DViO Digital, child pornography is a pressing social concern that is neither openly discussed nor covered by the media. “Manforce choosing the subject of a sharp rise in child pornography and bringing it to light is an example of cause marketing. Global data states that less than 12 per cent of the audience makes the correct association between a brand and its cause,” she said.

    Iyer went on to add that if Manforce is intending to carve out long term impact in the consumer’s mind, it has to go above and beyond just an awareness building ad. “It has to be seen how consistently they will integrate this cause into their messaging and actions to drive it into the minds of the audience.”

    Porus Jose chief creative officer IdeateLabs shared that he has not seen a message like this before, not in the Indian context. The attempt to present a new danger is fair and valid but it lacks nuance, in his view. “The point that parents should keep an eye on kids’ internet usage (a simple enough call-to-action) is laboured. While the topic of child pornography is present and real, the film itself lacks empathy and sensitivity,” he pointed out.

    He believes as a condom manufacturer brand, Manforce’s conscious decision to move into the social responsibility area is not only commendable but also hitherto unseen in the local landscape. Films like #MoreOfAMan, #YouAreNotAlone, and the series on #ShutThePhoneUp are providing the much-needed x-ray glasses on society’s sexual deviance, and prodding us to stay alert.

     The brand is competing with the likes of global and local players such as Durex, Moods, Kamasutra and others. Manforce has been engaging with the audiences on social media with its witty creatives by playing strong on moment marketing. 

  • DViO Digital Recreates Vande Mataram for Gaana

    DViO Digital Recreates Vande Mataram for Gaana

    MUMBAI: On the occasion of India’s 71st Republic Day this weekend, DViO Digital conceptualized this recreation of Vande Mataram for a campaign for India’s favorite music streaming app.

    India has always been hailed around the world for its unity and strength with a beautiful diversity seen across its landscape, food, people, religion, language & customs. This essence is what makes India, ‘INDIA’ with all of its beauty & exuberance. To celebrate India’s vibrancy in diversity Gaana unveiled ‘Vande Mataram- The National Song of India since 1950’.

    This goosebump-inducing rendition, speaks to the soul of the nation & creates a shared space, cutting across the boundaries, to amalgamate different cultures together. This ode to our motherland, which played a vital role during the Indian Independence movement, has a renewed sense of significance during these dark days where there is an urgent need to rekindle the commitment, we as citizens have to our country.

    This version of Vande Mataram features artists from nine different linguistic backgrounds that are Malayalam, Assamese, Urdu, Hindi, Marathi, Punjabi, Odia, Telugu & Bengali to portray that in spite of our regional differences, we have one united identity and that is – ‘ONE INDIA’. The imagery of the video which begins with black & white scenes through the lens of diversity then transforms into a colorful visual symbolizing the vision and hope for an integrated & vibrant future.

    Prashan Agarwal , CEO of Gaana said, “Music is one of the few strains of humanity that has the sublime power to cut across cultures, faiths, and borders to evoke our shared sense of culture, folklore, and music. To that effect, we have curated playlists that bring out the flavor of our music and our people as we tip our hats to one of the greatest songs that celebrates our spirit of unity. This Republic Day, we invite every Indian to discover and celebrate the music of our nation – only on Gaana.”

    Sowmya Iyer, Founder & CEO of DViO Digital commented, “Never before has there been a need to recommit to the sense of patriotism and India. DViO believes in bringing the wealth of artists from all over the country and brands together to create more unique co-branded content. And this was our initiative in that direction. Gaana is one of the most enterprising brand we have worked with who believe in promoting great talent and also regional music.  

    DViO Digital successfully executed this campaign in association with Qyuki, as the Artist connect partner & Kavit Mody Production as its Production partner.

    Catch the New Gaana Exclusive “Vande Mataram – The National Song of India since 1950” here:

  • Brands likely to prefer OTT over linear TV, says DViO founder & CEO Sowmya Iyer

    Brands likely to prefer OTT over linear TV, says DViO founder & CEO Sowmya Iyer

    MUMBAI: In today’s digital-led world, brands need to reposition themselves and DViO Digital is doing its bit being one of the largest integrated marketing companies in India. The company takes pride in its creative, technical, and digital expertise. It also runs a startup incubator of over 18 companies and a research lab to work towards meaningful application of new age technologies like AI, ML, VR, and AR in marketing ecosystem for brands.

    Started in 2007 as Xebec Digital (rebranded as DViO in 2017), the company, in the past few years, has handled a number of successful campaigns for brands like Star World, Star Movies, Star Gold, Hotstar International, Gaana.com, Reliance Mutual Fund, Cox and Kings, Protinex, among others. for brands like Star Gold Select,Gaana, Aldo, Aurelia, Protinex, and Signature Tours.

    Founder and CEO of the company, Sowmya Iyer, in an exclusive conversation with Indiantelevision.com’s Mansi Sharma, shares how the digital ecosphere has evolved in the past decade.

    According to her, the biggest transformation has been the blurring of the line between traditional and digital media. She says, “Brands don’t look at media as traditional v/s digital anymore. The media investment decisions are taken based on the consumer’s environment and media consumption patterns.”

    Sowmya quips that digital is no longer the ‘new media’ and OTT is well-positioned to take over linear TV if 5G is delivered as promised. “In fact application and integration of VR, AR, chatbots and voice search in marketing are adding new and very interesting dimensions to digital marketing.”

    “If you look at the figures – ad spends in digital are at 17 per cent of the total media spends. It is expected to grow to 29 per cent share by 2021. In fact, media like TV, radio, and print are expected to see a decline. This only points towards a change in media consumption habits owning to smartphones and smart TV.”

    But this massive growth also brings along a few challenges for the market. Sowmya contends, “The key challenge, which can also be a huge opportunity, is the pace at which digital marketing platforms and technology are innovating and changing.”

    She adds, “The onus lies on marketers to adopt, internalise and apply at a rapid pace. Whether it’s new formats of content for social media platforms or introduction of advanced filters to look at data by publishers or new tech which can be applied for innovative marketing — the pace can be exciting as well as chaotic. Training and processes to ensure the adoption of learning across organisations and brands is the key.”

    Sharing how marketing agencies can brunch on this feast of endless possibilities and transformations, Sowmya tells that they need to move away from some passé trends like buying fans to gain followers and using influencers to trend on Twitter.

    “There is a general decline in trust of what people see online. A HubSpot study suggested that people are more likely to believe data coming from their peers or people like them. Therefore, influencer marketing definitely cannot be applied across brands like a checklist,” Sowmya mentions.

    She also shares findings from DViO’s research to study the effectiveness of influencer marketing. “We observed that campaigns, which got the lowest ratings, had largely used influencers only as an amplification channel. The influencers were not seen as to have any brand connect, or the believability of content shared was low. Whereas, the top campaigns were those with majority of influencers were actual users or patrons of the brand. Also, micro-influencers seemed to create a lot more intimate engagement with their fans on the endorsed brand content.”

    According to her, other top trends that are to be followed for driving a successful business include smart usage of social media that is not only focused on driving engagement but also contributes towards attracting commerce and provides a good ROI. “Better data science and analytics will help group programmatic buying as brands see ROI coming from programmatic as well,” she adds.

    She sees video dominating the digital content and massive adoption of messaging apps changing how brands communicate with customers in the near future.

  • Gaia Good Health’s #ThingsYouGiveUp trends on social media

    Gaia Good Health’s #ThingsYouGiveUp trends on social media

    MUMBAI: Health food brand Gaia Good Health took social media by storm with its latest digital campaign #ThingsYouGiveUp, which was created by Xebec Digital.

     

    The campaign #ThingsYouGiveUp saw people share stories with the brand about the various things they give up in pursuit of their dreams and ambitions.

     

    The social media chatter created by the campaign resulted in a nationwide trend for two days.

     

    Speaking about the campaign, Gaia Good Health CEO Dolly Kumar said, “Today’s individual is aspiring and does not mind giving up health on occasions to meet daily targets and achieve dreams. But there is always a room to compensate by making those smart choices. That’s where Gaia wanted to fit in.” 

     

    Xebec Digital CEO Sowmya Iyer added, “The idea was to make people realise that in this faced-paced life, health knowingly unknowingly does take a beating. That’s where Gaia as a health brand ran a contest on twitter asking people to share their stories where they have given things up to achieve their goals.”

     

    “The contest was designed in such a way that people started realising how they neglect health. The brand started receiving stories of confessions and resolutions to walk the path to good life,” said Kumar.

     

    As the brand asked people to share their story of compromises, its social pages saw people confessing and then realising the importance of health through the #ThingsYouGiveUp campaign.

     

     The ball was set rolling on 1 December as people started identifying with the campaign and Gaia’s handle started receiving tweets like “Skipped breakfast to make it to work on time,” “Gave up Zumba lessons for studies” and “Gave up spending time with my family for work,” among others.

  • Gaia Good Health’s #ThingsYouGiveUp trends on social media

    Gaia Good Health’s #ThingsYouGiveUp trends on social media

    MUMBAI: Health food brand Gaia Good Health took social media by storm with its latest digital campaign #ThingsYouGiveUp, which was created by Xebec Digital.

     

    The campaign #ThingsYouGiveUp saw people share stories with the brand about the various things they give up in pursuit of their dreams and ambitions.

     

    The social media chatter created by the campaign resulted in a nationwide trend for two days.

     

    Speaking about the campaign, Gaia Good Health CEO Dolly Kumar said, “Today’s individual is aspiring and does not mind giving up health on occasions to meet daily targets and achieve dreams. But there is always a room to compensate by making those smart choices. That’s where Gaia wanted to fit in.” 

     

    Xebec Digital CEO Sowmya Iyer added, “The idea was to make people realise that in this faced-paced life, health knowingly unknowingly does take a beating. That’s where Gaia as a health brand ran a contest on twitter asking people to share their stories where they have given things up to achieve their goals.”

     

    “The contest was designed in such a way that people started realising how they neglect health. The brand started receiving stories of confessions and resolutions to walk the path to good life,” said Kumar.

     

    As the brand asked people to share their story of compromises, its social pages saw people confessing and then realising the importance of health through the #ThingsYouGiveUp campaign.

     

     The ball was set rolling on 1 December as people started identifying with the campaign and Gaia’s handle started receiving tweets like “Skipped breakfast to make it to work on time,” “Gave up Zumba lessons for studies” and “Gave up spending time with my family for work,” among others.