Be fearless and do something new: Abhijit Avasthi
The NCD of Ogilvy India talks about his default journey into advertising, few landmark campaigns, his belief in the importance of mentoring and more...

Having spent over 14 years at Ogilvy India, Abhijit Avasthi, National Creative Director, in a detailed chat with exchange4media, talks about his default journey into advertising, few landmark campaigns, his belief in the importance of spending time with juniors and pinpointing mistakes with a brutal honesty, his dream of only Ogilvy’s campaigns being talked about in every corner and more...
Do you agree with the popular notion that cause-related advertising is going to be big for brands to talk to consumers?
One is always looking for two things – a relevant way of communicating and originality. If a product is doing cause-related marketing, my sense is that it maybe counter-productive for another product in the same category to use cause-related communication well; it comes across as a ‘me too’. I believe people also want to get entertained. Brands need to ask themselves: Is this relevant to my brand strategy?
You have been with Ogilvy India for more than 14 years now; what are some of the game-changers or milestones in your journey till now?
The very fact that I have lasted so long is a milestone in my mind. I never planned to be in advertising industry; this is a default journey for me. I don’t plan things. I came here because it was a fun place to do fun stuff and they let me do fun stuff.
Personal recognition for me came when the world took notice of my work with the Centre Shock barber commercial, Fevicol bus, Asian Paints ‘Wah Sunil babu badhiya hain’, Cadbury ‘Kuch Meetha ho jaye’, etc. This was done by me in my first five-six years at Ogilvy. These were landmarks for me in my career in terms of people noticing the variety of work that I could do.
After creating such landmarks, how difficult does it become to re-create the old magic?
I would hope not, otherwise I should retire tomorrow. One always hopes to do fabulous work and hopes that every piece he attempts will become a milestone. But, a lot of stars need to align for something to truly become iconic. Most of the time, it happens once or twice in people’s lives. I have been lucky to have a few more success. It is like India can keep winning the World Cup but the 1983 win will always be talked about.
In hindsight, any campaign that you would do differently?
Maybe we shouldn’t have done a sequel to the ‘Papu paas ho gaya’ commercial.
What are some of learnings from all these years of advertising?
The campaigns that were done with a fair bit of thought and originality and a fearlessness to do something new – which the client also agreed to – were extremely successful. Only when we have tread the same path again is when we have not met with the same degree of success. That is a lesson I have learnt – Don’t try to replicate and duplicate, but be fearless and do something new.
What kind of mentoring and training takes place at Ogilvy India?
Any youngster stays on for different reasons. Most importantly, there needs to be learning, and an opportunity to put that learning to use. One of reasons people keep coming back to Ogilvy is the fact that what you think of, does see the light of day. For a creative person, this is true joy. Nothing beats the delight of someone discussing your campaign. We keep telling senior people to ensure juniors get enough opportunity.
About training and learning, it comes at two levels – one is formal and systematic learning, which has its place through workshops, and the other is every day feedback. What is most important since we have such a hectic pace of work is on the job coaching. If juniors come to you with a piece of work, you have to give feedback. I keep telling my senior creative people that when youngsters come to you, don’t stop at saying ‘mazaa nahin aaya’ but explain ‘mazaa kyun nahin aaya’. Give them two to three options to work on; that is what mentoring and coaching is all about. It has to be daily and with every piece of work. The idea is to pin-point exactly what is wrong with the work and how it can be corrected. Many a times, you harm a person by not telling him what the problem is.
We’ve become very systematic in our formal appraisal, where we sit people down and tell them what needs to be corrected.
On digital as well, we are doing extensive training across the agency. This is stemming from O&M Worldwide initiative, where each person has to be digitally-savvy. We also have a partnership with Google, which is helping us train our people.
As a creative leader, where would you want to see Ogilvy five years from now?
If in every corner, every bus, every lane, the only campaigns that people would talk about would be Ogilvy’s, it would make me a very happy person.
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E4M Our strategy is to target younger audiences through Sports: Rajiv Dubey, Dabur
The Head of Media at Dabur India spoke exclusively to exchange4media on the World Cup, associating with Indian Idol, the company’s digital spending and much more
With quirky campaigns, memes and moment marketing, timed with the ongoing World Cup and particularly the India-Pakistan matches, Dabur India has got considerable consumer attention for its popular brands – Red Paste, Cool King Hair Oil, Chyawanprash, Dabur Vita and the recently launched Bae Fresh Gel toothpaste.
The 140-year-old company is going big on key sporting events, World Television Premiere (WTP) movies and reality shows. It is now gearing up to become the title sponsor of popular talent show ‘Indian Idol’ on Sony TV for the first time, shared Rajiv Dubey, who leads the media strategy at Dabur.
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Swapan Seth's new book 'COOL' is out
The book is a reflection of the author's 'eclectic taste across categories'
Advertising professional and art collector Swapan Seth has announced the launch of his new book COOL. The book is described as "a ready reckoner to the hip and the happening, of the known and the very unknown."
The book is a reflection of the author's "eclectic taste across categories: from boltholes to exotic hideaways."
COOL has been published by Simon & Schuster India and is available on Amazon.
Seth is an ad veteran with a long and illustrious career in the industry. He became the youngest-ever Creative Director at Clarion at age 24. He was VP at 26 at Trikaya Grey. Two years later, he started his agency Equus.
He writes for publications such as The Economic Times, Hindustan Times and India Today. This is his second book and he has previously published THIS IS ALL I HAVE TO SAY.
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Disney Star signs 9 sponsors for Asia Cup PAK
Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up come on board
e4m Staff Disney Star has signed nine broadcast and digital streaming sponsors for the upcoming Asia Cup.
Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up have come on board for the upcoming tournament.
As reported earlier by exchange4media, Disney Star has sought Rs 26 crore for the co-presenting sponsorship on TV and Rs 30 crore for Disney+ Hotstar.
According to industry sources, the associate sponsorship on Star Sports has been priced at Rs 19.66 crore, whereas for the ‘powered by’ sponsorship on Disney+ Hotstar, the broadcaster is seeking Rs 18 crore.
As per the information available with exchange4media, Disney+ Hotstar has three sponsorship tiers-- co-presenting (Rs 30 crore), powered by (Rs 18 crore) and associate sponsorship (Rs 12 crore). The broadcaster is offering an estimated reach of 120-140 million for co-presenting sponsors, 90-100 million for powered by and 60-70 million for associate sponsorship.
A spot buy for 10 seconds has been priced at Rs 25 lakh for the India vs Pakistan matches, while for the non-India matches, the ad rate for 10 second is Rs 2.3 lakh. The India matches plus the final for ODIs has been priced at Rs 17 lakh per 10 seconds.
Asia Cup is scheduled to be held from 30 August, 2023, to September 17, 2023.
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Sorted 360 wins creative & social media mandate of Reliance Mall
The agency will manage offline and online campaigns for Reliance Mall
Sorted 360, an integrated creative and social media agency, has won the mandate to providing brand solutions for Reliance Malls across India.
“Sorted 360 is set to enhance Reliance Malls' market presence with their unparalleled creative prowess and strategic thinking,” read a press release.
“Sorted 360's commitment to pushing the boundaries of creative communication aligns perfectly with Reliance Malls' ethos. With a pan-India presence spanning across 19 cities and growing, Reliance Malls has consistently captivated customers by offering an array of Reliance brands and third-party fashion & lifestyle brands. The mall has established an unparalleled connection with its patrons through superior quality, a remarkable value proposition, and an unmatched shopping experience,” it read further.
"We are thrilled to welcome Sorted 360 as our trusted partner in advancing our brand presence across the nation," said the Head of Marketing at Relaice Malls. "Their proven expertise in retail, shopping center management, and innovative creative strategies make them the perfect fit for our vision."
"Partnering with Reliance Malls is a testament to our commitment to shaping extraordinary brand experiences," remarked Prerana Anatharam, Co-founder of Sorted 360. "We are excited to leverage our strategic and creative acumen to further elevate Reliance Malls as the epitome of convenience, choice, and excellence."
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KlugKlug onboards Hemang Mehta as Country Manager for Indias
Mehta was most recently Head of Agency Relationships at Network 18 Media & Investments
KlugKlug has appointed Hemang Mehta as its Country Manager for India.
Mehta will play a pivotal role in driving KlugKlug's growth and expansion within the Indian market and be responsible for Sales & GTM Strategy
Prior to that, he has also represented organisations like Exponential (now VDX.tv), India Today Digital and Rediff.com. His expertise spans various domains including digital media sales, mobile marketing, media planning, and buying, social media marketing, and more.
Hemang Mehta expressed his enthusiasm about joining KlugKlug, saying, "I am thrilled to be a part of KlugKlug, a forward-thinking platform that is reshaping the influencer marketing landscape. As much as I look forward to collaborating with the exuberant team at KlugKlug, I am super excited to interact with the brands to deliver powerful data-backed Influencer solutions that will guarantee business outcomes."
Commenting on the appointment, Kalyan Kumar, Co-Founder and CEO of KlugKlug, stated, "We are excited to welcome Hemang Mehta to our team as the Country Manager for India. His extensive experience in digital media sales and marketing will be instrumental in driving our efforts to provide influencer marketing solutions to our clients. We believe Hemang's leadership will be key in scaling our operations and expanding our reach within the Indian market."
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