Guest Article: Don’t freeze. Stay warm, hospitable and smiling
Freeze. Believe me, this is the word that is haunting ad agencies and ad executives, leaving them in the cold, literally. Freeze refers to “no new recruitments” in the advertising world. And ‘freeze’ is something that is not desirable in these times of economic crisis.

“I will blanket the city in endless winter. First Gotham, and then the world” – Mr Freeze’s (aka Arnold Schwarzenegger) words from the ‘Batman’ movie have arrived to haunt ad agencies, ad executives and recruiters. Freeze refers to “no new recruitments” in the advertising world.
Why freeze?
As to why the freeze – agencies are uncertain of future businesses; there is pressure to improve bottom-lines; global recession, etc.
Agencies are working with less manpower. They cannot recruit, which implies that the business projections without manpower projections are indeed scary. Also, if someone leaves, replacements require multi-level sanctions (might even go to New York these days for an entry level position!). Further, if an agency needs to sack someone, they have to bear the unwanted employee.
“Allow me to break the ice. My name is Freeze. Learn it well. For it’s the chilling sound of your doom.” So, someone send the Batman a signal in the sky.
For ad executives it’s a nightmare – movements have become slow, and growth within the organisations in the form of promotions is limited. So, almost every ad(wo)man’s (mostly servicing) underlined ambition to join the client side is gaining momentum. This is leaving agencies with employees who are less passionate about making a career in advertising.
Disappointment, despair & depression are lurking around
For recruiters it is a no win situation. Their business is totally dependent on agencies recruitments, and they have been playing their cards well, rotating one candidate in different agencies. So, they are the ones who are badly hit by this. Eventually, what is seen is that they are pushing experienced people to go for jobs with less experience requirement. Effectively, these recruiters are contributing their own bit in fuelling confusion and scare in the job market place.
Thus, we have a problem, but what possibly can be the solution?
Media abounds with pronouncements by MNCs and Indian titans saying that “We know that the times are bad, but we do not intend to cut our advertising budgets (but use them more efficiently)”.
Agencies are you listening, or are the clients fibbing?
So why cry wolf?
Okay, let us not get into the marketing firms’ strategic marcomm gameplan. But for the agencies, they need to grow, and for that, they need to pitch and acquire new businesses and grow the existing ones. In both the cases you need people to manage that additional workload. Are we saying that earlier we were overstaffed (poor HRM), which agencies with a flat hierarchy have anyways never been? Should the leadership of yesteryears be crucified?
So, why are we restricting our agencies’ business heads from thinking big and gunning for big growth plans? They can’t ask for more people, they can’t replace people (can’t fire the underperformer), not proactively seek business (team is not there to handle it), creating more pressure by additional workload on every employee. Is this an apercu into sights of a cracking agency structure?
In all this mess, the other HR functions like training, etc., are non-existent. Comprehensively, the industry is spoiling its ‘employability branding’, an effect no brand managers would think of without a shudder.
The need is to decipher groundswell trends and come up with ‘relevant-today’ approaches. Buying is still happening, though led by price cuts. Disposable incomes are on the rise, though luxury items are getting a short shrift. Income patterns are changing across demographic layers. But, people are still buying.
Lifestyle changes are evident. Time spent at home is on the rise, so more eyeballs can be expected. Find different pitches and find different clients. Advertising has long been a ‘derived economy’ model, primarily because it feeds strategising of corporates. It ought to offer strategising to corporates itself. But that would happen if you consider the corporate success/ failure as your own. If the ad agency trip is to grab the larger slice of promo budgets, with no linkage to bottom-lines, it would always stagnate, especially in crisis times.
The feel-good on companies is seen by its advertising spend. You can’t allow the companies to slip on that metrics every layman compiles in his head. Not surrendering the ad budgets would sustain the faith buyers have. So, do not let the buyer get your pulse and feel you are a losing entity. And don’t let the internal customers get that feel as well. It takes years to build trust, and a few months to squander away.
Don’t freeze. Stay warm and hospitable and smiling.
(Gaurav Sood is Head of Marketing & Corporate Communication at Augmen LLC, NY.)
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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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