I am not going anywhere: Mallikarjun Das, CEO, SMG India

In an exclusive conversation with exchange4media, Matt Blackborn, President of Emerging Markets, SMG & Das clear the air on Das quitting the agency, what led to the rumours, and much more...

e4m by Priyanka Mehra
Published: Dec 19, 2013 9:00 AM  | 4 min read
I am not going anywhere: Mallikarjun Das, CEO, SMG India

Starcom MediaVest Group (SMG) in India has been in the news in the last few months, and not entirely for the right reasons. The agency has been ridden with rumours of its India CEO Mallikarjun Das leaving and joining one of the biggest media agencies in India. The fact that SMG has also lost a few significant accounts during this period has not helped things either.

Matt Blackborn, President of Emerging Markets, SMG and Mallikarjun Das, CEO, SMG India speak exclusively to exchange4media on all the news surrounding the agency, what led to the rumours, the India business and the agency’s focus on strengthening its presence in India.

There have been very strong rumours of Mallikarjun Das leaving SMG. What is your take on this?
Matt Blackborn:
I can’t say how rumours like this get started, but I have every confidence in Malli and look forward to continuing our close working relationship.

Mallikarjun Das: It is a baseless rumour and I can say that with 110 per cent confidence. Have I ever given an indication to anyone, either overtly/ covertly, that I am moving out? The answer is ‘No’, which is why I can say with confidence I am committed to SMG.

What do you think led to those rumours?
Matt Blackborn:
Again, I have no idea how rumours like this get started, but they are just that – rumours.

Mallikarjun Das: It is a small industry; one needs to realise that it is fairly easy to spread a rumour. I am not going anywhere.

SMG has a lost a few important accounts this quarter in India, such as Samsung and Heinz. How is the agency making up for these losses?
Matt Blackborn:
We have new business prospects in the pipeline for 2014 and hope to announce some wins for SMG India and SMG Convonix soon. We are focussed on continuing to build our business in India as we believe it is a market of the future.

Mallikarjun Das: It has been a difficult year, but having said that, we have also won some clients this year, such as Ranbaxy and Thomas Cook. This business is cyclical, there will be phases where it will come and go out, and we are caught at that end of the cycle now. If I look at 2012, it was fantastic in terms of new businesses – we won around 25 new businesses in 2012. We have made some big strides in 2013 in terms of revenues in other streams such as digital; the contribution of digital to SMG India is over 40 per cent. We have invested in digital in terms of search, both organic and paid. Some of these investments are beginning to pay off. We are the only agency to have a webplus TV optimiser. We have also made giant strides in the area of analytics and hit our targets on the analytics revenues.

What are SMG’s plans to strengthen its focus in India?
Matt Blackborn:
With the acquisition of SMG Convonix earlier this year, we added strength in search, discoverability and digital marketing to our capabilities in India. The transaction brought together two complementary organisations – Convonix’s strength in Search, Social and Analytics, combined with SMG’s strength in media strategy, which creates a unique offering for the burgeoning digital marketing space in India and expands Convonix’s geographical presence in India to Delhi, Bangalore and Chennai, besides Mumbai.

We continue to build a robust insights division in India, with six Human Experience studies encompassing subjects such as Moms & Money, Parenting Grand Designs and India’s Digital VIPs. We are also beefing up our Analytics and Specialist Teams. Finally, in order to make all employees digital savvy, SMG India has launched a full-fledged Digital Training Programme.

Mallikarjun Das: Our focus areas involve learning from the challenges of 2013 and harnessing the positives, also driving the product and revenues further in 2014.
 

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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

e4m by e4m Staff
Published: Oct 27, 2023 6:15 PM  | 1 min read
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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'

e4m by e4m Staff
Published: Oct 27, 2023 6:07 PM  | 1 min read
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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 by exchange4media Staff
Published: Aug 26, 2023 11:48 AM  | 1 min read
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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

e4m by exchange4media Staff
Published: Aug 26, 2023 10:54 AM  | 1 min read
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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

e4m by exchange4media Staff
Published: Aug 24, 2023 3:35 PM  | 1 min read
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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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