Top advertising agencies vie for Rs 100 cr LIC account

Breaking away from the 12-year practice, LIC has decided to do away with dealing with 45 agencies and empanelling just four agencies for its countrywide operations. With an ad budget of Rs 100 crore for 2004-05, this is the second largest public sector ad account in the country.

e4m by exchange4media Staff
Published: Jun 7, 2004 7:37 AM  | 3 min read
Top advertising agencies vie for Rs 100 cr LIC account

The Rs 9,500-crore advertising industry — made up of top 40 ad agencies — are pitching for the ad account of the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC).

With an ad budget of Rs 100 crore for 2004-05, this is the second largest public sector ad account in the country. Only Indian Oil Corporation’s ad budget exceeds this figure.

Breaking away from the 12-year practice, LIC has decided to do away with dealing with 45 agencies and empanelling just four agencies for its countrywide operations.

The top ad agencies — Lintas, O&M, Redifussion, R K Swamy/BBDO, Mudra, Mode and Concept — have shown keen interest to be empaneled, and give LIC an image uplift. LIC, to date, has received over 14 applications from leading agencies and expects more by the last date of inviting tender — June 8.

Some of the biggest PSU accounts are that of State Bank of India, with an ad budget of about Rs 65-70 crore, Unit Trust of India with Rs 30 crore, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation and Bharat Petroleum Corporation, each with about Rs 50-60 crore.

Today, LIC has 13 ad agencies at the national level and a host of others at each zonal level, taking the total figure to 45 agencies dealing with LIC’s Rs 100-crore ad account. Some of the leading ad agencies currently empanelled include R K Swamy/BBDO and Mudra. Earlier LIC also had O&M PR prior to privatisation.

However, when O&M bagged SBI Life Insurance account, they gave up LIC’s account since it is a usual ethical practice of public relation (PR) agencies not to have two clients from the same sector.

The exercise of empanelling four agencies is to improve LIC’s image through communications. “We feel we should move on from promoting just the brand to product branding. Customers should identify the product with LIC,” said LIC executive director (PR & publicity) A K Shukla.

Agencies having a gross income of over Rs 25 crore and having dealt with large corporations with an all-India network and having in-house facilities to make creatives will be shortlisted. Further, agencies with a minimum of 10 per cent billings from the PSU sector can make a pitch for the account.

LIC hopes to uplift its image and ensure greater accountability of those empanelled by reducing the number of agencies.

According to Deloitte & Touche’s report on the corporation, LIC’s ads have become stereo-typed. It recommended that LIC opt for just two or three agencies as is the practice worldwide.

The earlier consultant — Booz, Allen & Hamilton — had also recommended doing away with the practice of having so many agencies and had suggested LIC to have only one.

“Many of the agencies have been with us for the past 15 to 20 years and their work has either become stale or have become ‘politely’ arrogant,” said Shukla. “We have also found that many agencies would like to be attached to us and leverage the association,” he added.

“Worldwide, organisations have just two to three agencies on their panel. Campaigns can be better managed and agencies are thereby more accountable, as they act as partners with the organisation,” said Shukla.

“With greater number of agencies empanelled, motivation is not there as a single agency cannot be identified with the organisation,” he added.

“Sometimes it is difficult to make a choice from among the 40-odd creatives submitted, as each of the 14 agencies empanelled at the national level tend to give a choice of three to four creatives,” said Shukla.

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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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e4m by exchange4media Staff
Published: Aug 25, 2023 4:39 PM  | 1 min read

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e4m by exchange4media Staff
Published: Aug 25, 2023 4:38 PM  | 1 min read

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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