IMPACT's 40 Under Forty Marketers: Selling A Dream
IMPACT from the exchange4media Group launches the first edition of its ‘40 Under Forty’ list to recognise extraordinary achievers who are 40 years of age and below in the Indian Media, Marketing and Advertising industry
The emergence of Digital has transformed not just people’s lives but also the way business is conducted and in particular, the way companies and brands talk to their consumers. From a time in the 1980s when just one ad on Doordarshan during the Sunday morning run of ‘Ramayan’ or ‘Mahabharat’ helped achieve the stated objective to today when marketing activities bombard the consumer on multiple platforms and devices. In this marketing ecosystem, ensuring that the consumer gets the message and garnering the requisite ROI is a challenge and it is here that the young blood in the marketing ranks successfully helped brands navigate the scenario. Also, these young marketers have increasingly taken the lead in making the brands socially conscious - for example, Whisper and P&G have taken on the mandate to break the taboo around menstruation.
IMPACT from the exchange4media Group launches the first edition of its ‘40 Under Forty’ list to recognise extraordinary achievers who are 40 years of age and below in the Indian Media, Marketing and Advertising industry. Below are the marketing pundits who have successfully helped their brands to excel.
ABHISHEK DESAI
Associate Director, Marketing Operations, Indian Sub-Continent, Procter & Gamble
Age: 35
At 35, Abhishek Desai is the youngest leader in P&G India’s leadership team. For his work across different marketing roles in P&G, Desai has won many accolades and top awards at forums like Cannes and the Effies, to name a few. In his over decade long career at P&G, he has worked on iconic brands like Gillette, Oral-B, Tide, Head & Shoulders, Downy, Pampers, Duracell across different geographies including India, Korea, ASEAN, Australia and China.
As part of the India leadership team, Desai played a key role in double-digit top-line and bottom-line growth for P&G India in FY17-18 by enabling strong marketing plans across categories, making India one of the fastest growing markets for P&G globally. He revamped the direct-to-consumer programme for P&G marrying in-depth consumer understanding with new-to-the-world technology to sharply and effectively target consumers directly without traditional intermediaries. This programme is a key part of P&G India’s growth plan and delivered over 30% of P&G India’s growth.
Over the years, P&G India has come to be associated with multiple award-winning campaigns and Desai says that the challenge in being a marketer is balancing long term equity with short term growth. “Creativity is the cessation of mediocrity,” he adds. A passionate advocate for positive change in the country, Desai has been instrumental in step-changing the P&G CSR programme, P&G Shiksha, which has helped support over 1,500 schools and will impact more than a million children. Desai led the launch of the new P&G Shiksha film which crossed 70 million views in just 15 days, making it the highest digitally viewed video for P&G India. So, no surprises that this is a campaign that he takes pride in. Desai says, “For P&G Shiksha, we used our brands’ voices as a force for good, while driving incredible connect with consumers. The video was seen more than 100 million times.”
He has played a key role in developing external alliances to drive growth. For example, alliances with government authorities to educate young girls on menstrual hygiene, college capability programmes to groom young talent and preparing them for employment, hospital partnerships for trial of Pampers diapers, etc.
Desai has also been leading internal and industry effort on brand safety and media accountability. Within P&G, he ensured 100% of digital spends on brand-safe content and creating a culture of spending linked to measurements. Externally, Desai is leading a project for Indian Society of Advertisers to drive industry-relevant opportunities and challenges like digital measurements, knowledge-sharing, etc. Desai also serves as Director on the Board of ISA.
Brand-stand
“While working on Gillette, we realized that most consumers considered shaving a chore that they could avoid. We brought shaving out from the bathroom to mainstream conversations via The Shave India Movement. We sparked debates by bringing in perspective from women, employers and key influencers, driving preference for shaving and significantly growing the brand in India.”
CHETNA SONI
Business Leader, Indian Sub-Continent, Feminine Care, Procter & Gamble
Age: 32
Chetna Soni, one of the youngest business leaders in the FMCG industry in India, heads P&G India’s second largest brand, Whisper. She joined P&G (Marketing) in 2008 and has led P&G’s Feminine Care and Hair Care businesses in South-East Asia, Middle-East & Africa and Europe. Soni has been instrumental in accelerating the growth of the businesses she has led, growing market-share in the face of fierce competition and macro-economic challenges. During her last six years in Feminine Care, she has shaped the strategy to drive social change through campaigns focused on women’s issues, especially taboos surrounding menstruation. Soni’s initiatives on Whisper also ensure that over four million girls are provided access to menstrual hygiene products every year, through Whisper’s Health & Hygiene Programme that impacts nearly 40,000 schools across India. To her credit are campaigns such as #TouchThePickle that spoke against period taboos and won a Grand Prix at Cannes 2015 (Glass).
In September 2017, Soni brought on #SitImproper to drive awareness and trial for the new Whisper Ultra Soft, through a campaign that challenged society’s definition of lady-like conduct and the proper way for women to sit. In January 2018, when conversations around menstruation were at an unprecedented high, Soni decided to leverage it to increase Whisper’s share of voice through #WhispersBreakSilence. The campaign talked about girls’ first period stories, reminding them how Whisper had set them free and that they could help someone else break the silence around periods too.
Brand-stand
“After interacting with consumers across geographies, age groups and socio-economic strata, I realized that consumers will always reward brands that demonstrate an intimate understanding of their lives and weave those insights into their products and the way they speak to them. Understanding one’s consumers better than anyone else is the hallmark of great brands and campaigns.”
SHASHANK SURANA
VP, New Product Development, DS Group
Age: 31
Shashank Surana, VP, New Product Development, DS Group, has played a significant role in one of the most recent successful brand launches from the company - Pass Pass Pulse candy, a raw mango hard-boiled candy with a tangy salt-filled center. Within a year of launch, the brand crossed the Rs 150 crore mark and changed the dynamics of the segment, which registered a growth of 23%, a high in many years. Launched in 2015, Pass Pass Pulse candy was initially tactically promoted and established through various BTL activities and strategically promoted on the digital platform. Last year, Pulse became the No. 1 candy of India, crossing the Rs 300 crore mark.
Surana’s role comprises market and brand research for new products; overseeing branding, marketing, packaging, and envisioning product cycle and positioning. He has successfully added to the growth and expansion of DS Group and contributed to the Group’s foray in the confectionery segment with mini gums Chingles in various flavours.
Surana has also worked at EY and while involved in industry and company specific research and building valuation models at EY, the process of product development caught his fancy. He says, “In a moment of sudden inspiration, there was a strong revelation of wanting to be involved with a product/brand right from the ideation to the time the consumer buys it and of course fathom the response to it. That was the light bulb moment for me and the DS Group gave me the right opportunity.”
Brand-stand
“Right from ideation of Pulse candy to pricing, packaging, placement and the promotion, it was an exciting expedition for the team. Pulse candy redefined the hard-boiled candy segment, which had seen little innovation. Defying the pricing barrier of 50 paise, Pulse was launched at Re 1 and soon become the No. 1 in its segment. A category disruptor, it is one of the most successful examples of brands that were initially built through word-of-mouth with social media facilitating the reach.”
DILEN GANDHI
Marketing Director, Western Snacks, India Region (Lay’s TM, Cheetos, Doritos & Uncle Chipps), PepsiCo India
Age: 39 
In his 15 years of end-to-end brand-building experience at blue-chip FMCGs like PepsiCo, P&G and Gillette, Dilen Gandhi has built several hundred million dollar businesses and achieved record market shares. Apart from India, he has market experience spanning ASEAN, Middle East & Africa and worked across varied categories from Salty Snacks to Sanitary Napkins & Diapers to Fabric Care to Men’s Grooming.
Among his key achievements, Gandhi led Lay’s India to a spectacular turn-around since 2016, from a de-growth of 4% in 2015 to over 20% growth in the past 18 months, making Lay’s not only the fastest growing, most profitable brand in PepsiCo India but also making India the fastest growing market for Lay’s Worldwide. What helped boost numbers was the recent Lay’s Real Flavours Of Life campaign. “It’s the first time we’ve articulated this iconic brand’s point of view and the in-markets results have been truly fantastic,” says Gandhi. He also successfully launched Doritos in India and achieved market leadership within eight months of launch. He also built Pampers India from $25 million to $100 million in sales in the time-period 2008-2011.
What excites Gandhi as a marketer is the “privilege of meeting hundreds of people during consumer research at their homes”, whom he would not have ordinarily met or spoken to. “It has taught me that the work we do in marketing makes a real, even if small difference to actual people’s lives. From the mother who cried when explaining how Tide makes washing clothes so fast that she can spend more time with her sick child, to the schoolgirl who wasn’t afraid to discuss periods because of Whisper, to the teenager whose life wouldn’t be complete without a packet of Lay’s shared with friends - the stories I’ve heard from real people have inspired me and continue to inspire me daily,” he says. Before donning the marketer’s hat, Gandhi worked at the NGO, Child Rights & You.
Brand-stand
“The idea that ‘consumers’ are people first. And as people they tend not to be immersed in your brand as much as you imagine they would. Therefore it’s important to think as a normal person and try and communicate in a simple way.”
This is Part One of the list of marketers from IMPACT's 40 Under Forty list.
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Social Beat wins SEO mandate of Tata CLiQ tag rss
The account was won after a multi-agency pitch
e4m e4m Social Beat has won the SEO mandate for Tata CLiQ, one of the fastest-growing omnichannel marketplace in India. Social Beat has been entrusted with optimizing existing content, as well as launching new, optimized category pages systematically on Tata CLiQ’s platform to scale monthly organic traffic by 2x over the next year. The account was won after a multi-agency pitch and will be serviced by Social Beat’s offices in Mumbai.
Shishir Kataria, Director - Marketing, Tata CLiQ, “Shoppers, e-commerce or otherwise, continue to heavily rely on search and discovery throughout their shopping journey, be it engaging with the latest fashion trends or hunting for the best buys. No wonder a platform's ability to be a part of this journey organically drives significant consideration for it amongst potential shoppers. We, at Tata Cliq, are confident that Social Beat will help us develop and optimise content that is highly discoverable to grow our engagement and revenue. Our goal continues to be to drive more and more shoppers to our platform with optimised and curated products and relevant content.”
Vikas Chawla, Co-Founder, Social Beat said, “We are thrilled to partner with Tata CLiQ in their growth journey. We aim to scale traffic to the Tata CLiQ platform manyfold over the next year. Our team of specialised SEO and Content strategists will be working closely to achieve this”
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ShareWill OOH dazzle this festive season?
As the celebrations begin, experts tell us the trends and challenges for the OOH sector this season
Be it the flower-clad taxis in Mumbai for Made in Heaven Season 2 promotion or Zomato’s ‘kheer mangoge kheer denge’ billboards, India's OOH advertising sector has undergone substantial transformation and expansion in the recent years. Even though the medium was severely hit during the pandemic years, it has now managed to rebuild its status. Now, with the onset of the festive season, elections and the cricket world cup, OOH is expected to see more and more advertisers come on board.
Amarjeet Hudda, Chief Operating Officer, Laqshya Media Group, believes most of the clients spend a lot of money during the festive season, especially for Durga Puja, Dussehra and Diwali, targeting their customers in a festive mood. The categories that spend heavily during these months are Auto, Consumer Durables, Real Estate, Organised retail, and E-commerce.
According to Dipankar Sanyal of Platinum Outdoor, there was a huge surge in the festive season last year, and he expects the same this year too. “Last four to five years have turbulent for outdoor. It was picking up in 2019, but then Covid came and everything went flat for two years,” he mentioned.
According to EY-FICCI’s M&E Report 2023, OOH media grew 86 percent in 2022 to Rs 37 billion. The value includes traditional, transit and digital media, but excludes untracked unorganised OOH media such as wall paintings, billboards, ambient media, storefronts, proxy advertising.
Sharing the brand’s perspective, Shivam Ranjan, Head of Marketing, Motorola-APAC, said, “We are going into this festive season with a strong mix of media, including OOH. Within OOH, we are focusing on digital OOH, due to its capability of programmatic serving, measurability, and near real-time insights that allow us to be agile with the communication and optimisation of our campaigns.”
With urbanisation, improved infrastructure, rising consumerism and an increased spending power, clients' expectations from OOH advertising too have evolved. “The clients expect better ROI on every investment, best in class innovations, tech-led planning and execution. Today, technology plays an important role starting from planning the campaign, to measuring metrics to ROI,” Singh explained.
Another trend that Sanyal has observed is that traditionally advertisers looked at spending on OOH nearly two weeks prior to the festivities, but now, most advertisers have now started advertising a week earlier so that they can get maximum eyeballs. Additionally, the digital OOH advertising (DOOH) has also emerged big. The digital OOH screens increased to around 100,000 and contributed eight percent of total segment revenues.
“Now with digital, there is more space for advertisers to come in one frame. Because of this, you can see it is getting more attractive. The innovations too are coming in at a much lower cost and creating a greater impact,” shared Sanyal.
The only challenge with the medium, according to Ranjan, is OOH being a fragmented industry with lack of measurability and agility. This becomes a serious issue for ROI-centric brands. However, the growth of DOOH, which is dynamic, agile and measurable, is giving marketers the confidence to invest in the medium backed by relevant data and outcomes.
Adding to this, Hudda highlighted that availability of good media spots is the biggest challenge in this season as media assets are limited and demand is very high. Due to the gap in the festive season, many clients are not able to fully optimise their campaigns. Rather sometimes, clients are even compelled to divert their budget which adversely impacts the industry, he shared.
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Banking on positive consumer sentiment: BFSI optimistic on doubling festive AdEx : Cache
Some categories within the sector, however, may spend more in the quarter that follows the festive season
The BFSI sector is expecting a surge in demand for loan during the festive season and is looking at increasing its ad spends to cash in on the celebration spirit. Industry leaders say they are hopeful of witnessing a good growth in the number of applications for auto loan, home loan, credit card and health insurance during October, November and December due to positive consumer sentiment this year. However, though most of the BFSI players are planning to double their advertising budget this time compared to the previous year, there are some who are not investing too heavily on marketing during the festivals as they plan to save the money for the fourth quarter.
According to Shailendra Singh, MD & CEO, BOB Financial, they witness incremental growth every year during the October-December quarter, and they anticipate an increase in consumer spending as well as new enrolments for cards this year too. “There remains a surge in customer demand for credit during the festive season,” said Singh.
Singh shared that the company is fully geared up for the launch of #FestiveShoppingRewards on all Bank of Baroda credit card variants under the theme ‘Reimagine Festivities’. They would kickstart festive offerings with the start of Navratri.
The festive season does not just see the demand for credit go up, but there is an increase in applications for health and motor insurance too during this time of the year.
Aabhinna Suresh Khare, Chief Digital & Marketing Officer, BajajCapital Ltd, shared that among insurance products, health insurance and motor insurance reign supreme during festivals. According to Khare, the demand for mutual funds and SIPs too sees a hike.
“Overall, the festive season presents an opportune moment to secure insurance coverage. A plethora of attractive products and services are on offer, with financial institutions extending special discounts and promotions to entice new customers,” said Khare.
The company launched #BlessMeGanesha campaign during Ganesh Chaturthi. “Our goal for this festive season is not only to provide financial solutions but also to create memorable experiences and deepen the connection with our customers,” said Khare.
Though all major sectors spend heavily on advertising during the festive season, within the BFSI sector, some categories spend more in the quarter that follows the festive season.
Explaining the trend, Samir Sethi, Head of Brand Marketing, Policybazaar.com, said that the festive season has varying impacts on the BFSI sector. In the banking sector, for instance, the demand for loans surges as many individuals purchase items and undertake home renovations. Conversely, in the insurance category, the festive season doesn't result in significant changes. Instead, the insurance industry experiences its peak season after the festive period, particularly during the fourth quarter of the financial year.
“As the festive season approaches, there is a noticeable increase in car sales though, leading to a surge in the demand for motor insurance. Consequently, we see a significant uptick in the requests for motor insurance policies. During the festive period, there is an upswing in demand for various categories, such as electronics. However, in the insurance sector, this period doesn't significantly affect us, so we don't run specific campaigns targeting festivals. Nevertheless, we do roll out multiple campaigns throughout the year, and some of them may coincide with the festive season,” said Sethi.
According to the TAM AdEx report on BFSI sector across media for H1, the advertising volume of the sector grew on TV, radio and digital, but declined in the print medium. The report indicated that ad impressions on digital saw 91% rise during Jan-Jun '23 over Jan-Jun’22. The increase was 32% for radio and 4% for TV. The ad space of the BFSI sector decreased by 7% in print.
Speaking on media mix, Singh shared that BOB Financial has a good mix of customer segments belonging to Tier I, II and III. So, understanding their needs and preferred form of media channels, the company will reach out to them through relevant media promotions. “For the easy discovery of our offers, we shall have a dedicated offers page with regular promotion of top offers on our social media and other digital channels,” said Singh. Without disclosing the figure, Singh shared that the company’s promotion budget has surely increased from last year and it will be visible through their multi-channel promotional activities.
According to the TAM report, in the BFSI sector, life insurance is the leading category on TV and radio whereas mutual funds is the top category on digital.
Khare highlighted that in recent times, Bajaj Capital has observed a significant growth in audiences on online platforms and the changing preferences of their clientele. “This observation led us to recalibrate our marketing approach, placing a heightened emphasis on digital avenues,” said Khare.
He further added, “Our promotional efforts are primarily digital-focused, accentuating areas like social media engagement, search engine outreach, content-driven marketing, and targeted online advertising. As we approach the festive season, we've fine-tuned our online approach. By harnessing the insights from data analytics, we aim to grasp our clients' needs and inclinations better, ensuring our content is both tailored and pertinent.”
Khare also mentioned that Baja Capital has doubled its advertising budget compared to the previous year.
“This increase in our ad spend signifies our confidence in the opportunities this festive season presents. This impressive surge in our budget allocation underscores our dedication to maximizing the potential of this festive season and driving significant expansion within our business. We firmly believe that this increased investment in advertising will not only elevate our brand presence but also lead to an exceptional uptick in customer engagement and sales.”
For Policybazaar.com, the media strategy primarily involves a blend of television and digital platforms, an approach that has remained consistent in recent years and is expected to continue in the foreseeable future.
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OMD appoints Dileep Raj Singh as Head of Digital for APAC
Singh will report to Charlotte Lee, CEO of OMD APAC
OMD has added a Head of Digital (HOD) to its Asia Pacific (APAC) regional leadership team with the hiring of Dileep Raj Singh.
Singh is a digital native and brings with him a wealth of experience across product, media agency and client side in APAC, North America and the United Kingdom. His last 10 years have been spent building diverse digital marketing teams covering areas like performance marketing, digital media planning, ad/martech, product marketing, branding and measurement.
As HOD, he will accelerate OMD’s digital leadership agenda, rooted in helping clients address their business challenges and digital ambitions. He will be supporting OMD’s local teams in APAC on operational excellence, and digital transformation frameworks and roadmaps; and the development and implementation of our digital leadership agenda. He will also be working hand in hand with both our regional and global networks to initiate complementary workstreams for our clients in APAC.
“We will continue to invest and win in digital as part of our wider goal to be our clients’ most trusted business transformation partner,” said Charlotte Lee, CEO of OMD APAC.
“It is our global ambition to continue our leadership position in digital, data and technology. In line with this ambition, we are excited to have Singh come on board the OMD APAC leadership team. His background of agency, in-house and start-up experience position him perfectly to understand and address our clients’ business needs,” added Lee.
“Digital media and access to our audience, as we know it, is changing quite rapidly around us. This puts most of us in a delicate but remarkable position, a position from which we can shape and contribute to conversations about the next evolution of digital media. As we embark on this journey, I want to leverage the strength of the OMD network – people, technology, data, tools and platforms – to help our clients pivot and navigate through all the new and evolved possibilities in digital media. With this, I aim to position OMD as an unrivaled partner for our current and future clients; to dominate and succeed in this incredibly competitive and multifarious digital realm,” said Singh.
Singh will report to Lee, and work closely with the team including Chief Strategy Officer (CSO), David McCallen, and Chief Client Officer (CCO), Sadhan Mishra, to drive and support APAC local markets as well as regional clients on digital, data and technology needs.
Mishra was promoted to CCO of OMD APAC recently in June 2023. He will continue to be CEO of OMD Singapore, a position he was promoted into last August. Mishra has been with OMD for over 13 years and in his concurrent new role as CCO, he will focus on key client relationships, understanding their business needs and ensuring we remain a critical partner on their transformation journeys.
McCallen was elevated to the role of CSO of OMD APAC in April 2022, and was previously the CSO of OMD New Zealand for five years where he helped the agency to attain the top place in the market for new business, overall billings and award wins. Since starting in the APAC role, his focus has been on connecting and elevating strategic best practices across the region, building capabilities across a range of strategic outputs, and supporting new business growth both regionally and locally.
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Chandrayaan 3: Brands over the Moon
Some of the best moment marketing posts on India's crucial lunar mission
The nation is in a celebratory mood with its moon mission Chandrayaan 3 making its smooth landing on the lunar surface on the evening of August 23, 2023. The Pragyan rover is in pursuit of discovering water on the moon and is a vital feat for India's ambitious space research.
To celebrate this momentous episode in Indian space research history, netizens have taken to the internet to express their excitement, hopes and fears for the nation's lunar mission. Joining them are brands who have crafted creatives to mark the historic occasion and capture the emotions of the nation who have their eyes set on the moon. Here is our pick of some of the best Chandrayaan 3-moment marketing posts.
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BCCI rakes in Rs 4670 cr in Women's Premier League team auction: Jay Shah 26 Jan
WPL has broken the inaugural auction record of Men's IPL in 2008, tweeted Shah
As expected, Wednesday turned out to be another historic day in Indian women's cricket with BCCI having a windfall gain of Rs 4,600 crores by auctioning five team franchises for the first season, a higher sum compared to what men’s IPL franchises offered to the cricket body during the launch in 2008.
Adani, IndiaWin Sports, Royal Challengers, GSW- GMR cricket and Capri Global have won the bid, BCCI secretary Jay Shah tweeted.
Shah shared in a series of tweets, “Today is a historic day in cricket as the bidding for teams of inaugural #WPL broke the records of the inaugural Men's IPL in 2008! Congratulations to the winners as we garnered Rs.4669.99 Cr in total bid.”
“This marks the beginning of a revolution in women's cricket and paves the way for a transformative journey ahead not only for our women cricketers but for the entire sports fraternity. The #WPL would bring necessary reforms in women's cricket and would ensure an all-encompassing ecosystem that benefits each and every stakeholder.”
“The @BCCI has named the league - Women's Premier League (WPL). Let the journey begin…”
The country's top corporates had bid aggressively for the league. Over 16 groups including IPL franchise owners, Adani group, Torrent and Haldiram were believed to be in the fray.
Given the popularity of IPL in India, the event is touted to be a big draw for all stakeholders involved.
The BCCI was reportedly expecting ₹4,000 crore gain through team auction.
It’s noteworthy that Viacom18 has won the Women's IPL media rights for Rs 951 crore for the next five years creating euphoria around the league whose first season will be held in March.
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