April - June 2017 by EVENTFAQS Media

CONTENTS

UAE UPDATES

BRAND MARKETING

BRIEFS 10 MARKET PULSE - Dan Bolton’s Vision for the Live Event and Entertainment Industry 12 - The Remarkable Blue Man Group Performances in Abu Dhabi and Dubai 13 - The Platinum Blonde in Each of Us… 19 IN FOCUS - Forever Living’s Mega-Incentive in Dubai 14 - The Spectacular Convergence of Design and Technology 16 PHOTO FEATURE - 10 Days, 2 Pavilions, More than 75,000 Visitors: mamemo at MOTN 18

BRIEFS 38 MARKET PULSE - How Vodafone Establishes Consumer Connect On Ground 40 COVER STORY - Why Clients Move? Competence, Commitment, and Creativity: How to Ensure You Have it All 42 PHOTO FEATURE - A Tournament for India’s MSME’s: The YES Bank Premier League 47 FEATURE - ExM Catch-Up with Cropin, Max Fashion, Usha International, Magicbricks & Kingfisher 50 IN FOCUS - Curating Experiences for the Launch of ‘Trips’ 54 - A Toast to Chandon India for being The Party Starter 56

ENTERTAINMENT BRIEFS 22 MARKET PULSE - Rumor – the White Dubai Edition 24 PHOTO FEATURE - A Snow Wonderland: The 5th Colors Golden Petal Awards 25 IN FOCUS - Justin Bieber’s Debut Managed by White Fox India Delivers Far More than Just Music 28 - BMP Delhi Treats Over 26,000 with the Phenomenal Flavours of Bollywood Music 32 FEATURE - Bringing the Dire Straits Experience to India: 100 Pipers Play for a Cause 34

M.I.C.E BRIEFS 58 IN FOCUS - Trip to Budapest: CEAT Platinum Dealers’ Meet 2017 62 - Crafting MICE Experiences in Mongolia and Japan 66 - Impact Communications, Dialogue Factory and JWT Win Big at RMAI Flame Awards 2017 70 FEATURE - An Experience that Lasts a Lifetime: Business Pilgrimage at Krishna Valley 64 - Content Truly is King at CMS Asia 2017 72 MARKET PULSE - How to Organise Meetings that Rock 74

Disclaimer: i. Experiential Marketing magazine is published by EVENTFAQS Media. Pvt. Ltd. with RNI Registration MAHENG/2010/35733. ii. Every effort is made to ensure that the magazine’s content is correct. However, the publisher accepts no responsibility for any errors or omissions. iii. All material published in this magazine is copyright protected. Unauthorised reproduction in part or full is forbidden. iv. The publisher takes no responsibility for content used in advertisements and advertorials. It is assumed the advertiser has rights to use the content. v. The publisher takes no responsibility for photographs and information published in features which comes from external sources such as PR agencies, direct sources, etc. It is assumed that the parties involved have the right to provide the information for publishing purposes. vi. Any dispute/error liable vis-a-vis this magazine is strictly restricted to local jurisdiction in Mumbai only.

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FROM THE EDITOR

64 INDUSTRY WATCH BRIEFS 76 EEMA UPDATES 77 THE CUE CARDS BY SUSHMA GAIKWAD - Creating a Successful Career in Events 78 MARKET PULSE - 5 Most Common Mistakes in LIVE Events Management 79 IN FOCUS - A Place to Network and Exhibit: India EXPO Shop 2017 82 ADVERTORIAL - Barcelona Tourism Merges with Provincial Council Convention Bureaus 84

TECHNOLOGY BRIEFS 86 FEATURE - Beyond the Ordinary: Elevating AR, VR and Mapping Levels in India 87 IN FOCUS - Young Mirchies Creates a Virtual Host for Infinova Group at Secutech 2017 88

The Indian Event Industry is on a roll it seems, with two consecutive seasons witnessing the largest international artist performances. When was the last time the country experienced concerts featuring the likes of Coldplay and Justin Bieber? While Wizcraft is historically known to organise and be involved in bringing the largest artists from across the globe to India, relatively new agencies like White Fox are also boldly entering this space. The greatest advantage about the emergence of newer players; organisers backed by funding; is obviously that the country and music fans get to experience what was once seemingly unattainable. But more importantly, it builds on the Indian event industryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s reputation for successfully organising international shows. The flip side? Sustainability. To what extent can business models that rely on a spate of funding and the particular passion of an entrepreneur, be successful in continually producing high-stature events by bringing to the country a certain level of content? Our entertainment economy can still not rely only on ticket sales. While younger, newer audience bases, and genuine fans are helping to change this phenomenon, their expectations are matching if not out-doing spends. The future then relies on delivery, which is where the question on the readiness of the Indian Entertainment Economy lies. Will new players make a mark in this aspect, to really stand apart and create a definitive market place for their business and more international-level events? karishma@eventfaqs.com

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APRILâ&#x20AC;&#x201C; JUNE 2017 VOLUME 8 ISSUE 2

KARISHMA HUNDALANI karishma@eventfaqs.com

VISHAL NAGDEV vishal@eventfaqs.com

EDITORIAL TEAM RACHAEL RAJAN rrajan@eventfaqs.com +91 9766071741 KANIKA MEHTA kanika@eventfaqs.com +91 9810018658 SHANTANU JAIN shantanu@eventfaqs.com +91 9990881440

CFO & DIRECTOR JIMMY CHOUDHARY jimmy@eventfaqs.com +91 9821428197

CIRCULATION RAMESH PATIL ramesh@eventfaqs.com +91 22 26300673

MARKETING SERVICES TEAM SONAL GUPTA sonal@eventfaqs.com +91 9833885521 RADHIKA SETHI radhika@eventfaqs.com +91 9920661129

ADMIN & ACCOUNTS NILESH PAWAR accounts@eventfaqs.com +91 22 26330674 SAMEET ELKAR admin.mumbai@eventfaqs.com +91 9769306799 AKASH GUPTA admin.delhi@eventfaqs.com +91 9911755871 GRAPHIC DESIGN VINAYA PRASHANTH vinayaprashanth@gmail.com PRASAD KARAMBAT

GENERAL MANAGER LIZANN PINTO lizann@eventfaqs.com +91 9833996461

MARKETING OPERATIONS TEAM KRITI JAIN kriti@eventfaqs.com +91 9911696980 REBECCA FERNANDES rebecca@eventfaqs.com +91 9833993885 CHARMI JANANI charmi@eventfaqs.com +91 9920574595 ZAFAR KHAN zafar@eventfaqs.com +91 9004839027 PRIYANKA NAYAR priyanka@eventfaqs.com + 91 9833993226

Experiential Marketing (ExM) is a quarterly magazine published by EVENTFAQS Media (India) Pvt. Ltd. Founded in 2007, EVENTFAQS is a multi-channel business media platform focussed on the MICE, Experiential Marketing, LIVE Entertainment & Social Events industry and engages over 40,000 stakeholders via its print, digital and event platforms. Visit www.eventfaqs.com for more details. For subscription enquiry: info@eventfaqs.com Editor: Karishma Jamnu Hundalani. This issue contains 96 pages including covers. Printed & published by: Vishal Vashulal Nagdev on behalf of (or owned by) EVENTFAQS Media Pvt. Ltd. and printed at VSSU Graphics, Unit # 36, Ideal Industrial Estate Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel-West, Mumbai 400013, Maharashtra, India, and published at EVENTFAQS Media Pvt. Ltd. 112, 1st Floor, Embassy Centre 207, Nariman Point, Mumbai 400021, Maharashtra, India.

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BRIEFS

UAE UPDATES

Oman Wins the Bid to Host The World Cancer Congress in 2020 The Oman Cancer Association has announced that Muscat has been selected to host the World Cancer Congress (WCC) in 2020. Held every two years, the World Cancer Congress is a major international cancer control forum which convenes up to 4,000 renowned cancer and health professionals. Khalid Al Zadjali, Director, Oman Convention Bureau, commented, “This is a great success story for Oman and the new Oman Convention & Exhibition Centre as it demonstrates that our country is a strong contender when it comes to securing international events.” Khalid Al Zadjali

Director Oman Convention Bureau

Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Enters a New Era The 2017 Formula 1 season is back, and the introduction of new rules governing the design of cars promises one of the most exciting seasons ever. F1® will enter a new era with lower, wider and faster cars, and will take place from November 24 to 26. Al Tareq Al Ameri, CEO, Yas Marina Circuit, said: “Since our inaugural race in 2009, I’m yet to experience as much anticipation for a Formula 1® season. The new technical rules haven’t just changed the appearance of the cars – they have made them faster and much more challenging to drive.” Al Tareq Al Ameri

CEO, Yas Marina Circuit

IndiaCast and Milestone Entertainment Organise Lucky Ali and Ayushmann Khurrana Concert in Dubai MTV India Unplugged presented Lucky Ali and Ayushmann Khurrana, live at the Great Ballroom of the Le Meridien Hotel, on February 17. Organised by IndiaCast in collaboration with Milestone Entertainment, the concert received an overwhelming turnout of over 2000 people with all tickets sold out. Sachin Gokhale, Senior VP and Business Head – Middle East, Africa and APAC, IndiaCast said, “At IndiaCast, we relentlessly work towards not only bringing the best talent but also the most desired and demanded artists to the region. LIVE concerts are an intrinsic part of connecting with our audiences and understanding their demands.”

Sachin Gokhale

Senior VP and Business Head – Middle East, Africa and APAC, IndiaCast

EEMA and ILEA to Host an India-UAE Industry Round-Table at WOW Convention Asia 2017 The WOW Awards and Convention Asia 2017 is set to take place from July 6 to 8, in association with the Event and Entertainment Management Association of India (EEMA), who will also play host to the delegation of the International LIVE Events Association (ILEA) – Middle East chapter.

Sabbas Joseph

President, EEMA

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Sabbas Joseph, President, EEMA said, “It would be a great opportunity for the leaders of our two industries to get together and explore joint initiatives, partnerships and opportunities of working together as a more global industry emerges.” Dan Bolton, Incoming President, ILEA – Middle East chapter added, “It is the perfect opportunity to share knowledge and insight from two respected trade associations which play pivotal roles in defining the live events industries through the Middle East and India.”

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BRIEFS

UAE UPDATES

Ranbir Kapoor Associates with Global Teacher Prize 2017 GS Worldwide Entertainment recently facilitated Ranbir Kapoor’s association with Global Teacher Prize 2017 for its client Varkey Foundation. The event took place on March 19 at The Atlantis Hotel on The Palm Jumeirah, Dubai. Around 2500 people attended. The agency’s responsibilities included coordinating Ranbir Kapoor’s travel, logistics and smooth running of his activities, as well as flow of events. Ranbir Kapoor interacted with kids and spoke about his teachers who helped him achieve everything in life.

The Oberoi Group Announces the Opening of The Oberoi Beach Resort, Al Zorah Marking the unveiling of Al Zorah, The Oberoi Group has announced the opening of The Oberoi Beach Resort, Al Zorah. Situated just 25 minutes from Dubai International airport, Al Zorah is a refined coastal destination in the UAE, master planned by Solidere International and a joint venture with the Government of Ajman.

P.R.S. Oberoi

P.R.S. Oberoi, Executive Chairman, The Oberoi Group said, “I am confident that The Oberoi Beach Resort, Al Zorah with its unique location, aesthetic design and a committed young team will offer distinctive Oberoi service to travellers from around the world.”

Executive Chairman The Oberoi Group

Russell Loughland Appointed Director of Sales and Marketing at Palazzo Versace Dubai Palazzo Versace Dubai has appointed Russell Loughland as Director of Sales and Marketing. Loughland officially joined Palazzo Versace Dubai on April 16, where he will be directly responsible for overseeing the implementation of the sales and marketing strategy in line with driving growth regionally and internationally. Sandra Tikal, General Manager of Palazzo Versace Dubai said: “We are pleased to welcome Russell to our team and are confident he will be a valuable asset to the hotel. A seasoned hotelier, he brings extensive knowledge of the hospitality industry to the role and I have no doubt that he will significantly contribute to our continued growth and development.”

Sandra Tikal

General Manager of Palazzo Versace Dubai

Emirates Holidays Partners with 117Live for the Biggest Nights in Music Emirates Holidays and events company 117Live have announced a partnership spanning what will be an unparalleled season of live entertainment events in Dubai, which kicked off with Justin Bieber’s concert on May 6, 2017. The partnership offers customers the opportunity to purchase their concert tickets, hotels, flights and transfers all in the same place – with a Bonus of 1000 Skywards Miles also offered to customers staying in Dubai for two nights or more.

Thomas Ovesen CEO, 117Live

Thomas Ovesen, CEO, 117Live said, “We look forward to working with Emirates Holidays to help build and promote Dubai as a leading entertainment destination and offer tourists another facet to their Dubai experience.”

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UPDATES FROM THE UAE / MARKET PULSE

DAN BOLTON’S VISION FOR THE LIVE EVENT AND ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY BY RACHAEL RAJAN

The International Live Events Association (ILEA) – Middle East Chapter will soon see Dan Bolton take over as President of the Association. Here, he shares more on the association’s vision and goals.

trade association which represents a large proportion of the live events industry, we are best placed to work with bodies to address challenges, issues and create opportunities for the future benefit of all our members.

Formed in 2009, the International Live Events Comment on the importance of cross-region Association brings together event industry business with India. professionals keen on sharing knowledge The Indian market is a huge opportunity to the Dan Bolton, Incoming President and networking, with the broader goal of live events industry in the region so supporting ILEA-Middle East Chapter growing the industry. With 186 members the WOW Awards Asia is of great importance including production companies, suppliers, to us as the industry grows from strength to and event tech agencies, ILEA helps build dialogue strength. With such a large and dynamic entertainment and between the industry and key stakeholders, while also events market only a few short hours flight time from hubs providing a platform for the creative exploration of ideas. including Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha, the opportunities to cross support and link into business opportunities both in Dan Bolton, the incoming President of the ILEA Middle India and the GCC is significant for all our members. East Chapter shares more on the association’s goals and its vision for the event industry in the region. It’s no secret that the leaders of the GCC countries want to attract increasing business to the region and the live events As incoming President of ILEA, comment on how ILEA industry is seen as a key generator of such growth. Working provides event companies and agencies a platform to with industry events including the WOW Awards Asia helps realise their potential. promote the region as a live event destination, highlights With ILEA, over the last 12 months we have been actively the significant role that ILEA members play in delivering engaging with regional and governmental entities world class events as well as potentially developing to highlight and work towards resolving a number commercial opportunities for Indian-based producers and of challenges our members face. This has included suppliers to enter the UAE market. permission processes for events and talent bookings, visa regulations, Health and Safety and much more. We listen What’s your vision for ILEA for the next few years? to our members concerns and issues and then look at My vision of ILEA in the Middle East is to spread its reach constructive ways we can use this feedback to support the through the region and to make it much more dynamic, evolvement, enhancement and growth of our industry and inclusive and progressive in terms of how we work liaise with people that can help implement the constructive with members, non-members, other associations and changes needed. institutions. The association is also fundamentally about building a community of like-minded, professional companies that, although often compete with each other, support the development of the industry further for the best interests of all our members, helping members realise their potential through collaborations and knowledge sharing. What are some of the significant breakthroughs that ILEA has been instrumental in bringing about in the last couple of years? The biggest highlight so far is the conversation currently happening with DED (Dubai economic department) where we are acting as a bridge between government entities and the private sector, looking at how to improve Health and Safety legislation through consultation with members and the DED / municipality, raising the challenges we face with permit processes and supporting the government to look at ways to elevate the ease of doing business in the region. This is also something we are beginning to speak with the Abu Dhabi authorities on also.

The Middle East chapter is also the fastest growing in the world and I’m keen to work with everyone to cement its position as an industry leading trade association globally and one that promotes the positivity that comes from the region, helps consult on important issues that affect our working environment and showcase our members amazing work and how they are leading the way in live events. What are some of the challenges the industry faces in the region? What is the way forward? One of the biggest topics of conversations at the moment is health and safety, with huge events like Expo on the horizon, there is a rush to ensure that standards and best practices are aligned with the rest of the world when it comes to implementing and delivering events. As a trade association we would like to help work with key stakeholders on not just implementing these standards and protocols but creating new ones that will leave lasting legacies for the delivery of events in the future.

It can often be a long process, but as the industry evolves rapidly in the UAE, there is a general consensus that as a

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UPDATES FROM THE UAE / MARKET PULSE

THE REMARKABLE BLUE MAN GROUP PERFORMANCES IN ABU DHABI AND DUBAI BY RACHAEL RAJAN

he legendary Blue Man Group performed at both Dubai Opera, Dubai and du Forum, Abu Dhabi to spectacular effect, and as anticipated impressed audiences with their signature act. The performances took place from April 11 to 15 in Dubai, and from April 18 to 22 in Abu Dhabi. While the delivery by the artists was flawless and exhilarating, the production Harvey Martis itself, comprising the entire setup, sound technology and logistics was exceptional, to say the least. With the UAE tour managed by Yak Events, Harvey Martis, the Operations Manager at the event management company reveals more about the sheer enormity of the production and how they pulled it off. What led to your decision to bring this production to the UAE? What was the response? Coming from the background of successfully organizing stunning international productions in the recent past, Blue Man Group which was confirmed a year and half ago with us, succeeded in bringing together over 90 nationalities from different cultures under one roof in the UAE. We left no stone unturned to reach out to maximum audience though our marketing channels. Our Guests were awestruck by the event content experience both visually as well as with our services. What were some of the challenges faced in managing the production? What did the logistics involve? From the outside world, an action-packed performance by just 3 men on stage won’t seem to have a big production. A team of over 30 international experienced members, 70 tons Equipment, 8x40 ft. Containers with fewer than 24 hours of load-in and logistics was a challenge. With the support of the international team, we achieved the timeline across both the cities.

Delivering a large-scale event is immensely rewarding; however, the bigger event, the bigger everything else needs to be. We had to upscale time, budgets, teams and resources accordingly and therefore, planning in advance becomes even more vital. Producing this event right from hotels, flights, local transfers and marketing was the soul of the event. Did you partner with any event technology agency to bring it all together? What kind of specifications did Blue Man Group require that you provide, in terms of staging and event technology? The company does tour with a massive inventory of technology under the guidance of leading international production companies supporting them with Sound, Lights, Drum Kits, Props, AV, Truss and Rigging. This interactive show is custom-made every year with a new story with ample of Hanging and Sliding Mesh LED, Massive LED Helium Balloons, LED Costumes, Light show and Neon works What was your experience like during the whole process? Any new learnings? The Success of the show was only due to careful previous preparation; without such preparation, the show would have been unsuccessful. It’s always the result of a commitment to excellence, intelligent planning and focused effort.

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UPDATES FROM THE UAE Dubai officially welcomed one of its largest ever incentive groups, with more than 12,000 visitors from over 100 countries worldwide arriving for the Forever Global Rally 2017, which took place from April 2 to 11. Dubai Business Events, the city’s official convention bureau, successfully won the bid in 2015 to host USAbased Forever Living’s annual trip in partnership with a number of local stakeholders, including Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), Emirates and other key suppliers to the tourism and hospitality industry.

DUBAI AS A DESTINATION

FOREVER LIVING’S MEGA-INCENTIVE IN DUBAI One of the largest ever incentive groups to Dubai, with 12,000 visitors from more than 100 countries worldwide, were hosted over the course of nine days

The Forever Living Global Rally builds on the attractiveness and growth of Dubai as a destination for large incentive groups, as first demonstrated by Dubai hosting NuSkin in 2014. Forever Living markets and sells aloe-vera-based health and wellness products through a direct selling structure and visitors in this month’s group include Forever Living business owners from around the world, as well as top executives, employees and their families. Issam Kazim, Chief Executive Officer, Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing says, “Dubai has consistently captured the hearts of travellers from around the world, and has cemented its reputation of being an attractive destination for leisure and business. The growing influence of the incentive segment cannot be overlooked as it is a major contributor, not only towards the

Hosting the Forever Global Rally 2017 is a significant milestone for Dubai, and is testament to Dubai’s world-class physical infrastructure that is evidently capable of welcoming and accommodating large-scale groups. ISSAM KAZIM

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, DUBAI CORPORATION FOR TOURISM AND COMMERCE MARKETING

development of the overall business events industry, but also towards the success of the city’s tourism sector. Hosting the Forever Global Rally 2017 is a significant milestone for Dubai, and is testament to Dubai’s worldclass physical infrastructure that is evidently capable of welcoming and accommodating large-scale groups. Dubai also continues to be attractive for incentive groups because of the large variety of activities and experiences that are available.”

ITINERARY

From the unwavering support of Dubai Business Events to the simply brilliant logistical care of Arabian Adventures, we couldn’t have asked for better people to work with. NICK WOODWARD-SHAW VICE PRESIDENT, GLOBAL EVENTS, FOREVER LIVING PRODUCTS INTERNATIONAL, LLC.

As part of the Forever Global Rally 2017, engaging workshops and events were held at Dubai World Trade Centre on April 7 and 8, where announcements regarding new product launches were made, and the company’s financial results were disclosed to members and Forever business owners from around the world. Apart from annual sales meetings and networking events, the Rally also offered the opportunity for attending visitors to truly discover Dubai, experiencing the city’s superior hospitality offerings, as well as the diverse range of leisure activities that Dubai is world-renowned for.

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UPDATES FROM THE UAE

PARTNERS

Prior to the event, Nick WoodwardShaw, Vice President, Global Events, Forever Living Products International, LLC. remarks, “Thousands of days of work have gone into the preparation of this incentive trip. From the unwavering support of Dubai Business Events to the simply brilliant logistical care of Arabian Adventures, we couldn’t have asked for better people to work with. Additionally, the magnificent hotel partners–JW Marriott Marquis, St Regis, W Hotel & Westin Al Habtoor–are providing world class accommodation, and our great friends at the Dubai World Trade Centre are ever-keen to provide fantastically creative solutions to the myriad of challenges we are looking to realise as part of our flagship Rally Show when the entire group comes together for two days of training, recognition, entertainment and spectacle.” Management of operations for the Forever Global Rally 2017 were undertaken by Arabian Adventures, one of Dubai’s leading Destination Management Companies and part of the Emirates Group. Arabian Adventures played a vital role in

The team have been working for many months on the planning and delivery aspects, and our aim is to surpass expectations and make it a memorable experience for Forever Living’s Global Rally guests. JUSTINE THOMAS-BUTLER HEAD OF MEETINGS, INCENTIVE AND EVENTS, ARABIAN ADVENTURES MEETINGS, INCENTIVES AND EVENTS

creating tailored itineraries for the visiting group, as well as handling the logistics surrounding each activity. Justine Thomas-Butler, Head of Meetings, Incentive and Events, Arabian Adventures Meetings, Incentives and Events comments, “Arabian Adventures Meetings, Incentives and Events is thrilled to be working on such a prestigious event, with guests coming from over 100 countries. We were lucky to experience the vibrant and energetic event in 2016 in Johannesburg, which provided us with invaluable insight into the event, the guests and the organisation. The team have been working for many months on the planning and delivery aspects, and our aim is to surpass expectations and make it a memorable experience for Forever Living’s Global Rally guests.” From VIP group desert safari experiences to gala dinners, networking events and workshops, Arabian Adventures worked in close collaboration with Dubai Business Events, and key stakeholders such as Emirates and Al Habtoor City to ensure seamless operations and an unforgettable experience for each attending visitor.

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UPDATES FROM THE UAE The LG Signage Design Summit took place on April 12 at the Armani Hotel, Burj Khalifa, Dubai. Organised by LG with the aim of engaging architects and designers on signage technology upon the launch of their new range of revolutionary OLED display screens, the Summit was conceptualised in collaboration with Pinnacle Middle East. Two hundred of the most renowned names from the architecture commercial design industry attended.

THE SPECTACULAR CONVERGENCE OF DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY The ‘LG Signage Design Summit’, Dubai was managed by Pinnacle Middle East along with LG’s Marketing team, and with Showtech as the main production partner.

CONCEPT

LG’s brief to Pinnacle Middle East emphasised the need for the summit to engage an audience not typically engaged on the topic of technology –architects and interior designers. Talking about what’s exciting about the new LG product series, Nayab Rafiq, CEO, Pinnacle, Middle East said, “When you talk about digital signage and display screens used in commercial spaces, what comes to mind are screens that are rectangular, flat and straight. LG’s innovation with display screen technology means that now an architect can conceptualise his airport, hotel, malls and other commercial spaces with all kinds of screen shapes, sizes and structures— like screens that can wrap around a circular pillar and, screens that curve in wave like shapes and so much more. This is going to have a massive impact on the design of commercial spaces.”

BY RACHAEL RAJAN

Signage and interactive technology is a huge part of experiential marketing. LG has done something very empowering for the commercial interior design industry. NAYAB RAFIQ

CEO, PINNACLE, MIDDLE EAST

It was a pleasure for Showtech to have contributed with the technical production for the LG Signage Design Summit. SHAJI GEORGE

FOUNDER AND CEO, SHOWTECH

Pinnacle Middle East worked very closely with LG on all aspects of the event, right from the logo to the agenda, speakers, attracting the audience, marketing the event, and not just the physical logistics.

AGENDA AND SPEAKERS

The revolutionary nature of the screens called for a different sort of event, where architectural and commercial interior design heads of organisations could have a conversation around design, and how that aspect comes together with display and signage technology. The event included panel discussions by speakers including Janus Rostock, Regional Design Director, WS Atkins & Partners Overseas, Middle East and India; John Bricker, Creative Director & Principal– New York, Gensler; Steven Charlton, Principal, Managing Director, Perkins + Will; Kang Heui Cha, Executive Director of the Home Entertainment Design Lab, LG Electronics; Jazia Al Dhanhani, CEO, Dubai Design & Fashion Council; and Patrick Bean, Design Director Interior, Lacasa.

POTENTIAL FOR EXPERIENTIAL MARKETING

While the event generated conversations that were interesting and in many ways helped produce a vision for the future of design of commercial spaces, the new screens displayed at the venue for visitors to see and experience remained the highlight of the evening.

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UPDATES FROM THE UAE

The technology is extremely exciting from an experiential marketing perspective. Sharing his view on the potential of the technology, Rafiq commented, “Signage and interactive technology is a huge part of experiential marketing. LG has done something very empowering for the commercial interior design industry. In the next few years you should be walking through high streets and malls seeing screens that have been uniquely conceptualised and used in very artistic ways. It will create an experience of that environment that’s so different from what we currently see.” Rafiq also believes that while the first wave will see the technology being used in large commercial spaces and on permanent structures, in a few years it’s likely that further innovation could also see it being used in events and within temporary structures.

EVENT PRODUCTION

The production technology for the LG Signage Design Summit was provided by Showtech. For the sound aspect, Showtech flew in 9 JBL VRX 932LA Tops and 4 JBL SRX 718 Subs. A 20m x 4m P3 LED screen was installed as

the backdrop, and the content was controlled via Watchout. The lighting rig comprised of 16 1k fresnel, 8 ETC source four profiles, 8 Claypaky 1200 wash, 6 Claypaky sharpy, 24 LED Parcans, and the control was via an MA Lighting grandMA lighting console and Avolite Pearl Lighting Desk. On their involvement in the LG Signage Design Summit, Shaji George, Founder and CEO, Showtech remarked, “It was a pleasure for Showtech to have contributed with the technical production for the LG Signage Design Summit.” Talking about Showtech’s contribution to the event, Rafiq added, “Showtech is a company we work with all the time, and they are by far one of the best production companies I’ve experienced. They always go above and beyond, and were a great production partner. This event was a team effort between LG, Pinnacle, and Showtech working very closely through the entire process.” The Armani was selected as the venue given its suitability to a highlevel event. “The event was discussing the creation of landmarks so it only made sense to host it in a landmarkthe Armani Hotel, Burj Khalifa. If you’re

looking at venues to hold events in Dubai, The Armani is among the top 3 in the city,” noted Rafiq. Pinnacle Middle East owns many leading knowledge based business conferences seminars and exhibitions. With strategic government and corporate partners, Pinnacle provides the platform for knowledge exchange and partnerships that help shape the future of business. Working on this event, one of the biggest challenges for Pinnacle Middle East was the timeline; but Pinnacle was successful given its philosophy of work, and the fact that it went above and beyond on this project. Sharing some of the other challenges faced, Rafiq said, “In my personal opinion, having done this over the last 8 to 9 years, the most important aspect in events such as this, is the work that takes place long before the event day: in conceptualising the idea, creating the agenda, attracting the right audience, and ensuring that the content, business intelligence and ideas shared are at a level that industry leaders have key takeaways and insight from the event.”

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UPDATES FROM THE UAE / PHOTO FEATURE

10 DAYS, 2 PAVILIONS, MORE THAN 75,000 VISITORS: mamemo at MOTN As the UAE celebrated the Mother of the Nation Festival at Abu Dhabi’s Corniche from March 26 to the April 4, 2017, mamemo also marked major milestones in its history of creating two breathtaking immersive experiences: Mother of the Nation Pavilion and Miyah World Premier.

We are proud of our team’s accomplishment in developing these two world-class immersive infotainment pavilions. It was quite a challenge, particularly with the limited production time, but we all pulled through, thanks to the trust and great support of our clients, Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority and Flash Entertainment. SAM KATIELA

MANAGING AND CREATIVE DIRECTOR, mamemo

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UPDATES FROM THE UAE / MARKET PULSE

THE PLATINUM BLONDE IN EACH OF US… BY HANY EZZAT

In this series, UAE-based advertising professional and Co-Founder of Crystâl Brand House, Hany Ezzat explores what makes brands meaningful and relevant.

One of the purest ways of evaluating a piece of music, art, film or a book, over a period of time, is by asking the question: Is this still relevant today?

Whilst the 1984 Apple commercial artistically and remarkably announced the launch of the Apple Macintosh, it simply became Iconic for the human thought behind it.

Relevance is usually one of the toughest challenges faced by professionals in the world of Creative Brand Building. Somehow, with intuition, experience, knowledge and a little bit of research, relevance is found. Yes, relevance is something to be found…

The commercial shows a cropped-hair platinum blonde, dressed in a white top and neon orange shorts carrying a Hany Ezzat sledgehammer. While hundreds of shaved head figures lined up marching towards a theatre-like auditorium, a big screen lit up showing an authoritative figure passing on information: “We have created for the first time in all history a garden of pure ideology, where each worker may bloom, secure from the pests of any contradictory true thoughts” the Big Brother type man on the screen shouted preaching and feeding the human figures - all in a very submissive manner. Chased by those who thought could stop her, our woman uncompromisingly races into the auditorium, with fearlessness and force, swinging her sledgehammer with all her might towards the screen, destroying it and bringing what seem like an end to the ‘preaching’ era…an era that was filled with submissiveness, lack of innovation and ushering in a new era; a new era of creative thinking and individuality. The commercial ends with the iconic line (delivered in an equally iconic voice over)…“On January 24th, Apple Computer will introduce Macintosh. And you’ll see why 1984 won’t be like ‘1984’”

The source of relevance is insight and insights are usually those layered and hidden pieces of jewels that need time but most importantly, perceptiveness and inspiration. Insight generation is done by those who see what others don’t see or see what everybody sees, just differently. A talented planner in an agency is born with more than the standard set of five senses. A planner’s senses are not only sharper but also complimented with the talent for seeing a simple fact as something strong enough to change behaviour, shift attitude and transform a reality. THIS IS THE ROLE OF A PLANNER A case that indisputably wins on relevance is the iconic 1984 Apple Macintosh Superbowl TV Commercial, directed by Ridley Scott. Although aired once during the most watched event in history, the commercial told a story that is more than just about a shift in technology or even the launch of the new Apple Macintosh. THINKERS This is the case with thinkers. They present an idea in one form, but behind that form is layers of other forms, other messages reflecting a deeper human behaviour and…. insight. While this is the role of a planner, a thinker is a thinker, a role that can be played by anyone who is genuinely interested in more than just selling an idea or presenting a message. A thinker is someone who challenges the status quo and is not afraid of proposing a new way of doing something familiar or a new way of doing something new altogether. The intention of the thinker, be it a performer, a painter, a writer, a doctor, a scientist, a politician or a planner in an agency, is to make a difference, provoke a change….to the better.

The Apple commercial opens our eyes to what we already know. Perhaps one of the many roles of art is to act as a reminder of what we already know but are hesitant in pursuing. The commercial still stands iconic and true to this day, taught in my advertising schools as a benchmark for creative thinking and revolutionary brand building. Apple became and (still is) a symbol of ‘think different’ constantly addressing the thinker in each of us and inviting us to accept and be change…and along the way, Create - all truth that was, is and will be relevant for years to come.

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BRIEFS

ENTERTAINMENT

Diljit Dosanjh to Kickstart IIFA Rocks at IIFA Festival New York 2017 Diljit Dosanjh will be performing at IIFA Rocks at the iconic MetLife Stadium on July 14, 2017 at the 2017 IIFA Festival New York. The 18th Edition of IIFA Weekend powered by Vivo India will also celebrate 25 years of A. R. Rahman in the industry at IIFA Rocks. Andre Timmins, Director, Wizcraft International commented, “We have a mega star lineup this year with the very best in both musical talent as well as the biggest Bollywood stars joining us for spectacular performances. Both IIFA Rocks & IIFA Awards will be world-class productions with non-stop entertainment, giving the audience two nights not to be forgotten.” Andre Timmins

Director, Wizcraft International

KWAN Facilitates Entertainment at IPL Opening Ceremonies Kwan, one of India’s leading talent management companies, worked in close collaboration with Encompass in providing entertainment at the IPL opening ceremonies held at the first home game of each of the eight franchises. These took place between April 5 and 15 in Hyderabad, Pune, Rajkot, Indore, Bangalore, Mumbai, Kolkata and New Delhi. “We are thrilled and humbled to be a part of India’s biggest entertainment property and provide talent for all the opening ceremonies. It was a great experience for both our talent and us,” said Vijay Subramaniam, Partner and Founder, KWAN. Vijay Subramaniam

Partner and Founder, KWAN

Percept Live Brings the World’s Premier ULTRA Electronic Music Festival Brand to India Le ULTRA Worldwide, the international arm of the World’s Premier Electronic Music Festival, ULTRA Music Festival has announced that it will officially be making its way into India with its signature brand, Road To ULTRA. ULTRA Worldwide launched the Road To ULTRA concept back in 2012 and will now be bringing the globally celebrated brand to New Delhi in September at the India Exposition Mart, Greater Noida and to Mumbai in February 2018 for the very first time.

Mohit Chauhan and Neha Kakkar Enthrall an Audience of 3500 Plus in Delhi ICE - Integrated Conference & Event Management managed a musical evening on April 8 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium Delhi with singing sensations Mohit Chauhan and Neha Kakkar for a 3500 plus audience.

Naveen Rizvi

Naveen Rizvi, Executive Director, ICE- Integrated Conference & Event Management remarked, “The requirement of the event was an outdoor venue in South Delhi. As event manager, our task was to choose a venue to accommodate 3500 guests with buffet space, a grand stage and also provide parking facility for at least 600 cars.”

Executive Director ICE- Integrated Conference & Event Management

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BRIEFS

ENTERTAINMENT

Brave Combat Federation Hosts Their First Mixed Martial Arts Event at Dome@NSCI Experiential marketing agency Essence Transmedia recently executed Brave Combat Federation’s 1st event in India, at Dome@NSCI in Mumbai on April 23. Rishin Kar, Chief Business Officer, Essence Transmedia said, “Brave Combat Federation is a global promotion and Essence Transmedia supports their dream of making Indian MMA a global market leader in a country where it is not even considered mainstream. With the current TV distribution across 50+ countries, Brave Combat Federation will soon be a global market leader; we are delighted and honoured to be a part of the endeavour.”

Rishin Kar

Chief Business Officer Essence Transmedia

UB40 Delivers a Breathtaking Performance at Dublin Square, Phoenix Marketcity Mumbai! UB40 delivered an outstanding perfromance on April 28 at Dublin Square, Phoenix Marketicty, Kurla. Rajendra Kalkar, President (WEST), Phoenix Mills Ltd. said, “At Dublin Square we have hosted the best of international and Indian artists. After performances by Shaggy and Boney M in the recent past, we are extremely thrilled to host the legendary band UB40. We always strive to offer the best experiences to our customers and hope to host many more concerts by legendary artists at the mall.” Rajendra Kalkar

President (WEST) Phoenix Mills Ltd.

Lilly Singh AKA Superwoman Enthralls Audiences on India Tour Lilly Singh, a Scarborough-born 28-year-old known to her online fans as Superwoman made a stopover in India as part of her How To Be A Bawse World Tour in association with Event Speciale. She enchanted a captive audience on April 19 at Shanmukhananda Hall Mumbai; April 20 at Shilpakala Vedika Hyderabad; and April 21 at Sirifort Auditorium New Delhi. Francis Coelho, Managing Director, Event Speciale remarked, “We have received a phenomenal response as Lilly Singh is a great entertainer. This tour gave fans a different insight into the life of Lilly Singh and it was very well received.”

Francis Coelho Managing Director Event Speciale

Zeroin Launches New IP ‘DRIVEN’ in Bengaluru to Celebrate Women Drivers and Riders Zeroin conducted their brand new IP DRIVEN - A Women’s Rally, an exciting ride organised to celebrate women’s month, with a route from Radisson Blu to Clarks Exotica on March 26; a total of 55 women participated. Arvind Jyot Sabhaney, Managing Director, Zeroin remarked, “We have always wanted to do something special on the occasion of Woman’s Day. We are extremely happy with the result and the response that we have got during and post the rally. So much so that we are planning the second version in the next quarter.” Arvind Jyot Sabhaney Managing Director, Zeroin

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ENTERTAINMENT / MARKET PULSE

RUMOR–THE WHITE DUBAI EDITION

Alim Morani

Azhar Morani

Rumor–the White Dubai Edition took place on March 11 at Dome@NSCI, Mumbai, curated and executed by Rumor and Rage Entertainment, which included Alim and Azhar Morani, Directors, Rage Entertainment as well as Priyank Sharma, Kashish Malkani, Siddhanth Kapoor, Sheel Gupta and Nikhil Kamath. Rage Entertainment is a part of the Cineyug Group of Companies focused on events in the EDM, techno, and electro house space.

Describe what went into executing the event-setting up the stage and handling the logistics of the performances? Executing the event was not an easy task. From communicating with their crew, to implementing their standards into a venue in India took a lot of time and effort. Being one of the premier night clubs in the world, they have been able to, over the years, bring the clubbing experience down to a science.

The event received a tremendous response with over 5000 people attending, while participating artists were acrobats, performers, and singers from White Dubai, including their in house DJs Anthony Bassoulu and DJ Devon. The event also had on board the official DJ for Tiny Tempah - DJ Charlsey.

For this, every specification relating to setup of tables, height of platforms, height of the bar, DJ console, lighting equipment, etc was to be followed to the T, as it was their reputation, as well as ours at stake. To achieve this, we had several rounds of meetings and had to get the best of equipment available, even if it meant importing the same. Even promotion and marketing material had to follow specific guidelines to meet an internationally accepted standard. In the end, it was executed with a whole lot of teamwork, effort, and the combined inputs of two companies with decades of experience in their respective fields.

Following the event, Alim and Azhar Morani spoke to ExM about what went into planning the event and making it the success that it was. How did you conceptualise Rumor-White Dubai Pop Up? What made this event really stand out? In India, we realised that the night life experience had reached a plateau phase. Having experienced a higher level of nightlife in Dubai and other cities around the world, we realised we wanted to bring the same experience to Mumbai, without compromising on quality, and the overall feel of the event. So we decided to do a pop-up (a night only experience) associating with White Dubai, which was nominated as one of the biggest night clubs in the world in 2016. What made it stand out was the international level of performers, acts, production, programming, service and overall experience.

What was the response? Does it bode well for future editions? The response was overwhelming. People were awestruck by the grandeur of the experience, both visually and in terms of service. The shows were meticulously choreographed and was something never seen in India before. It definitely gives us the motivation to go ahead and do more experiences of the same quality or better in the future, as we saw that the demand is there.

Tell us more about the association with White Dubai and the objectives there. The purpose of the association was to promote their club in India, as a lot of Indians travel and spend money in nightclubs around the world. At the same time, we wanted to enhance our regular night life goers’ experience by several notches.

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UPDATES ENTERTAINMENT FROM THE UAE // PHOTO PHOTO FEATURE

A SNOW WONDERLAND: THE 5TH COLORS GOLDEN PETAL AWARDS The 5th Colors Golden Petal Awards celebrated the achievements of the year gone by, recognising Colors’ stars. The event, scripted, directed, managed and produced by Cineyug Group of Companies, was held at Mumbai’s NSCI Dome on April 12. This year, the Colors Golden Petal Awards brought some cool relief from the scorching summer with its ‘Snow Wonderland’ theme.

Having this wonderful venue allowed us to explore technology and state of the art production. Several aerial performances including zip line, harness and much more were incorporated in this show. MOHOMED MORANI

DIRECTOR, CINEYUG GROUP OF COMPANIES

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ENTERTAINMENT

Justin Bieber’s India Debut Managed by White Fox India Delivers Far More Than Just Music BY SHANTANU JAIN

May 10, 2017, shall always remain historic for the Indian event industry for a variety of reasons. Firstly, the day saw one of the biggest Pop music sensations of the world Justin Bieber debuting in India. Secondly, this was no small gig or vanilla album promotion; the concert was of a humongous magnitude backed by an investment of USD 4 Million and featured the DY Patil Stadium packed with over 45,000 roaring Beliebers. Another interesting aspect worth mentioning is the fact that the concert garnered unprecedented media attention and a never-seen-before curiosity from the audiences. Right from the ticket prices being announced at INR 75 Thousand to Bieber’s long list of explosive demands being made public, people had their eyes on every little detail about the Indian leg of the Purpose World Tour. Also, not to be forgotten is the fact that the entire concert planning, management, and execution was managed by a relatively new event agency on the block - White Fox India. In this exclusive feature, we give you a lowdown on the White-Fox-India-managed India leg of Justin Bieber’s Purpose Tour, and share with you why it delivered far more than just music. PRODUCTION & SOUND The production for the entire concert was truly international, to say the least and is believed to have taken over 52 manhours to pull off. The show’s staging delivered extremely well thought-out showmanship, with lasers, fireworks and video montages, smoke machines, pyrotechnics along with heavy guitar riffs and drum beats. White Fox India revealed to us that the entire production of the main stage was managed by Bieber’s own international crew; however, the sound tech and set-up for the concert (all top-notch!) was managed by SOUND.Com with tech support from Harman International.

It was truly a magical night that will go down in the history of live events in India. This event has set new benchmark in the entertainment industry and we have successfully executed and delivered a stadium show of this magnitude. The most important facet to be considered is that India got to witness a pop act of this scale and this event will open up the doors for other pop acts who wish to visit the country. We are very grateful to all our partners who have relentlessly supported us in making this event a success. ARJUN JAIN

MANAGING DIRECTOR, WHITE FOX INDIA

Speaking about it, Warren D’Souza, Founder, SOUND.Com said, “Justin Bieber’s Purpose Tour India has been the finest technical production and largest audio installation ever put up for a single artist in the history of India. We designed & planned this mammoth set-up to ensure it would be technically a ‘Sonic Spectacular’ and the efforts were in the results. My team too have been exemplary exploiting every aspect of sound technology in large-scale deployments.” He added, “You have to hand it to Arjun & White Fox team to dream to deliver the largest ticket grossing act which itself is another milestone. We have made history at DY Patil Stadium and anyone who has worked on this show will grow in leaps & bounds in years to come. A special thanks to Akul Narula for believing in SOUND.COM.” It is speculated that Star Dimension India, Elation Professional, Martin Lighting, Robe, MA Lighting, Stage NA, Smoke Factory, Global Truss & CM Lodestar worked as partners for the mammoth production of the event. Commenting on production and tech setup of the event, Deepak Choudhary, Director, Event Capital who attended the event stated, “The production & sound setup was truly international and was impressively managed. Right from the main stage to even the general stands, the sound was magnificent and in fact, Beliebers in that area enjoyed and danced throughout his 90 minutes’ performance.”

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ENTERTAINMENT CONCERT AND CROWD MANAGEMENT The concert made it to the headlines post the event with audiences posting snapshots, videos and stories of how the crowd and event management was not up to the mark. Sharing her opinion on the same, Shubhra Bhardwaj, Director, Ferriswheel Entertainment stated, “The negative feedback from the audience is based on multiple reasons and it is justifiably appropriate that paying audience be given the experience they deserve for their time, effort and money. In case of this concert there were cardinal errors in planning, lack of a strong MC, security in VIP and lounges, food quality, free water distribution and other areas. Paying audience in India needs better ground experience now. They do not settle for anything compromised.” In our opinion, we found that the crowd management for the concert was indeed not perfect but it was more efficient than other festivals organized recently in the country. The Box-office was placed in the perfect location with ample distance from the concert ground to not create any chaos. Also, the traffic management to and from the DY Patil Stadium was smoothly executed with minimal issues. The organisers of the concert were quick to think on their feet and provided instant solutions to problems faced by attendees. The security of the festival was first-rate with undercover policemen present throughout the stadium and keeping a strict watch on every aspect of the crowd. Celebrities like Alia Bhatt, Arjun Rampal, Sridevi, Boney Kapoor, Ayaan Mukherjee, Aditya Thackeray, Arpita Khan, Dia Mirza, Sophie Choudhary, Raveena Tandon, Mahima Choudhary, Remo Fernandez, Pooja Hegde, Urvashi Rautela, Huma Qureshi, Poonam Dhillon, Sonali Bendre, Urvashi Rautela, Bipasha Basu, Armaan Malik, Arbaaz Khan, Malaika Arora Khan, were spotted on the red carpet. The fact that they attended the festival and went back with smiles on their faces without facing any issues with the crowd says a lot about the impeccable management by the organisers. BIEBER’S PERFORMANCE

You have to hand it to Arjun & White Fox team to dream to deliver the largest ticket grossing act which itself is another milestone. We have made history at DY Patil Stadium and anyone who has worked on this show will grow in leaps & bounds in years to come. A special thanks to Akul Narula for believing in SOUND.COM WARREN D’SOUZA FOUNDER, SOUND.COM

A lot has been said about how Bieber’s performance was lip-synced. Here, we would like to establish the fact that Bieber is not a great performer, to begin with. However, he is a global icon who enjoys cult following around the world and his fans love him for who he is and whatever he does. Talking about this, Deepak Choudhary elaborated, “The targeted audience for the festival was teens & young adults and they loved the concert and enjoyed every minute of it. The euphoria and applause following every move by Beiber was incredible. As far as him lip-syncing to the songs is concerned, he did perform a couple of tracks on the guitar as well. Also, internationally at concerts, many a times lip-syncing is done, so it is quite normal.”

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ENTERTAINMENT EXPERIENTIAL QUOTIENT

The negative feedback from the audience is based on multiple reasons and it is justifiably appropriate that paying audience be given the experience they deserve for their time, effort and money. In case of this concert there were cardinal errors in planning, lack of a strong MC, security in VIP and lounges, food quality, free water distribution and other areas. Paying audience in India needs better ground experience now. They do not settle for anything compromised. SHUBHRA BHARDWAJ

DIRECTOR, FERRISWHEEL ENTERTAINMENT

The concert also saw a brand integration of sponsors such as JIO, Bajaj Electricals, ONLY, Ultra, Hike messenger, Skybags, Spicejet and partners such as Hungama, Uber, OYO, PVR, Bookmyshow, Capital Group, CASHurDRIVE, and others. Additionally, the mini version of the Grub Fest at the stadium was a bonus for the festival attendees. The food area as well as other areas of the festival were neatly chalked out. Brand stalls were planned fabulously as well, revealed attendees. THE ORGANISER SPEAKS Arjun Jain, Managing Director, White Fox India states, “It was truly a magical night that will go down in the history of live events in India. This event has set a new benchmark in the entertainment industry and we have successfully executed and delivered a stadium show of this magnitude. There have been a few on-ground issues that will be addressed but ticketed arena shows of this scale always attract glitches not just in India but around the globe. The most important facet to be considered is that India got to witness a pop act of this scale and this event will open up the doors for other pop acts who wish to visit the country. We are very grateful to all our partners who have relentlessly supported us in making this event a success.” OVERALL REVIEW All things said and done, there is still one lingering question that needs to be answered–was the Justin Bieber Concert in India perfect? No, as we cannot overlook the obvious glitches that emerged on-ground at the festival and the organisers are aware about it too. The urinals were horrific, water was not free, last minute ticket sales could have been better organised. But, as it’s said, a million-mile journey begins with a single step and that is what White Fox India has embarked upon and they deserve all the praises in the world for it. Also, Dream N Hustle Media deserves a special mention for running a thundering 3-month PR campaign that has been evaluated as generating close to 4.25 crores of media value with more than 2.5 lakh national + international impressions till date.

The targeted audience for the festival was teens & young adults and they loved the concert and enjoyed every minute of it. The euphoria and applause following every move by Beiber was incredible. As far as him lip-syncing to the songs is concerned, he did perform a couple of tracks on the guitar as well. Also, internationally at concerts, many a times lip-syncing is done, so it is quite normal.

Pulling off a concert like this is a daunting challenge but White Fox India managed to attain the impossible with a bright smile on their faces. For the first time in India, a concert this huge was organised and targeted at only teens and young audiences. Clearly, the concert was a slap on the faces of all who believed that Indian audiences will not respond to world-class events. Also apparent is the fact that there is indeed a market, and an audience for such events and we are standing at the cusp of a revolution, as we get ready to welcome more global artists and international level events on Indian soil.

DEEPAK CHOUDHARY DIRECTOR, EVENT CAPITAL

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ENTERTAINMENT

BMP DELHI TREATS OVER 26,000 WITH THE PHENOMENAL FLAVOURS OF BOLLYWOOD MUSIC

Swaroop Banerjee, CEO, Event Capital

ORGANISERS SPEAK Commenting on the festival lineup, Swaroop BanerjeeCEO, Event Capital said, “Our entire strength to launch the second edition of Bollywood Music Project in its first year, came from the fact that Bollywood has accepted us as a part of their family. Icons like Vishal & Shekhar, Amit Trivedi, Badshah, Rekha Bhardwaj, Raftaar and all others in our line-up are with us as a reckoning force. For the fans in Delhi, we included iconic Punjabi Bollywood acts like Jassie Gill, Harrdy Sandhu and others who represent the heart of Bollywood footprint in North India.”

In this exclusive feature, ExM, takes you through the highlights of the Delhi edition of the festival.

Following the event, Deepak Choudhary, Co-Founder and Director, Event Capital said, “Delhi has never seen a festival like this. When we organised the first edition in Mumbai last year, we thought that was big. But we didn’t realize how much bigger the Delhi event could be. The coming together of artists, the great teamwork by the teams of Event Capital and TM Talent Management and the excellent production made this the largest Bollywood festival that North India has ever seen. We would like to thank our sponsors Bhutani Group and Hungama for their support. This event saw the whole Bollywood music industry on stage, while the entire event industry was also present to lend their support.”

LINEUP

CONTENT PROGRAMMING

Bollywood Music Project 2017 collaborated with the biggest names in the Indian music industry to belt out tunes from different genres within Bollywood like contemporary, folk, Punjabi, rap, Sufi, pop and hip-hop, among others. In totality, the festival saw over 63 artists, 39 acts and 3 stages. While the event was managed by Scoop Holdings, art direction was executed by Studio Neelabh.

Talking about the content of the festival Tarsame MittalFounder & Director, TM Talent Management said, “The entire content programming for the Delhi edition of the Bollywood Music Project wasn’t a very daunting process as such. We had already executed the Bombay edition so we had a fair idea of what we wanted to create for Delhi. Adding to that almost all the artists that performed at both editions of the Bollywood Music Project are very dear friends and they fervently believe in supporting initiatives like BMP, that would help strengthen the Bollywood music industry.”

After garnering a thundering response in Mumbai last year, The Bhutani Group presents Micromax Bollywood Music Project powered by Hungama debuted in Delhi on March 25 and 26, 2017 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium Grounds. The festival was organized by Event Capital (a Laqshya Media Group Company) and TM Talent Management, and witnessed the presence of over 25,000 fans over two days.

The festival was headlined by artists like Vishal & Shekhar, Amit Trivedi, Rekha Bharadwaj, Badshah, Raftar, Manj Musik, Nindy Kaur, Zubeen Garg, Asees Kaur, Ash King, Babbal Rai, Divya Kumar, Harrdy Sandhu, Harshdeep Kaur, Jassie Gil, Mohammed Irfan, Pawni Pandey, Shashi Suman, Shefali Alvares, Zublee Baruah and others. Tarsame Mittal, Founder, TM Talent Management

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He added, “While working on the content for BMP Delhi our only idea was to incorporate as many genres of Bollywood music as we can. Since we were executing the second edition of the festival in the North India, Punjabi Bollywood, Bhangra, and Folk were a few themes that were our top priority and hence we planned the festival accordingly. We knew Badshah would work very well, Vishal-Shekhar is amazing performers, we knew people will love evergreen performers like Rekha Bharadwaj and Hariharan and we also wanted to include Youtube stars so we also included performers like Darshan Rawal who is a Youtube sensation. When we started the entire content programming process we felt it will be a very big challenge since we were elevating the festival stature from the previous edition but it was surprisingly easy.”

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ENTERTAINMENT

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ENTERTAINMENT / FEATURE

BRINGING THE DIRE STRAITS EXPERIENCE TO INDIA:

100 PIPERS PLAY FOR A CAUSE Salt Experiences and Management worked closely with 100 Pipers to bring this phenomenal band to India. And what a great cause, too!

There is nothing like music to relieve the soul and uplift it, and every year 100 Pipers’ ‘Play for a Cause’ endeavours to ascertain this belief. 100 Pipers ‘Play For a Cause’ has been known for collaborating with the most acclaimed musicians of the country to support various initiatives in the past and this year 100 Pipers Play for a Cause took the event to the next level by hosting the legends of The Dire Straits Experience, to perform live for the first time in India.

100 PIPERS AND ‘PLAY FOR A CAUSE’

100 Pipers Play for a Cause has been committed to making a difference to society. We are very proud of Dire Straits Experience and thankful to them in partnering with us to help the cause and ‘Be Remembered for Good’. JAGBIR SINGH SIDHU

VICE PRESIDENT – MARKETING, PERNOD RICARD INDIA

Together with 100 Pipers and SALT Experiences & Management, they recreated the very essence of the golden age of rock. Through this initiative, the band supported the cause to provide sustainable drinking water to villagers in Rajasthan, as a part of the proceeds from ticket sales from the concerts went for the construction of water conservations structures in the target area, which helped the villages in Rajasthan. Jagbir Singh Sidhu, Vice President – Marketing, Pernod Ricard India said, “100 Pipers Play for a Cause has been committed to making a difference to society. The last couple of years we have partnered with more than 400 leading artists across India and the world, supporting the

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UPDATES FROMENTERTAINMENT THE UAE / PHOTO/ FEATURE affected in the Kashmir flood, Nepal earthquake, Cyclones and also adopting social causes like poverty by providing sustenance support to the underprivileged. This time we planned to help the villages in Rajasthan. We are very proud of Dire Straits Experience and thankful to them in partnering with us to help the cause and ‘Be Remembered for Good’.”

THE DIRE STRAITS EXPERIENCE

The Dire Straits Experience Band members, Chris White & Terence Reis, share their experience, “We were very excited when SALT & Big Bad Wolf on behalf of 100 Pipers ‘Play For a Cause’ approached us to play in India for the first time. Of course, whenever playing in a new country for the first time and with promoters, you haven’t worked with before, it is difficult not to be apprehensive. In the case of SALT, those apprehensions were very quickly dispelled. What a great team to work with. Everything was exactly how they said it would be. The accommodation was first class, all of the equipment was exactly as we had specified and they could not have been a more friendly and attentive team. It was a stunning first-time experience.” For the fans, it was an absolute moment of celebration and joy as the band played some of their greatest hits including Money for Nothing, Walk of Life, Brothers in Arms, Sultans of Swing, Romeo and Juliet, Tunnel of Love and more. The evening ended with a huge roar from the audience for an encore and the fans going crazy seeing the band take their first bow in India.

MANAGING THE PHENOMENAL EVENT

For the SALT team, it was taking the entire experience to a whole new point, considering a brand like Seagram’s 100 Pipers music CDs as well as the initiative. In today’s times where producing open air concerts and hosting big international artists in the metro cities is challenging, the SALT team was able to pull off the concert very smoothly right from the planning to the execution, with full support from the authorities. Right from the ticketing counter to the zones inside, each touchpoint was flawlessly manned and each issue was instantly resolved.

We are delighted to have produced this event and yes, there are more to follow. We have produced some really remarkable events this year and this tour has marked a new milestone for us as it was the band’s first tour in India.

We were very excited when SALT & Big Bad Wolf on behalf of 100 Pipers ‘Play For a Cause’ approached us to play in India for the first time. What a great team to work with. Everything was exactly how they said it would be. CHRIS WHITE & TERENCE REIS THE DIRE STRAITS

Sumit Chandhoke, CEO, SALT Experiences & Management remarks, “We are delighted to have produced this event and yes, there are more to follow. We have produced some really remarkable events this year and this tour has marked a new milestone for us as it was the band’s first tour in India. The team did an incredible job overcoming all challenges and producing an event, which was this successful. The crowd was fantastic, a mix of all ages and it was amazing to see their reactions when they saw their favourite band on stage. It was the first for the nation and it was totally rocking, indeed!” Overall, the tour was a resounding success which created a massive PR value and saw a huge number in the audience in Gurgaon & Bangalore. On top of that, millions were reached through various media platforms including TV, print, radio and digital.

SUMIT CHANDHOKE

CEO, SALT EXPERIENCES & MANAGEMENT

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BRIEFS

BRAND MARKETING

Puma Cricket Studio Takes Fans Behind the Scenes of a Cricket Match Puma recently hosted the first edition of the Puma Cricket Studio for 2017 - an offbeat interactive session where cricketers shared their behind-the-scenes stories with fans. The event was hosted at the Puma 100 ft Store, Bangalore. Abhishek Ganguly, MD of Puma India, said, “We want to take this experience to the next level with the edgy evoSPEED 1.5 Cricket Spike, the ultimate combination of performance and style, helping cricket buffs have the same experience as their idols on field this IPL season.” Abhishek Ganguly MD, Puma India

OMCPL Successfully Manages the 6th Western H.O.G Rally for Harley Davidson India Mumbai gave a roaring welcome to hundreds of Harley-Davidson owners and their families as they came together from April 7 to 9 for the sixth edition of the Western H.O.G. Rally for Harley-Davidson India. Rahul Gomes, Managing Director, OMCPL said, “From conceptualizing to execution, the challenge was to keep the essence of the brand alive. As a part of the H.O.G. Rallies, the riders have always explored new terrains and we are certain that we created yet another unforgettable experience for them during the 3 day event.” Rahul Gomes

Managing Director, OMCPL

Chevrolet Initiates On-ground Activation for ‘Drive with Care-Protect Your Precious’ Campaign Progressing further on the ‘Drive with Care - Protect your precious’ campaign, Chevrolet India initiated onground activities as a part of an extensive awareness drive. The on-ground activation include deployment of Safety Ninjas at malls and schools across Delhi and Mumbai. “As a global brand that considers safety as our overriding priority, it is important for us to promote safe driving habits amongst all. Bearing in mind, the increasing stats on death polls due to road accidents, Chevrolet is taking forward its brand commitment, with the Drive with Care-Protect your Precious campaign,” said Jack Uppal, VP Marketing and Customer Experience, Chevrolet India.

Jack Uppal

VP Marketing and Customer Experience, Chevrolet India

Heineken Brings UEFA Champions League Trophy to India; Tour Managed by Eblitz Creations Heineken elevated its ‘Champion the Trophy’ campaign in India by giving football fans a chance to host and unveil the UEFA Champions League Trophy in their city. The UEFA Champions League Trophy tour in India was executed in three legs, all of which were managed and executed by Eblitz Creations. Mirza L Baig, Co-Founder, Eblitz Creations shared, “Mumbai was chosen for the UEFA Champions League Trophy Tour through a Twitter contest by Heineken across four cities (Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata). To create buzz about the twitter campaign, extensive mall promotions were carried out featuring a 10 ft. football replica in all 4 cities.” Mirza L Baig

Co-Founder, Eblitz Creations

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BRAND MARKETING

Work Ventures Manages Launch Event for NPCI at Taj Palace Delhi Work Ventures recently won a multi-agency pitch to execute the launch event of acceptance of JCB cards at NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India) network held at Taj Palace New Delhi on May 4. As part of the execution of the conference, a real-time demonstration of the live card swipe transaction was carried out. The event culminated with the traditional Japanese tea ceremony. Pratik Shah, Director, Work Ventures said, “We are very happy to be associated with NPCI. They appreciated our work and want to extend that further for their upcoming events too.” Pratik Shah

Director, Work Ventures

KidZania India Ties Up with Adidas where Kids Can Design their Own Shoe KidZania has tiedup with adidas for an exciting and fun learning “#adidiasbyme” activity this summer at KidZania in Delhi NCR & Mumbai. The initiative is taking place from May 7 to June 13 in Mumbai, and from May 7 to June 30 in Delhi NCR. Sean van Wyk, Senior Marketing Director, adidas India remarked, “adidas understands the power of open-source and we strive to unleash creativity through the #adidasbyme contest. We want the kids to see themselves as the Creators and bring the winning designs to life.” Sean van Wyk

Senior Marketing Director adidas India

Videocon d2h Organises ‘d2h Gully League with MI’ in Mumbai to Encourage Young Talent Videocon d2h hosted the d2h Gully league with Mumbai Indians, a gully cricket tournament on May 3 at National Sports Club of India, Worli, Mumbai. “Cricket is an integral part of our culture, it transcends boundaries. We wanted to celebrate and capture this vibrant spirit through the concept of d2h Gully League with MI. This is a part of Videocon d2h’s efforts to encourage latent talent. We are overwhelmed by the response to this initiative,” said Anil Khera, CEO, Videocon d2h. Anil Khera

CEO, Videocon d2h

Godrej Tyson Foods Ties Up with BSI to Activate Real Good Yummiez the BTL Way Brand Street India, an integrated marketing agency, recently commenced on-ground activations for Real Good Yummiez - a brand from the house of Godrej Tyson Foods Ltd. The BTL marketing activities supports the TV and digital marketing campaigns of Real Good Yummiez, and gives consumers are a chance to taste and experience the product range.

Argha Sengupta

Business Director Brand Street India

Argha Sengupta, Business Director, Brand Street India remarked, “It is indeed a matter of great pride to have this cutting-edge, fastest growing brand aboard. The fast-paced life that we dwell in today merges well with Real Good Yummiez ready to cook concept. We are sure that our host of activities for the brand will resonate well with the target consumers.”

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ENTERTAINMENT / MARKET PULSE

HOW VODAFONE ESTABLISHES CONSUMER CONNECT ON GROUND Siddharth Banerjee, EVP–Marketing and Head of Brand, Insights, Media, Activation & Digital at Vodafone India talks about the brand’s experiential marketing initiatives. BY RACHAEL RAJAN Siddharth Banerjee is the Executive Vice President (EVP)-Marketing and Head of Brand, Insights, Media, Activation & Digital at Vodafone India. He is responsible for leading the organisation towards becoming a digital company which serves customers across mobility–enterprise; financial inclusion and m-commerce solutions; and ensuring Vodafone remains a brand of choice for India.

buses each will accompany the Warkaris on the Palkhi routes of Tukaram Maharaj and Dnyaneshwar Maharaj.

Comment on Vodafone’s association with sport leagues like the IPL. How do these help the brand build a stronger consumer connect? Siddharth Banerjee Vodafone has been deeply associated with sporting platforms aligned to our brand philosophy. Every sporting platform that we take on or In this interview, he tells us more about Vodafone’s brandexperiment with has to link up with the brand essence of building exercises and experiential marketing initiatives for Vodafone. 2017. Vodafone’s association with IPL How important is experiential marketing for Vodafone? This year marks the 10th year of Vodafone’s association How strongly is it emphasised in the brand’s overall with IPL. Vodafone is also the only national brand to be marketing plan? consistently associated with IPL since its inception, and Experiential Marketing is an important part of Vodafone’s Vodafone’s high decibel campaigns have always been a marketing strategy. At Vodafone, we use various media key highlight of each IPL season. Vodafone’s IPL campaign like TV, print, radio, OOH, social media and experiential has always witnessed many path-breaking and first in marketing amongst others to connect with our customers, the country initiatives. While Vodafone ZooZoos were depending on the broad objective and target group. launched in 2009, SuperFan was launched in 2012, Zumi was launched in 2013, in 2016 we as part of our #BeSuper The experiential marketing strategy designed by Vodafone campaign had launched India’s first corporate emoji in weaves in a marketing mix of mass media, social media partnership with Twitter. Also as a result of our Super Album and PR depending on our target audience. Customer activity with the ZooZoos in 2016, we created a crowdengagement plays a very important role in our campaigns sourced Guinness World Record for the ‘largest online to create awareness and educate customers about new photo album of mannequins’. products and services. Some of our notable experiential marketing campaigns include: Vodafone Sirmur Cup A 14 goal tournament and the highest number of handicaps Vodafone Bazaar in New Delhi per team, gives the Vodafone Sirmur Cup a marquee Vodafone Bazaar brought the element of a marketplace position in the world of Polo play. beyond just telecom services and products, and associated activities and provision of household goods to help Partnered with Indian Badminton League Vodafone establish a deeper connect with the audiences. In addition to that, Vodafone partnered with the Indian The aim was to connect with prospective and existing Badminton League as badminton is a sport that most pre-paid users by addressing the basic needs like food Indians associate with and we see this as a paradigm shift and basic utility and household goods for people living in in the sports entertainment industry. The Vodafone Premier slums. The initiative reached out to migrants and people Badminton League 2017 offered us a great opportunity to from lower strata that heavily depend on small paper engage with our customers and badminton champs. recharges and offers to connect with their families outside of Delhi NCR. What are the kind of results that Vodafone witnesses from conducting activations and on-ground campaigns? Vodafone Mobile Buses in Maharashtra We have been delighted with business outcomes of these Vodafone India flagged off its ritual Ashadh initiative, with initiatives right from increase in brand consideration to four ‘Vodafone Mobile Buses’ joining lakhs of pilgrims on increase in market shares in select geographies / categories. their annual padayatra to Pandharpur. As has been the Our experience so far has been that if you do things that practice for the past two years, these ‘Vodafone Mobile are truly innovative and cutting edge, then the impact Buses’ travelled with the Panduranga bhakt Warkaris multiplier effect and bang for the buck is unmatchable. all through their journey from Pune to Pandharpur. Two

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BRAND MARKETING / COVER STORY

Why Clients Move?

Competence, Commitment and Creativity. How to Ensure You Have it All!

survey conducted by Marketing Week in 2016 revealed that 52% of marketers are fairly happy with the service they receive from agency partners and fewer than one in 10 (8%) are ‘very satisfied’ with what their agency partners bring to the table in terms of brand campaigns’ conceptualization, creation, and execution. This underlines the extent to which brand and agency relationships need to evolve globally. Narrowing down on the Indian marketing ecosystem, and specifically the experiential marketing industry, rarely do you see a client and agency relationship that has stood the test of time. Brands and corporations in India are known for changing agency partners more frequently than in many parts of the world. What motivates this behaviour pattern among brand custodians and clients? Do agencies need to offer more? Or is it simply a matter of market factors - demand, supply, pricing and budgets? Do clientagency relationships need to evolve and how so? To answer these questions, we spoke to a handful of marketers and agencies, wellversed in the reality of India’s experiential marketing industry. Several of the agencies we spoke to have experienced considerable success in building strong ties with their clients over the years, conceptualising and executing their campaigns, launch events, activations and more. HOW AN AGENCY PARTNER IS CHOSEN IN THE FIRST PLACE: IDEA, CAPABILITIES, STRATEGY AND EXPERIENCE Before we directly jump into the reasons why brand custodians bounce from one agency to another, it’s interesting to consider how an agency partner is chosen to begin with, as it is the most crucial and important step to a healthy brand-agency relationship. Most of these happen through multi-agency pitches, where decisions are made based on various criteria.

“An agency’s infrastructure and past work is an important consideration before the brand mandate is awarded to them. The key factors that we look for in agency partner are – agency infrastructure, Strategy and operations, team’s competence, especially the one which will handle our brand, past record of work, and pitch for projects.” SAUMITRA PRASAD FOUNDER-DIRECTOR CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER KOKUYO CAMLIN

Saumitra Prasad, Chief Marketing Officer, Kokuyo Camlin believes that an agency’s infrastructure and past work is an important consideration before the brand mandate is awarded to them. He quips, “The key factors that we look for in agency partner are – agency infrastructure, strategy and operations, team’s competence, especially the one which will handle our brand, past record of work, and pitch for projects.” Sumit Sehgal, CMO, Intex Technologies says, “How the BTL agency can lift the core brand idea and create lasting consumer engagement is the most important. Also, a complete alignment with brand objectives is a must. The KRA’s and MOS should be defined very clearly before giving an activation mandate. In addition, the BTL agency should have the capability to link BTL and digital so that the BTL activity does not remain a locality phenomenon, but gets amplified on the digital medium. These are a few must-haves in our agency partners.” Tusharr Kumar, Marketing Manager, Ducati India elaborates, “BTL activations are very tactical in nature and have usually have very tangible KPI’s. As a marketing manager, it’s very important for your BTL agency to be able to cascade not only your brand identity and guidelines but to also understand your eventual commercial goal. The person 42

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“How the BTL agency can lift the core brand idea and create lasting consumer engagement is the most important. Also, a complete alignment with brand objectives is a must.” SUMIT SEHGAL CMO, INTEX TECHNOLOGIES

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BRAND MARKETING / COVER STORY servicing the account is very key to this success or failure. The qualitative experience the agency’s primary team working on your account brings to the table together with the organisation’s previous experience is very important as well.” Avinash Oza, Head BTL Events & Activations at Mahindra & Mahindra (Farm Division) says, “At M&M we take a holistic approach before we bring an agency on board. For example: BTL partner’s tractor industry category experience or work executed in farm/ agriculture category in past, agencies network (strong & weak states), promoters & key people behind the agency, pan India execution capabilities, other sub-verticals, fixed assets etc.” While Samar Singh Sheikhawat, Senior Vice President – Marketing, United Breweries Limited believes that it is, “Track record, no conflicting business, originality of ideation, staying true to the brief, costs, etc.” that makes him zero down on an agency partner to roll out a brand campaign. DO MARKETERS PLAY SMART? Gone are the times when marketers agreed to what the agencies pitched, and the narrative of an event was woven solely by an agency with the client only providing the sound financial infrastructure. Today, if the agency is smart, the client is smarter. A lot of brands already have an in-house event team to help put out better BTL campaigns & initiatives, and brands are no longer blindly buying what event agency Heads are selling.

“BTL activations are very tactical in nature and have usually have very tangible KPI’s. As a marketing manager, it’s very important for your BTL agency to be able to cascade not only your brand identity and guidelines but to also understand your eventual commercial goal.” TUSHARR KUMAR MARKETING MANAGER DUCATI INDIA

A lot of agencies also report that most brands today call in for a multi-agency pitch, hear all their best ideas, create a new brief based on those, and rope in the agency with the lowest cost. To some extent brands are definitely looking out for their best interests today and are in a position to use the pitch process to their maximum advantage. Responding to this point raised by event agencies, Prasad says, “At Kokuyo Camlin we have made the process very transparent. The shortlisted agencies are given a live project to develop a campaign which is tested by research and agency with the best result selected and the project executed. Hence the effort is well-utilized and a convincing process for both sides.” Kumar commented on the phenomenon saying, “Having had the opportunity of working both on the brand and agency sides, I’ve seen this problem exists. I think the best way for an agency to protect themselves from situations like this is to own their concept in a way where they convince their marketer that there is no one better to produce the concept. This lends easier to a situation when you have unique, fresh and disruptive ideas which make the client sit up and notice. If the agency pre-emptively feels that they have an IP that they would like to protect, they should, by all means, make it transparent at the pitch stage itself.”

“Multiple BTL agencies on board works better for us as we believe that any campaign, big or small, can be executed by any BTL agency. Depending on campaign scale or scope, we look for agency strengths, past execution experience, budgets in hand etc. before we award the campaign to them.”

WHAT IS IDEAL FOR BRANDS — ONE AGENCY PARTNER OR MULTIPLE ON THE ROSTER?

HEAD BTL EVENTS & ACTIVATIONS MAHINDRA & MAHINDRA (FARM DIVISION)

AVINASH OZHA

Answering this question, Kumar says, “I would personally choose different agencies for different activities and events. This is because different agencies have different core competencies and are better at producing certain kind/type of events. This also helps bring in fresh ideas into what you’re doing. What is also interesting is having more than one agency collaborate on an event. This doesn’t only pertain to the large-scale event but is really helpful when you want them to bring in their strengths. For example, experiential décor by one, targeted invites and influencer management by another, while the sound and light could be produced by someone else.” Oza responds by stating, “Multiple BTL agencies on board works better for us as we believe that any campaign, big or small, can be executed by any BTL agency. Depending on campaign scale or scope, we look for agency strengths, past execution experience, budgets in hand etc. before we award the campaign to them.” Sehgal shares his opinion on the subject, saying, “Ideally, a single agency system works, but that usually does not happen. While all large agencies have subsidiary companies which have expertise in digital, BTL, PR, etc., they operate as independent business units and not as one. You have to deal with different client servicing people and that defeats the purpose of the single-agency system. Moreover, BTL is the most underrated

“Track record, no conflicting business, originality of ideation, staying true to the brief, costs, etc. that makes him zero down on an agency partner to roll out a brand campaign.” SAMAR SINGH SHEIKHAWAT SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT – MARKETING UNITED BREWERIES LIMITED

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BRAND MARKETING / COVER STORY marketing piece and costs are under deep scrutiny there. Therefore usually the lowest cost agency wins.” SO WHY DO CLIENTS MOVE? Agencies Feel Addressing the issue, Michelle Sanghvi, Head – Client Servicing, Toast Events says, “Today, markets are changing so dynamically, be it media, consumers or other clients in the same industry, the agency always needs to be ahead of its game. Constantly fuelling new and refreshing thoughts to not just get more traction for their clients across media and consumers, today an agency’s job is as much to work on plans for customer retention as much as it is the role for the client. Getting channelled in a framework of thought and moving in the same perspective that the brand has been working in the past, is the biggest reason why brands change agencies.” Farhan Ali, CEO, The Moving Heads comments, “Some events need special treatment and clients might reach out to agencies with extensive experience in the delivery of a particular event solution. It might work the other way around of course – with some agencies being looped in so as to provide cheaper service for more cost sensitive projects.”

“Today, markets are changing so dynamically, be it media, consumers or other clients in the same industry, the agency always needs to be ahead of its game.” MICHELLE SANGHVI HEAD – CLIENT SERVICING TOAST EVENTS

Akshay Chawla, Founder, ThinkXQ says, “There are 3 main reasons why a brand switches agencies. Firstly, dissatisfaction in terms of the delivery from the agency, secondly, a different agency might have more expertise on a particular campaign/event rather than your agency partners and lastly, brands with big budgets want to entrust agencies who can handle those large-scale events rather than just their own agency partners.” Sidharth Ghosh, CEO, ITW Playworx says, “Trust is an attribute that most of the marketers look in an agency followed by creative & innovative solutions. Agencies need to redefine their brand communication constantly based on the nature of audiences.” BRANDS RESPOND Talking about why brands switch event agencies, Kumar says, “Over-promising and under-delivering is the biggest problem according to me. It’s very important to level with your client on what you can deliver at the budget.” Sharing his reasons, Sehgal opines, “A campaign may not work always and that is not the reason to look out for a new agency. It is about the agency involvement in the business, dedicating quality resources who add value and come up with innovative solutions time and again that come from a strong consumer insight.”

“Some events need special treatment and clients might reach out to agencies with extensive experience in the delivery of a particular event solution. It might work the other way around of course – with some agencies being looped in so as to provide cheaper service for more cost sensitive projects.” FARHAN ALI CEO, THE MOVING HEADS

While Sheikhawat reveals it is poor execution, integrity issues, poor attitude, etc. that makes brands switch agencies, Prasad remarks, “There have been occasions after a good period of successful campaigns we have had thoughts of changing the agency when we witness consistent fall in quality of work.” Oza completes the discussion on the subject from the brand side as he reveals, “Agency not briefing their field team on the agreed campaign SOP, not practicing a dummy rollout and improving on the short falls, not communicating with the client and hiding information, taking assumptions, under promise or over promising during pitch, not delivering on measurable objectives are a few good reasons to search for a new agency.” CONFRONTATION & REVIEW While sometimes the reasons for brands switching agencies is evident, in most cases brands move on leaving the agencies oblivious as to what motivated the decision. Talking about if there is a confrontation and review that brands do to share their reasons for moving on, Kumar says, “A de-brief after the activity is over helps understand both perspectives. If a decision is made to move on, a marketing manager should sit down with the old agency and explain what worked out and what didn’t. Apart from being feedback for the agency, the conversation also helps the marketing manager evaluate what they do and don’t want out of next agency they bring onboard.”

“Brands with big budgets want to entrust agencies who can handle those large-scale events rather than just their own agency partners.” AKSHAY CHAWLA FOUNDER, THINKXQ

Oza comments, “Yes, we have created an agency evaluation criteria with action points. We have also defined key parameters and under each parameter are sub-points. Each sub-point is given a weightage and score. After each quarter agency feedback is taken 44

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BRAND MARKETING / COVER STORY from multiple stakeholders which includes our field sales team, brand team, marketing services team. Also, has the agency achieved campaign measurable objectives? We share agency ratings with action points to all BTL agencies who have executed our campaigns.” Talking about the culture at his brand, Sehgal says, “A regular review mechanism at least once a quarter is important. Much like an appraisal. Consistent non-performance by the agency despite getting the highest level involved proactively is the only reason for the change. Ultimately an agency is as good or bad as the client. And an agency’s failure is a failure of the client.” THE SOLUTION: WHAT CAN AGENCIES DO TO RETAIN BRANDS/ CLIENTS? Suggesting what agencies can do to retain their brand clients for the long run, Sheikhawat says, “Good listening skills, excellent execution skills, creativity, a can-do approach and strong integrity is something that goes a long way in retaining brands.”

“Trust is an attribute that most of the marketers look in an agency followed by creative & innovative solutions.” SIDHARTH GHOSH CEO, ITW PLAYWORX

Prasad adds, “As marketers what we are looking for is that agencies need to work as a committed and strategic partner and be as involved with the brand and client. The best strategic partner shares even the same business pressures as the client would be facing.” Sehgal shares, “Add value. Do not be executors but become thinkers. Take the core brand idea to a higher lever and amplify it with digital so that the localized and sharp targeted activity can resound across the board. Develop a mechanism to report the success of the activity. Excel forms are passe. Digitize the reporting system to give a frequent view of the activity. Have a fixed and success fee model which shows the commitment to the client.” Kumar responds, “If an agency can understand the brand and commercial objectives as well as the marketer and work as an extension of the team, half the job is done. Being aware that budgets are not infinite and working with marketers to develop custom plans for each scenario is also key. As a marketer, you develop relationships with your account managers as well. Agencies should try to retain and grow good talent within their organizations. This gives a sense of stability to the client.” Bringing in the agency’s perspective to the question, Sanghvi says, “Monitoring market trends as well as international trends while gauging and changing the plan with every project is the only way to evolve a brand. Giving examples, working on a brand like GAP, we launched the brand in India in a more conventional format in Delhi, being the country launch and while launching in Mumbai, we worked a glocal story integrating the Mumbai dabbawalas, blending GAP in the location. Parallelly, presenting Chandon as the brand which connects with the young and affluent, we created an experiential campaign across digital and on- ground verticals, as we got on board Anushka Manchanda to compose and sing a track, while parallely Sonam Kapoor who synergises with the TG became the face of the video. The video became viral as followers of the brand and Sonam, created their versions and posted the track on their social media platforms. Another example is for PUMA, where we focused on women and created a platform where thousands of women came together and broke a Guinness World Record and they performed the abdominal plank. Each project needs to be so different from the other that it keeps the consumers and media asking for more.”

“If the agency is sensitive about their job, then the sole purpose should be to enable the client to achieve all the goals and for that it’s important that the agency is living, breathing, seeing the whole world around from the client perspective.” NISHANT PARASHAR FOUNDER & DIRECTOR engage4more

Nishant Parashar, Founder & Director, engage4more says, “My sincere belief is in the value of EMPATHY. If the agency is sensitive about their job, then the sole purpose should be to enable the client to achieve all the goals and for that it’s important that the agency is living, breathing, seeing the whole world around from the client perspective. Unfortunately, I see agencies seeing things more from their agency world-view and miss on what the client is looking at. In the engage4more scenario, many clients like Mahindra, IDFC, and Reliance we have managed to get repeat businesses as we have stayed focus on the client needs and also been prepared in advance for projects that are held annually.” Abhishek Mazumder, CEO & Founder, The Think Tank Entertainment adds, “Evolution of the relationship is much needed here in India. There definitely has to be more out-of- office interactions. Even old school sitcoms like Mad Men had more personal involvement between Agencies & Corporates. It’s about the time and place of interaction that determines the progress of any potential client-agency relationship. APRIL–JUNE 2017 EXPERIENTIAL MARKETING

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BRAND MARKETING / COVER STORY Our relationship with brands like, Kanakia, BMW, Bentley, Spenta - just to name a few – is dominated by out-of- office meetings and interaction. Trust me when I say this, it always works.” TO SUM IT UP! Brands may act differently or sell different products; however, what they are looking for in an event agency is a partner who goes way beyond executing a particular campaign or event for them. Traditional give and take relationships worked in past, but agencies today need to keep their clients as close as possible and develop a mutual sense of understanding of the brand’s objectives. While there is a lot agencies can do to retain clients, there is also definitely a change in how events are approached. As agencies develop specialties, whether deliberately or from having successfully executed a certain type of event, they can in a way get typecast. This can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on where they see themselves as fitting in and what place they want to occupy in the industry. While an agency may specialise in certain kinds of events, their clients’ needs may vary from one event to another, motivating them to go with multiple agency partners.

Evolution of the relationship is much needed here in India. There definitely has to be more out-of- office interactions. Even old school sitcoms like Mad Men had more personal involvement between Agencies & Corporates.” ABHISHEK MAZUMDER CEO & FOUNDER THE THINK TANK ENTERTAINMENT

However, an attitude change for agencies is a must because here are 7 reasons why brand marketers move: 1. Lack of Innovation Clients want their agencies to constantly come up with new ideas and concepts, and failing at this could be disastrous. 2. Under-delivery Overpromising on paper and failing to deliver is guaranteed to prevent clients from giving agencies repeat business. 3. Not Enough Transparency Not staying within marketing budgets, and generating fake cost sheets for under table profits is something that no client will take well to. 4. No Value Added Clients want more than just a partner to execute an event. Agencies must be involved, adding value at every stage. 5. Not dedicating quality resources for the brand In order to get clients who stick, agencies must execute high-quality events, using the best resources at their disposal. 6. Not Maintaining the Same High Standards Over Time Agencies who take their clients for granted, where over time there is a marked decline in the quality of execution, can expect to get the boot sooner or later. 7. Lacking in Competency Clients may opt against their agencies if they feel they lack the core competency or scale required for a particular project.

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UPDATES BRAND FROM MARKETING THE UAE // PHOTO PHOTO FEATURE

A Tournament for India’s MSME’s:

THE YES BANK PREMIER LEAGUE

YES Bank, India’s fifth largest private sector bank, launched the 3rd edition of YES Bank Premier League (YBPL) on April 17, 2017. This prestigious tournament, travelled across 8 locations – Mumbai, Delhi, Ludhiana, Surat, Ahmedabad, Pune, Bengaluru and Chennai, and was managed by Woot Factor Events.

Rajat Mehta

“YES BANK Premier League is a first of its kind sporting platform created by YES BANK to engage with the key MSME community. This league has had over 1500 business owners play a highly competitive cricket tournament at 8 key cities across India this year. YES BANK leverages its association with the IPL to create MINDSHARE in this key MSME segment and in turn convert this into larger MARKETSHARE in key relationships,” said Rajat Mehta, Sr. President & Country Head – Brand, Retail & Digital Marketing, YES Bank.

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BRAND MARKETING / MARKETERS INTERVIEWS

ExM Catch-Up with Cropin, Max Fashion, Usha International, Magicbricks & Kingfisher In this exclusive feature, we explore the marketing strategies of 6 brands: Cropin Technologies, Max Fashion, Usha International, Magicbricks, and Kingfisher by speaking to their brand custodians about the relevance of experiential, recent brand campaigns and more.

Samar Singh Sheikhawat Senior Vice President – Marketing, Kingfisher

Siddhartha Choudhary The Chief Revenue Officer, Cropin Technology

KINGFISHER

CROPIN TECHNOLOGY

How has the association with IPL turned out for brand Kingfisher? How has this impacted the brand image and engagement? IPL is the biggest sporting event in India. It is also India’s biggest reality show, with a great mix of sport, entertainment and glamour. These are values that resonate with Kingfisher. We have been associated with IPL since inception. Our association with multiple teams has ensured that we are the most salient brand during this event. This has helped drive volumes and market share and given us unique opportunities to engage with our consumers. It has also driven brand score on sportiness and youthfulness positively.

There have been multiple discussions on what a typical Rural Consumer is. What do you think are the few traits that define a rural consumer? The urban looks different from the rural in terms of infrastructure, better workplaces, higher earning and spending capacity, etc. But then in terms of personality of a rural customer, it is fast becoming like that of an urban one. While it is difficult to define traits of a rural customer, I would say if 70% of people in a community depend on farm income, it is rural. So, an average rural person, while aspiring for better things in life, is still dependent on rainfall for his farming and his income. One needs to be sensitive to such nuances.

Take us through the Kingfisher IPL 10 Engagements and how they will be rolled out? We have run a total of 9 television commercials this year, across live matches as well as on other national and regional channels. We have also run these on Hotstar and across all digital platforms. Besides, we have run engagements on ground, pouring at stadiums, and several contests and engagement activities for all our stakeholders.

Most brands still feel that ATL is non-existent today in rural India. Is it true or do brands need to start focusing on ATL in rural too? ATL works for a select few products even in urban. It is also a very costly medium. I used Radio very effectively 10 years back and even today it works beautifully not just in rural but urban too. TV is not effective if one is selling an Agriproduct to the farmer but may be effective for a soap brand which is making inroads in rural.

Apart from IPL 10, is Kingfisher associating with any other sports platforms? Yes, we associate with Formula One racing (Sahara Force India), football (Kingfisher East Bengal Football Club) and several other sports. How important is experiential as a marketing medium for Kingfisher and how much of your budgets swing in that direction? Extremely important, especially in a media dark environment like India. About 10-15% of our budgets go into experiential marketing.

In your opinion, what are a few pointers a brand or agency should keep in mind while they are targeting rural? Apart from everything mentioned above, everything that works in urban now works in rural. Only the execution may follow different platforms. Share with us some of the most successful campaigns that you have created at Cropin and previously when you led WaterHealth. At CropIn we are running a few sustainability and livelihood initiatives at the farm level. Here technology takes the center stage and everything that we do for every initiative

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Vasanth Kumar Executive Director, Max Fashions India

whether it is woman empowerment, stopping child labor, increasing productivity, etc. is through it. At WaterHealth, we ran Unnati campaign where we identified bright rural children who were awarded education scholarship. On the business side, the impact of the campaign was great, with an ROI of 170%. Any landmark changes you predict that are set to impact the rural marketing domain of the country? Technology, Big Data, IoT, Precision Agri are the buzzwords around the world in Rural. These terms will change the face of Agriculture to be able to solve the global food challenge and with this, the rural economy will change too.

MAX FASHION Max has always been one of country’s most preferred and affordable fashion destinations. How has the brand maintained this identity and marketed itself over the years? From day one, we were clear about our mission - to democratize fashion for middle class aspirational customers. When we found out, in India, aspirational middle class always have to make a choice - pay premium and buy a fashion brand, or compromise on fashion and buy a value brand, that we felt is not fair and it’s important for us to address that need. It’s not about money, it’s about mindset - the youth wants to try out new looks and not get bored with same old fashion products. We already have a legacy, we are the most popular fashion value brand in the middle east, it was launched in 2004 and we felt adaptation of that to India is what required. So, the range that u see here is the adapted version. How important is experiential marketing for Max? Today experience is everything, especially in today’s digital world! If you don’t become an experiential brand you will be commoditized That is why whatever we do, we see to it there is an experience built in. Our product range also changes every 45 days to 2 months. So, there is a lot of different stuff for our customers. We also create the ambience at the store! The other experience is through initiatives, we have CSR initiatives for underprivileged and the needy, in fact our own employees visit orphanages. Every time our store is launched we have at least 20 kids from the local orphanages coming over and picking up the merchandise they like.

Prasun Kumar Marketing Head, Magicbricks

How are the marketing budgets of Max allocated between ATL and BTL events and on-ground initiatives? We equally divide our marketing budgets into 3 buckets: The first bucket is – ground level activity- visual merchandising, activations inside the mall, local cinemas, local awareness basically. The second bucket is for thematic brand building- tv campaigns- building emotional connect And the third bucket is for authentically reaching out to aspirational young talents and giving them meaningful careers. Three properties focusing on different career aspirations What are some of the recent campaigns by the brand and how have they worked? For Max, we come with new campaigns every 6 months. The thought process is same as mentioned before, but the rendition keeps changing so we keep going with the time. Last year the them was ‘Today is the day for small joys’. Let’s not wait for special occasions each day should be a joyful day. Currently the campaign is ‘Endless ways out’ - there’s a brand, merchandise and emotional twist to it, so max will help you in all ways and walk of life.

MAGICBRICKS Comment on the importance of sophisticated and well thought out marketing campaigns for real estate brands today as compared to say, a decade ago. Marketing plans evolve as and when the category evolves. As of today, one change that has happened is that a lot of real estate brands on the developer side, are expanding beyond one geography or one city, and therefore the requirement to have a larger and sophisticated level of planning. From a real estate portal point of view, it’s always complex as you are reaching out pan India and you are catering to all segments of consumers across the value chain. Therefore, complexity of marketing campaigns increases. The kind of campaign that one was doing 10 years ago, which was primarily high reach and awareness is no longer the kind of campaign that one can afford to run. Today performance marketing plays a more important role than traditional tools of awareness driving traditional marketing platforms. With advent of all the property portals, this has become even more exciting and engaging for both

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BRAND MARKETING / MARKETERS INTERVIEWS genders, and income groups. This association has had a positive impact in terms of the Usha brand visibility and recall and therefore we have extended our association by another year. Usha strongly believes in its brand ethos ‘Play’ and work towards developing a sporting ecosystem in the country by supporting numerous sporting initiatives like Ultimate Frisbee, Cricket for the Deaf, Golf etc. At Usha, our focus is to promote active lifestyle, fun and healthy living; therefore, all our initiatives strategically combine product experiential initiatives seamlessly. Jayati Singh, Vice President-Marketing for Cooking Appliances and Sewing Machines at Usha International

consumers and developers. So, the overall construct and essence of the marketing campaigns has changed dramatically in the last decade. How important do you think experiential marketing is for the real estate industry? How do on ground and other activities help real estate brands achieve marketing goals? Consumers before taking a decision would want to satisfy themselves thoroughly. This is where experiential marketing plays a role. Using experiential marketing tools, we can cut down on the field visits that a consumer needs to make before the final purchase. Using technology, we are also able to give real life like experience of the properties and projects. This saves a lot of time and effort at the consumers end. How does a digital platform like Magicbricks benefit from on-ground initiatives to reach its TG? Magicbricks does regular consumer connect activities as part of its strategy to bring enhanced real estate experiences to its users. It has recently launched India’s First real estate Experience Centre in Mumbai. Located strategically at one of the busiest metro stations in Mumbai, Magicbricks Western Express Highway Station, the centre is a never before seen innovation in the category. Using technologies like Virtual reality, Augmented Reality, large interactive screens & video chat, the center elevates the property search experience of intenders and delivers never before seen consumer engagement. The thought behind the Centre is to give potential home buyers an opportunity to get over the hardships associated with property search. In true BTL fashion, it is not only engaging the more than 80,000 commuters a day but is also giving the brand ‘Thought Leadership’ in the category. Apart from this, magicbrics.com keeps organising events like Real Estate Dialogues with Developers and Builders. Mall and Multiplex activities are also a staple part of the marketing initiatives at magicbricks.com

USHA INTERNATIONAL IPL 2017 marks the 4th year of the association between Usha International and Mumbai Indians. As a consumer durable company, how has the association worked out for Usha and what has been its impact on the brand? Our long-term commitment for the 4th consecutive year with Mumbai Indians was a strategic brand initiative towards connecting with people across all age groups,

What is the essence of the marketing strategy for Usha International and how important is experiential marketing for it? An integral part of the Go to Market strategy is to acquaint the customers and consumers with the physical product and let them experience the key features of the product. That’s the reason we lay a lot of emphasis on experiential marketing in-store through demonstrator programs and also working on web-enabled experiential content for the digital space. Take us through some of the most recent on-ground initiatives by the brand and their success. We regularly do on ground initiatives like live Demo stalls a wherein consumers can come experience the products. Recently, we did a product display stall at the Wankhede stadium during an IPL match. Similarly, at a recent Usha sponsored LSR sports meet we were conducting a threeday sewing experiential DIY workshop to creatively engage with the students by introducing them to technologically advanced Usha Janome automatic sewing machines like Dream Maker 120 and Allure. Alongside, there were live demo stations for the Usha Oven Toaster Griller and handheld Misty Fans. The brand Usha has a certain lineage that strikes a chord with the elderly, but the brand has lost out on young buyers. Is there a marketing campaign that tackles this challenge? Usha does strike a deep cord with the elderly and it goes to show the legacy, trust, and credibility that the brand has built for generations. This also has a positive impact as the brand affinity is passed on from the older generation to the newer. The motto for Usha has been to continuously introduce advanced and innovative in products. Usha has been playing a leading role in category creation with the introduction of products like Cold Presses Juicer, Halogen Oven etc. in the cooking appliances category, therefore, gaining the image of a technologically advanced brand. This is increasingly making Usha more popular among the youth as well. Not to mention the association with sporting events like IPL and Frisbee which are very youth-centric. Usha is popularizing the art of sewing through super hi end technologically advanced machines like Memory craft which are being used and popularized with the young breed of boutique owners etc.

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BRAND MARKETING

0 EMG was brought on board to launch one of the most significant developments in the history of Airbnb — Trips. Trips is a platform which is all about giving travellers local curated experiences of Delhi. The launch event took place at Qla, Mehrauli in New Delhi on March 19, and saw around 200 guests attend, including media persons. CEO of the home-share booking site Brian Chesky launched the platform to help users experience unique features about destinations across the country. The new platform has added 15 local experiences about Delhi which include journey of couture with Shantanu & Nikhil, Shadow and Light, Vintage Viewfinders, Sari School, and Sufi Gospel. The brief given to the agency was to bring these experiences to life, live at the event. ‘Journey of Couture’ in association

CURATING EXPERIENCES FOR THE LAUNCH OF ‘TRIPS’ When ‘Trips’ launched in Delhi, Airbnb called on 70 EMG to design an event that would highlight the experiences of the city in a charming and unique way. with fashion designer duo Shantanu and Nikhil were also a part of the Trips experience; this was brought to life, too at the event through a contemporary fashion show. The event saw Sonam Kapoor as a special guest invited for the launch along with the likes of famous socialites, senior influencers, and opinion leaders. Mandira Bedi was also roped in to emcee and model for their property in New Delhi

Qla, our venue, lent its beautiful character to blend our fusion designs. Our team transformed the venue by accentuating the old-world charm and combining all elements within the limited space using our extensive Spatial Design expertise. SUSHANT ARORA BUSINESS HEAD, 70 EMG

Commenting on this event, Sushant Arora, Business Head, 70 EMG said, “It was a delight to have produced this event for Airbnb. The challenge was to depict Delhi’s traditional avatar while highlighting its modern context. Qla, our venue lent its beautiful character to blend our fusion designs. Our team transformed the venue by accentuating the old-world charm and combining all elements within the limited space using our extensive Spatial Design expertise. We are proud to be have worked on this event and look forward to many more such challenges”. “Trips launch has been the most historic moment in the history of Airbnb. The New Delhi trips launch event was one of the most iconic launches for Trips globally. Team 70 EMG was able to execute our vision and create the grandeur of Airbnb at the launch event,” remarked Simran Kodesia, Country PR Manager, Airbnb India. Apart from New Delhi Trips has been launched in 12 cities worldwide including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Miami, Havana, London, Paris, Detroit, Florence, Cape Town, Tokyo, Nairobi and Seoul.

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BRAND MARKETING

The New Delhi trips launch event was one of the most iconic launches for Trips globally. Team 70 EMG was able to execute our vision and create the grandeur of Airbnb at the launch event. SIMRAN KODESIA

COUNTRY PR MANAGER, AIRBNB INDIA

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fter introducing India to a world of bubbly in 2013, Chandon India in creative collaboration with Toast Events created a campaign, The Party Starter from mid-January to March, 2017, befitting a brand that stands for all things fun, celebratory and spontaneous. The campaign had to establish Chandon’s positioning as a drink that kickstarts every party. Targeting millennials, the communication needed to be fun, showcasing the attributes of the brand while inducing the spirit of the party starter.

A Toast to Chandon India for Being the Party Starter

Toast Events created a month-long campaign that was crafted and phased showcasing the story of The Party Starter across online and on ground platforms. PHASE 1: The objective of the first leg of the campaign was to take the spirit on ground, as Chandon introduced its Limited Edition End of Year bottles of the same name. The message that the brand is communicating is clear - all you need is a flute of Chandon to transform life’s mundane moments into one big party because Chandon equals a party state of mind. Reaching out to existing and potential consumers, the second leg of the campaign was to take the digital route, with digital and social media growing at an exponential rate. PHASE 2: To reach the TG, the way forward was to look at the main things that bind India – music & Bollywood. Bringing together the attributes of the brand and giving it a face, Toast Events created an integrated campaign with a Bollywood celebrity and a musician to showcase the personality of the brand and gradually lead to increase in brand awareness, visibility as also understanding of product consumptions, giving birth to The Party Starter anthem. How did this happen? Starting with Anushka as she came on board to compose and sing The Party Starter™ anthem, Toast Events set the tone to the campaign. The next step was to make a video that has an international feel to it. Styled to perfection, Sonam and Anushka, looked like nothing less than divas on the lively track that flaunted their sizzling moves. The video runtime of less than a minute and the anthem managed to grab attention and get everyone grooving.

Toast helped us take our idea beyond our dreams and did a fabulous job to help us beat all planned targets. SOPHIA SINHA

SR. MANAGER MARKETING CHANDON INDIA

The Buzz it created? Millennials these days just don’t want to settle for anything less. They are always on the look out for something that’s quick, quirky and shareable. This video checked all the boxes, creating a viral effect as Sonam, Anushka and Chandon shared it on their social media platforms, encouraging their followers to post their entries. On the response to the campaign, Sophia Sinha, Sr. Manager Marketing, Chandon India says, “Toast helped us take our idea beyond our dreams and did a fabulous job to help us beat all planned targets. We reached over 10 million consumers organically and got over 40million impressions.”

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PHASE 3: Targeting not only dance lovers, the vibe of the video got audiences grooving as thousands of entries flooded the internet as they performed the hook step and posted it online. With a cumulative reach of over 40 million unique users, the campaign was a hit as thousands of followers posted their videos on social media, breaking the internet. Culminating the campaign, a Press Conference was hosted, where Sonam and Anushka lit up the stage as they danced to the tune of The Party Starter anthem. Creative Collaboration Chandon India found that the Party Starter campaign stood for all the company believes in and represents. Sinha remarks, “Chandon could not think of anyone better to partner with on this particular collaboration than Anushka Manchanda, known for her edgy style of singing and of course the beautiful, talented and extremely digitally savvy Sonam Kapoor. And for this our partners Toast are to be ‘toasted’. They found us the perfect partners and helped us execute this amazing campaign in the best way possible. Everything we do, however small, has to have the Chandon touch to it. Ms. Kapoor is a perfect example of what we as a brand believe in. With her fun-loving, bubbly persona, she stands true to our brand’s attitude and approach along with having a very influential digital presence. Not only is she a remarkable actor and a game changer in the fashion space, but also a true Party Starter™. I couldn’t imagine better partners to take our idea and concept and help us execute it with perfect panache and brilliance.”

Priya Dugad, Client Servicing Lead, Toast Events adds, “When we connected with Chandon India, the objectives were defined and we knew that it had to be that one thought that the right communication to the right audiences. The idea stemmed and we knew this was the right approach. Creative meetings with Anushka, Sonam and Chandon helped us shape the format and create a perfect integrated experiential campaign.”

Creative meetings with Anushka, Sonam and Chandon helped us shape the format and create a perfect integrated experiential campaign. PRIYA DUGAD

CLIENT SERVICING LEAD TOAST EVENTS

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BRIEFS

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WOOT Factor Manages 10-Year-Alliance Celebrations of DOW Chemicals & TCS On February 26, at the Renaissance, Powai in Mumbai two corporate joints DOW chemicals and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) decided to celebrate their 10 years of their togetherness in the form of a celebratory gala evening. The conceptualizing, organising and execution of this event was shouldered by WOOT Factor Events Pvt Ltd. Smita Jadhav Shah, Co-Producer, WOOT Factor stated, “Keeping in mind the significance that this moment holds, we wanted to offer the client something out of the box and never seen before, but keeping their value and beliefs in mind.” Smita Jadhav Shah

Co-Producer, WOOT Factor

Think XQ Delivers India TV Mega ConclaveSamvaad 2017 Think XQ recently won the mandate from India TV to design and manage their LIVE Televised Mega Conclave – Samvaad 2017. The event was held at Taj Palace, New Delhi and the objective behind the Mega Conclave was to take stock of 3 Years of Modi Government and access the performance of the current regime.

Akshay Chawla

Managing Director, ThinkXQ

Akshay Chawla, Managing Director, ThinkXQ said, “We were very particular about every small detail like the 3D Set Design, Customized Podiums, Content for the event and even the digital amplification of the event. The quality of production was closely monitored which ensured that the overall event visual and experience was much appreciated by the India TV Team and the audience that came to attend the event.”

Gulf Oil India Gets Dhoni to Inspire Teams on CEO D Day OPEN Brand Experience was given the opportunity to plan and execute a campaign for Gulf Oil, featuring their brand ambassador Mahendra Singh Dhoni as CEO for the Day on April 3. Ravi Chawla, MD, Gulf Oil India said, “Everybody in the team worked hard to create a very touching experience. Every single Gulf Oil member was in awe of their CEO for the Day. His values and ours go hand in hand so he always leaves the team inspired to do more.” Ravi Chawla

MD, Gulf Oil India

How Dell EMC Trained PSR’s with a 3-City Conclave Dell EMC channel conclave was hosted by Kestone with the objective of connecting with Partner Sales Representatives (PSRs) and Partner CEOs to upgrade them with the latest Technology /processes. The event was held for a week from March 15 to 22 at The Leela Mumbai; ITC Sheraton, Delhi and The Leela, Bengaluru, with 100+ PSRs and 50+ Partner CEOs attending in each city. Meenakshi Mehta, Head, Strategy, Marcom, Kestone IMS Pvt. Ltd. remarked, “Foreseeing the challenges of logistics and production, teams were instructed to fabricate material much ahead of the event. The showflow of the event had to be detailed out second by second to ensure that all content was absorbed by the audience.” Meenakshi Mehta

Head, Strategy, Marcom, Kestone IMS Pvt. Ltd.

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Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu Inaugurates CREDAI National Investiture Ceremony Gobananas was responsible for executing CREDAI National Investiture Ceremony, where Jaxay Shah was appointed as the President of CREDAI. The event on April 8 and 9 was attended by Credai Fraternity and Real estate developers of India, where the Chief Guest was the Union Minister for Housing, Urban Development and Urban Poverty Alleviation M Venkaiah Naidu. Nishit Shah, Director, Gobananas said, “We appointed a special team whose only job was to manage all the guests and make sure they feel at home. Day two also saw ministers flying in and we had to make sure of their safety along with all the protocols which were strictly followed.” Nishit Shah

Director, Gobananas

Epicurean Guild Awards Celebrates the Best FineDining Restaurants and Lounges Lifestyle channel Living Foodz organized the first edition of Epicurean Guild Awards at an entertaining evening of glitz and glamour on March 31 at Grand Hyatt, Mumbai. The event recognized and celebrated fine-dining restaurants and the best lounges in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru. Amit Nair, Business Head, Living Foodz said, “The Living Foodz- Epicurean Guild Awards 2017’ is the newest feather in our cap, aimed towards commemorating the best premium restaurants and nightlife destinations across key cities in India.” Amit Nair

Business Head, Living Foodz

2nd Edition of AMTEX 2017 Showcases Technological Innovation in Manufacturing AMTEX 2017 took place from April 12 to 15 at the Bombay Exhibition Centre, and saw nearly 150 senior delegates display the latest technological innovations of the machine tool industry. Cyril Pereira, Managing Director, Reed Triune Exhibitions Pvt. Ltd. said, “AMTEX 2017 is an incredible confluence of national and international suppliers and manufacturers of automation and machine tools and services. The exhibition provides the finest platform for developing and sharing of ideas that lead to fresh and innovative business prospects and futuristic technologies.” Cyril Pereira

Managing Director, Reed Triune Exhibitions Pvt. Ltd.

ACMA Automechanika New Delhi Break Records with 552 Exhibitors from 17 Countries India’s leading aftermarket exhibition, ACMA Automechanika New Delhi hosted 552 exhibiting companies from 17 countries showcasing the latest trends in aftermarket and facilitated serious business discussions over the four days. The exhibition took place from March 21 to 24 at Pragati Maidan.

Faisal Matin

Faisal Matin, Country Director – India & Sub-continent, Delphi remarked, “We have been participating with ACMA Automechanika New Delhi right since its first edition and experience has always been good. We can see the footfall increasing year on year as well as improvement in participation from an exhibitor standpoint.”

Country Director – India & Sub-continent, Delphi

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TRIP TO BUDAPEST: CEAT PLATINUM DEALERS’ MEET 2017

Managed by Maximus MICE and Media Solutions, the trip for 50 dealers offered plenty of opportunity to explore what the city offers.

aximus Mice and Media Solutions was responsible for managing the CEAT Platinum Dealer’s Meet 2017 at the Intercontinental in Budapest from January 18 to 21. The 3-day and 4-night Meet saw around 50 dealers from around the world attend. The Meet included sessions and meetings, tours, as well as an entertainment evening. THE ITINERARY The highlight of the first day was a Welcome Dinner at Prestige Cruise which featured an international buffet. The second day’s activities include a tour of the city that covered Budapest Parliament, St. Matthias Church and Heroes Square, followed by lunch at Varosliget-Budapest Ice Rink. Delegates were then given time to spend on their own before the conference and R&R event back at the hotel. This was followed by drinks at Fisherman’s Bastion leading to Margareta Terrace. Dinner took place at Halaszbastya Restaurant. Following the conference on the third day, lunch took place at Spoon Restaurant, after which delegates visited Szechenyi Spa. Dinner was at Borkatakomba Restaurant.

DHANRAJ MADNANI

SENIOR MANAGER–BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT & CLIENT SERVICING, MAXIMUS MICE AND MEDIA SOLUTIONS

PLANNING IN BUDAPEST Talking about the team’s experience managing the event, Dhanraj Madnani, Senior Manager – Business Development & Client Servicing, Maximus MICE and Media Solutions said, “We had to plan the event keeping in mind that delegates were coming from different parts of the world, and different cultures were involved. When we first took on this project, it was also quite a challenge as there was both a MICE aspect and an event as part of the Meet. But it was

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a very successful event, a result of the beautiful teamwork between CEAT and us. I think we can foresee many such successful events to come with CEAT Tyres as a brand.” Budapest as a destination proved to be not very challenging for the MICE aspect of the trip, though Maximus Events did have to source materials for the event from outside the city. Sharing his opinion on the ease of doing events in Budapest, Madnani added, “Budapest has a lot to offer when it comes to sightseeing, activities and also MICE infrastructure. However, for the event aspect, a lot of material was not readily available or if available not at the best rate. This included AV, lighting and set fabrication materials. With the growing industry, it’s getting competitive for destinations and providing the best cost is important for any client. As far as logistics were concerned, we had to source a lot of material from Vienna and Prague.” This is a great example of a unique corporate MICE trip in Europe, customised for a group from India! No doubt there are plenty more to come!

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An Experience that Lasts a Lifetime: Business Pilgrimage at Krishna Valley KRISHNA VALLEY INDIAN CULTURAL CENTER AND BIOFARM, HUNGARY OFFERS THE PERFECT BACKDROP FOR CORPORATE LEARNING, COMPLETE WITH TRAINING PROGRAMMES AND A LUXURY EXPERIENCE

ooking for that special opportunity that gives you and your team a lifetime memory and the most practical and long-lasting learning? Look no further. Krishna Valley’s peaceful ambience as a place of pilgrimage, and Common Shared Values’ trainings fused together creates the one-and-only Business Pilgrimage experience. Krishna Valley, Hungary is the largest eco-village in the middle of Europe, offers the special flavour of rejuvenation & corporate outings mixed in a tastefully balanced way. Based on the principles of eco-farming and living a Vedic lifestyle (based on the ancient Indian scriptures) that aims to make self-sufficiency a reality, there is much to learn from this oasis and the disciples that run it. Head here with your group to experience corporate training amidst tranquillity. Krishna Valley is a peace-loving island located only 30 kms away from Lake Balaton, towards Kaposvár, in Southwestern Hungary. Its 260 acres of land – which is also home to a cultural center and biofarm – offers several attractions for your group. It is the largest eco-village in the middle of Europe, featuring multi-dimensional aspects of sustainability in regards to environmental, economic and social areas. A NOVEL CONCEPT The Business Pilgrimage offers a number of great learning experiences and training, all against the backdrop of the Valley and the spiritual setting it offers.

COMMON SHARED VALUES (CSV) CSV Leadership Mentoring is helping leaders around the world, training them to achieve outstanding results while retaining their best people and caring for their employees. Zoltan Hosszu, Leadership Mentor, Founder of Common Shared Values Leadership Mentoring and Istvan Gori, IT and Marketing Director of Common Shared Values Leadership Mentoring conduct / help conduct these activities for groups of corporates. Talking about the programme, Hosszu remarked, “The trainings are carefully tailored to the needs of the companies and individual groups so that they themselves can become examples of sustainable, values based business that retains its best people.” SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS A business is sustainable in the long term only if the leader pays attention to develop the right skills in himself and the employees, builds on tradition and is open to innovation at the same time. He must develop and maintain strategies, guidelines, plans and goals. LIFELONG EXPERIENCES AND SKILLS Statistics show that more than 90% of people who attend trainings and seminars, usually will not use the learned skills for more than 2 weeks. To change this, Krishna Valley and Common Shared Values Leadership Mentoring team up to provide a unique training experience that your group can imbibe lifelong skills from!

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The trainings are carefully tailored to the needs of the companies and individual groups so that they themselves can become examples of sustainable, values based business that retains its best people. ZOLTAN HOSSZU LEADERSHIP MENTOR, FOUNDER OF COMMON SHARED VALUES LEADERSHIP MENTORING MOBILE / WHATSAPP: 0036-306302578 WWW.BUSINESSPILGRIMAGE.COM

ATTRACTIONS Krishna Valley is the place where east and west, the past and future meet. Where smiling European people practise and show you India’s ancient heritage. Krishna Valley’s carefully developed surroundings, botanical garden, the themed paths, the pilgrim’s path, the 14 very wellorchestrated special gardens, the temple and cultural centre, the one-and-only European cow protection centre, the forests, the certified organic vegetable gardens and fruit orchards that spread over 260 hectares gives a unique experience for your group’s next corporate training and team-building experience. At Krishna Valley, the program includes a presentation on Indian culture, traditions and the 5000-yearold Vedic literature and books that have been translated to English and Hungarian, Special musical performance accompanied by Indian instruments and a guided tour of Krishna-Valley. FORMATS Whether it’s a one-day chill-out visit or a full-fledged, 3-day workshop, Business Pilgrimage is the answer. Entertaining programs, full of excitement in a peaceful ambience, with beautiful sights, caring hosts, and mouth-watering feasts, a Business Pilgrimage at Krishna Valley provides teams with the perfect learning experience. CAPABILITIES Catering for 20,000 tourists and 12,000 pilgrims annually, with more than 100 festivals, weddings and several conferences organised since the inception, with a 6000-person cultural show every year, Krishna Valley’s staff has the experience in organising events from simple tours to elaborate festivals. There are 32 4-star apartments available on-site. For larger groups of up to 150 pax, there are rooms available in 4+ star hotels 30 minutes from Krishna Valley. The on-site apartments feature a sauna, outside swimming pool, tennis court and gymn. The Radhe Resort and Syam Meditation and Wellness Centre is located in the heart of the Somogy Hills: one of Hungary’s most beautiful areas – in Somogyvamos.

OPPORTUNITIES TO CONDUCT A BUSINESS PILGRIMAGE AT KRISHNA VALLEY 1. DROP-IN VISIT 50 to 250 pax can spend half a day and get a tour of the Valley, followed by Lunch. 2. FULL-DAY TOUR A day-long visit can feature a regular or Exclusive programme. Luxury buses and a signature menu add to the exclusivity of the experience. In addition to a guided tour of the Valley, your team can also benefit from Discussions with Krishna Valley’s missionaries and Zoltan, life lessons, a Productivity & Balance Success workshop, depending on the package you select. 3. CUSTOMIZABLE SOLUTIONS For longer stays, corporates can go in for customizable solutions, depending on the purpose of the pilgrimage. For incentive tours, here are some great features that can be added to the itinerary: • Tour to neighbouring sights • Spas and historical sight in South-West Hungary • Vienna • Budapest • Customized workshop topics Corporate Outings can organised to include: • Customized workshops and trainings • Extravagant cuisine with special meals from around the world • 35 PAX on-site accommodation and training • 35-150 PAX off-site in 4+ star hotels with visit to Krishna Valley • Personal life-work balance mentoring • Yoga & meditation opportunities with certified coaches • Massage • Ayurvedic suggestions • Specialized outdoor activities: Outdoor activities depend on the time of the year and can include group competitions, gardening, building straw-bale houses, and helping in the cow protection centre.

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From second on L to R: Birju Gariba, CEO & Executive Director, Platinum World Grroup; Nara Delgersuren, General Manager, New Juulchin Tours; Anu Bayarjargal, Manager, New Juulchin Tours; and Ryan Vaz, VP–Operations & Client Servicing, Platinum World Grroup

CRAFTING MICE EXPERIENCES IN MONGOLIA AND JAPAN Sushil Shamlal Wadhwa, Founder & CMD, Platinum World Grroup discusses his recent experiences planning and executing the first Indian MICE trip in Mongolia and his third one in Japan. Platinum World Grroup recently had the opportunity to execute India’s first corporate events in Mongolia and our third in Japan, both destinations that offered something new and interesting, and of course a lot of new learnings for us as an agency. The client for both the Mongolia trip and our most recent Japan trip was a leading multinational conglomerate whose goal with these events was to appreciate the support lent by banks, an important stakeholder for them. The group was exclusively made up of CEO’s and MD’s of banks across Asia, and the trips gave the client an opportunity to share their performance results and their vision for the next year.

Adventures in Mongolia Dates: End of October 2016 No of Pax: 50 Main Venues: Shangri-La Hotel, Ulaanbaatar ATTRACTIONS AND ENTERTAINMENT • Outdoor Activities: Mongolia is famous for large birds, horseback riding, and Double-Hump Camel Riding. On one of the day’s we took the group to the Gorkhi-Terelji National Park on the outskirts of Ulaanbaatar. The day camp activities included Ger-building and a photo-op where the delegates got to hold the large birds. • A visit was also organised to the Genghis Khan Equestrian statue. • For the gala evening entertainment, I had the honour to host the evening as the emcee. We had internationally-renowned 66

comedian Jonathan Atherton fly in from Australia. And to create an Indian connect, we had Jankee and Friends perform. • Local experiences and entertainment included singing and dancing acts by performers dressed in costumes. It also included a photo-op with ‘Genghis Khan and his two wives’ tribute. The delegates were also given an opportunity to dress in costumes and get photographed. LEARNINGS • As a destination, Mongolia offers very limited opportunities and choices in terms of luxury hotels, but is still a very popular destination for its exotic appeal. In fact, the event aspect of the trip had to be conducted at the same hotel the group stayed at, the Shangri-La in Ulaanbaatar, as it was the best equipped with MICE facilities. • As Mongolia is the 2nd largest land-locked country, flight connectivity is limited. • Further, it is also a challenging destination in terms of getting visas processed and we did have to put in considerable leg work. • Being a developing country where the main power source for most people is wood and coal, there is a lot of pollution and low visibility due to smog, especially in the evening. It does get very cold here, and may not be advisable to travel to in the winter for people who can’t handle cold weather. PARTNERS We found excellent partners in New Juulchin Tours, one of the top DMC’s in Mongolia.

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Cherry Blossom in Tokyo Dates: March 30 to April 1, 2017 No of Pax: 70 Main Venues: The Westin Tokyo; Meiji Keinenkan ATTRACTIONS AND ENTERTAINMENT • The venue where we held the event, Meiji Keinenkan, on its own has a very iconic status as a venue. Managed by the Meiji Shrine, Meiji Kinenkan was the first event venue offering a comprehensive range of services to be opened in Japan. • The activities planned included a visit to Mount Fuji. We visited a venue called Mount Fuji Hotel at Yamanaka Lake, a gorgeous hotel, which provided spectacular views, and had Lunch here. • We later visited Lake Kawaguchiko, where the group was taken on a boat ride on the serene lake. • We went up to Mount Kachi Kachi via cable cars, which offered spectacular views of the Mount Fuji range and a lovely experience. • For dinner on the second evening, the group was taken to Legato, a French/Italian fine-dining restaurant. • The itinerary included a lot of local flavour, including a ceremony featuring performers in costumes. Geisha girls welcomed the delegates to the Meiji Keinenkan. A European Jazz band based in Japan was hired for one of the evenings. • For entertainment, we flew a renowned troupe called Natya Nectar who performed a beautiful 40-minute fusion act. • The finale was a 90-minute unplugged session by awardwinning singer Jonita Gandhi and her band.

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were unable to get our top 2 choices of hotels. Though not in the same league as the venues we had our eyes on, the Westin is a great 5-star hotel, and we were lucky to secure 6070 rooms at the hotel. Even Meiji Keinenkan where the event was actually held is a venue that gets booked years in advance, but we were fortunate we managed to secure the space for our dates. • The Japanese are very particular and used to a certain way of working, and are not comfortable with last minute changes. So it’s important that to have enough time to plan all aspects of the trip, right from car transfers to venues. • Language can be a challenge, hence it’s definitely important to get a local partner and core team who can speak fluent English. • To catch the cherry blossom in full bloom, the best time to plan your trip would be from late April through May. Being a seasonal element, however, Mother Nature will have the final say. PARTNERS For this trip, our local partner was David Dobos. CONCLUSION Both the Mongolia and Japan MICE trips were a fantastic experience and gave us a lot of new learnings and a greater understanding of these two cultures, so vastly different from a lot of the typical MICE destinations in Asia, including Singapore, Hong-Kong, and others. While if you have a short notice period, you may have to put in additional effort in your planning, it is completely worth the experience these destinations offer.

LEARNINGS • An important thing to keep in mind planning a MICE trip in Japan is that you will probably need a 3-month time-frame to get everything to come together. For this particular trip, we had a much shorter turnaround time and definitely faced challenges as a result. Hotel availability was an issue, and we

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TECHNOLOGY The RMAI Flame Awards Asia 2017 and Flame Leadership Awards, which recognize Asia’s best corporate and individual Rural Marketing works, were held on April 28, 2017, at a glittering evening full of entertainment, excitement and euphoria at Vivanta by Taj Dwarka in New Delhi. The ceremony was hosted by the lively and impassioned Sanchali Arora. The entries this year at Flame Awards Asia ‘17 were invited from India and other Asian countries. These were graded across four criteria: Concept, Activity, Amplification and Results. Campaigns & Initiatives that launched or debuted between January 1 and December 31, 2016, were eligible to enter the competition. Over 300 Business leaders, corporate, GOI & leading rural marketing agency representatives attended the presentation ceremony. Dialogue Factory and Impact Communications had a tie as both won four Golds, followed by JWT with 3 Golds. Impact Communications emerged as the biggest winner of the night clinching as many as 18 metals with its recently launched digital vertical Natter bringing home 5 metals.

IMPACT COMMUNICATIONS, DIALOGUE FACTORY AND JWT WIN BIG AT RMAI FLAME AWARDS 2017

Among the International entrants, Lemon Pvt. Ltd. won the maximum metals (6) including 2 Golds, 2 Silver, and 2 Bronze. Renowned Rajasthani Folk Singer, Ghazi Khan, recipient of Young Talent Award by the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, entertained the audiences with his melodious performance. The entire event was managed by Event Crafter and powered by Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. The award ceremony was followed by cocktails & dinner. Talking about the Jury process for the awards, S SivakumarCEO, ITC Ltd. remarked, “It was a delight to look through the quality of entries this year! High Technology Quotient riding on the Digital India initiative and Mobile Phone penetration, as well as in bringing Experiential Marketing to rural India. Also visible was creative leveraging of traditional media and convergence points to reach out maximum number consumers in several 360-degree campaigns. Collaboration across non-compete categories was a heartening feature too.” Commenting on the convention, Sanjay Kaul-President, RMAI said, “The 8th Edition of Flame Awards Asia has been a one of its kind event in Rural Marketing sphere. I am overwhelmed to see many new entrants, edgy judging by domestic as well as international jury from South Asia, participation from more Asian countries, fierce competition and high volume of media amplification. Also, Flame Leadership Awards felicitated many veterans as well young members from the industry. It feels great to see so many young managers contributing exemplary & award winning work in Rural Marketing. What better the RMAI Executive team could have wished for which is completing its tenure soon. Every year RMAI’s events are getting a notch higher. Not surprisingly, the association is looking forward to get onboard some new faces and younger blood in the system. I am sure the next Flame will be grander event spread across more continents.”

Sanjay Kaul-President, RMAI 70

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TECHNOLOGY

Impact Communications sweeping yet another metal for its campaign “Technology Se Tarakki Tak” for Mahindra Technology Mahotsav

Punit Chadha, Div. Head and GM-Sales (Commercial & Rural Marketing, Maruti) receives the Flame Leadership Award

Dwipal Kumar Bose being felicitated with Flame Lifetime Achievement Award 2017

Claiming the Flame : International entrants winning big at Flame 2017

Milestone Brandcom taking home 5 metals at Flame 2017

Vritti Solutions, on a winning streak again, bagging many metals this year too

S Sivakumar-CEO, ITC Ltd.

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Content Truly is King AT CMS ASIA 2017

Content Marketing Summit Asia 2017 continues to deliver great content with its 4th edition on May 4 and 5 in Gurgaon

The kind of partners we have this year gives us more confidence to deliver a truly international conference, which is already the largest in entire APAC region. RP SINGH

CHAIRPERSON, CMS ASIA

Through this platform we want to spotlight new challenges in content marketing and discuss methods that can help marketers make the cut with their content. VIRGINIA SHARMA

DIRECTOR, MARKETING SOLUTIONS, LINKEDIN INDIA AND CHAIRPERSON, CONTENT MARKETING COUNCIL

The 4th annual edition of Asia’s largest content marketing conference CMS Asia attracted around 500 expected delegates from the marketing fraternity. The event brought close to 50 C-Suite speakers under one roof to help grow the content marketing ecosystem. This year, CMS Asia planned for multiple activities during the event. There was a specific B2B Content Marketing workshop being planned by LinkedIn on both the days in addition to an exclusive CMO lunch hosted by HubSpot. EYE ON CONTENT CMS Asia 2017 was a sought-after event this year because of the ‘Eye on Content’ State of content marketing study in India comprising over 380 CMOs from across the country. The report was released at the upcoming edition. This is the largest study of CMOs in India on content marketing and is jointly done by CMS Asia & Times Network. EVENT HIGHLIGHTS Some key highlights of the event were the Keynote Addresses from Pepsico Chairman & CEO D. Shivakumar; GE Healthcare’s CMO Stuti Shukla; Myntra’s CMO Gunjan Soni; famous film critic & author Anupama Chopra; and LinkedIn UK’s CME Lead Katrina Neal. The other speakers were also a good mix of marketers, publishers, content producers, tech enablers & platforms.

PARTNERS The event was Presented by Sirez and was Powered By LinkedIn. VirginiaSharma, Director, Marketing Solutions, LinkedIn India and Chairperson, Content Marketing Council says, “We at LinkedIn are excited to partner with CMS Asia 2017 for the 4th edition that will reveal new insights and methods of making the practice of content marketing stronger and more effective than before. Although content marketing as a concept has been introduced to India, marketers are still exploring ways for its effective implementation and measure of success. Through this platform we want to spotlight new challenges in content marketing and discuss methods can help marketers make the cut with their content.” Unruly had come in as Associate Partner & Times Network was the Content Partner. Salesforce will be Customer Success Partner and Woodwing Malaysia was the Lanyard Partner this year. The event was supported by Content Marketing Council of India & Digital Vidya.

According to RP Singh, Chairperson, CMS Asia, “This edition is bigger & better in many terms. There are various things we have done this year that we could not in the past editions. The kind of partners we have this year gives us more confidence to deliver a truly international conference, which is already the largest in entire APAC region. We are beating our own benchmarks every year.”

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HOW TO ORGANISE MEETINGS THAT ROCK Managing Partner of MindMeeting Mike Van der Vijver discusses the need for a revolution in the way meetings are conducted!

We define Meeting Design as: the art of matching the format of a meeting to its contents and aims. Many (very many!) meetings today follow some blueprint that has never been properly thought through. The format they follow tends to be a copy of earlier or other meetings. And generally, that format is classroom teaching: the classical situation where one person stands in front of a room and tells other people how the world works. There is some opportunity for response by the audience, but often to a limited extent. Naturally, we have inherited this dominant model from centuries of teaching at schools and in universities. There are several problems with this model. Let me give you three, but there are more: 1. It treats meeting participants as passive consumers. Meeting participants are thinking adults. I believe it is fair to give them that responsibility. When they come to a meeting, they bring along lots of experiences and knowhow. They added value of a meeting is that you can float that. In his seminal book, James Surowiecki calls it “The Wisdom of Crowds”. Meetings with just someone talking are like watching television. You can do that from home. But there is the networking, you may object. True, but that, too, is left for 90% to chance and the remaining 10% to the effects of alcohol consumption. Although in some meetings the percentages are different. The networking, too, requires proper design!

2. It has little alignment with the meeting’s objectives. We have now worked for 15 years as designers and the most difficult part of our job is to get the objectives for meetings right. This refers to my second problem issue above. Time and again, I am amazed how much thinking and resources go into the logistical part of meetings (transport, food, coffee, etc.) and how little into understanding what sort of change the meeting is supposed to bring about. Very often, the objectives for the meeting are worded in terms like: “It must a high-level discussion”; or: “We really people to leave with a WOW feeling.” So what? If that discussion or the wow feeling does not mean that someone, somewhere, after the meeting does something different (and preferably a whole lot of people!), then all the money spent on the meeting was wasted. How do you know, if you don’t specify this accurately and measure it afterwards? 3. It does not do justice to the experiential opportunities meetings offer. People are physically present at meetings and this implies they have an experience by definition. But, to put it a bluntly, in the classroom set-up, that experience is limited to “Sit and Listen.” That is not a very rich experience! There are lots of ways in which participants can be made active and stimulated to learn more effectively, network more actively, participate in alignment, etcetera. It is the task of the designer to create the experiences that make this happen for participants. So, do we need to rethink the way we do events? Absolutely yes! Today’s meetings may often look spectacular, but they fall dramatically short in what they achieve, compared to what could be done.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Mike van der Vijver is the co-founder of MindMeeting, “Designers of successful international meetings”. MindMeeting has an international client base, comprising a wide variety of organisations and industries. Together with his colleague Eric de Groot, Mike wrote “Into the Heart of Meetings”, the first book ever on Meeting Design.

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BRIEFS

INDUSTRY WATCH

Vinay Venkatesh Joins Fountainhead MKTG as Chief Creative Officer-Digital Fountainhead Digital MKTG has roped in Vinay Venkatesh as chief creative officer. He will be based out of Mumbai and will represent creative as a core strategic function of the digital business of Fountainhead MKTG. Thapas Joseph, President-Digital, Fountainhead MKTG said, “With a great digital creative legacy and experience in directing creative campaigns for some of the biggest brands in the country, Vinay is set to play a key role in driving our vision of being a truly digitally-led experiential agency. I’m very excited about this development and can almost taste the great work that we’re poised to do.”

Thapas Joseph

President-Digital Fountainhead MKTG

Zarif Tapia Launches New Experiential Agency with Harsha Khorana Zarif Tapia, former Director, Cream Events (part of Edelman India) has announced the launch of a specialty Experiential agency – Open Brand Experiences. Joining him in this endeavour is his partner Harsha Khorana, ex-Creative Head from multiple agencies including Cream Events. “OBE will address the biggest problem that Experiential agencies face, clients don’t perceive us as strategic partners, so we are ready to invest ourselves into changing that and Open to partnerships in that direction,” remarked Zarif Tapia, Director, Open Brand Experiences. Zarif Tapia

Director Open Brand Experiences

AEROCITY.events Announces Enhanced Membership with Pride Plaza and Ibis Joining In tmf dialogue marketing India-managed AEROCITY.events is a unique convention-bureau styled product from the Indian market. The three key founding partners for this project - Pullman & Novotel Aerocity, JW Marriott Hotel New Delhi Aerocity & Andaz Delhi, along with new members including Ibis and Pride Plaza Hotel Aerocity, are jointly representing AEROCITY.events at IMEX Frankfurt. The General Managers of the properties remarked, “IMEX has a proven track record of providing one-stopshop opportunity to global events & conference planners and exhibitors in the global meetings industry. The quality of meetings & leads generated through the meetings at the event are always good, led mainly by IMEX’s hallmark Hosted Buyers Programme.”

GM’s of hotel partners of AEROCITY.events

Laqshya Media Group’s Event Capital Announces the Launch of its Branded IPs and Content Division Laqshya Media Group has announced its foray into branded Intellectual Properties (IPs) and content with the launch of a new division under its live event IP Company, Event Capital. Deepak Choudhary, Founder and Director, Event Capital said, “It is widely known that the branded entertainment space is growing at a break-neck pace, and with Laqshya Media Group’s head start in the live event IP space with Event Capital, creating strategic IPs for achieving a brand’s business objectives is the natural way forward.” Deepak Choudhary

Founder and Director Event Capital

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INDUSTRY BRAND WATCH MARKETING / EEMA/ROUNDUP IN FOCUS

Turkey Opens Doors to India’s Event Management Industry with the EEMA Leadership Retreat

Sabbas Joseph-President, EEMA

Turkish Ambassador to India

Members of EEMA with Managing Partners of Inventum Global and Turkish Ambassador to IndiaInventum Global and Turkish Ambassador to India

Bunyat Ozpak, Managing Partner, Inventum Global

Event and Entertainment Management Association (EEMA), India’s apex association of the events and experiential marketing industry, recently announced a major tie-up with Turkey’s largest MICE operator- Inventum Global to open the doors to Antalya for the hosting of Indian outbound events, weddings and corporate meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions. As the first step of the new association, Inventum Global will now be hosting EEMA member agencies and their families at the EEMA Global Leadership Retreat scheduled to be held from May 28 till June 1, 2017, at the picturesque environs of Antalya. The Turkish partners working together for the EEMA Global Leadership Retreat under the aegis of Inventum Global include Rixos Hotels and Turkish Airlines, while Right Selection Speakers Bureau is supporting the Global leadership retreat on the content creation. Announcing the partnership, the Turkish Ambassador Şakir Özkan Torunlar said, “Antalya is one of the world’s most popular destinations for MICE projects and India is the perfect partner to work with to build sustainable tourism that will help both the business of Antalya and Turkey overall. On behalf of the government and the people of Turkey, I welcome India’s event industry to our country.” Talking about the content of the retreat, Michael Menezes, Member of National Advisory Council, EEMA said, “The EEMA Global Leadership Retreat will feature top global and Indian speakers like Business Guru Marshall Goldsmith, South African Futurist Graeme Codrington, Ashish Bhasin

-Chairman & CEO-South Asia, Dentsu Aegis Network amongst others and the retreat will focus on insights into the future of the experiential with Antalya as a destination opportunity as it is introduced by Inventum Global to the Indian event industry.” Speaking exclusively to ExM, Bunyat Ozpak, Managing Partner, Inventum Global said, “At Inventum Global we have been aware of the large-scale weddings and MICE events organized by Indian events planners for quite some time now and we fervently believe that Turkey’s infrastructure is best suited for such extravagant experiences and festivities. In Antalya, we promise the Indian events industry very highquality service, a lot of choices at very good prices and the best hospitality.” Rajeev Jain, Treasurer & VP – Government Engagement remarked, “Over 100 agencies from the Indian events ecosystem will convene at the 4-day EEMA Leadership Retreat in Antalya filled with informative sessions, tech integration entertainment, networking and so much more. It is an opportunity of a lifetime for the members of the fraternity to understand the culture of Turkey and explore new business horizons.” Sabbas Joseph, President, EEMA stated, “The Leadership Retreat is the perfect place to bond with colleagues from the industry in an environment of recreation and discovery. The speakers and the various learning sessions are all focused on Tomorrow. Marshall Goldsmith, Graeme Codrington, and others are visionary leaders. The Future is Coming! This Retreat will prepare EEMA leaders for the road ahead. The future will belong to those who prepare for it.” APRIL–JUNE 2017 EXPERIENTIAL MARKETING

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INDUSTRY WATCH / THE CUE CARDS

CREATING A SUCCESSFUL CAREER IN EVENTS The Cue Cards is a series created to provide a few insights and to explore the possibilities of self expression and career growth in order to experience fulﬁlment in life. So here is a set of cue cards that introduce concepts and enable us to navigate our way through circumstances and create our own destiny. BY SUSHMA GAIKWAD CUE CARD 1 Learn the ropes

CUE CARD 3 Together We Achieve More

The key to success and growth is knowledge, skill & experience. In the event industry, it is pivotal to gain on all three aspects in order to create a pathway for growth. For an event professional, it becomes important to know all aspects of the trade. The various aspects being production, client servicing, project and financial management, backstage management and show running. When one absorbs experience in each of these areas, execution of the project becomes robust. Also, growth within the agency and the industry is accelerated as there exists experience in all three areas. A sense of confidence is also exuded and this definitely enables building the personal brand.

Event Management is a team sport. Develop inter-personal skills and interact with respect within the team. One is known for productivity at work and teamwork enhances productivity. It is important to resolve conﬂicts immediately by providing instant feedback. Upward and Downward feedback should be given regularly within a team. The best way to provide a feedback is to give an objective one and that which is elicited. Ensure you put forward your point of view as a perspective and not a judgement of the teammate. Also, always look for a solution to a challenge and present the solution with humility and grace. Our interaction with the team, ability to get work done effortlessly and the team’s perspective of us is the pathway to create success in one’s career.

CUE CARD 2 Work with Integrity We are as good as our Word. Integrity is an important aspect to create a strong presence in the industry and the workplace. To be known as an honest person makes people eager to work with you. With clients, it is best not to over-commit, instead, overdeliver. With vendors, it is important to be straightforward–Clarity of expectations and timely payments is an assurance of a long-term seamless relationship. Integrity in dealings with the team makes one stand tall and command respect in the organisation.

CUE CARD 4 Build relationships that last a life-time The Event Industry is people intensive. People are dynamic, emotional, intellectual and inﬂuential. It is important to recognise the importance of people in the growth of our careers. An enterprise at the cost of a relationship is worthless. In the environment of cut-throat competition, foster deep relationships with clients, vendors, team mates and associates. It is important to establish a strong human connect with each person within the circle of inﬂuence.

This will go a long way in establishing the personal brand of a working professional.

CUE CARD 5 Create a Strong Body of Work Add Value. Two words that deﬁne growth and establish the personal brand. One should be intentional on the career path and work with a trailblazing attitude. Whichever role one takes on, it is pivotal to address these questions “How can I add more value to what I am doing?,” “What Innovation can I bring to this job role?”, “What can I do to create newness in this organisation?”, “How can I positively affect the bottom-line?” A career builds on always seeking answers to these questions will deﬁnitely be one of constant growth & immense success.

In Conclusion

A career is built on personal choices. If seeking growth, one should deﬁne work rituals and infuse discipline in daily work life. Add the human touch to work dealings and infuse integrity of character to build a robust career. Constant creativity in job role, building strong industry networks, straightforward dealings with stakeholders, adding value in the organisation and creating a strong personal brand within industry networks are the ingredients in the recipe for success. An ‘Extraordinary Life’ is one that is created of choice, so let’s make the right ones!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR With her roots firmly entrenched in the experiential industry, Sushma forayed into the field of learning & development over a decade ago. Sushma has made her mark in the industry as a sought after Skill Facilitator, Leadership Coach and Life Mentor and specialises in transformative, breakthrough & NLP techniques. FOLLOW SUSHMA GAIKWAD Facebook: sushmagaikwad.ofc Twitter: Sushmaspeak

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5 MOST COMMON MISTAKES IN LIVE EVENT MANAGEMENT Many seasoned live event managers will tell you that they learned their most difficult career lessons the hard way.

lost on the screen with the disappointing upper and lower black bands.

In planning and coordinating events, many of us fall prey to similar mistakes, some of which come with a higher cost than others.

3. NO PLAN B We AV people can be a confident bunch—maybe a bit too trusting on our own delivery capability at times.

The good news is that there is another way to learn than through time and experience. By becoming aware of what pitfalls to avoid, you start to focus on taking the necessary steps for making the right decisions for a successful event and a rewarding career.

Even when you’re working with the best equipment and have taken precaution, there is always a chance for things to break during handling or transport. Most companies now know the merits of back-up gear.

Here are five of the most common mistakes I have seen in live event management.

However, sometimes you just can’t bring an extra for everything. Without formulating a plan to anticipate and prepare for these undesirable scenarios means you can’t act quickly when something happens.

1. THE COPY-AND-PASTE PLANNING APPROACH When assessing client requirements, some AV practitioners often try to match it with a previous event they have worked on. Instead of taking the time to thoroughly investigate and assess the demands of a given project, they plan only by following similar scenarios. Unfortunately, no two events are exactly the same. These detrimental variations can be in the available equipment, the dynamics of the space, and most importantly, the people. Regardless of whether it’s setting up a conference, a product launch, or a simple training, taking this shortcut may look like a timesaver at one point but can lead to all kinds of problems. 2. IGNORING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SPACE, CONTENT AND TECHNOLOGY Great AV experience is the result of three main ingredients: space, content, and technology. Only when all three are taken care of can you promise a flawless event.

As they say, life is full of surprises. Expect the unexpected. 4. PLANNING IN SILOS Unwanted surprises are bound to occur if you don’t communicate with the other services providers for the event. In India, it’s very common that one company is charged with the sound system, another one with imaging and displays, a third one with video coverage, and a fourth with IT and video conferencing. There are many opportunities for disaster to strike if these groups don’t clearly communicate early in advance. Close coordination in the first place can prevent the unnecessary finger pointing and stress. 5. TAKING SAFETY LIGHTLY In the race to meet deadlines, some event planners skimp on their most important responsibilities: the safety of workers and safe handling of equipment.

Technical companies tend to emphasize the technology part without appreciating the space and the content. On the other hand, non-technical event managers may invest in the best content for the space but forget about the importance of the right equipment.

In India, safe practices in live events are often not strictly enforced as a routine. You can only minimize the risks by rigorously following a safety checklist for every step from transportation and loading to dismantling and packing.

Many of us have experienced this: A beautifully made video is displayed on an LED screen in a gorgeous event hall. The only problem? The video content is shot in HD and the LED is 4:3. All the good work on the content and the space is now completely

In live events, many errors may be irreversible as you only have one shot to get it right. When it comes to safety, even the smallest mistake are not only irreversible, but also carry such serious consequences that no one can afford to neglect.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR T.S. Gopalakrishnan, CTS®-I, CTS-D, is an instructor for InfoComm International® programs including the Project Management for Live Events—a three-day course designed for live event professionals to learn the most critical field-tested project management principles. Two Project Management for Live Events sessions are scheduled for Hyderabad for May 27 to 29, 2017 and Mumbai for July 14 to 16, 2017. Gopalakrishnan teaches a variety of AV training courses across India and the Middle East. A 21-year industry veteran, Gopalakrishnan is currently an AV consultant with DynaMix Media in Delhi.

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M.I.C.E POWERED BY

E X P E R I E NTI A L P LA N N E R

Organised by the Indian Exhibitions, Conferences & Events Services Association (IESA), India Expo Shop 2017 took place from April 17 to 20 at India Expo Centre & Mart, Noida. The three-day event included the India Expo Shop Summit which took place on April 18, where the CEO’s round table allowed for interactive dialogue on carving the strategic initiatives as an industry.

A PLACE TO NETWORK AND EXHIBIT: INDIA EXPO SHOP 2017 The IESA organised India Expo Shop 2017 to provide a platform for event, exhibition and conference service providers to showcase their offerings, and share knowledge and insights.

The Role of IESA Indian Exhibitions, Conferences & Events Services Association (IESA) is the apex organization working towards the development of the sector. IESA serves as a conduit between the sector and wider industry stakeholders including but not limited to Government, Exhibition Organizers, International Trade Commissions, ITPO. Talking about the vision of IESA, Binu Nanu, President, IESA and Managing Director, Meroform India said, “IESA represents the Service Providers in Exhibitions, Events, Conferences and Seminars. This segment has its own requirements and problems. We believe that India can match services rendered anywhere across the globe by giving the segment a little push. Acquisition of knowledge, upgradation of technology and imparting skill training at various levels are needed to achieve this end. Thus, IESA envisions all the above aspects being implemented through training sessions, seminars, exhibitions and offering exposure its members. We believe that when the services are of

India Expo Shop is conceived on the lines of Euro Shop where materials required for Exhibitions, Events, Seminars, etc are presented live to the customer. BINU NANU

PRESIDENT, IESA AND MANAGING DIRECTOR, MEROFORM INDIA

I think we succeeded in accomplishing the goals set out by this event; the networking opportunities were great. Considering it is a B2B platform, the outcomes were very good. VINAY MITTAL

MANAGING DIRECTOR DEEPALI DESIGNS

global standards and when India is ready with modern infrastructure for holding large-scale exhibitions and events, India can become the hub for exhibitions in Asia.” The Concept Talking about how the event was conceptualised, Nanu remarked, “India Expo Shop is conceived on the lines of Euro Shop where materials required for Exhibitions, Events, Seminars, etc are presented live to the customer. In that aspect, the IES is a small step towards large goals. Companies from Germany, China and Italy have participated along with Indian companies in the two editions of India Expo Shop showing a variety of products. The Indian companies which are doing R&D in India and trying to create products and services through innovation also needs a window to the world. IESA will be holding more Knowledge seminars and also will repeat India Expo Shop in other parts of India to gain a larger audience.” Exhibitors Exhibitors at India Expo Shop included Exhibition Stand Construction System manufacturers, manufacturers, service providers and rental companies for superstructures, flooring, visual technologies, IT companies, design agencies, electrical equipment,

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IESA Members at inauguration at IES-2017

Ravinder Sethi with IESA New President H K Bhattad and General Secretary Surinder Vasisht at IES-2017

Rakesh Kumar, Chariman IEML at IES-2017

venues, lighting manufacturers, trade fair contractors, and so on. Some of these included Jess Ideas, Deepali Designs, Low & Bonar, City Neon, Reality Showbiz, Losberger and Eventually. On participating in India Expo Shop 2017, Vinay Mittal, Managing Director, Deepali Designs said, “India Expo Shop is a great initiative, because there was no platform in India to showcase products and services by exhibition management companies and other suppliers. I think we succeeded in accomplishing the goals set out by this event; the networking opportunities were great. Considering it is a B2B platform, the outcomes were very good. And the look and feel was excellent. The stalls were done very well. There is a lot of scope to do more in the future, though, to make it comparable to what you have in Dusseldorf.” Raja K Dash, National Sales Manager– Coated Technical Textiles, Low & Bonar, said, “This event is really good for internal trading. Our products include performance materials, coated technical textiles which are

used for hangars, tents, umbrellas and other structures. We pitch for this product in concerned industries.”

This event is really good for internal trading. Our products include performance materials, coated technical textiles which are used for hangars, tents, umbrellas and other structures. RAJA K DASH

NATIONAL SALES MANAGER–COATED TECHNICAL TEXTILES, LOW & BONAR

The India Expo Shop Conference The conference covered subjects like Value Creation, Cost management, customer retention, succession planning, employee retention, design & data security-which are a CEO’s focus-in short how to convert design & fabrications agencies into corporate entities for long term sustainability; Design, materials, techniques, employee safety, project management, which are the operations or customer service teams focus-the best ways to nurturing and retaining talent; and Competitive mapping, key account retention, pricing strategy etc. which are the focus of business development teams-the effective strategies to enhance revenues and profitability. Partners India Expo Shop 2017 was organised in association with EEMA, ESSA, IEIA and India Convention Promotion Bureau and supported by CII, SEPO and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

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INDUSTRY WATCH / ADVERTORIAL

BARCELONA TOURISM MERGES WITH PROVINCIAL COUNCIL CONVENTION BUREAUS BARCELONA HAS STRENGTHENED ITS POSITION AS A MICE DESTINATION THANKS TO A BROADER TERRITORIAL VISION

Turisme de Barcelona and Barcelona’s Provincial Council have reached an agreement for the merger of their respective Convention Bureaus, the offices responsible for promoting MICE tourism. As a result, the Barcelona Convention Bureau (BCB) and the Barcelona Province Convention Bureau (BPCB) now constitute a single organisation aimed at further consolidating Barcelona’s position as a host city for MICE activities. Thanks to a number of collaboration agreements, the two institutions had been working closely together for some time. Their joint efforts led to the opportunity to merge both convention bureaus into a single office that would cover the city of Barcelona and the surrounding areas. The new BCB boasts more members, more resources and, in short, more opportunities for its area of activity, whilst at the same time simplifying relations with clients and

organisers through a single interlocutor. The agreement has also meant a significant increase in its offer, which now includes other cities and regions. “The merger of the two bureaus is a major achievement that will further boost Barcelona’s position as one of the world’s leading MICE tourism destinations,” explains Christoph Tessman, BCB’s Managing Director. Following the merger, the 18 members of the BPCP will become part of the BCB and Barcelona Provincial Council will become a full-fledged member of the technical team and committee. MICE tourism, which includes congresses, conventions and incentive trips, is considered to be a key activity that generates added value for the territory. In fact, it has a greater impact on other economic sectors than any other tourism segment: the latest data available put Barcelona’s direct income from inbound MICE tourism at €1.5 bn.

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BRIEFS

TECHNOLOGY

Creative Factory Produces Spectacular Mapping Content for KEF Infra One Park Launch KEF Infra opened its first precast factory in India in Krishangiri, Tamil Nadu and hosted a spectacular event to inaugurate the factory. The event agency, Mosaic Live, partnered with Creative Factory to produce the mapping content, and a Hologauze screen was brought in from Dubai to elevate the mapping experience. Vibhore Khandelwal, Founder, Creative Factory stated, “The concept of the mapping was to highlight the three industrial revolutions that the world has seen so far, how we are approaching towards the fourth one and how KEF plays an important role in changing the way infrastructure development happens in India.” Vibhore Khandelwal Founder, Creative Factory

Barco Appoints Visual Display Solutions as National Distribution Partner for ProAV Projector Series Barco appointed Visual Display Solutions Pvt Ltd. (VDSPL) as the national distribution partner for its ProAV Projector series in India. The tie-up is aimed towards facilitating a more robust market and channel penetration for Barco’s projection solutions to meet the rising demand in visitor attractions, museums, theme park, 3D mappings and large venues in the Indian market.

Rajiv Bhalla

Rajiv Bhalla, Managing Director, Barco Electronic Systems India said, “The demand for projection solutions guaranteeing better performance and enhanced operational efficiency, along with a more immersive end-user experience, is on the up.”

Managing Director Barco Electronic Systems India

Sound.com Acquires Audio Mixing Console DiGiCo SD5 Sound.com has just acquired a new console, the DigiCo SD5, the best audio mixing console to hit Indian shores according to industry stalwarts. Warren D’Souza, Managing Director, Sound.com said, “For me it was a simple decision on choice as there wasn’t any other console actually on my purchase radar. Also with DiGiCo and Waves commitment & partnership in developing better products & DiGiGrid interfaces this was an obvious futuristic choice. It’s not a secret that DiGiCo is globally all top touring engineers’ number one choice.” Warren D’Souza Managing Director Sound.com

Deepali Designs Uses Holocube to Unveil New Logo and Identity Deepali Designs, an events and exhibitions solutions company, unveiled its new logo and identity at the India Expo Shop 2017 which took place on April 19 at India Expo Mart in Greater Noida. The logo was unveiled on a Holocube by Chief Guest Rakesh Kumar, the Chairman of India Exposition Mart.

Vinay Mittal

Talking about the new identity, Vinay Mittal, Managing Director, Deepali Designs said, “We’re already one of the biggest in exhibitions, but we want to also grow as an event management company. For this purpose, we put a lot of thought into making our stall stand out and spent around 25 lakh just on the stall.”

Managing Director Deepali Designs

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TECHNOLOGY/ FEATURE

BEYOND THE ORDINARY: ELEVATING AR, VR & MAPPING LEVELS IN INDIA While the technological wonders of Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, and Projection Mapping have comfortably found their way in almost all global events and brand experiences, these are yet to move out of their beginner level status in India. Rarely do we see brands and agencies in the country today leveraging these new age advancements because as an industry most of the Indian events landscape still thrives on drones and selfie-zones to create that ‘wow’ factor at events. Now, it is not to be believed that these technologies haven’t yet entered the Indian events market. In fact, many agencies in the country have used and aced these techdriven innovations already. Who can forget the scintillating Make in India Augmented Reality experience at Hannover Messe? Or the stunning mapping at IPL 2016 opening ceremony? But barring these few exceptions, most of the Indian events industry has eschewed from using these technologies at their events because of which AR, VR and Projection Mapping remains at a nascent stage in the Indian events industry. In this exclusive feature, we speak to Soham SarcarFounder, Transhuman Collective, and Vibhore KhandelwalFounder, Creative Factory to discuss and deliberate on how brands and agencies can use these technologies to elevate the entertainment quotient at their events. CURRENT SCENARIO “India is certainly a growing market for AR, VR, and Mapping technologies and we have to give some time for people to understand the nuances of these. As of now, people have only been hard selling the medium because of which there is a very little idea out there of what these tech innovations are in the first place. As an industry, we need to understand that use of mere technology alone cannot create amazing experiences at their events. Creativity, content and narrative are an integral part of any of these technologies”says Sarcar as he describes how the industry has been responding to the event technologies in question. Khandelwal adds, “Content is indeed the key for the kind of experience you want to create with projection mapping. The challenge in the industry today is that keeping all the big players who have explored projection mapping aside, 50% of people today have heard the word ‘projection mapping’ but do not completely understand what it is about. I always share with my clients that it is just like another technology at events and it needs to be juiced strategically to create never seen before experiences.” INNOVATIVE WAYS ON HOW AR, VR & MAPPING CAN BE USED AT EVENTS Sharing his expertise on how AR, VR, and Mapping can be better used at events Sarcar quotes, “While there are innumerable ways how Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality can be used at events, one of the best ways to use them would be to incorporate them into the story of the event.”

Vibhore Khandelwal Founder, Creative Factor

Soham Sarcar Founder, Transhuman Collective

He elaborates, “Just imagine for an automobile launch how incredible will it be if the CEO uses augmented reality to dissect the new product to explain its features to the audiences, or for a milestone event we take a walk through the history of a brand by using augmented reality. Animations, Graphics can also be well incorporated to enhance the overall experience for the attendees.” Khandelwal shares his opinion on the subject by stating, “Mapping is completely dependant upon how the event manager wants to use it. The possibilities of what you can achieve with projection mapping are limitless. Mapping can be beautifully incorporated into the pre-function area to tell the narrative of the event as this is the first thing an audience is subjected to as they enter the venue. Also, the main function area can have a complete 260-degree or 360-degree mapping to engage the audiences thoroughly.” IS AFFORDABILITY A BARRIER? A lot of event agencies refrain from using newer tech engagements at their event because they feel it is too expensive. Talking about the affordability factor Sarcar responds, “One has to look at the ROI and Virality factor in this regard. When we executed the Lion Augmented Reality Experience at the Make in India event, the response we got was overwhelming and within a few hours, the event went viral gaining an unprecedented amount of media traction and social media engagement. We cannot overlook the fact that hardware for such technologies is indeed expensive but most event managers today can afford these given the experiential marketing budgets of clients have also increased significantly over the years.” Sarcar further shares that a simple augmented reality experience can be created for anywhere between INR 5 to 50 Lakhs while projection mapping experience can be created for INR 10 Lakhs and upwards. Vibhore shares his opinion on the subject by commenting, “The cost of projection is completely dependent on the scale of the event. Just like the bigger the entertainment at an event the more costly it is, the cost of projection mapping also varies in the same way. Content and hardware for projection mapping go hand in hand. Projection mapping can be incorporated at an event for as low as INR 2-3 Lakhs and can go on to INR 2-3 Crore as well.”

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TECHNOLOGY

Young Mirchies Creates a Virtual Host for Infinova Group at Secutech 2017 BY SHANTANU JAIN

The Secutech India Exhibition 2017 took place from April 6 to 8, 2017 at the Bombay Exhibition Center, Mumbai. The Infinova Group, an ISO 9001 certified American security products manufacturer focused on producing quality and reliable technology solutions participated in the exhibition to display their services. Young Mirchies, a new age event management agency was roped in by the brand to manage their presence at the exhibition. Young Mirchies began working on the client brief by developing a clear understanding of Infinova’s most premier offerings and their cameras. The agency then conceptualized the concept of an “On Demand” Virtual Host–an Innovative technology where a Virtual Model spoke about Infinova’s Camera’s with beautiful visual animations, and each time when a product marker was shown to her, she gave information for it. This was one of the first times in India when an On-Demand Virtual Host was used to promote a brand. The activity caught a lot of eyeballs at the event and added immense value to Infinova’s presence at the expo, drawing in huge crowds at their stall. Speaking about it Milind Borkar, Vice President, Infinova, March Networks & Swann Middle East, SAARC & Africa said “We are very happy to be associated with Young Mirchies for the 1st time at Secutech show. We are so happy with their technology offerings that we would like to bring them on board again for our Dubai Intersec Show in 2018”.

We are very happy to be associated with Young Mirchies for the 1st time at Secutech show. We are so happy with their technology offerings that we would like to bring them on board again for our Dubai Intersec Show in 2018 MILIND BORKAR

VICE PRESIDENT, INFINOVA, MARCH NETWORKS & SWANN MIDDLE EAST, SAARC & AFRICA

Nitin Amin, Marketing Manager, Infinova Group added, “We are enthralled with the response we got from the Virtual Host as it further enhanced the look of the booth. We got a good number of visitors at the stall and we appreciate the kind of work Young Mirchies has done. They have been very process oriented throughout the project and we look forward to more such engagements with them to attract more visitors, thereby helping generate more business.” Mitesh Rakheja, Founder, Young Mirchies commented, “In today’s changing face of events, we thrive to innovate and introduce concepts that would enable the customer to showcase its brand in a unique way, our experiential marketing segment is all about those innovations. We are grateful to the Infinova Group who appreciated our work and want to extend that further for their international shows too. This really pays off for the hard work and dedication our team has put into the project, overcoming the challenge of displaying multiple products, various features in each product all in real-time and on-demand. We look forward to coming up with many such customized out of the box offerings for them on long-term basis”.

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TECHNOLOGY

We are enthralled with the response we got from the Virtual Host as it further enhanced the look of the booth. We got a good number of visitors at the stall and we appreciate the kind of work Young Mirchies has done. They have been very process oriented throughout the project and we look forward to more such engagements with them to attract more visitors, thereby helping generate more business. NITIN AMIN

MARKETING MANAGER, INFINOVA GROUP

We are grateful to the Infinova Group who appreciated our work and want to extend that further for their international shows too. This really pays off for the hard work and dedication our team has put into the project, overcoming the challenge of displaying multiple products, various features in each product all in real-time and on-demand. We look forward to coming up with many such customized out of the box offerings for them on long-term basis. MITESH RAKHEJA

FOUNDER, YOUNG MIRCHIES

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