Pitch Issue - September 2014

Volume XI | Issue 7 | September 2014

`` 75

POWERED BY

BRANDOMETER

The most definitive study to evaluate Media Brands for Media Planners and Marketers Pitch | September 2014

In Association with HANSA Research

3

Clean sweepat CMO Asia

19

with

wins

Rajiv Dingra Founder & CEO

“19 AWARDS IN ONE NIGHT IS A HUGE ACHIEVEMENT This is also validation for the kind of work the team at WATConsult has done in 2013-14. In all we have won 28 awards across 8 odd award ceremony and we feel proud of the fact that we have had the opportunity to do justice to the fantastic brands we work with.

We now look to set our sights higher and raise the bar as we continue to do even better in 2014-15.”

CATEGORIES OF AWARDS

Best Viral Marketing Campaign of the Year - Mother Dairy Mother's Day video

Best Social Media Integrated Campaign - Mirchi Music Awards

Best Social App of the Year - Jarvis sony DADC

Best use of Gaming & Animation - Beerpacity Sony DADC

Best use of Social Media for Social Cause - NFF

Best Social Media Campaign of the Year - Super Saturday Bestseller Best Social Media Integrated Campaign - SAP India

Best use of Twitter - India’s Got Talent Twitter Concert Best Online Video - Mother Day Campaign Mother Dairy

Best Rich Media Online Ad - Godrej Masterbrand Campaign

......................................................................................................................................

Best Online Marketing Campaign - Bajaj Allianz Generating leads in a new way

Young Social Media Entrepreneur of the Year - Rajiv Dingra

......................................................................................................................................

Best use of Social Media - India’s Got Talented Twitter Concert

......................................................................................................................................

Best Progressive Digital Marketing Company of the Year - WAT Consult

Best Social Media Campaign of the Year - Dance to my Tune - Godrej Masterbrand Best Integrated Campaign Award - Godrej security use of Digital for ROI

Best use of Linkedin - SAP India

Best use of Social Media for Social Cause - Share a pill - Dr reddy

Best in Online Content - Human touch of Chemistry

For more information: Log onto www.watconsult.com | Phone: 022 – 67099200 | E-mail: contact@watconsult.com | Mumbai | New Delhi | Bengaluru | Kolkata

4

Pitch | September 2014

INSIDE

COVER STORY

00

Pitch Volume XI, Issue-7 September, 2014

Publisher & Editor-in-Chief Editor & Director Director President

Annurag Batra Amit Agnihotri Nawal Ahuja Sunil Kumar

EDITORIAL TEAM

Consulting Editor

Vinod Behl

Deputy Editor

Rashi Bisaria

Senior Correspondent

Gunjan Verma

Correspondents

Kanika Mehrotra Ankur Gaurav Devansh Sharma

Senior Art Director

Shamsad Shaikh

Senior Graphic Designer

Joby Mathew

Photographers

Vilas Kalgutkar (Mumbai) Suresh Gola (Noida)

AD SALES

Rajat Thareja Abdulla M Mazumder Varnikaa jain Sneha Walke

9810134435 9871609348 9769153087 9845541143

0FFICES

NEW DELHI: Shop No. 32, 33 south Ettn. Part-I, Om vihar, Uttam Nagar, New Delhi 110 059 NOIDA: B-20, I-Floor, Sector-57, Noida, Uttar Pradesh - 201301 Phone: (0120) 4007700 Mumbai: 301, Kakad Bhavan, 3rd Floor, 11th Street, Bandra (W), Mumbai - 400 050 Phone: (022) 2640 3303/09/14/16 Bengaluru: Flat No. 1,062, 1st Floor, 2nd Cross, 6th Main Road, HAL 2nd Stage, Indira Nagar, Bengaluru - 560 038

The critical decision of choosing a

MEDIA BRAND

INTRODUCTION TO BRANDOMETER

RATING MEDIA BRANDS

CIRCULATION/DISTRIBUTION

Vinod Sharma (Delhi) - 9999447209 vinod@exchange4media.com Anandan Nair (Mumbai) - 9819445200 anair@exchange4media.com

04

How well are media houses rated by their buyers? Leading media houses can use this study to understand where they stand in the eyes of the media buying community

On News-stands ` 75 www.pitchonnet.com Printed and published by Annurag Batra on behalf of Adsert Web Solutions Pvt Ltd B-20, I-Floor, Sector-57, Noida, Uttar Pradesh - 201301 Printed at All Time Offset Printers, E-53, Sector-7 Noida, Uttar Pradesh - 201301 An exchange4media Publication

Pitch | September 2014

Making sense of a cluttered market

10

Television media with a growth rate of 8.2 per cent looks like a growth story but the reality is a little different.

1

18

GECs

Need to provide differentiated content Why GECs have the lowest scores compared to other genres

MOVIES

Ahead in Professionalism

28

SPECIAL INTEREST CHANNELS

Entertainment coupled with information proves to be a cost effective combination

48

ENGLISH NEWS PAPER

It’s a fertile ground for advertisers with the viewership of English channels having seen a spurt in the last few years

CHILDREN’S CHANNELS

No Kidding with Kids’ channels

Nothing beats The English Dailies

32

The average score of the top four news channels is disappointing ENGLISH NEWS CHANNELS

36

Need to catch up with English

Hindi DAILIES Yawning gap with English

REGIONAL NEWS PAPER

42

RADIO

Radio brands manage to keep the client satisfaction on a priority agenda COLUMN : Annurag Batra

2

62

Regional language Media Caught between English & Hindi

38

English News Channels Ahead of their Hindi Counterparts HINDI NEWS CHANNELS

54

HINDI NEWS PAPER

Kids have become the biggest influencers for several brands.

NEWS CHANNELS NEED TO BUCK UP

44

.......................................................... 80

Pitch | September 2014

66

Pitch | September 2014

3

INTRODUCTION Powered by

The critical decision of choosing a

MEDIA BRAND

By RASHI BISARIA

T 4

he Pitch Media Brandometer 2014 is back with fresh results. It’s a study that was conducted to gauge the perception of Media Planners and Buyers about Media Brands and what factors in�luence their plan. As in the previous years, this year too, the parameters used were Media Delivery, Professionalism, Servicing Ability, Sales Team Knowledge, and Relationship.

The survey asked the media decision makers to weigh these parameters and accordingly rated the media brands, across Television, Print, Radio based on the responses and results.

The Target Group for the survey was key Media Planners/Buyers and clients. The cities surveyed were Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Bengaluru.

How well are media houses rated by their buyers? Leading media houses can use this study to

understand where they stand in the eyes of the media buying community and identify their speci�ic strengths and weaknesses.

With more than 50 per cent respondents giving the maximum importance to Innovation as a parameter that in�luences the media plan, it seems that no media brand can survive without innovation in today’s environment. At 47.3 per cent Media Delivery has turned out to be the second most important parameter. Business and Sports channels have not been included in the survey.

Such a study was undertaken for the simple reason that media planners’ decision of choosing any particular media vehicle is not just dependent on quanti�iable factors. Decision makers do look beyond numbers and that’s where the study will prove useful. Our survey and the talks with various stakeholders reveals that Media Delivery

Pitch | September 2014

Pitch | September 2014

5

INTRODUCTION Powered by

is a given. But can media brands give advertisers some innovative solutions to stand out from the crowd? Does the sales team of the media brand know the clients’ needs?

Innovation

Innovation has emerged as the most critical factor for decision makers in choosing a media brand. Market has become competitive and to distinguish from other competitive brands, media vehicles which provide innovative offerings are preferred.

Nandan Srinath, Director, Response at Bennett Coleman & Co speaks about the importance of Innovation, “In a world where everyone is vying for consumer attention, innovation is the perfect platform to have a reader sit up and take notice and engage with the brand on a multi-sensory level. For our advertisers, we have always endeavoured to offer them clutter breaking advertising formats, disruptive, high impact campaigns and never-been-done before brand solutions.”

Of late, all media brands are looking at innovation in a new light. For example, Zee has a dedicated Brand Solutions team that comes up with innovative ideas which go beyond inventory discussions.

Media Delivery

Media delivery continues to be the basic hygiene factor to determine a media plan. It is the only parameter that is quanti�iable. The de�inition of the same is the reach of the medium to a particular set of audience at a particular cost. In actual terms it means how good the deal is in terms of the reach and the audience.

Does it offer good rates and does it add

TOP 10 MEDIA BRANDS IN INDIA RANK

GENRE

BRAND

1.

PRINT Media

The Times of India

1000

2.

TV Movie Channel

Star Movies

896

3.

TV GEC

Sony

827

4.

TV Special Interest

Discovery

808

5.

PRINT Media

Hindu

790

6.

PRINT Media

Hindustan Times

787

7.

TV Children Channel Cartoon network

780

8.

TV Children Channel POGO

768

9.

TV GEC

Star Plus

755

Aaj Tak

721

10. TV News

(Scores out of 1000)

Market has become competitive and to distinguish from other competitive brands, media vehicles which provide innovative offerings are preferred any value? It boils down to a good ROI. As Vikram Sakhuja, CEO, South Asia, Group M puts it, “ROI should be in terms of delivering against the promised cost of reaching a consumer (CPT).” But clients are not satis�ied with numbers alone. They are looking at a qualitative factor to the numbers. The fact that Innovation has scored above Media Delivery in weightage means that decision

“In a world where everyone is vying for consumer attention, innovation is the perfect platform to have a reader sit up and take notice” Nandan Srinath | Director, Response at Bennett Coleman & Co

6

SCORE

makers want something more from the brand.

Debraj Tripathy, MD MediaCom India expresses the need for a comprehensive tool for a qualitative analysis, “Media planners need a comprehensive tool as most of the tools talk about numbers without a way ahead to deal with these numbers. Industry is pumped with surveys and data but with no one to decode the data or provide an analytical outcome of the survey.”

Sales Team’s Knowledge

The Sales Team is a critical force , being the face of the brand. It is the �irst point of contact between the brand and its clients and media planners. 41.95 per cent of respondents consider it the most important parameter, making it the third most important parameter according to the survey. Media decision makers need to know if the sales team understands the media environment and what the brand needs.

Media Planners don’t just expect numbers from the sales team. They are expected to have knowledge of the medium as well as knowledge of the advertisers’ business.

Pitch | September 2014

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INTRODUCTION Powered by

WEIGHTAGE OF PARAMETERS Parameter

Level of importance

Relative importance (100)

Innovation

50.62

19.77

Media delivery

47.3

18.47

Professionalism

40.34

15.76

Relationshp

35.23

13.76

Sales team knowledge

41.9575

16.39

Servicing ability

40.59

15.85

The scores are based on responses for statements The score is calculated taking TOI as 1000

“Media planners need a comprehensive tool as most of the tools talk about numbers without a way ahead to deal with these numbers” Debraj Tripathy | MD MediaCom India

Servicing Ability

After the Sales Team’s Knowledge is their Servicing Ability. 40.59 per cent respondents think it is a critical factor in choosing a media brand. Media, unlike other industries is evaluated on a daily basis and from content to content. Eventually, the salience and satisfaction that a brand enjoys with the endconsumer (be it the advertisers or the viewers/readers/listeners) is directly proportional to the servicing ability of the media brand. This ability can be de�ined as the ability to deliver solutions and living on promises. Is the organisation quick to respond and is it easily accessible?

Professionalism

Transparency, ethics and clear communication are the essential qualities of a professional media brand. Media decision makers have become tougher and want to asso-

8

ciate with brands that are professional in their attitude. 40.34 percent respondents found this to be a critical parameter.

Relationship

35.23 per cent of the respondents have acknowledged Relationship as a critical parameter to judge a media brand. How is the relationship with the organisation? That becomes an important question in the process of decision making. Maintaining a warm relationship helps in a big way. Explaining issues becomes much easier if the media planners and managers enjoy a good relationship.

With so much money at stake, all stakeholders agree that cordial relationships will help a brand get an audience with greater ease. But in an ROI driven environment, relationship is not the only criterion.  - rashi.bisaria@exchange4media.com

METHODOLOGY Target Group The Target Group for the survey was key Media Planners/Buyers and marketers. Media buyers included those, responsible for purchasing media space or time, as well as developing the campaign. The minimum experience required to be eligible for interview was 3 years.

Among advertisers, it was essential that the Client contact was well versed with co-coordinating with print media representatives directly.

In every agency / company around 1 – 2 respondents were interviewed at one time. In order to evaluate media vehicles with accuracy and unbiased outlook, experienced Media planners were questioned.

The cities surveyed were Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Bengaluru.

Method A quantitative approach was used to assess the brands. Purposive sampling was followed by face-to-face interactions on the basis of a structured questionnaire. Multiple leading media houses, in print, TV and Radio across different languages and periodicities were selected Field Work The �ieldwork was carried out by Hansa Research’s in house �ield team, working under the supervision of regional Field Managers and the overall control of the research executive handling the project. Specially trained corporate interviewers conducted all interviews across the different segments.

Quality Control In order to control quality, the following measures were implemented during the �ieldwork • Supervisor scrutiny of all completed questionnaires • Back checks of 50 % interviews • Spot/surprise �ield checks by both �ield and research executives Scores On every dimension in 6 dimensions, The Times Of India has got the maximum score. In overall scores too, TOI has the maximum score. Hence, it has been marked as 1000 and the scores for the rest of the vehicles has been worked out in relation to this score of 1000 Pitch | September 2014

Pitch | September 2014

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TV INTRODUCTION Powered by

Making sense of a cluttered market

10

Pitch | September2014

Powered by

By ANKUR GAURAV

I

t’s a cluttered market for Television media with each player scrambling for eyeballs. According to PMMAO 2014, the total media spends in the country hit a record high of 32,000 cr but TV’s pie seemed to have grown by a single digit rate of 8.2 per cent in 2013. Over the years, the total media spend has increased from 25,000 cr in 2010 to 32,000 cr in 2013, but TV’s pie hasn’t. Surprisingly, , the average score of television in the overall ranking is 426 while Print scored better than TV with an average score of 448 and radio with the best average of 471.

Television media with a growth rate of 8.2 per cent looks like a growth story but the reality is a little different. It’s a cluttered market out there with huge gaps in scores.

The highest score in the overall ranking is of Star Movies while the lowest rank also goes to a TV brand – Mega 24. In the last �ive years the number of major channels has grown from 500 in 2010 to more than 800 registered and licensed media brands in 2013.

There is a de�inite slump in the quality of media delivery, professionalism and innovation; but after all, these channels do ex-

ist. Will they exist after �ive years? Fifty percent of such channels should worry about the future.

Marketers spent 32,000 cr in 2013 and television’s pie was 12,000 cr whereas in 2010 the spend was 25,000 Cr and television’s pie was 11,500 cr. The 500 cr is distributed among 50 per cent more brands and space. But the same might not be possible in the future. For brands like Mega 24, Aditya TV, social media is bound to eat into their pie. Television’s ad share has been bitten by social media by 5 percent in the last �ive years. According to Ashish Bhasin, CEO, Aegis Media, “The radical shift in television industry might happen in the next �ive years.

Media brands at the bottom of this pyramid will go through strict scrutiny of marketers.”

Star Movies has been rated the best in all movie channels. With an overall score of 896, the movie channel scored more than 900 in three of the parameters and their lowest is 868 in Sales Team’s Knowledge.

There is no other brand in the entire list of 103 media vehicles across the country which has touched the 900 mark. Sports and Business Channels have not been included in the survey.

The average looks weakest in case of Television but then it is also because the num-

TOP 10 TV CHANNELS

RANK

Pitch | September 2014

ber of TV channels is 90, Print media vehicles is 19 and Radio 7. TV media brands rule the list of best performers. 14 media brands could surpass the 700 mark, out of which 10 are TV brands, 3 from Print and just Radio Mirchi from the list of radio brands. This is where the dominance of television as a medium is legitimised.

According to Krishna Kumar, Client Leader, Maxus Global TV is in the process of fragmentation, “A lot of new and specialised channels are coming up for example - Food channels, Lifestyle channels, Mythology channel and also a health channel. This simply proves that the market is not inclined towards any speci�ic TV genre. With respect to this , there will be a lot of mergers and acquisitions in the coming years as the low scoring media vehicles are likely to phase out or lose on the pie they have been getting.

Networks will become more prominent and more TV genres will come up rather than any speci�ic genre taking away the major advertising pie.”

Television, due to its reach and impact will continue to grab the largest pie for years to come but the danger of a major wipe-out continues to hover around the ones at the bottom of this clutter.  - ankur.gaurav@exchange4media.com

GENRE

BRAND

SCORE

1

Movie

Star Movies

896

2

GEC

Sony

827

3

Special Interest Discovery

808

4

Children

Cartoon network

780

5

Children

POGO

768

6

GEC

Star Plus

755

7

News

Aaj Tak

721

8

Special Interest National Geographic 715

9

Movie

HBO

709

10

GEC

Zee TV

667

11

12

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13

GENERAL ENTERTAINMENT CHANNELS Powered by

GECs need to provide differentiated content

GENERAL ENTERTAINMENT CHANNELS

By ANKUR GAURAV

H

indi GECs continue to remain marketers’ favorite genre and that is why we have the highest number of GECs in the list. However, GECs seem to be losing their shine. On an average, the overall score of GECs is 397 which is the lowest compared to all other genres.

In the list of Top ten media vehicles in the country, TV rules but GECs are not in the list except Sony which has scored maximum in this genre of TV channels.

With an average score of 827, Sony ranks third in the entire spectrum of media vehicles in the country. Star plus is the closest rival which is positioned at 9th place in the overall rankings with an average score of 755.

When asked about the appeal of Sony for marketers, Gaurav Seth, Senior Vice President, Head-Marketing at Sony explained, “ Sony offers cost effective and innovative media deliverables. All through the year , Sony offers a variety of events, shows and series, variety being key to sustain the au-

RANK

dience of our clients.”

Citing a recent example of innovative offerings, Gaurav said, “Indian Idol Junior was sponsored by Kotak Mahindra. Kotak Mahindra launched the children’s account during this show. This proves that if you have the right number and quality of audience, marketers can make it the centre stage for their products’ promotions.”

Ironically, the average score of GECs with respect to innovation is the least among all other television genres. But the number of GEC channels evaluated is 27 which is much more than all other genres and the average score going down is very much due to this large number of GECs. The average score of top four GECs which are – Sony, Star plus, Zee TV and Colors is 727 which is satisfactorily higher compared to all other TV genres.

In terms of innovation Sony and Star Plus are the only two GECS which have crossed the 700 mark whereas in terms of Media Delivery Colors performed better in

“Star does not shy away from continuing to disrupt the grammar of creativity, regardless of the numbers it generates” Uday Shankar | CEO, Star India

BRAND SCORE

1

827

2

755

3

667

4

658

5

531

6

509

7

458

8

409

9

382

10

372

11

310

12

305

13

304

14

298

15

295

(Scores out of 1000)

14

Pitch | September 2014

Pitch | September 2014

15

GENERAL ENTERTAINMENT CHANNELS Powered by

RANK

BRAND SCORE

RANK

BRAND SCORE

RANK

BRAND SCORE

1

Sony

778

1

Sony

886

1

Sony

825

2

Star Plus

738

2

Star Plus

794

2

Star Plus

749

3

Colors

669

3

Colors

709

3

Zee TV

710

4

Zee TV

626

4

Zee TV

681

4

Colors

601

5

Life OK

466

5

Sab TV

526

5

Sab TV

599

6

Sab TV

444

6

Sun TV

508

6

Life OK

535

7

Sun TV

407

7

Life OK

507

7

Star Utsav

512

8

Star Utsav

342

8

Gemini TV

397

8

Sun TV

462

9

Gemini TV

331

9

Star Utsav

379

9

Eenadu TV

418

10 Eenadu TV

302

10 Eenadu TV

359

10 Gemini TV

379

11 Udaya TV

279

11 Udaya TV

297

11 Raj TV

362

12 Jaya TV

260

12 Asianet

291

12 Zee Tamil

331

13 Vijay TV(star Vijay)

242

13 Vijay TV(star Vijay)

287

13 Zee Telugu

328

14 Kalaignar TV

242

14 Zee Telugu

284

14 Jaya TV

324

15 Raj TV

237

15 ETV Kannada

280

15 Vijay TV(star Vijay)

318

contrast to its slack performance with respect to other parameters. Colors scored 709 and stood at number 3 in Media Delivery pitted against the overall number 3 Zee, which scored 681 in Media Delivery.

Commenting on media delivery as the only quanti�iable parameter for decision makers, Star India CEO Uday Shankar said, “Unfortunately, there isn’t yet a tool that qualitatively measures media brands for the creativity and innovation they offer. Hence, the decision of marketers and media planners has sometimes been highly number-driven which doesn’t always re�lect the reality. However, Star does not shy away from continuing to disrupt the grammar of creativity, regardless of the numbers it generates.”

Star has come up with several innovations in content and has a network of differentiated brands with a clear point of view. “We believe in thought and ideas leadership – not ratings leadership

16

PROFESSIONALISM

MEDIA DELIVERY

“ Sony offers cost effective and innovative media deliverables.

All through the year , Sony offers a variety of events, shows and series, to sustain the audience of our clients.”

Gaurav Seth | Senior Vice President, Head-Marketing at Sony alone. However with leadership should come a premium for innovation and investment. In terms of innovative solutions to advertisers, Star pioneered the concept of roadblocks on television for disruptive impact” adds Shankar.

The dominance of the top four GECs is very evident. Sony beats them all by a huge margin in all the parameters, in fact as far as Media Delivery is concerned, Sony scored 886 against the number 2 Star plus which is nowhere close to Sony with a score of 794. Except in innovation Sony crossed the rare 800 mark in the

rest of �ive parameters standing tall in the list of GECs. The competition between Sony and Star Plus is only going to become more �ierce in the coming years as they are the only two contenders close to matching the content, quality and professionalism delivered by special interest channels.

The difference in the overall scores of Sony and Colors is 169 points and that of Sony and Zee TV is 160 points.

The rise of special interest channels, and more number of movie channels is going to hamper the growth of GECs. Also, Pitch | September 2014

(Scores out of 1000)

INNOVATION

Pitch | September 2014

17

GENERAL ENTERTAINMENT CHANNELS Powered by

SALES TEAM’S KNOWLEDGE

RELATIONSHIP RANK

BRAND

SCORE

RANK

BRAND

SERVICE ABILITY

SCORE

RANK

BRAND

SCORE

1

Sony

830

1

Sony

835

1

Sony

803

2

Star Plus

763

2

Star Plus

759

2

Star Plus

721

3

Zee TV

662

3

Zee TV

658

3

Zee TV

669

4

Colors

643

4

Colors

644

4

Colors

660

5

Sab TV

598

5

Sab TV

520

5

Sab TV

531

6

Life OK

531

6

Life OK

500

6

Life OK

530

7

Sun TV

502

7

Sun TV

411

7

Sun TV

456

8

Star Utsav

469

8

Eenadu TV

401

8

Eenadu TV

421

9

Eenadu TV

432

9

Star Utsav

376

9

Star Utsav

412

10 Gemini TV

416

10 Gemini TV

342

10 Gemini TV

376

11 Zee Tamil

384

11 Raj TV

320

11 Udaya TV

344

12 Jaya TV

370

12 Udaya TV

318

12 Vijay TV(star Vijay)

339

13 Raj TV

360

13 Surya TV

297

13 Zee Telugu

339

14 Zee Telugu

355

14 Jaya TV

293

14 Jaya TV

337

15 Vijay TV(star Vijay)

354

15 Zee Telugu

289

15 Raj TV

327

the increasing number of media players in this category means the viewership is divided and so is the revenue. Fragmentation of television has helped marketers locate and track the niche consumers. This has helped the special interest channels as well as new movie channels in the country. GECs continue to get the maximum viewership and are still darling of marketers but increasing competition, more options for viewers simply translates into divisions in the advertisement pie. How many of these GECs will survive is what would be of interest in the coming years.

GECs too need to become more targeted in their content delivery to be able to cater to speci�ic sets of audiences and reduce the spillover. Channels are coming up with differentiated positioning to create a niche for themselves. The newly launched Zindagi from the Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd caters to a premium mass audience. Its stated position is

18

(Scores out of 1000)

“There is an increased demand for a differentiated offering and with Zindagi, we want to set a benchmark” Priyanka Datta | Business Head, Zindagi that of a platform that airs content from across the borders. The shows are based on renowned novels and the novelists themselves have written the adaptations.

Priyanka Datta, Business Head, Zindagi says, “We have to �ire the viewer’s imagination by launching shows that would break the monotony that currently exists in GEC’s. There is an increased demand for a differentiated offering and with Zindagi, we want to set a benchmark.

Whether it’s the viewer, distributor or the advertiser, convincing them to shell out cash is another challenge. We have spent time in reiterating the uniqueness

of Zindagi, the immaculate and �inite content from perfect script to talented actors, and of course, when they experienced the shows, they realized its worth.”

The coming years will see more competition, more innovation and more players in this space. Uday Shankar says, “The concept of genres is outdated. What will rule today and in the future is compelling content. The winners will be those who invest in high-quality content and marketing to create destinations and brands of choice.” The future will be dependent on compelling content. - ankur.gaurav@exchange4media.co Pitch | September 2014

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Q&A

ASHISH SEHGAL Powered by

“Most of our shows support brand integration” A

shish Sehgal, Chief Sales Officer, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited, in conversation with Devansh Sharma speaks about brand solution ideas, media delivery and the impact of digital on television in the coming years.

Q&A

How important is it for a media brand like Zee to give innovative solutions to advertisers? Can you throw light on some innovative solutions the network has used?

Innovation is of paramount importance and cannot be overruled or overlooked in any circumstance. At Zee we have a dedicated brand solutions team which keeps coming up with innovative, out- of- the- box ideas, way beyond mundane negotiations or inventory discussions. We work closely with the brands and figure out what synergies can be incorporated in our products, across the network and not only on one channel but across channels. This also helps us to create non-FCT revenues. We approach people with brand solution ideas.

It can be simple ideas around integration with shows or an idea which benefits the

20

whole network. A good example is the Tata Tea’s ‘Power of 49’ campaign and how we worked closely with them.

Most of our shows support brand integration. For example, brand Cadbury found integration with the show Dance India Dance. Around six months back, when the Fair and Lovely re-launch took place, we dedicated two episodes of one of our popular TV shows “sapne suhane ladakpan ke” to it. In fact, Zee Marathi’s popular show “Aamhi Saare Khavayye” a cookery show was a great platform for integration of HUL brands.

Media Delivery is perhaps the only quanti�iable parameter, so should media decision makers focus only on this while taking decisions? Wouldn’t that amount to short sightedness?

Pitch | September 2014

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Other parameters have to be taken into consideration as well while considering a media brand. Servicing a client is as important a parameter as delivery . Media delivery can be similar across many channels or media brands, but the servicing and the comfort level you have with your media brand might differ. Deliveries are important but the advertiser likes to put his money in a media brand which evokes confidence and where his comfort level lies. From Zee’s perspective, I can confidently say that we work closely with our advertisers and give them a congenial working environment.

Our sales team understands the kind of deliveries that different advertisers expect. We have a huge connect with our advertisers as well as their agencies and ensure that our teams are present to service them efficiently.

In your opinion which TV genre is going to make maximum revenues in the near future?

Pitch | September 2014

In my opinion, GECs at any given point of time.

What kind of innovations in Television can be introduced to counter the competition from digital?

At present, digital poses no competition to television since it cannot match the reach of television. Digital needs to first match the reach which may happen in the long run. But digital can be a bit of a threat to niche channels which target a specific audience that has better exposure to digital content. For instance, viewers with a preference for English movies/ content will get it on the web and are comfortable with it. That scenario might prove to be a threat to television. So Television companies are becoming more cautious about what content is to be shared on digital.

Initially it came as syndicated revenue, an addition to what you were getting.

With respect to any show being aired, if you wish to be current, you have to watch it on TV first. Digital might have an early

impact on niche channels but otherwise it will take time to compete with television.

I think catch-up TV is becoming more popular than TV. For instance people have digital recorders at home, so instead of going to YouTube they go to the recorder and watch the missed episode.

What will be the impact of ad cap regulations on the advertising strategy of various brands?

It will reduce the inventory across different channels, and the pricing will increase. In the short term even the advertiser, in the absence of increasing budgets, has reduced his appetite of GRPs to match the monies they have to pay. But in the long term the revenue will grow because the GRP requirement will keep on increasing. So long term impact will be more money being poured into the system. The pricing will also start to be commensurate vis-Ă -vis the availability of the slots. n - devansh.sharma@exchange4media.com

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Pitch | September 2014

Pitch | September 2014

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What are brands looking for in a media vehicle like TV? Rajendra Khare

CMD – SureWaves MediaTech Pvt Ltd

24

S

ince the invention of advertising on Broadcast Television in the 1940’s, Television has continued to be the biggest public platform for brand communication in all parts of the world.

Like a young classical dancer, who after years of hard work, training and practice under the guidance of a Guru, aspires to deliver a public performance at her Arangetram, brands too have aspired to perform on Television to announce to the world that they have arrived. Mere appearance of a brand on the Television media is meant to convey that it represents a product or a service that has been chiselled and nurtured to near perfection.

As the global media landscape continues to evolve, building a brand has its own challenges. Let us take a closer look at what brands are looking for in a

media like TV. We all know building a brand is a serious business proposition. Brand owners invest signi�icantly in creation of the brand identity and chalking out a roadmap to creating the right brand image that would not only inspire trust, credibility and acceptance amongst the target audiences, but would also drive their long term business objectives for growth in revenues and pro�its.

Television has been a popular choice for brands as they can best connect with their target audiences when they are completely engaged with their multi-sensory faculties immersed in the experience while the brand performs in all its glory with the sounds, music, motion, picture, graphics, shapes, copy, story, humor, emotion, drama and the brand ambassador with whom they can empathise.

Most other forms of media rarely enjoy such complete attention.

Television is the best instrument to deliver to mass audiences and the cost per reach is probably amongst the lowest as compared to any other media, though, on an absolute scale, it tends to be quite a signi�icant component of the media spend for any brand. Hence driving cost ef�iciency and maximizing the return on investments in terms of effective reach and frequency amongst the target audiences is of paramount importance for brands.

Over the years, television audiences have been fragmenting amongst the ever growing number of satellite and cable regional channels which cater to different tastes of the audience based on their local context, Pitch | September 2014

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language preferences and socio-cultural backgrounds. In a vast and culturally diverse country like India, there are already more than 800 satellite channels and hundreds of cable regional channels with the numbers expected to only grow in the days to come. It is quite a challenge now to achieve brand penetration through a one size �its all strategy.

As far as brands are concerned, it is not the channels but the markets that matter to them. They would like to target distinct markets differently by tuning their messaging for respective target audiences so as to make the best emotional connect in a locally relevant context. This not only helps them maximize the brand impact but also achieve cost-ef�iciency in their media plans.

Audience aggregation technology that helps the brands to achieve sharp targetting on a market-by-market basis and enables them to easily spread their message amongst a multitude of cable and regional satellite channels, are particularly important for brands to achieve deeper penetration. This is true especially, amongst the emerging neo-rich class of consumers in Tier-2 and Tier-3 towns, which are poised to provide the next biggest growth opportunity for brands across categories.

Measurement, monitoring and accountability go hand in hand with any media that attracts signi�icant advertising.

Brands are looking for signi�icant improvements in the sample sizes used for audience measurement including the LC1 towns which are increasingly becoming

Pitch | September 2014

Content marketing represents a major opportunity for brands to leverage television and begin a new journey much beyond the TVCs more important for their reach, goals and media planning.

Technology innovations that enable real-time monitoring of advertisements aired on the cable regional channels anywhere in the country and the ability to inspect the video archives of commercial breaks anytime, have not only raised the bar for accountability on television but have also opened up the hitherto untapped opportunity for brands to tap into the huge audiences enjoyed by this category.

In recent times, Television has also been driving considerable traf�ic through conversations on social media centered around the content and the advertising on television. It is an opportunity for brands to use Television as the Reach Media and complement it with Social Media interactions. Second screen applications on smart phones linked to the television screen are also of great interest to television advertisers to drive further interactions and engagement. These developments have made television even more important for brands than it was ever before.

Brand integration within the content, a.k.a. content marketing represents a major opportunity for brands to leverage television and begin a new journey much beyond the TVCs. Not only products and services, but even the business of politics, governance and social reforms is now increasingly being driven through careful brand management. Recent developments in our country have more than demonstrated the power of the media like television in shaping destinies and opinions. Future battles for not only the market supremacy but also political supremacy will increasingly be fought on the television screen.

And it will be a battle between brands that best know how to leverage the power of the idiot box.

While the well established brands look to constantly charm their target audiences on the theatre of television to stay on topof-the-mind, young emerging brands also have the opportunity to upstage even the iconic brands if only they understand the subtle nuances and tricks for delivering a great performance on the big stage of television.

Haven’t we seen young little dancing sensations now performing their Arangetrams on the all new Rangshala of Television and overnight becoming a nation’s rage? 

The views expressed here are of the author alone, and do not necessarily re�lect the views of Pitch

25

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The birth of a premium mass channel Priyanka Dutta

Business Head, Zindagi and ZEEL FTA cluster

A

Entertainment being such a dynamic industry is continuously evolving and we make it a point to adapt our approach according to the need of the hour 26

t ZEE (Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited) innovation is an essential part of our agenda and we constantly aim to bring something new to the table.

Keeping in mind that we are the world’s leading Indian Television Network, we understand that it is essential that we do not shy away from taking the risk of experimenting with unique initiatives. Entertainment being such a dynamic industry is continuously evolving and we make it a point to adapt our approach according to the need of the hour. Television and its products are never dormant and since the landscape is as animated as a living being, we require keeping a forward-looking perspective to survive. With innovative offerings to advertisers like tele�ilms and access to a newer base of audience, we aim to encourage premium advertisers to shift their focus to television from print.

Zee being a global pioneer in broadcast, today thrives on its strength of unique product offerings tailor-made to audience sensibilities.

We observed a latent desire in the audience to view something different than what is being showcased on current GECs in India that could add

value through television-watching experience. The attention span of viewers has only decreased over the time and it has become a bigger challenge than ever to excite the audience and keep them glued.

We understood that we had to break the monotony and instigate a rise in the level of the quality of content that had become associated to the Hindi GEC Industry. The Pitch | September 2014

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saas-bahu sagas have been reigning for too long and so we sought to offer the viewers an alternative viewing experience.

The launch of the new channel ‘Zindagi’ was conceived keeping all these aspects in mind and being a category creator it became India’s �irst premium mass Hindi entertainment channel. The channel differentiates itself from all the current GECs in the Indian television industry with the promise of stereotype-breaking content that will cater to a ‘premium mass’ audience. The positioning of Zindagi is not on the lines of the existing GECs, it’s a premium mass channel. Current GECs in the market target an audience that has a traditional mind set. Our aim is to cater to the new age woman, for whom the primary concern is work-life balance and not solely entertainment. She is the woman with a progressive mindset. We had conducted an extensive research that revealed that audiences should no longer be targeted solely basis the SEC or geographic divisions, rather they should be targeted basis their mind sets, which plays an integral role in choosing what they want to watch on television. Keeping in mind that in today’s scenario, advertisers have the capacity to spend money if provided with right options,

Pitch | September 2014

The ‘premium mass’ audience looks for exceptional shows with relatable and progressive content and Zindagi will cater to this need of theirs

we took pain-staking efforts to communicate Zindagi’s proposition to the advertisers. Zindagi provides an ideal platform to premium brands who want to target the desired audience.

The ‘premium mass’ audience looks for exceptional shows with relatable and progressive content and Zindagi will cater to this need of theirs. The channel’s proposition ‘Jodey Dilon Ko’ is based on the fact that even if people across the globe are culturally different, the stories of their lives are universal. The shows aired on Zindagi have �inite plots written by reputed authors and literary stalwarts with an

average of 20-25 episodes per series.

Another differentiator of Zindagi is that every show has an original sound track sung by popular singers like Raahat Fateh Ali Khan, Abida Parveen, Shafqat Amanat Ali and Ali Zafar among others. Moreover, these shows do not follow the 22 minutes formats and are aired 7 days a week, every day Monday to Sunday. These unique features are what have created the compelling proposition of the new category – the ‘premium mass’ audience.

In an industry as dynamic as entertainment, differentiated content is quintessential to survive. Advertisers seek platforms where they can make a mark in the clutter and be heard amongst all the noise. By targeting audience on a platform like Zindagi, advertisers can successfully communicate their message to their audience where chances of being drowned amongst the crowd are substantially less. The response Zindagi has garnered till now has further validated this fact and as the channel moves out of its nascent stage, we look towards the holistic growth of advertisements in the television segment itself.

The views expressed here are of the author alone, and do not necessarily re�lect the views of Pitch

27

MOVIE CHANNELS Powered by

Ahead in

Professionalism MOVIE CHANNELS

RANK

28

BRAND SCORE

1

896

2

709

3

611

4

608

5

596

6

517

7

507

8

471

9

453

10

429

11

413

12

372

13

343

14

274

15

241 Pitch | September 2014 (Scores out of 1000)

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1.

Star Movies

908

E 1.

Star Movies

934

1.

Star Movies

900

2.

HBO

738

2.

HBO

728

2.

HBO

699

3.

Zee Cinema

643

3.

Star Gold

631

3.

Star Gold

651

4.

Set Max

636

4.

Set Max

628

4.

Set Max

591

5.

Star Gold

599

5.

Zee Cinema

586

5.

Zee Cinema

588

6.

Sony Pix

487

6.

Movies Now

518

6.

Sony Pix

540

7.

Movies Now

461

7.

Sony Pix

505

7.

Movies Now

540

8.

Star Movies Action

458

8.

UTV Movies

474

8.

Star Movies Action

515

9.

UTV Movies

421

9.

Star Movies Action

428

9.

UTV Movies

476

10. Movies OK

406

10. Movies OK

422

10. Zee studio

434

11. Zee studio

375

11. Zee studio

408

11. Movies OK

418

12. Warner Brother

322

12. Warner Brother

335

12. Warner Brother

404

13. Zee Classic

280

13. Zee Classic

332

13. Zee Classic

356

14. Zee Primeire

227

14. Zee Primeire

245

14. Zee Primeire

290

15. KTV

164

15. KTV

237

15. KTV

281

INNOVATION RANK

BRAND

Pitch | August 2014

SCORE

MEDIA DELIVERY

RANK

BRAND

SCORE

seen a spurt in the last few years when the �irst phase of digitization began. Among all English movie channels, Star Movies has emerged as a great alternative for Media Planners and advertisers. The channel was rated highest across all 6 parameters used for the survey in this category. Star Movies is one of the only two channels that have scored more than 900 in any parameter. English movie channels are leading the list and the primary reason is their performance in pro-

PROFESSIONALISM

RANK

BRAND

SCORE

(Scores out of 1000)

By ANKUR GAURAV

nglish movie content in India has always held an aspirational appeal for the middle classes. Since the launch of Star Movies and HBO in India, the hunger for English content has seen an increase, leading to the launch of more channels in the genre. With the shift to digitization the scope for English movie content has signi�icantly increased.

It’s a fertile ground for advertisers with the viewership of English channels having

29

MOVIE CHANNELS Powered by

RANK

BRAND

SCORE

RANK

SALES TEAM’S KNOWLEDGE BRAND

SERVICE ABILITY

SCORE

RANK

BRAND

SCORE

1.

Star Movies

869

1.

Star Movies

868

1.

Star Movies

873

2.

HBO

682

2.

HBO

688

2.

HBO

704

3.

Set Max

598

3.

Star Gold

585

3.

Zee Cinema

615

4.

Star Gold

587

4.

Set Max

568

4.

Set Max

612

5.

Movies Now

576

5.

Zee Cinema

562

5.

Star Gold

608

6.

Zee Cinema

568

6.

Movies Now

509

6.

Sony Pix

524

7.

Sony Pix

539

7.

Star Movies Action

480

7.

Movies Now

516

8.

Star Movies Action

486

8.

Sony Pix

453

8.

Star Movies Action

481

9.

UTV Movies

482

9.

Movies OK

430

9.

Movies OK

463

10. Zee studio

475

10. UTV Movies

411

10.

UTV Movies

456

11. Movies OK

451

11. Zee studio

379

11.

Zee studio

421

12. Zee Classic

432

12. Warner Brother

379

12.

Warner Brother

405

13. Warner Brother

421

13. Zee Classic

309

13.

Zee Classic

377

14. Zee Primeire

315

14. Zee Primeire

293

14.

Zee Primeire

302

15. KTV

277

15. KTV

238

15.

KTV

275

fessionalism, media delivery and innovation which is consistently more than 850.

STAR SHINES

Star movies top the charts with maximum scores in all parameters of marking. Professionalism (900) and innovation (908) were key in de�ining Star Movies as one of the most organized and transparent media brands in the country.

So just what sets Star Movies apart from the other Movie channels? “While media delivery is an effective indicator, brand perception and content strength are important too. Star Movies has enjoyed the undisputed leadership position in the movies genre for 20 years now and this is backed by the strong brand equity we’ve built and the power of the strongest library of over 800 movie titles and over 50 blockbuster premieres, a number that can’t be matched by any other channel in the genre, “ says Kevin Vaz, Star India’s Business Head for English Channels.

Speaking about the importance of viewer associations with the brand, Kevin adds, “From hosting 200 simultaneous movie parties at consumer homes with Chill Out Nites to providing viewers the opportunity to pose with the actual trophy won by Ms.

30

Bhanu Athaiya for the promotion of the Oscars, we at Star Movies, have always believed in creating experiences for our viewers and advertisers through strong engagement opportunities and high impact campaigns.

With Life of Pi we offered viewers an exclusive opportunity to explore the amazing Land of Pi. One winner from the viewers and one from our sponsor’s subscriber base were selected for this unique experience providing the perfect association with the biggest blockbuster of the year.”

ENGLISH VERSUS HINDI MOVIE CHANNELS

The top �ive according to Pitch Brandometer 2014, are Star Movies, HBO, Star Gold, Set Max and Zee Cinema. Two English channels beating some of the best and well-loved Hindi channels by a margin of 97 points. In the list of top ten movie channels in India, four are English movie channels and six are Hindi movie channels. The surprising insight is that the English channels have proved to be superior than their Hindi counterparts across all 6 parameters used.

SET MAX – BREAKING THE RULES

Set Max has donned a new strategy when

(Scores out of 1000)

RELATIONSHIP

it breaks out of its movie channel mode and becomes a sports channel by broadcasting the IPL and Champions Trophy.

It’s �lexibility and nimbleness in changing avatars has worked sporadically for it but it has lost out in the race to become the most professional and innovative movie channel for advertisers. Set Max lies below Star Gold with a score of 608 against Star Gold’s 611.

Times Group’s Movies Now and recently launched Romedy Now have attracted marketers and viewers alike. These are channels to keep a look out for in the coming months as they develop and evolve in content and format. As of now, Movies Now is ranked at number 6 in the list.

Movies as a genre, have been gaining prominence due to various reasons. Generation of more content, digitization, broadcast of latest releases and innovative packages have all played a distinct role in winning viewer and advertiser trust and interest. The top �ive’s average score for movie channels is 684 which is highest among all categories and genres, except the special interest channels which have a better average (716) of the top �ive.  - ankur.gaurav@exchange4media.com

Pitch | September 2014

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Being Able to Stand Out is Imperative Kevin Vaz

General Manager, STAR India English Cluster

We believe in creating experiences for our viewers through strong engagement opportunities and high impact campaigns

Pitch | September 2014

S

tar Movies has enjoyed the undisputed leadership position in the movies genre for 20 years now and this is backed by the strong brand equity we’ve built and the power of the strongest library of over 800 movie titles and over 60 blockbuster premieres, a number that can’t be matched by any other channel in the genre. We have 2.5 times more new content than competition and over 20 premieres are $100 Mn+ grossers worldwide.

At Star Movies we always believe in creating experiences for our viewers through strong engagement opportunities and high impact campaigns. The campaigns for all our big premieres are always planned across mediums to give viewers a chance to interact more closely with the brand. From hosting 200 simultaneous movie parties at consumer homes with Chill Out Nites to providing viewers the opportunity to pose with the actual trophy won

by Ms. Bhanu Athaiya for the promotion of the Oscars, we at Star Movies, have always built experiential campaigns for both our viewers and advertisers.

We’ve recently concluded an action packed promotional campaign for premiere of ‘FAST & FURIOUS 6’, where the winners enjoyed the drive of a lifetime at the Buddh International circuit and we trended for over 34 hours on twitter with over 10000+ entries on the week-

end of the movie premiere.

In today’s cluttered environment, brands want to be noticed and innovative solutions are a very effective marketing tool for advertisers.

At Star Movies, we pride ourselves not only on the best exclusive content that we have acquired but the ability to provide pioneering ideas to the brands that advertise with us. We believe that apart from share of voice, the quality of communication and being able to stand out is imperative.

With ‘Life of Pi’ we offered viewers an exclusive opportunity to explore the amazing Land of Pi. One winner from the viewers and one from our sponsor’s subscriber base were selected for this unique experience providing the perfect association with the biggest blockbuster of the year. We are always creating new opportunities like programming stunts, customized festivals, exciting initiatives like the Star English Megablock for our advertisers.

Our exclusive content, spectacular library, innovative clutter breaking ideas backed by a very strong Advertising Sales team, make Star Movies the perfect platform for advertisers to showcase and build their brands. 

The views expressed here are of the author alone, and do not necessarily re�lect the views of Pitch

31

CHILDREN’S CHANNELS Powered by

No Kidding with

KIDS’ CHANNELS

By ANKUR GAURAV & RASHI BISARIA

T

he category which emerged as the highest scorer across categories is the Children’s Channel category.

With an average score of 509, Children’s Channels are a surprise package for most media planners. Kids have become the biggest in�luencers for several brands. Many sectors like Banking and Financial Services are reaching out to masses through children’s channels.

Turner wins

Cartoon network surpassed all other children’s channels in offering innovative solutions with 780 points followed by the sister channel POGO which is positioned as the second best children’s channel with an average overall score of 768. Cartoon Network was rated as the best in four of the parameters except in Sales Team’s Knowledge and Service Ability, where POGO was rated better than Cartoon Network. Overall Turner has been an outstanding performer producing great content and satisfying clients with innovative content and advertising solutions.

Commenting on the importance of innovation for advertisers, Juhi Ravindranath, Vice President, Ad Sales, South Asia, Turner International India Pvt Ltd says, “Today the advertiser wants far more bang for his buck than before. Innovation is something that brands like ours offer as differentiators. We operate 2 of the leading Kids brands, and advertisers want to associate with not just our channel but our key franchises as well.

Properties like Chotta Bheem, Roll No 21, Ben 10 are well loved. We offer customized solutions in the on air space in the form

32

CHILDREN’S CHANNELS

RANK

BRAND SCORE

1

780

2

768

3

513

4

361

5

328

6

305 (Scores out of 1000)

of animated tickers, interesting vignettes, contests, week and day long stunts available for branding opportunities.”

But is media delivery the only parameter which should be used to judge a media brand? “Media Delivery is indeed quanti�iable, and helps compare channels on 1 scale. It clearly ranks channels on the basis of viewership. If media deliveries were the only criteria for media decision makers, we would see genres earning revenues in line with their share of viewership. This is clearly not the case, with genres like news, sports, English entertainment earning revenues that are much higher than viewership share,” explains Juhi.

Riding on Relationships & Media Delivery

The category outperformed others in two areas, that of Relationship and Media Delivery. The average score of the category in Relationship turned out to be 532 and 524 in Media Delivery. The clients have utilized this as a great platform to synergize their product and brand communication tools with the content on these channels. The channels have also been leaders in maintaining relationships on high priority.

Prominent position among the top ten brands

Cartoon Network and POGO have managed to mark their presence in the list of ten best media brands in the country. Cartoon NetPitch | September 2014

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MEDIA DELIVERY

INNOVATION RANK

BRAND SCORE

RANK

BRAND SCORE

PROFESSIONALISM RANK

BRAND SCORE

1. Cartoon Network

781

1. Cartoon network

840

1. Cartoon network

772

2. POGO

773

2. POGO

804

2. POGO

744

3. Hungama

452

3. Hungama

526

3.

Hungama

532

4. Nickelodeon

302

4. Chutti TV

343

4.

Nickelodeon

418

5. Nick Junior

250

5. Nickelodeon

340

5. Chutti TV

365

6. Chutti TV

236

6. Nick Junior

290

6. Nick Junior

312

RELATIONSHIP RANK

BRAND SCORE

RANK

SALES TEAM’S KNOWLEDGE

SERVICE ABILITY

BRAND SCORE

RANK

BRAND SCORE

1. Cartoon network

747

1. POGO

753

1.

POGO

777

2. POGO

741

2. Cartoon network

747

2.

Cartoon network

750

3. Hungama

566

3. Hungama

512

3.

Hungama

504

4. Nickelodeon

418

4. Nickelodeon

342

4.

Nickelodeon

377

5. Chutti TV

394

5. Nick Junior

335

5.

Chutti TV

347

6. Nick Junior

325

6. Chutti TV

309

6.

Nick Junior

342

(Scores out of 1000)

work was positioned at number seven and POGO at number 8. However the third best in this category is Hungama which could only manage 513 points followed by Nickelodeon. The obvious choices of media planners in this category are Cartoon Network and POGO but the potential for other channels is huge. Children are considered to be the most active set of audiences on Television and are the only group which is

Pitch | August 2014

not available on mobile devices.

Targeted approach

Along with highest degree of professionalism shown by children’s channels, the category is bound to be successful also because of an extremely targeted approach in choosing customers. The audience at this age is not fragmented and 90 per cent of children watch Cartoon Network and

POGO. The competition with sports or GEC or News does not apply here and therefore this category enjoys undivided attention of its loyal audience. This gives these channels an edge as an approach as targeted as in this case, is not possible in another category of television entertainment.  - ankur.gaurav@exchange4media.com -rashi.bisaria@exchange4media.com

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Significance of a special interest channel for Marketers and Media Planners Monomita Mukhopadhyay

Marketing Director, Da Vinci Media India Pvt. Ltd.

T

he distracted audience We are living in a world where the audience is constantly distracted and bombarded with information. Every brand today is constantly making efforts to give them a competitive edge in a crowded market. The challenge therefore for marketers is to cut through the intense advertising clutter in young people’s lives.

Need for customization

With consumers having a much wider choice of channels, ownership of quality content is increasingly being seen as a key differentiator for broadcasters 34

It is thus imperative for brands to create a specialized media plan that will provide them a direct reach to their target audience.

This especially holds true from a broadcast media perspective.

Since placement is everything, Channel providers’ strategies vary according to their time-to-market and available resources. With consumers having a much wider choice of channels, ownership of quality content is increasingly being seen as a key differentiator for broadcasters. Marketers can expect more interactivity, personalization and portability as audiences increasingly consume TV entertainment on devices other than the television sets in their living room.

In today’s multiscreen playground, it’s not uncommon for kids to consume content on more than one platform. Gone are the days when the television set was the only screen in the home. Thus, there is immense opportunity for marketers to expand the presence of a brand or a character in the mobile and online space through smart phones, tablets and computers. Moreover, even broadcasters and content houses are increasingly working towards building anytime anywhere access to content.

Pitch | September 2014

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Special interest channels, the way to go Television penetration in India has been growing by leaps and bounds.

Since television burst onto the scene in the 1950s, we have grown to the point that 98% of households in developed countries have at least one television set. So much so that new channel launches and increasing fragmentation of audiences are making the television medium extremely dynamic. Competitive programming amongst channels to woo the viewers is making them opt for niche content.

Pitch | September 2014

Competitive programming amongst channels to woo the viewers is making them opt for niche content As an educational channel for kids we have already started partnering with a variety of brands not only to reach out to kids but parents as well.

Recently we initiated another activity, basically in print, where our content is being inserted in activity papers printed by ‘Primary Plus’, which has tie-ups with 2000 schools across India.

The objective has been to reach out to our core TG through all mediums possible and showcase the wonderful world of Da Vinci Learning to them. The channel also announced partnership with Airtel DTH, Digicable and Siticable to give Indian viewers an opportunity to sample Da Vinci Learning’s rich content portfolio.

The Kids genre garners the 3rd highest

viewership on Indian television and that itself is testimony to the enormous importance of this genre within the television eco system. The genre has especially registered a spurt in growth both in terms of viewership and reach post digitization. Our extensive research suggested that there is a void in the Kids genre in India which needs to be �illed in. We have records of parents suggesting that there is a need for educative and informative channels.

I strongly believe that brands today need to create holistic plans that have various touch points which will further help them reach out to the right target audience. With the massive expansion of media platforms, both professional and consumer generated, media planning too has become more and more complex in recent years.

Families no longer sit down together to watch the same shows every night but instead often have very separate viewing/media consumption habits.

This fragmentation can be fantastic for niche brands that target speci�ic age or interest groups but makes media planning particularly challenging when it comes to mass-market consumer goods brands. 

The views expressed here are of the author alone, and do not necessarily re�lect the views of Pitch

35

NEWS CHANNELS: INTRODUCTION Powered by

NEWS CHANNELS Need to buck up NEWS CHANNELS

The average score of the top four news channels is disappointing compared to GECs or special interest channels

By ANKUR GAURAV

T

he plethora of news channels in the country is quite overwhelming with every major network coming up with a news channel as a part of its bouquet. The packaging of news has given rise to different formats. News, information and entertainment have come together to create immense scope for advertisers. Pitch Media Brandometer Survey has come out with some interesting insights into what makes a news channel appealing

36

for planners. AajTak leads the list of news channels with an average of 721.

AajTak has performed better than the rest in all parameters except professionalism. NDTV 24 X 7 is number two in overall ranking of news channels but was ranked �irst in professionalism with a score of 674.

Commenting on the importance of qualitative parameters, Vikram Chandra, Executive Director and CEO, NDTV Group, says, “Media brands should look

BRAND SCORE

1

721

2

669

3

633

4

607

5

606

6

581

7

558

8

549

9

487

10

457

11

444

12

441

13

397

14

343

15

319

(Scores out of 1000)

RANK

Pitch | September 2014

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at a whole bunch of parameters other than just media delivery to judge how a brand is performing. These can range from positioning, to opinion polls etc.

Media Planners must use a range of different methods to take their decisions.”

POOR AVERAGE SAYS IT ALL

The average score of the top four news channels is disappointing compared to GECs or special interest channels. The rise of news channels had at one time made them come close to GECs but now it seems their charm is fading away. The average of top four channels in GEC category is 727 while in the News category it is only 657. AajTak was the only media media brand that could pass the 700 mark and there is no news channel featuring in the top ten media vehicles’ list in the country. AajTak managed the 11th position in the country.

HIGHLY COMPETITIVE GROUND

News Channels have created a highly competitive ground as most of the national channels’ scores are very close to each other suggesting that there is no outstanding performer in this genre.

Zee News, IBN 7, India TV and Headlines Today have not performed as per the expectations of planners but amongst each other, their scores are highly competitive with Zee scoring 487 rated at number 9 while Headlines Today is at number 12 with a score of 441.

Commenting on the parameters, Anuradha Prasad, Managing Director, Bag Films which owns the news channel News 24, says, “All parameters are

Pitch | September 2014

The rise of news channels had at one time made them come close to GECs but now it seems their charm is fading away. equally important and inter-related. If delivery is not good, you will not end up getting good business.

These should also be an understanding between the sales team and the client.

Another reason why brands like to invest in news channels is the element of breaking news. News channels are dynamic.”

HINDI VS ENGLISH

Hindi News Channels have performed better than English News Channels. Only six English news channels could make a mark in top 15 compared to Hindi news channels which are 8 in number and Sun News is the only regional news channel present in the top 15. Headlines Today slipped to number 12 whereas its counterparts like Times Now, CNN IBN were rated much higher on the list.

NDTV lost the race to the top to AajTak by �loundering in the process of media delivery. The gap between number one AajTak’s media delivery score and number two NDTV’s score is 95 points.

Again, in terms of relationship and sales team’s knowledge this gap is 79 and 109

points respectively.

REGIONAL NEWS CHANNELS REMAIN COMPLACENT

Regional news channels are happy to remain at the bottom of the list. In the last �ive years, the regional news channels have grown in number but have not grown in terms of quality. The category’s average overall score is a meagre 227 which is the lowest compared to all other categories.

Regional news channels lack innovation in their offerings and have performed poorly in all the six parameters in Pitch Media Brandometer 2014. Sun News is the only news channel which managed to cross the score of 300 and was rated better than DD News and News X, but the other channels remained reluctant to improve, from where they were �ive years ago.  - ankur.gaurav@exchange4media.com

37

ENGLISH NEWS CHANNELS Powered by

English News Channels

Ahead of their Hindi Counterparts

By ANKUR GAURAV

E

nglish news channels as a category has seen a major setback without any of its top players scoring more than 700.

None of them features in the list of top ten media brands in the country. NDTV 24 X 7 leads the chart with an overall score of 669.

The category boasts of producing the most talked about shows and has given birth to some well known and highly regarded news personalities. But for an advertiser the channels have not managed to come up to expectations.

NDTV 24 X 7 AHEAD OF THE PACK

NDTV 24 X 7 tops the charts in all the six parameters, and even in the overall news channels list it performed better than almost all Hindi and regional news channels. NDTV’s overall ranking in the list of all media brands in the country is 16th. It stayed ahead of its international big brother BBC in all the 6 parameters used in the survey. NDTV 24 X 7 scored its highest at 708 in Innovation, 53 points ahead of BBC News. Commenting on the importance of innovation for a media brand, Vikram Chandra, Executive Director and CEO, NDTV Group said, “It is absolutely critical for all media brands to look at innovation in all aspects. That is something which we have tried to do. In India, there has been an issue for some time about ratings and numbers, so good programming hasn’t always translated into ratings and therefore revenue. We didn’t want to get into the ratings game at the cost of the quality of our programming, which is why we have focused on �inding innovative programming ideas which we can then take to corporates and brands. This is something which has worked very well for us.”

THE TALLY AFTER NDTV

Marketers prefer BBC News in the list of English news channels followed by CNN IBN and

38

NEWS CHANNELS

RANK

BRAND SCORE

1

669

2

633

3

607

4

606

5

581

6

441

7

319 (Scores out of 1000)

Times Now. Audience engagement is something that BBC is focusing on. “ I would look at leveraging technology to come up with innovative ways to grow the relationship with the audience. We are looking at more user generated content,” explains Terri Seow, Head of Marketing, BBC World, APAC region. CNN IBN and Times Now were at 3rd and 4th positions. The tally also suggests that Indian Media is a bigger favorite among marketers and

prominence of international media is limited to BBC News and CNN only. Headlines today and News X are far from challenging the top four. Headlines Today’s score is 441 which is 140 points lesser than CNN. Sanjay Dua, outgoing CEO, Network 18 News Media Network says, “Most marketers and media planners look for more value additions, more offerings, a quicker and faster media delivery plan at cost-effective pricing.

Brands need to consistently keep innovating their media plans in line with various brand objectives.”

TIMES NOW SELLS WELL

As far as Sales Team’s Knowledge is concerned, Times Now has scored better than number 2, BBC News. Times Now’s has earned an overall rank of number 4, whereas in terms of sales team’s knowledge it is ranked at the top. Times Now has scored 618 points and is ahead of BBC News in this category, whereas CNN jumped two positions

“It is absolutely critical for all media brands to look at innovation in all aspects and that is something which we have tried to do” Vikram Chandra | Executive Director and CEO, NDTV Group

Pitch | September 2014

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INNOVATION RANK

BRAND

MEDIA DELIVERY

SCORE

RANK

BRAND

SCORE

PROFESSIONALISM RANK

BRAND

SCORE

1. NDTV 24 x7

708

1. NDTV 24 x7

666

1. NDTV 24 x7

674

2. BBC News

655

2. BBC News

662

2. BBC News

641

3. Times Now

611

3. Times Now

613

3. CNN-IBN

641

4. CNN-IBN

588

4. CNN-IBN

612

4. CNN

604

5. CNN

547

5. CNN

606

5. Times Now

596

6. Headlines Today

363

6. Headlines Today

448

6. Headlines Today

474

7. News X

234

7. News X

309

7. News X

337

SERVICE ABILITY RANK

BRAND

SCORE

RELATIONSHIP RANK

BRAND

SCORE

SALES TEAM’S KNOWLEDGE

RANK

BRAND

SCORE

1. NDTV 24 x7

670

1. NDTV 24 x7

662

1. NDTV 24 x7

618

2. BBC News

611

2. CNN-IBN

608

2. Times Now

618

3. CNN-IBN

608

3. CNN

602

3. BBC News

615

4. Times Now

598

4. Times Now

598

4. CNN-IBN

585

5. CNN

565

5. BBC News

590

5. CNN

565

6. Headlines Today

438

6. Headlines Today

482

6. Headlines Today

467

7. News X

360

7. News X

406

7. News X

303 (Scores out of 1000)

Most marketers and media planners look for more value additions, more offerings, a quicker and faster media delivery plan at cost-effective pricing Sanjay Dua | Outgoing CEO, Network 18 News Media in maintaining ‘Relationship’ compared to its overall ranking. It scored 602 points just ahead of Times Now and BBC News.

Pitch | September 2014

NETWORKS RULE

The similarity in scores of English and Hindi News channels is mainly due to the evolution

of groups in this category. Groups like TV Today, NDTV, Network 18, each have an English and a Hindi news channel making it a packaged deal for clients and hence their performance, team and offerings are often merged.

Overall, English News as a category is still far from becoming the marketers’ and planners’ favourite.  - ankur.gaurav@exchange4media.com

39

INTERVIEW: TERRI SEOW

A

s Head of Marketing, BBC World, for the Asia Pacific region, Terri Seow is responsible for business-to-business and business-to-consumer marketing activity across the region. Earlier Seow headed the regional marketing teams at the National Geographic Channel and Fox International Channels across the region. BBC World’s credibility and global reach make it one of the most powerful platforms to advertise on. The feature websites provide great opportunities for native advertising and partnered content. The scope to advertise around the social video series, the opportunities with the arts and culture shows and the upcoming opportunity with the launch of BBC Earth, have made the BBC brand a dream destination for advertisers.

Rashi Bisaria of Pitch spoke to Terri Seow, about how BBC has provided innovative formats to advertisers and how tailored creative solutions are the answer to the needs of advertisers

How important is it for a media brand like yours to give innovative solutions to advertisers and why?

One of our latest editorial innovations include BBC Trending- an initiative to take advantage of hot topics of discussion on social media. From an advertising solution point of view, we also offer native advertising and programmatic buys. We also have a dedicated team that works on providing tailored creative solutions that meet different advertisers’ briefs What innovations can television industry come up with, looking at the increasing competition from digital?

I think the key is about increasing audience engagement, so I’d look at leveraging technology or the other

40

platforms to come up with innovative ways to grow the relationship with the audience . I would encourage a more 2 way communication; look at user generated content etc.

What will be the impact of ad cap regulations on the advertising strategy of various brands?

Globally, on BBC World News we follow a 12-minute limit on advertising

Research has shown that audience consumes news on different platforms for different purposes - in fact, TV inspires in depth research online

per clock hour, so the ad cap regulation in India doesn’t directly impact our ad revenues on TV.

Your comments on the threat posed by the digital media channels to television.

Our television and digital offerings complement each other. We believe in providing updated, impartial news to audiences across multiple platforms – TV, online, on mobile and radio and be wherever our audience is. Research has shown that audience consumes news on different platforms for different purposes – in fact, TV inspires in depth research online. In India, 48 per cent uses TV to check a breaking news story, 55 per cent then turn to online to confirm the stories. (‘Connecting

Pitch | September 2014

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the Stories’ Research by InSites Consulting) Convergence is at the heart of everything we are doing. So, social media; digital media and TV content are together in production , distribution and even extended to advertising. This runs through all our global strategies including India. ď Ž -rashi.bisaria@exchange4media.com

Pitch Pitch || August September 20142014

41

HINDI NEWS CHANNELS Powered by

HINDI NEWS CHANNELS need to catch up with English

By ANKUR GAURAV AAJ TAK SOARS ALONE

AajTak continues to claim the top spot among the Hindi News Channels and is the undisputed top scorer across all News Channels with a score of 721 points in Pitch Media Brandometer 2014 survey. The Hindi News channel also emerged at the 11th position in the overall tally of media brands. Aajtak scored exceptionally well in Media Delivery and managed to score 761 points which is also the highest score in all parameters by any news channel in India.

Commenting on AajTak’s exceptional performance, Ashish Bagga, Group CEO, India Today Group said, “The trust and loyalty that Aaj Tak commands among the viewers is phenomenal and highlights the channels unwavering commitment towards unbiased journalism without fear or favour.

The results on Brandometer are testimony to the recognition that our advertisers and partners give us for upholding these values.

The Brandometer rating is symbolic of the community’s unshakeable faith in Aajtak.

We’ll work harder as a team to set newer benchmarks.’

AAJTAK ALONE AT THE TOP

Aajtak seems to have reached the pinnacle but does not have a close second. The next best Hindi news channel is ABP News which was rated second with an overall score of 558 points. NDTV India was close in the

NEWS CHANNELS

RANK

BRAND SCORE

1

721

2

558

3

549

4

487

5

457

6

444

7

397 (Scores out of 1000)

race for the second spot but had to accept the number three position with 549 points.

However, NDTV managed a second position in Innovation where it displaced ABP from the second position by a huge margin.

The difference between the �irst and second contenders is huge. AajTak’s overall

“The trust and loyalty that Aaj Tak commands among the viewers is phenomenal and highlights the channels unwavering commitment towards unbiased journalism”

Ashish Bagga | Group CEO, India Today Group 42

score is 721 and second in line – ABP News could only manage 558 points. The obvious best choice for media planners in all parameters is AajTak with no close match in the Hindi News channel category.

Hindi News channels have done well in maintaining healthy relationships and proved their service ability skills. The average score is much better compared to the scores of other parameters in Relationship and Service Ability, which are 508 and 510 respectively. These two parameters are again affected by a good group performance and the reign of networks comes into play in maintaining healthy relationships and providing better service.

Zee, India TV and IBN 7 were close to each other with their scores between 450 and 500. While there is a huge gap between the winner and the runner up, lower down the order, the battle is �ierce between the other players in a bid to grab the eyeballs of the Planners. Zee News is poised at number 4 with a score of 487 against India TV and IBN 7 which are at 5th and 6th positions.

Pitch | September 2014

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MEDIA DELIVERY

INNOVATION RANK

BRAND

SCORE

RANK

BRAND

SCORE

PROFESSIONALISM RANK

BRAND

SCORE

1. Aaj Tak

714

1. Aaj Tak

761

1. Aaj Tak

651

2. NDTV India

597

2. ABP News

590

2. ABP News

518

3. ABP News

554

3. NDTV India

562

3. NDTV India

490

4. Zee News

435

4. Zee News

510

4. Zee News

487

5. IBN 7

427

5. India TV

480

5. IBN 7

474

6. India TV

404

6. IBN 7

401

6. India TV

451

7. India News

355

7. India News

385

7. India News

379

RELATIONSHIP RANK

BRAND

SCORE

SALES TEAM’S KNOWLEDGE

RANK

BRAND

SERVICE ABILITY

SCORE

RANK

BRAND

SCORE

1. Aaj Tak

741

1. Aaj Tak

727

1. Aaj Tak

719

2. ABP News

544

2. ABP News

570

2. NDTV India

563

3. NDTV India

523

3. NDTV India

539

3. ABP News

562

4. Zee News

507

4. Zee News

488

4. Zee News

507

5. India TV

493

5. India TV

464

5. IBN 7

475

6. IBN 7

461

6. IBN 7

450

6. India TV

456

7. India News

437

7. India News

408

7. India News

437 (Scores out of 1000)

“If a news channel starts showing programmes which are entertainment oriented, they are bound to lose their viewers and clients.”

Anuradha Prasad | MD, BAG Films IT’S TIME FOR INTROSPECTION

Hindi News Channels need to introspect about why they lag behind their English counterparts. Are they providing their

Pitch | September 2014

clients with enough innovative ideas and solutions? Have they been able to alienate themselves from sensationalism? Are they able to command respect in the market? News channels should

not become the subject of mockery and need to be taken seriously. As Anuradha Prasad, MD, Bag Films says, “If a news channel starts showing programmes which are entertainment oriented, they are bound to lose their viewers and clients. If the channel is biased, viewers won’t watch you.”

It is a point to ponder as to why marketers and planners do not rate Hindi News Channels highly.  - ankur.gaurav@exchange4media.com

43

ENGLISHINTEREST SPECIAL NEWS CHANNELS CHANNELS Powered by

The special appeal of

SPECIAL INTEREST CHANNELS

By ANKUR GAURAV & RASHI BISARIA

S

pecial interest channels have performed way better than GECs. Entertainment coupled with information has proved to be a very cost effective combination for media decision makers. The average score of special interest or infotainment channels is much better than the rest of the categories. Brands’ af�inity for special interest channels rides high on innovation mixed with the highest degree of professionalism and media delivery.

DISCOVERY LEADS THE WAY

Discovery leads the list of special interest channels with an overall score of 805 and stands at the 4th position in the overall rankings of all media channels across genres. TOI, Star Movies and Sony, are the only three media vehicles that have performed better than Discovery. Discovery’s highest speci�ic score is 873 in ensuring the desired media delivery, which also is the most critical parameter for judging the performance.

Rahul Johri, Executive Vice President and General Manager (South Asia) for Discovery says, “Media planners and advertisers continue to look for tailor made products for their clients. Going forward, there would be even more targeted allocation of their media spends to generate more attractive returns on advertising. In this situation, the solution would be a combination of platforms or one targeted offering to reach targeted audience. The broadcasters must also focus their energies on upping the ante on quality and variety.”

44

NGC REMAINS A CHALLENGER

The interest of marketers in special interest channels has put two niche special interest channels (Discovery, NGC) in the list of top ten TV channels. Even in the list of all media vehicles, two special interest channels featured in top �ifteen. NGC is not far from challenging Discovery in this category.

Anita Nayyar, CEO, Havas Media Group explains why infotainment channels have become a favourite with planners, “Marketers are capturing interest touch points of content and its communication to connect with their audience. We are in the age of specialized targeted marketing and specialized curated or created content will only gain popularity across media vehicles. Hence, the surge in special interest channels.”

MEDIA DELIVERY EXPERTS

The genre has performed exceptionally well in terms of media delivery. This is

SPECIAL INTEREST CHANNELS RANK BRAND SCORE 1

808

2

715

3

509

4

199

5

179

Siripoli

(Scores out of 1000)

“Going forward, there would be even more targeted allocation of their media spends to generate more attractive returns on advertising.”

Rahul Johri | Vice President and General Manager (South Asia)

Pitch | September 2014

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MEDIA DELIVERY

INNOVATION RANK

BRAND SCORE

RANK

1. Discovery

781

1. Discovery

873

2. National geographic

698

2. National geographic

720

3. Animal Planet

433

3. Hungama

526

4. Aditya TV

132

4. Aditya TV

196

5. Siripoli

98

5. Siripoli

168

PROFESSIONALISM RANK

BRAND SCORE

THE CONTENT HAS REPEAT VALUE

The rise of special interest channels is also because of the availability of content and its repeat telecast which allows good value for money to the marketers.

A lot of this content is produced outside India and the quality standards delivPitch | September 2014

RELATIONSHIP RANK

BRAND SCORE

1. Discovery

825

1. Discovery

782

2. National geographic

719

2. National geographic

710

3. Hungama

532

3. Animal Planet

541

4. Siripoli

215

4. Aditya TV

261

5. Aditya TV

209

5. Siripoli

248

The average score of special interest or infotainment channels is much better than the rest of the categories the only genre across all the media channels which has got three brands with scores more than 800 in the most critical parameter, media delivery. There are only �ive TV media vehicles which could cross the 800 mark in media delivery and three of them are from special interest genres.

BRAND SCORE

ered by Discovery, or NGC are at par with international standards, unlike GECs or news channels which depend on fresh content throughout the year.

Special interest channels have been the favorite of marketers who look out for more focused audiences and it also helps in minimizing the spill over which is generally the case with GECs which do not have a very de�ined set of viewers. Special Interest channels have made it easier for marketers to locate their viewers through these niche channels making them more appealing for Media Planners. - ankur.gaurav@exchange4media.com

RANK

SALES TEAM’S KNOWLEDGE

BRAND SCORE

1. Discovery

786

2. National geographic

727

3. Animal Planet

477

4. Aditya TV

174

5. Siripoli

161

SERVICE ABILITY RANK

BRAND SCORE

1. Discovery

785

2. National geographic

721

3. Animal Planet

504

4. Aditya TV

247

5. Siripoli

214 (Scores out of 1000)

45

COLUMN

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The Hostile Takeover of the Niche Genre THE FUTURE OF TELEVISION

Jai Lala

Head of Trading & Partnerships, CTG, GroupM

In the next few years a general interest or entertainment channel will no longer hold the attention of a small but valuable sub set of your audience 46

E

ver been in a situation where you’ve surfed the entire channel universe and you still can’t �ind anything to watch? Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have a one stop destination that catered to all your entertainment, news, sports and culinary needs?

In a world where time spent in front of the television set is declining, India is one of those markets where time spent is still on the rise. The average Indian viewer spends more than 2 hours a day in front of the TV... and for all those of you who are nodding their heads saying- I don’t watch TV, I just stream content on my iPad… you are still watching ‘TV content’ on your connected device.

In the next few years a general interest or entertainment channel will no longer hold the attention of a small but valuable sub set of your audience, and brand custodians like me will have to think of innovative ways to whet their curiosity and capture not just their attention but also their imagination. And this is where niche channels sliced and diced by interest, demographic, subject matter and yes even brand associations come into play.

The market of Niche channels In India we already have a number of niche channels that comprise the long tail of television. Currently we have in excess of 300 niche channels that constitute only less than 5 per cent of viewing. These channels include Music, Travel, Food, Sport, Lifestyle, Spirituality, News, and

Science & Knowledge etc. For a typical media planner, niche channels more often than not are used as frequency generators as an Opportunity to See. But in certain categories, they will invest in a niche channel as the content on that channel caters to the sensibilities of the brand audience- for example ICICI Bank will spend predominantly on business news channels as their content caters to the primary audience of SEC A & B, males who are the main breadwinner in the family. They would probably also be the main decision maker in terms of banking and spending habits of the family.

How are Niche channels sustained?

There are 3 models on which niche channels run. Subscription based: These channels have very specialized content that cater to a very speci�ic target audience. The YOY growth of this audience pool may be in the lower single digits. However if their content is cutting edge then this audience does not mind paying a subscription price to consume their content. For someone who loves to watch their movies uninterrupted by advertising has the option of paying a premium and subscribing to HBO Hits.

Target Audience based: Channels that cater to a speci�ic SEC are usually hot spots of niche advertisers. One can see a food channel will be full of ads from brands of rice to tea to masala. But imagine a channel which will cater to say a Working Unmarried Women. The channel would have content speci�ic to this TG & not the genre. The channel will have programming on Fitness, Movies, Healthy Pitch | September 2014

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cooking & even popular English serials.

Future business models for Niche Channels Bespoke Channels: I would like to through open a new perspective that moves away from the Demographic de�inition we planners have used for years.

The future of the Audience based channels will be segregate by interest, lifestyle choices, income etc and content on the channel will be curated and aggregated to ful�ill each and every need of this tight group of people. For example- Mr. Kumar is a typical middle income individual, drives a family car. He is very Pepsi wants to become synonymous with Music and MTV wants to become relevant again with the Youth. Both brands want to capture a very precise but brutally loyal target group, thus the idea of Pepsi MTV Indies. conscious of the environment and his carbon footprint. He plays cricket on weekends, but loves to watch tennis as well. He loves action movies, eats only vegetarian food and takes at least 3 short holidays a year, one de�initely to an overseas destination that he saves up for. Niche channels in the future have the potential to become bespoke channels where the channel will cater only those programs that Mr. Kumar watches and therefore a premium des-

Pitch | September 2014

tination where a brand targeting people like him will have near zero wastage.

Branded Channels: While branded content has become the buzzword around advertisers, the future of media is in branded channels. Pepsi and MTV are talking to the same target audience, have similar brand personalities and have the one single objective- Engagement. They are 2 sides of the same coin that is being spent to capture a very speci�ic audience.

Cloud Based Channels: Cloud based channels move away away from appointment viewing. Content resides on the cloud, so not broadcast or satellite cost.

With high-speed connectivity, content will be beamed to the head-end directly & then distributed to homes via cable. These channels therefore can be national or even highly localized. 

The views expressed here are of the author alone, and do not necessarily re�lect the views of Pitch

47

ENGLISH NEWSPAPER Powered by

Nothing beats

The English Dailies

By ANKUR GAURAV AND RASHI BISARIA

I

t’s sharp, positive and contains a feelgood factor for the average urban Indian reader. For the suave reader hungry for news and analysis, this is the best capitulation of the day just passed. The front page of The Times of India continues to be the most expensive media deliverable and strikingly effective as well. In general, the English Newspaper category has emerged the winner all the way, surpassing even the Hindi GECs.

Best among all categories The overall performance of English dailies is by far the most impressive among all media delivery channels. The scores in all six parameters is the best compared to all other categories, which is also because the number of media brands in other categories is much more than the number of

“The sales teams of Hindi newspapers tend to service more of local retail clients where discussions are more transactional with rates dominating the discussions.”

Kartik Iyer | MD, Carat India

48

English Newspapers

RANK

BRAND SCORE

1

1000

2

790

3

787

4

558 (Scores out of 1000)

TOI was top scorer in each category and its score was indexed to 1000 to arrive at scores for all other players.

English dailies taken into consideration. But even if the scores of English newspapers is compared to the Top four from each category, English Dailies rule the charts in four of six parameters. Special interest channels have scored more than English dailies in two categories – Innovation and media delivery. The other four parameters – sales team’s knowledge, service ability, professionalism and relationship, are dominated by English Newspapers.

This is also to do with the relationship with clients. TOI, Hindu and HT maintain a healthy relationship with clients who hold them in high regard.

More often than not, clients themselves

are readers of these dailies which makes this category a favorite with them. Professionalism and relationship is what makes this category distinctive in Pitch Media Brandometer survey, with an average of 824 in relationship and 808 in professionalism.

The Hindu leads with HT hot on its heels For the second and third spot in the list of English newspapers, Hindu and HT were always close. Eventually Hindu is ranked 2nd with 790 points against HT which managed 787 points in the overall tally. The battle was almost balanced as Hindu performed better in three parameters Pitch | September 2014

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while HT could score better than Hindu in the other three parameters. The highest gap in both brands’ scores was in Professionalism and Sales Team’s Knowledge where Hindu surpassed HT by a margin of more than 20 points.

DNA ranks number four and is far from posing a threat to either HT or Hindu’s positions. According to Rajiv Lochan, MD & CEO, The Hindu Group, “The credibility factor is very high for print.

There is also an aspiration of readers to move towards English. This trend is exploding now.”

The weakest link is innovation but only by a small margin.

English Newspapers scored dismally at innovation which is still a lot better

“The credibility factor is very high for print. There is also an aspiration of readers to move towards English. This trend is exploding now.”

Rajiv Lochan | MD & CEO, The Hindu Group

INNOVATION

RANK

BRAND SCORE

MEDIA DELIVERY RANK

1

The Times of India

1000

1

The Times of India

1000

2

Hindustan Times

737

2

Hindustan Times

786

3

Hindu

734

3

Hindu

769

4

DNA

516

4

DNA

527

SALES TEAM’S KNOWLEDGE

RELATIONSHIP RANK

BRAND SCORE

RANK

BRAND SCORE

1

The Times of India

1000

1

The Times of India

1000

2

Hindustan Times

837

2

Hindu

800

3

Hindu

832

3

Hindustan Times

780

4

DNA

626

4

DNA

556

SERVICE ABILITY

PROFESSIONALISM RANK (Scores out of 1000)

BRAND SCORE

BRAND SCORE

RANK

BRAND SCORE

1

The Times of India

1000

1

The Times of India

1000

2

Hindu

835

2

Hindu

797

3

Hindustan Times

816

3

Hindustan Times

782

4

DNA

579

4

DNA

574

TOI was top scorer in each category and its score was indexed to 1000 to arrive at scores for all other players.

Pitch | September 2014

than the other genres’ performance.

However, special interest channels outclassed Print’s supremacy and the average score of top four special interest channels in innovation is 761 while that of print is 747. The innovative ways to advertise through HT, TOI or Hindu are many but to beat the advertorials, jacket ads, front page ads and other innovative solutions, special interest channels must be offering something unique which positioned them ahead of English dailies. These solutions are sometimes so unique in their approach that brands like Kotak Mahindra launch special products only to utilize the media delivery option available.

English Newspapers ahead of the Hindi Newspapers English Newspapers have clearly outshone their Hindi counterparts. Media planners very often are the readers of English dailies but not necessarily avid readers of the hindi or regional dailies. This gives an edge to the English Newspaper’s sales team in maintaining a healthy relationship with these media planners. According to Kartik Iyer, MD, Carat India, “The sales teams of Hindi newspapers tend to service more of local retail clients where discussions are more transactional with rates dominating the discussions.” The sales team is the funnel through which the �inal contract is negotiated and executed, he adds. So just what comprises this knowledge? Iyer says it has three dimensions to it, “First is the ability to engage with the buyer on giving customized solutions for the objective.

Second is cross media knowledge to build perspectives and third is competitive knowledge on brands within the category.” The sales teams of Hindi newspapers need to broaden their horizons in order to service clients better.

In addition to this, the af�luent readers of English newspapers suggest a better ROI for brands advertising with the English dailies.  - ankur.gaurav@exchange4media.com -rashi.bisaria@exchange4media.com

49

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Why Print Still Holds Sway Rajiv Lochan

MD and CEO, The Hindu Group

The single biggest threat to print is television. TV has a very fragmented base with a plethora of channels 50

P

rint is high on credibility The credibility factor continues to remain very high for print. In terms of credibility and trust anything on paper is still regarded quite high compared to other media. Credibility will continue to remain high for print in the years to come.

Another reason for this credibility is the fact that many of the print media brands have reputation built over decades. For instance, we are a one hundred and thirty six year old brand. Many of our competitors are more than hundred years old.

These kinds of brand strengths and equity give print another edge. Other media brands are only now beginning to build this equity.

The reach of this medium is very strong The reach of print is very strong, whether it is in terms of minutes spent, or the socio-economic characteristics of the print reader. The single biggest threat to print is television. TV has a very fragmented base with a plethora of channels. There are a host of news channels both regional and English. From an advertiser’s standpoint it begins to fragment in terms of eyeballs and the reach. Given the amount of content and channels available, there is a propensity of the viewer to switch channels when the ads are on. In terms of spend effectiveness from an advertiser’s standpoint, there is an implication. So when I look

at the traditional strengths of print and look at the industry structure and the threat, I still feel that print will continue to remain a very credible medium.

Innovation in print will be led by readers There are many kinds of innovation that we have begun to see and many more that will evolve in the coming

Pitch | September 2014

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Regional media has a remarkable reach. For better or for worse, the advertiser world and the agencies that help them have a volume oriented approach years. Innovation will largely focus on the form. Whether it was the vibrating newspaper that we launched with Volkswagen, or the different forms of paper that are possible, there have been several innovative, creative formats we have launched.

Form related innovation is something that print has led quite well. But from now on, the innovation will be based entirely on what readers want. So far it has been driven by what advertisers have wanted.

The innovation in print will have to be led from a reader centric standpoint.

What’s needed is a much more granular understanding of reader requirements and therefore tailoring the messaging, both form and content to those reader sub segments. This is the kind of innovation we can expect in the coming years. Like digital, print will also start personalising the messaging for readers.

Regional Media will be important for reaching the end consumer Regional media has a remarkable reach just now by way of numbers. For better or for worse, the advertiser world and the agencies that help them have a volume oriented approach. To that extent regional media are great channels to reach the end consumers and will continue to remain so.

Trends to watch out for There is an aspiration of readers to move towards English. This trend is exploding now. There is a demographic in�lexion point we are facing as a country, where the �irst set of people that were born in the early nineties, is now coming of age.

That segment, as is evident from the recent elections, is between 140 to 180 million strong. This segment is remarkably aspirational, whether in urban or rural areas. They have a very different level of aspiration compared to the previous generation. That aspiration manifests itself in an English bias. It is a critical opportunity for English print media to leverage that,

particularly when combined with a historical multi-century strength credibility which is a compelling factor. Even though currently, regional media is very attractive from a reach standpoint, the demographic of today gives great scope to the English media.

Today, the one metric that matters above all else is Return On Investment. ROI has different sub components, one being the �inancial way to measure that ROI and the second an intangible bene�it like brand resilience, brand salience going up in the minds of the target audience. Therefore, there is an emotional and factual connect that both need to be taken into consideration. Advertisers need to factor in the tangible and intangible tradeoffs, rational vs emotional trade off in the medium and evaluate the medium holistically.

We still have some distance to travel in terms of sophistication of measurement of effectiveness. We as media houses have to shape and develop that measurement process. As told to Rashi Bisaria

51

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Why print media remains relevant for marketers Suresh Srinivasan

Vice President, The Hindu

Consuming print still remains a uniquely immersive experience, providing a far greater emotional connect than other media fraught with distractions 52

P

rint as a medium still charms people.

It’s affordable, tangible, and portable and can be carried by a person without the need of technology. Consuming print still remains a uniquely immersive experience, providing a far greater emotional connect than other media fraught with distractions.

Print medium engages and interacts with a person in many ways that digital media cannot. In the current circumstances, Marketers need to appreciate that print is the only medium that has the diversity of being able to stand alone or work with other media to create dynamic and effective multimedia marketing campaigns.

Print industry is like the sun as it continues to rise in the EAST and set in the WEST. India is a very unique country when it comes to media dynamics, particularly print media dynamics. English is a social differentiator in this part of the world. The estimated Indian population in 2013 is close to 1.27 billion, with a literacy rate of 74 per cent. The top 10 English dailies reach approximately 1.70 crore readers, while the Top 15 Language dailies reach more than 12 crore readers.

That’s roughly 7 per cent of the total universe.

Pitch research pegs Indian media advertising industry growth at 7.5 per cent in 2013. Print media was expected to grow at a projected rate of 4.7 per cent in 2013, very close to the GDP growth rate. I am very optimistic about the Indian Print Industry and believe we are at an in�lection point. Indian ad market is projected to breach the Rs.30, 000 crore mark this year. Print has regained its top slot, a 41.7 per cent share which is the largest at Rs.12,526 crore, followed by TV

at 40 per cent, Internet at 8 per cent. This shows the growing con�idence and faith reposed in the medium.

Statistics show that campaigns which combine print with internet yield up to a 25 per cent higher response rate than using internet alone. Research has proved that the print medium has the credibility that internet lacks. There is a comfort factor with print that one doesn’t get with onscreen text.

In fact, many studies have shown that print is still considered more credible than online material.

This is because it is more permanent, and its inherent nature is to stand the test of time, while the web is �luid, it changes, and the information can be rewritten very easily or even deleted.

Nevertheless, going forward, I see Print and Digital complementing each other that will quite naturally make more business sense to marketers.

In the Indian context, the rising share of literacy in Tier 1 and Tier 2 and 3 towns will add strength to print’s future. This is a lean forward medium with wider reach and high levels of ef�iciency and effectiveness at providing economical investment options.

For marketers there can be no better and relevant medium than print in India., especially for all high involvement categories like education, real estate, automobiles, insurance, healthcare and �inance.

While delivering maximum ad relevant audience share of the Indian Consumer market with minimum spill over, Print has stood the test of time in adding value to readers and marketers. I am con�ident it will continue to rise and rule.

The views expressed here are of the author alone, and do not necessarily re�lect the views of Pitch Pitch | August 2014

Pitch | August 2014

53

HINDI PRINT Powered by

HINDI DAILIES Yawning gap with English Hindi Newspapers are still far behind their English counterparts

By ANKUR GAURAV

itch Media Brandometer 2014 has divided the print category into two parts. The better half is the English version of print media which has scored better than all other categories surpassing Hindi Newspapers and even regional, in the tally.

If we look at the list of top ten media vehicles in the country, there is no brand representing Hindi print. The best in the category is Hindustan and that is at the 32nd position in the overall tally. Not a promising performance by any standards.

When we decode the wide gap between the English and Hindi versions of Print, Hindi media has performed at an average scale on all parameters, be it innovation, sales team knowledge, professionalism, relationship, service ability or the most criti-

cal of all – media delivery. The difference in average scores is more than 200 points in all six parameters.

Hindustan tops the charts

In a relative comparison among various newspapers, Hindustan topped the charts with an average overall score of 539 and has reached the 32nd position in the overall tally. However, the �ight for top spot was not a hard fought battle for Hindustan as the closest competitor in the category was NBT which managed to challenge Hindustan only in one of the parameters and that is Professionalism. In the other 5 parameters the gaps are large enough to position Hindustan as an undisputed champion in this category.

Reacting to Hindustan’s success, Vivek Khanna, CEO, Hindustan Media Ventures Ltd said, “We are delighted that Hindustan is the top rated Hindi newspaper brand in the Pitch BrandOmeter survey. It’s a re�lection of our constant endeavour to deliver value to the brands that partner with us.

Hindustan has signi�icantly increased readership as re�lected in latest IRS survey, and readers’ engagement as re�lected in our internal panels, and we are committed to help advertisers build their brands through an active partnership.”

NBT leads in professionalism

It might not be called a clean sweep but in relative terms, Navbharat Times has

Hindi Newspapers

RANK

54

BRAND SCORE

1

539

2

493

3

465

4

431

5

349

6

304 Pitch | September 2014

(Scores out of 1000)

P

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INNOVATION RANK

MEDIA DELIVERY

BRAND SCORE

RANK

BRAND SCORE

PROFESSIONALISM RANK

BRAND SCORE

1

Hindustan

485

1

Hindustan

514

1

Navabharat Times

574

2

Navabharat Times

392

2

Navabharat Times

466

2

Hindustan

568

3

Dainik Jagran

381

3

Dainik Jagran

457

3

Dainik Jagran

479

4

Dainik Bhaskar

369

4

Dainik Bhaskar

420

4

Dainik Bhaskar

449

5

Amar Ujala

280

5

Amar Ujala

309

5

Amar Ujala

393

6

Rajasthan Patrika

240

6

Rajasthan Patrika

255

6

Rajasthan Patrika

362

RELATIONSHIP RANK

BRAND SCORE

RANK

SALES TEAM’S KNOWLEDGE

BRAND SCORE

SERVICE ABILITY RANK

BRAND SCORE

1

Hindustan

590

1

Hindustan

547

1

Hindustan

562

2

Navabharat Times

579

2

Navabharat Times

486

2

Navabharat Times

508

3

Dainik Jagran

536

3

Dainik Jagran

470

3

Dainik Jagran

502

4

Dainik Bhaskar

478

4

Dainik Bhaskar

444

4

Dainik Bhaskar

455

5

Amar Ujala

413

5

Amar Ujala

365

5

Amar Ujala

376

6

Rajasthan Patrika

394

6

Rajasthan Patrika

293

6

Rajasthan Patrika

324

(Scores out of 1000)

Hindustan has significantly increased readership as reflected in latest IRS survey, and readers’ engagement as reflected in our internal panels” Vivek Khanna | Hindustan Media Ventures Ltd. managed to score better than Hindustan.

NBT’s score in professionalism is 574 which is 6 points ahead of category topper – Hindustan. Apart from professionalism, NBT has managed to maintain a healthy average in most of the parameters including Relationship and Service Ability.

Hindi lacks innovation

One of the primary reasons behind a performance which is no better than average, Pitch | September 2014

is the inability to deliver innovative solutions to advertisers and media planners.

Hindi Newspapers have been rated very poorly in terms of innovation and the category’s worst average performance is 358, again in Innovation. However, Innovation is one of the most critical parameters and adds value to any media plan. Commenting on the importance of innovation, Pradeep Dwivedi, Chief, Corporate Sales and Marketing, Dainik Bhaskar Group says, “Innovation is very important es-

pecially when one is considering either a high pro�ile launch or a campaign aimed at getting quick reach build up or impact.

These plans tend to be ‘front heavy’ in terms of their investment and need a different approach.”

Lack of innovation in the Hindi Print media suggests that the market, audience and the media vehicles have got used to delivering the same ad spaces without much innovation and has thus lost its charm for advertisers looking for out-ofthe-box media delivery solutions. The best performance of any Hindi Newspaper in Innovation is 485 which is much lower compared to the worst performance in English Newspaper category which is 516 of DNA. . - ankur.gaurav@exchange4media.com

55

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The importance of Innovation Pradeep Dwivedi

Chief Corporate Sales & Marketing Officer at Dainik Bhaskar Group

I

nnovation is very important especially when one is considering either a high profile launch or a campaign aimed at getting quick reach build up or impact. These plans tend to be ‘front heavy’ in terms of their investment and need a different approach. It must be said that planners’ idea of innovation is usually the tried and tested creative implementations.

Innovation in most cases form the core in our offerings to the media planners as the offerings are customized as per requirement of respective campaigns and also breaks the clutter. Innovations are really important when dealing directly with clients who always look forward for best utilization of their funds but in case of government ads it is very limited.

56

The advantages of Hindi as a medium of communication Once we take ‘reach build up’ out of the equation, then Hindi newspaper

Innovations are really important when dealing directly with clients who always look forward for best utilization of their funds but in case of government ads it is very limited. are indeed the best medium to reach out the decision makers or the influencer groups in Hindi heartland. The masses read Hindi newspaper by habit and hence it is easy to get their eye balls using Hindi newspapers. Most of the readers are hindi speaking in the hindi belt and are not associated with english by heart. A very miniscule segment is interested in english media in hindi belt.

Hence hindi newspapers give maximum advantage in hindi belt by influencing both mind and wallet share of people Pitch | September 2014

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Media planners need to engage or interact and involve themselves more in understanding the finer points and local nuances there. Also, they are critical for high involvement categories for running informational campaigns They help meet effective frequency targets efficiently and make use of rising literacy levels in tier II and III markets.

Hindi versus English Newspapers There is very little to choose qualitatively between the Hindi and English newspapers. Hindi newspapers are designed keeping in mind the taste of the masses and have come a long way in terms of content superiority and relevance. At Bhaskar Group, our content is unparalleled in Hindi newspapers with exclusive content from Harvard Business Review and Time Magazine etc.

The role of regional media for media planners in the future The importance of regional media is only going to increase. Consequently, media planners will need Pitch | September 2014

to engage or interact and involve themselves more in understanding the finer points and local nuances.

Over time, it is quite possible that the roles will be reversed in print with the primary choice for print investment being regional print rather than the metro focused English print. Regional media is increasingly in demand over the last few years as advertisers are finding ways and means to get into the mind space of people at a micro level. The trend has been to go the regional way and hence we see regional media gaining more importance in the coming years for media planners.

If front page news of both English and regional papers is compared, it is clear that regional papers also publish local area news with current affairs from all over the world, whereas the English dailies only emphasise current affairs. Most people are interested to know about their area. If an incident takes place

in our area, we search for the news next day in the paper. This is not possible for national media to cover.

For national newspapers, only the front page is readable and the remaining is useless for the common people. In the metros also many buyers are from small towns and villages. No one can ignore the local media. The role of regional media for media planners in the coming years will be extremely critical. As per the 2014 Pitch Madison Outlook this year Hindi Dailies have surged ahead of English dailies in advertising revenue and the gap is expected to widen. With increasing literacy rates the importance of regional (especially Hindi) media is only going to increase. ď Ž As Told To Ankur Gaurav

The views expressed here are of the author alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Pitch

57

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What Constitutes a Successful Media Plan Ashish Bhasin

Chairman & CEO South Asia Dentsu Aegis Network

T

he over-arching goal for any Media Planner is to reach the maximum number of people in the target group and therefore, media delivery becomes absolutely essential. It is the most important parameter for deciding the media.

Responsive media delivery tops the list of goals for any Media Planner. Media delivery trends are radically varied because the best media delivery plan also depends on how good a ‘brand-�it’ the media delivery plan is. Brands and planners look for a full package of planned media deliverables. A good media delivery plan has to be cost effective as well. When we talk about media, it is the editorial brilliance and also the positioning of the advertisement that play a crucial role in a successful association.

The Role of Regional Media in a Media Plan With the increase in literacy rates, the disposable income has also seen a rise in tier 3 cities and rural areas. Brands are penetrating into small towns to reach out to the target groups. The focus is shifting to the small towns for marketers. Regional media thus has a critical role and has become a mandatory proposition in the media plans. Regional media will be led by print especially regional newspapers. As the urban English news market reaches a saturation point the focus is shifting towards regional media. Till now, regional media played second �iddle to English media as the decision makers were more familiar with the latter. But this trend is changing now. Regional media is becoming bigger every day.

Media delivery trends are radically varied because the best media delivery plan also depends on how good a Good Content drives eyeballs Viewers have become selective and their loyalties ‘brand-fit’ the media lie with particular shows and not with the channel delivery plan is anymore. Media agencies also want to target the 58

right viewers and the channel that gives consistent

TRPs becomes a favourite with them. Hence, it is the content that drives viewers, marketers, media planners. It is the most important element and there is no substitute for it.

The Rise of Special Interest Channels.

As time goes by, the fragmentation of TV genres will make the special interest channels more popular among the masses. Penetration and distribution of these channels needs to improve for more visibility and growth. As the market is expanding I will not be shocked if we have a separate golf channel for the target group. The future looks promising for these niche channels. They are also cost effective as they have a razor sharp reach among the target audience. For example, a special channel on automobiles caters to the exact audience an automobile company likes to reach.

The gap between Hindi and English print genres This gap can reduce over the years if brands familiarize themselves with media decision makers and work on their relationship building strategy in order to gain an advantage over competitor brands. Many brands are doing exceptionally well in their own right but remain alienated for media decision makers.

Signi�icance of Radio advertising Radio has proved to be an excellent cost effective medium which can ef�iciently spread the word to a wide array of audiences. The most recent example of the exuberance and popularity of radio is the General Election during which all political parties found a share of voice on radio.  As told to Kanika Mehrotra Pitch | September 2014

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59

INTERVIEW: ANITA NAYYAR Powered by

‘We live in the age of targeted, specialized marketing’ Anita Nayyar, CEO India and South Asia at Havas Media Group shares her views with Kanika Mehrotra, on the parameters used for judging the media vehicles, the need for compelling content and also responds to some of the critical findings in the survey.

Which is the most critical parameter for you before you decide on the best media vehicle – Innovation, Media Delivery, Professionalism, Sales Team’s Knowledge, Service Ability and Relationship?

The factors stated are all very important and inter connected. However I’d place Media Delivery first followed

by Innovation.For Media delivery and Innovation a professional sales team with knowledge and capability is a must. Relationships further make the interactions pleasant.

How important is regional media?

Choice of regional media is completely objective driven. The brand, its markets, audiences and communication play an important role in regional media choices. While national media covers a lot of markets, regional media do boost reach with minimal wastage and are more targeted.

60

Which is the best GEC with great potential?

Content is king and viewers follow content more than specific channels.

The content choice is based on the audience it is most suited to along with the brand being advertised, not compromising on efficiency.

There is a surge in the ratings of special interest channels like – Discovery, NGC, etc. What can be the reason behind this?

Choice of regional media is completely objective driven.

The brand, its markets, audiences and communication play an important role in regional media choices

Digitization has given people more content to sample and choose. With a plethora of media choices and a lack of time, the audiences follow their interests. Marketers are capturing interest touch points of content and its communication to connect with their audience. We live in the age of specialized targeted marketing and specialized curated or created content will only gain popularity across media vehicles.

Hence, the surge in special interest channels.

Hindi Newspapers could not match the ratings of English Newspapers.

Why is there such a gap between the two genres of print?

Literacy and the fact that a lot of the Hindi speaking audiences also communicate in English is an important factor. National brands targeting Sec A & B focus on English. There are no national hindi newspapers. Despite Hindi

Pitch Pitch||September August 2014 2014

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being a national language it is not really spoken and read across the country. Regional media surges in regional markets.

What significance do you see for Radio advertising ?

Radio has great potential and PhaseIII makes it even better. While data is not available across all markets, metros have the scale. With FM constantly extending its coverage across markets Radio is becoming a much sought after medium. It is gaining popularity less for its audio attribute and more for its interactivity with the audiences.

Brands are increasingly using the medium for its cost efficiency, coverage and interactivity.

Marketers are capturing interest touch points of content and its communication to connect with their audience Which TV genre is likely to gain importance in the coming months apart from GEC? We are seeing a growing affinity towards special interest channels and reality shows . However, English entertainment, Infotainment and Sports are gaining importance and it is evident in the way they are being promoted. n -kanika.mehrotra@ exchange4media.com

Pitch Pitch || August September 20142014

61

REGIONAL NEWSPAPERS Powered by

Regional language Media

Caught between English & Hindi

By ANKUR GAURAV & RASHI BISARIA

T

he rise of consumerism in local markets in India has added great signi�icance to regional media in the media plans of planners and advertisers. Regional media has witnessed robust growth in the last 5 years. Surprisingly, their performance has not matched up to the expectations, with respect to their growing signi�icance in the media plans. One of the reasons might be that the national media has not become a competition

to regional media. The standards set by national media, the innovative solutions provided by TOI or Hindu are not going to affect the ads spends in regional media, leading to low motivation to provide innovative offerings.

ABP AND MALYALAYA MANORAMA STAND OUT

ABP and Malyalaya Manorama have become the face of regional media in their respective regions. ABP was

Regional Newspapers

RANK 1 2 3

BRAND SCORE

Ananda Bazaar Patrika Malyalaya Manorama Matrubhumi

421 410 317

4

Bartaman

301

5

Lokmat

295

6

Maharashta Times

7

289 268

Loksatta

8

246 Gujarat Samachar

9

Divya Bhaskar

233

(Scores out of 1000)

62

Pitch | September 2014

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MEDIA DELIVERY

INNOVATION RANK

BRAND SCORE

RANK

BRAND SCORE

PROFESSIONALISM RANK

BRAND SCORE

1. Ananda Bazaar Patrika 400

1. Ananda Bazaar Patrika 385

1. Malyalaya Manorama 418

2. Malyalaya Manorama 400

2. Malyalaya Manorama 382

2. Ananda Bazaar Patrika 404

3. Matrubhumi

289

3. Maharashta Times

290

3. Matrubhumi

326

4. Bartaman

260

4. Matrubhumi

272

4. Lokmat

326

5. Maharashta Times

236

5. Lokmat

272

5. Bartaman

321

6. Loksatta

228

6. Bartaman

268

6. Maharashta Times

301

7. Lokmat

227

7. Loksatta

237

7. Loksatta

276

8. Divya Bhaskar

179

8. Gujarat Samachar

233

8. Gujarat Samachar

268

9. Gujarat Samachar

179

9. Divya Bhaskar

206

9. Divya Bhaskar

234

(Scores out of 1000)

rated as the best regional media scoring 421 points in Pitch Media Brandometer 2014, followed by MalyalayaManorama which scored 410 points in the survey. ABP and MalyalayaManorama’s performance is not just better than other regional print newspapers but these two oldest regional media vehicles have outperformed regional media vehicles in other categories such as regional GECs as well as regional news channels. Two outstanding features about ABP and Malaya Manorma’s performance are their relationship and service ability �igures, which are close to touching 500. MalyalayaManorama managed to outperform ABP in Professionalism in which the former scored 418 points compared to ABP’s 404. However, both newspapers scored the same in Innovation with 400 points.

NATIONAL MEDIA THREATENS TO BECOME COMPETITION

National media has also identi�ied language as the next territory for growth and either the networks are willing Pitch | September 2014

to buy the established regional media vehicles or will become competition to these regional media vehicles which have enjoyed monopoly and dominance in their respective regions.

Times Group’s City editions are slowly making a mark in all the media plans.

Its focused on local language readers and is riding high on Innovation. National media can de�initely become a cause for worry for regional media vehicles. The healthy competition might also uplift the standards in due course.

Commenting on the gap in the scores of regional vehicles and national media, Sundar Kondur, Response Head, Times VPL Ltd, says, “The primary reason behind this is the perception in the minds of media planners and me-

National media has also identified language as the next territory for growth and will become competition to these regional media vehicles

dia buyers that the ‘language media’ is cheap and caters to audience which does not have the power to consume on a large scale. The perception is changing and so will the scores in the coming years. I also agree that there is scope of improvement to match the standards of national media.”

TIMES ARE CHANGING FOR THE REGIONAL CONSUMERS

It has been an unquestioned perception that language consumers are not the most evolved consumers and their purchasing parity is not enough to grab attention of the biggest advertisers such as Apple, Samsung, etc.

But times are changing and so is the TG of the biggest advertisers. Luxury automaker Mercedes and Audi regularly place full page ads in regional newspapers. But the same advertiser is accustomed to the service, process and standards of national media vehicles. They are advertising, but they are not satis�ied. The scores re�lect the same. The average score of regional print media is 309. The third best regional newspaper is Matrubhumi fol-

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REGIONAL NEWSPAPERS Powered by

RELATIONSHIP RANK

BRAND SCORE

SALES TEAM’S KNOWLEDGE

RANK

SERVICE ABILITY

BRAND SCORE

RANK

BRAND SCORE

1. Ananda Bazaar Patrika

467

1. Ananda Bazaar Patrika

421

1. Ananda Bazaar Patrika

472

2. Malyalaya Manorama

437

2. Malyalaya Manorama

401

2. Malyalaya Manorama

441

3. Bartaman

363

3. Matrubhumi

318

3. Matrubhumi

365

4. Matrubhumi

362

4. Bartaman

300

4. Lokmat

354

5. Lokmat

328

5. Lokmat

292

5. Loksatta

333

6. Maharashta Times

325

6. Maharashta Times

280

6. Maharashta Times

324

7. Loksatta

301

7. Loksatta

256

7. Bartaman

321

8. Gujarat Samachar

299

8. Divya Bhaskar

238

8. Gujarat Samachar

290

9. Divya Bhaskar

285

9. Gujarat Samachar

238

9. Divya Bhaskar

287

(Scores out of 1000)

REGIONAL PRINT BETTER THAN REGIONAL TV

lowed by Bartman with scores of 317 and 301. The remaining regional Print media brands could not even cross the �igure of 300.

Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia seems positive about regional media when he says, “There is a kind of saturation in the urban English news market so the focus would be shifting towards regional .In the regional sector, there is more keenness to know about regional news. Another issue is that decision makers are familiar with English Press and therefore there is a

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Regional Print has scored higher than Regional TV. Pitch Brandometer 2014 reveals that regional print is a much more authentic medium for media planners lot of effect on their decision just due to their familiarity among these marketers. However, the regional sector will continue to grow bigger.”

Regional Print has scored higher than Regional TV. Pitch Brandometer 2014 reveals that regional print is a much more authentic medium for media planners compared to regional TV. ETV scored 382, Sun News scored 343.

Competition in the TV space is much higher but as far as print is concerned, language consumers still prefer the regional language over Hindi or English.

Rise of regional is not a surprising phenomenon. The next phase of the growth story will be based in the smaller regions of the country. Looking at this, advertisers have already started making inroads into these areas and the best way, till date remains regional print media vehicles, but will they sustain such a performance? In the coming years, either the standards will go up or rise of networks might make a dramatic shift in the positioning of regional media vehicles in marketers’ media plans.  - ankur.gaurav@exchange4media.com Pitch | September 2014

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The real growth story of India Jayant Mammen Mathew Deputy Editor and Director, Malayala Manorama

The growth of media: print, electronic and digital in the past five years has been in regional languages. To put it more bluntly: growth has only happened in regional media Pitch | September 2014

T

he economic prosperity in tier 2 cities and villages coupled with the growth of newspapers across India have suddenly made marketers take notice of “Regional Media”, which to those in these regions is a big “miss” in journalistic parlance.

The growth of media: print, electronic and digital in the past �ive years has been in regional languages. To put it more bluntly: growth has only happened in regional media.

The reasons are many. Literacy has played the biggest role, especially in the Hindi heartland, where newspapers have reached even the most remote areas. The same is true in other regional languages.

In Kerala, where Malayala Manorama is published, high levels of literacy contributed to a vibrant newspaper reading habit several decades ago.

The Indian growth story more than a decade ago has increased purchasing power across the country. Logistics has improved distribution and regional media is �lourishing.

The most important point for advertisers and planners to note is the wealth creation in these areas. Brands go where money is.

For example, it’s no surprise when every luxury car brand’s outlets in Kerala have some of the highest sales in the country.

Today, when you drive across the length and breadth of Kerala every brand from an Amul to Audi is established because of the power of Malayalam news media. This same analogy holds true in many states in India.

Regional media is closer to people’s heart

and is more effective in today’s fragmented media market. Since the upper target groups and metro population are almost saturated, marketers are actively scouting towns and villages for growth. Regional media plays an important role in addressing this segment. In fact, it is dif�icult to reach these readers without regional media.

Today marketers are looking for BTL activities to improve touch-points compared to plain vanilla advertising. Regional media is best positioned and more important, they understand the local culture and sensitivities of the land.

Newspapers and television channels in regional languages are hyper-local in coverage of news that serve and build local communities.

This local coverage of regional media is one important factor that keeps them closer to the people, be it newspapers or news channels.

This advantage is rubbing off on digital, where language media has taken the lead to provide news and views in the mobile and internet space.

We see print media giving way to digital in America and Europe and still the reach of conventional media is higher than India. India still has large untapped population and regional media is actively catering to that need.

The big change now is marketers are embracing regional language media and this along with advances in printing infrastructure and new technologies will see regional language media �lourishing. 

The views expressed here are of the author alone, and do not necessarily re�lect the views of Pitch

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RADIO Powered by

RADIO REJUVENATED

By ANKUR GAURAV

W

ith an exceptionally higher penetration ratio and engagement options, Radio has proved to be a very cost effective tool for media planners. We saw this during elections 2014 when this medium forged a deep connect with the common man. The interactivity offered by Radio and how it connects through its musical content, listener engagement, has proved that Radio is here to stay.

With an average score of 471, this medium leads the standards for any category of media vehicles. Radio Mirchi was rated as an undisputed leader among Radio

66

RADIO

RANK

BRAND SCORE

1

710

2

563

3

543

4

521

5

458

6

281

7

222 (Scores out of 1000)

stations with scores overpowering all other radio stations in the country.

Radio Mirchi’s overall average score is 710 against the second best by Radio City which could manage a score of 563 only. Due to this yawning gap it is evident that Radio Mirchi has beaten all other brands by a huge margin. A mix of marketing and programming has contributed to the appeal of Radio Michi. Prashant Panday, CEO Radio Mirchi speaks about the leadership position of the station, “Mirchi has always been a leader. As per IRS, we lead in 22 out of 32 markets. We lead in almost all the metros. Except for the South, we lead in all the other regions. Being the Pitch | September 2014

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INNOVATION RANK

RELATIONSHIP

Media Delivery

BRAND SCORE

RANK

BRAND SCORE

RANK

BRAND SCORE

1. Radio Mirchi

692

1.

Radio Mirchi

731

1

Radio Mirchi

739

2. Radio City

545

2.

Radio City

583

2

Radio City

579

3. Red FM

502

3.

Red FM

578

3

Big FM

547

4. Big FM

478

4.

Big FM

553

4

Red FM

546

5. Fever FM

391

5.

Fever FM

460

5

Fever FM

515

6. My FM

253

6.

My FM

246

6

My FM

298

7. Suryan FM

178

7.

Suryan FM

202

7

Suryan FM

262

(Scores out of 1000)

“Being the leader is always challenging, but over a period of time, we have developed our own secret sauce of programming and marketing” Prashant Panday | CEO Radio Mirchi leader is always challenging, but over a period of time, we have developed our own secret sauce of programming and marketing. It is this secret sauce that keeps us going. We have stayed true to our brand, stayed focused on our core values, have constantly built on past benchmarks, have constantly invested resources and have sacrificed a lot that doesn’t fit into the brand personality.”

Healthy relationships

Radio brands have managed to keep the client satisfaction on their priority agenda. The average scores of radio brands in maintaining healthy relationships is 498 which is highest in all the three mediums. The simple media delivery mechanism and costeffectiveness have made it possible for clients to stay with their favorite radio brands.

Pitch | September 2014

Krishna Kumar, Client Leader, Maxus Global attributes the growth to the cost-effective nature of the medium, “Radio has proved to be a very costeffective medium and this is what is driving their growth. The minimal cost of production makes it easier and quicker for brands to propagate their message. It creates a theatre in the minds of people and attention paid by the audience to this medium is what makes it effective. And again I would say, its cost-effective nature is what will continue to make it a sustainable media channel.”

High on professionalism Radio brands were also rated high on professional behavior. The average score of all radio brands in professionalism is 483, highest being earned by Radio Mirchi which scored 738 points. Professionalism is considered as one of the most critical parameters for marketers to continue with any media brand. Radio push has been very effective in popularizing campaigns in the social circle.

Localized offerings, generally become a very tedious task for any national media vehicle but for radio brands, this is their revenue generator. The ability to target communities at the grassroot levels like the RWA makes this medium special and a must-have media vehicle in any media plan.

Anita Nayyar, CEO, Havas Media Group attributes the popularity of

“Radio is gaining popularity for its interactivity with the audiences. Brands are increasingly using the medium both for its cost efficiency, coverage and interactivity”

Anita Nayyar | CEO, Havas Media

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RADIO Powered by

PROFESSIONALISM

SERVICE ABILITY

RANK

BRAND SCORE

RANK

BRAND SCORE

SALES TEAM’S KNOWLEDGE RANK BRAND SCORE

1

Radio Mirchi

666

1.

Radio Mirchi

738

1.

Radio Mirchi

694

2

Red FM

539

2.

Radio City

591

2.

Radio City

547

3

Big FM

533

3.

Red FM

565

3.

Red FM

530

4

Radio City

531

4.

Big FM

504

4.

Big FM

512

5

Fever FM

472

5.

Fever FM

462

5.

Fever FM

470

6

My FM

336

6.

My FM

296

6.

My FM

280

7

Suryan FM

269

7.

Suryan FM

224

7.

Suryan FM

220

(Scores out of 1000)

radio among advertisers to the interactive nature of the medium, “It is gaining popularity less for its audio attribute and more for its interactivity with the audiences. Brands are increasingly using the medium both for its cost efficiency, coverage and interactivity.”

FM scored 539, Big FM 533 and Radio City only two points behind – 531.

Radio has cemented its position in most media plans primarily due to its low production cost and ability to innovate. Commenting on relevance of innovation for radio, Nisha Narayanan says, “Innovation in radio is extreme-

“We have gone regional with relevant talent and consequently we are number one in Mumbai and other key markets like Kolkata and Bangalore.”

Tarun Katial | CEO, Reliance Broadcast Network Limited Ashwin Padmanabhan, National Business Head, 92.7 BIG FM says that people are listening to radio not so much for the music as for the content. “If you create great content and weave the brand into that content, weave entertainment into it, there is no way that it will not be successful,” he adds.

Service closest to perfection

The general ranking of radio brands put Radio City on second, Red FM on third and Big FM on fourth positions.

There is a twist in the results for Service Ability, in which number two - Radio City was displaced to fourth position by Red FM and Big FM. Red

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ly important as the medium is perishable and lacks a visual connect. To communicate effectively, you need to break the clutter and get your listeners’ attention. We engage our listeners and clients with some very interesting innovations on-air, on-ground and digitally- be it our music, content,

The average scores of radio brands in maintaining healthy relationships is 498 which is highest in all the three mediums

special properties, sparklers, marketing initiatives or client solutions.

We always endeavour to creatively meet the requirements of advertisers, rather than just have run-of-themill ad spots. From our concerts under the RED Live vertical in Delhi & smaller towns like Varanasi, Nashik and Guwahati to our programmingled activities such as Sachin-200 Not Out & our election campaign- Dabaa Ke Bajaa, we have been keeping abuzz with innovations. We have also done live shows from studios mounted on the top of hoardings in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata.”

The biggest advantage with this medium remains its low investment model and instant push to any campaign of any brand. According to the survey, radio is the most apt campaign amplification medium.

What also works well for radio is localization of content. Tarun Katial, CEO, Reliance Broadcast Network Limited speaks about how Big FM has been able to capitalize on local insights, “We have gone regional with relevant talent and consequently we are number one in Mumbai and other key markets like Kolkata and Bangalore. We have been able to grow our listener base by around 60-70 per cent in the last six months.”  - ankur.gaurav@exchange4media.com Pitch | September 2014

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Radio Industry Our best days lie ahead and you ain’t seen nothin’ yet…

Hitesh Sharma

COO, Radio Mirchi

Phase 3 will usher in the much-awaited expansion for the business. More than 800 frequencies across 227 towns are available for broadcasters Pitch | September 2014

B

efore seeking re-election for the second term of Presidency, Ronald Reagan used this line above as his sign-off in his address to the nation. I am using it as a preamble for the new beginning of the Radio Industry.

For some inexplicable reason, Radio continues to carry the maximum load on its shoulder to explain its present day relevance to ever-doubtful advertisers as well as remove the doubts plaguing the minds of policy makers. The last capacity expansion that happened in the Radio business happened in 2006-07. Since then, Radio is recycling its already exhausted inventory. Just look at the world around, no industry has been caged like Radio.

But hey, how does it matter? Bring it on! At Radio, we are used to challenges thrown at us. We may be small in size but quintessentially we are the sunshine media. We bring music, fun, and information to the lives of 100 million fellow Indians on a daily basis across 85 towns through 242 frequencies. Despite all forms of music listening devices available to consumers, radio continues to be the source of serendipity in the discovery of music. Even in most developed media markets, Radio continues to forge a new friendship with younger generations and carry on cementing relationship with other

audiences. There is no drop in radio listenership across markets. In fact, most of the consumers in India use their mobile device to listen to their favorite radio stations.

We are at the cusp of a major change. Phase 3 will usher in the much-awaited expansion for the business. Government has set an ambitious target of taking radio to all towns of more than a lakh population. More than 800 frequencies across 227 towns are available for broadcasters. We are quite con�ident that Government will allow news on radio and not restrict it to be sourced from AIR alone. If all goes well then, in next 4 years radio business will double from its current level.

This is just a beginning. We have to initiate work for Phase 4 immediately. There is an urgent demand for ‘variety’ in formats and product offering. We, at Radio Mirchi, have been quite con�ident that with spectrum re-farming, reducing channel spacing from current 800 kHz to 400 kHz, we can double the frequencies in key markets. Broadcasters will be able to experiment with new formats and offer new music genres. It will revolutionize radio in metro markets. There is a clear roadmap available for radio industry for next 4 years. If we keep our focus and take some bold steps, we are con�ident that Radio, free to air medium, will spread sunshine and bring music to the ears of millions of Indians. 

The views expressed here are of the author alone, and do not necessarily re�lect the views of Pitch

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BRAND JOURNEY Powered by

RADIO MIRCHI Miles Ahead

By DEVANSH SHARMA

R

adio Mirchi , rated as an undisputed leader among all radio stations by the Brandometer Survey, has had an interesting and eventful journey over twelve years. The journey of Radio Mirchi98.3 fm, which was formerly known as Times FM till 1998, dates back to 1993. With the privatization of radio industry in 1990s, a new phase of the industry began with the advent of new players. Until then, All India Radio was the only radio broadcaster.

FM radio stations have emerged as one of the most popular sources of entertainment and information.

Right from innovative programming to on-ground activities, Radio Mirchi is one of the preferred radio stations for listeners across the country.

Entertainment Network India Limited (ENIL), Radio Mirchi’s holding company which was merged in 1999 with Bennett Coleman & Company limited, has 32 stations across the country. Being one of the first to penetrate into the metro cities, Mirchi enjoys the advantage of its presence in densely populated cities, having

70

a population of more than two million, and consequently tapping into a large and diverse base of listeners.

Despite stiff competition in the market, Mirchi has emerged as one

of the most successful FM channels.

Prashant Panday, CEO Radio Mirchi believes that it is the perfect blend of marketing and programming that has led the brand to success. “Mirchi

Pitch | September 2014

Powered by

has always been a leader. As per IRS, we lead in 22 out of 32 markets.

We lead in almost all the metros.

Except for the South, we lead in all the other regions. Being the leader is always challenging, but over a period of time, we have developed our own secret sauce of programming and marketing. It is this secret sauce that keeps us going. We have stayed true to our brand, stayed focused on our core values, have constantly built on past benchmarks, have constantly invested resources and have sacrificed a lot that doesn’t fit into the brand personality. Our programming and marketing teams are the custodians of this secret sauce, and they keep pushing it every single day of the year.

This is not to say that there aren’t other good brands in the market. In fact, each brand has developed its own unique position in the listeners’ minds” says Panday.

The core concept of the channel was formed on the premise that majority of youngsters spend hours on the road in metro cities. With

Pitch | September 2014

The journey of Radio Mirchi- 98.3 fm, which was formerly known as Times FM till 1998, dates back to 1993.

a view to entertain the young listeners, while they are on the move, Radio Mirchi struck the FM Industry.

The programming content of Mirchi is aesthetically moulded around Bollywood music. Besides its interactive programming, the hyper-active RJs have been able to attract and retain listeners.

Radio Mirchi primarily targets students and young working professionals and the marketing is developed around this target listener group. With the Phase-II licensing, FM radio industry has witnessed an increased number of FM stations across the country and Phase-III is expected to boost them further. On today’s date, a metro city has as many as seven FM channels, and listeners have many options. Considering the tough competition, what distinguishes Mirchi from its competitors is its programming content.

Speaking about the upcoming opportunities with phaseIII licensing Panday said “Mirchi as a brand will expand into new cities, wherev-

71

BRAND JOURNEY Powered by

er we are able to acquire new licenses.

In places we get a 2nd license, we will consider other alternatives”.

Mirchi has been entertaining masses, which has made it a preferred station not just amongst the listeners but also amongst advertisers. It has several Radio and Television Advertising Practitioners’ Association of India (RAPA) awards to its credit. Besides it has also earned the honor of being the Most Popular Radio Channel amongst Youth at the 2nd Global Youth Marketing Forum.

“At its core, Mirchi is a sunshine brand. It’s captured in ‘Mirchi Sunnewale Always Khush’. In a world full of stress, Mirchi is that pep-up pill which gets you going. Mirchi is not an activist brand. It doesn’t attack. It’s a brand that unites people. It doesn’t seek sensationalism. It is not dark.

If you listen to Mirchi, you will defi-

At its core, Mirchi is a sunshine brand. It’s captured in ‘Mirchi Sunnewale Always Khush’. In a world full of stress, Mirchi is that pep-up pill which gets you going Prashant Panday | CEO Radio Mirchi

nitely come out feeling more confident about life, and sure about the future! At the product level, our promise was defined right when we started our journey 12 years back. At that time, we said ‘Once you’ve consumed Mirchi, everything else feels bland’. That product promise continues till date.”

Even as mass media innovations have increased by the day, this brand claims to have evolved since its inception, but has remained what true to its core.  -devansh.sharma@exchange4media.com

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Pitch | September 2014

FEATURE Powered by

Professionalism is a necessary

attribute of a Media Brand

By GUNJAN VERMA

E

ven great brands can fall apart if they are not professional in their conduct. Ethics, transparency and clear communication with clients is a must to be considered a professional media brand.

Nandan Srinath, Director Response, Bennett Coleman & Co Ltd, believes there are several factors that contribute to the success of a brand. “There are parameters like brand awareness, impact, subliminal messaging, brand recall, visual imagery and emotional positioning which together play a very vital part in building brand equity and strengthening the brand-consumer relationship in the longer term,” he says.

Planning, managing time and being organized are the critical tools for being an effective, responsible and professional brand. The Times of India has set stand-

“There are parameters like brand awareness, impact, subliminal messaging, etc. which together play a very vital part in building brand equity Nandan Srinath | Director Response, Bennett Coleman & Co Ltd

Pitch | September 2014

ards as a professional brand and the Brandometer Survey reveals that Sony television is the most professional brand in the television medium. The reason these brands have emerged as winners is their sense of professionalism in dealing with advertisers. In fact, Ashish Bhasin, Chairman & CEO South Asia Dentsu Aegis Network, says, “Key parameters for judging a media brand , according to me, are professionalism and sales team’s knowledge.”

Another important aspect of professionalism which cannot be overlooked is transparency. If the brand is transparent, clients will have greater faith in the brand and transactions will happen more smoothly and effectively. Transparency within the organization is also equally important. Better coordination between the programming team and sales team lead to a professional delivery.

Effective multidisciplinary team functioning is often essential for good care of the client. Within the organizations good relationships are fundamental to creating a productive and healthy environment for all. Unprofessional behaviour may directly undermine client care, may destroy the work culture and indirectly reduce the ability of an organization to achieve its objectives. Therefore, maintaining high standards of professional behaviour is important . Media decision makers are getting tougher and have set high level of professional standards.

Among News Channels , NDTV 24X7 has emerged as the top news media where professionalism is concerned. Professionalism has ranked third among the parameters mentioned and 40.34 per

“Key parameters for judging a media brand, according to me, are professionalism and sales team’s knowledge.

Ashish Bhasin | Chairman & CEO South Asia Dentsu Aegis Network

cent of the respondents rate the parameter to be critical.

If a media brand is professional and is ef�icient at delivery and services, shares a good rapport with the client, the client readily increases the money invested. If one of the top rated channels shows unprofessionalism, the client would allocate only a �ixed percentage of his budget and will never increase the monies. Thus professionalism is a very important parameter to understand the credibility of the brand.

A successful media brand cannot turn away from professionalism. At the end of the day, a brand that is an ideal mix of all the six parameters is the one stays ahead in the race.  -team@pitchonnet.com

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FEATURE

MOTHER DAIRY

The reinvention of

By Kanika Mehrotra

O

ne brand that has steadily become a household name in the world of dairy products is ‘Mother Dairy’. The thought of Mother Dairy present a picture of a local milk booth where people line up, use their token, and buy milk. However, four years back, Mother Dairy created its innovative center ‘Avishkar’. True to its name, Avishkar has leveraged Mother Dairy in shedding their traditional image and establish a stronghold in the industry, despite facing stiff competition from the giants such as Amul and Nestle.

Mother Dairy has used a 360 degree innovation plan after determining the shortcomings of the products that are available in the market. They have not only diversified their range of products, but have also strategically altered their packaging and marketing techniques.

In 2011 on Diwali, ‘Khoya’ was in the news for all the wrong reasons. It was reported that the market was flooded with adulterated khoya and sweets, which dampened the festive mood. Mother Dairy was quick to grab the window of opportunity and they ventured into the traditional sweets market. They catered to the need of the hour by providing khoya, the primary ingredient for preparing any sweet, in consumer packs. Among the

Mother Dairy

Subhashis Basu |

Business Head (Dairy Products), Mother Dairy Fruit and Vegetable Pvt. Ltd.

74

Pitch | September 2014

newly introduced range of products were khoya, cheena kheer, kaju barfi, kaju pista rolls, doda barfi, and milk cake. Introducing this range was the best plan designed by Mother Dairy to satiate consumers’ requirements. Consumers couldn’t have asked for more than getting these products from one of the most trusted brands.

Their foray into the variety dairy products began with the launch of fruit yoghurts available in four flavors blueberry, raspberry, mango, and plum. ‘Mishti Doi’, a name synonymous with Bengal was another product that was launched along with the range of yoghurts.

Mishti Doi is an integral part in an authentic Bengali cuisine. Mishti Doi was indeed not an innovation of Mother Dairy, but being Mishti Doi available in a supermarket was.

Until Mishti Doi was available in consumer packs, buyers were habituated in getting their sweet curds from local sweet shops.

Venturing into the market with a product which is also a part of the traditional cuisine of a community was quite a challenge.

However, it was a successful launch.

But, the success story did not continue for long, as Mother Dairy raised its price and with a generic packaging and nothing special to offer, this product saw downward spiral in its sales. It was quick in losing its appeal with the consumers. Mother Dairy stepped up to the challenge. They reintroduced Mishti Doi with a touch of Bengal, imprints of Goddess Durga and vibrant colored rangolis. This hit the right chord with the consumers and Mother Dairy recovered its lost revenue and generated great sales.

Mother Dairy has launched yet another variety of doi, ‘Aam Doi’, which is an interesting blend of flavors - Mishti Doi and mangoes. In an extensive treat for the palate, they have also introduced ‘Sweet Lassi’ and ‘Masala Lassi’ in smart cups. This convenient packaging allows consumers to relish sweet and masala lassi without any hassle and also keeps hygiene issues at bay.

Subhashis Basu , Business Head (Dairy Products), Mother Dairy Fruit and Vegetable Pvt. Ltd. said, “Mother Dairy’s Mishti Doi is a market leader and we have very loyal Pitch | September 2014

Mother Dairy used a 360 degree innovation plan after determining the shortcomings of the products available in the market consumer base. We saw an opportunity to connect to the tradition of Bengali community by visually representing core Bengali symbols. Hence, we altered the packaging.

Aam Doi has been developed as a result of extensive consumer understanding, which combines the authentic flavors of Mishti Doi with a rich taste of luscious mangoes.”

Basu adds, “Nowadays the consumers are very health conscious and also very particular about taste; overall, consumers are very fussy with respect to their food intake. Keeping all these factors in mind Mother Dairy introduced fruit yoghurts which give consumers a taste of real fruits along with their daily intake of yoghurt.”

Basu’s view on brand connecting with the health conscious youth is that, “For the first time in India, we introduced Probiotic dahi ‘b-Active’ and probiotic drink ‘Nutrifit’. As a result of extensive research, we enriched

the ‘probiotic’ products with dietary fiber to have symbiotic effect and make it a healthier option. ‘Dietz Sugar Free’ an ice-cream containing high dietary fiber was launched for diabetic patients and calorie conscious consumers. ‘Lic Lolleezz’ was also introduced with Vitamin C and flavors that appealed to the taste buds of Indians.” Mother Dairy chose to be identified as a brand by its customers and not as commodity or ingredient and therefore, it chose to be associated with Indian Railways and Indian Airlines. Basu rationalized this statement by adding, “90 per cent of this market is held by Mother Dairy.

We always want our consumers to remember and recall our brand.”

Mother Dairy has plans of launching products with longer shelf-life which includes milk powders, dairy whiteners, tetra packs, and dairy beverages. Although the road to reinvention has not been a cake walk, Mother Dairy has come a long way from its local milk booth image. They have not only fortified their position in the dairy industry, but have also made their presence felt in agribusiness through ‘Safal’. n - kanika.mehrotra@exchange4media.com

75

COLUMN

Wherever Consumers Go...

Vinish Kathuria

Chief Operating Office, Digital Quotient

vinishk@live.com

Wherever consumers go, companies & brands must follow. Retail Industry adapted to this changed environment very swiftly 76

B

efore the dawn of Internet, brands would woo consumers through traditional tools such as newspaper or TV advertisements, store-displays, and pamphlets or by merely word-of-mouth. We now live in a digital world with a greater than ever array of digital devices and platforms. Today, the ways in which we interact, shop and explore the world around us have been considerably altered by technological developments.

The evolved consumer behavior due to digital evolution - is an important aspect to be analyzed by marketers that demands newer approach for building and delivering products. It doesn’t matter if you are a heritage brand or a modern niche brand, everyone must adapt to the digital ecosystem.

Wherever consumers go, companies & brands must follow. Retail Industry adapted to this changed environment very swiftly. Thus, churning better pro�its and connecting with larger consumer groups across the world.

The e-commerce market is growing at an average annual rate of 34% since 2009 according to a 2013 report on ecommerce by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and KPMG.

With the numbers of Indian digital consumers projected to cross 240 million by the end of this month. It has become crucial for traditional players as well to jump on the digital bandwagon. Social networks such as Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. are strongly coming to the forefront playing a navigation role that was traditionally dominated by search engines. Thus, the need today is for optimization of a brand or companies’

Pitch | September 2014

social channels as well rather than simply optimizing the traditional tools.

Recently, we witnessed an impressive shift where a traditional brand awakened to the power of digital.

CenturyPly, the largest seller of multi-use plywood, laminates and decorative veneers in the Indian organized plywood market launched an aggressive interactive digital campaign. For the �irst time, CenturyPly launched a digital campaign before a TV campaign/print campaign, where the brand came up with a consumer friendly website, responsive with rich imagery and application based to create excitement amongst consumers who are now digitally active via mobiles & tabs. As their consumers and distributors increasingly started using smart phones in their daily lives, the company decided to be ahead of its peer group through launch of an integrated digital offering. CenturyPly is also the �irst one within this product category to have come up with an aggressive digital campaign.

Interestingly, CenturyPly operates in a category that is only 30 per

Pitch | September 2014

CenturyPly, the largest seller of multi-use plywood, laminates and decorative veneers in the Indian organized plywood market launched an aggressive interactive digital campaign cent organized. And since the last 6 years the brands key communication and positioning has been via TV campaigns highlighting the core functional bene�its of strength and durability of CenturyPly products.

For the �irst time the brand has given more preference to digital platform for engaging with its target audiences and consumers.

Also today while reading my daily dose of news digest, I came across another interesting news where an NGO, Care India, embraced the digital world and came up with a multi-platform campaign to connect with its target groups.

These moves towards adoption of digital media are perceptional shifts which do not happen overnight.

These shifts are realized by witnessing how consumers and audiences are embracing technology and digital platforms. Thus, driven by consumer shift and further awareness of decision-makers and executive management teams to keep pace with changing times. As more young talents are roped in organization’s communications & creative teams (who are more digitally inclined), we are now witnessing traditional brands adopting modern methods of communications & advertising.

Apart from behavioral and perceptional shifts, another factor leading to fast adaptation to the digital eco-system by both modern and traditional players is cost-saving. As

compared to other mediums like TV or Print, marketing & advertising on digital is far more affordable. It leads to cost savings in supply chain, increased visibility in operations, better customer services, newer offerings and easier to trace consumer purchasing behavior for marketing research.

Other key factors include the mobile evolution in India with 800 million plus users. What is interesting in last 12 months is the growing usage of internet on mobile, with mobile internet usage already exceeding desktop internet usage. India is already the 3rd largest Smartphone market globally. With these developments it becomes unavoidable for brands to stay away from stepping into the digital world.

The digital ecosystem also provides with plethora of newer ways to connect with audiences as it runs on innovation and engagement. Videos are de�initely the next big thing!

If you haven’t already realized the importance of engaging your target audiences you are already lagging behind. Traditional players in various segments are realizing this massive change and are now pulling up their sleeves to get into the game.

Moreover, it’s all about how well and impactful is a brand in engaging and connecting with the consumers.

The days of monologues are gone, today is the era of creating dialogues with consumers. Integrated campaigns across platforms are far more effective in delivering brand’s message and creating recall amongst digitally 24x7 active audiences than isolated campaigns.

So, remember to follow consumers wherever they go…get on the digital bandwagon! 

The views expressed here are of the author alone, and do not necessarily re�lect the views of Pitch

77

COLUMN

Creative Ad Formats for Digital Media Gyan Gupta

COO, Dainik Bhaskar DigitalGroup

A

dvertising has grown on innovation.

Digital can’t be any other story. When I look at digital advertising, I think it has a huge possibility, considering that it allows users to interact, engage and discover.

We have to apply the art of storytelling and technology to help advertisers create unique experiences for the audience.

Engaging the audience

It should not be just about whether a user has clicked on an ad or not. But has he been engaged? Can we make the creative more engaging by giving him video, information and other relevant material in the same ad space, rather than taking him to a new website for more information? In these times when the attention span is so less, why do we want him to perform multiple clicks to get the information? It should be done on the same ad banner. Today, technology allows this to happen.

Language is key

In these times when the attention span is so less, why do we want the consumer to perform multiple clicks to get the information?

78

We shouldn’t forget the importance of language. In digital, this is hugely neglected.

Considering that 42 per cent of the digital users are local language users, it makes sense for us to have the communication created in local language, rather than simply translated. We have worked with a few brands to create the communication in Hindi and Gujarati and it has worked wonders for the brand.

Content integration

It makes it more worthwhile tying up with

the content. So when I am showing a huge 300X600 display ad for a car launch, can we show 3-4 news briefs about the same car from the same publisher or even different publishers? This makes the ad relevant, and entices the user to click on it. Once he clicks on it it increases his likelihood of engaging on the brand website also. This can be extrapolated to having other relevant articles along with the ad.

Voice of Share

Currently, we are just using it like a performance medium, or for buying a de�ined set of impressions. We should look at getting 100 per cent voice of share. This means that for a particular day, the communication should be exposed to 100 per cent of the users for that day/ week or month. This should be the same set of communication that can be targeted at the users.

Stitching it all together

It has to all come together. The timing is important. It has to come like a beautifully done movie giving the users the experience we want them to carry back about the brand.

I am sure this medium has many opportunities and if explored and innovated well, will create rich, engaging experience for the user, making advertising relevant, useful and interesting. 

The views expressed here are of the author alone, and do not necessarily re�lect the views of Pitch

Pitch | September 2014

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COLUMN : ANNURAG BATRA COLUMN ANNURAG BATRA

The growing relevance of media in our lives Annurag Batra

Chairman & Editor-in-Chief, Pitch Magazine abatra@exchange4media.com @anuragbatrayo www.facebook.com/anuragbatrayo

M

edia brands in India and across the world have a great responsibility to transform society. Media both affects society and is affected by it. In that sense, it has a critical role to play. It is an industry that deals in intangible or non-material goods but is treated like any other brand from a Media Planner’s perspective. It is a huge challenge for media decision-makers in assessing a media brand and getting the best out of it.

On the other hand, media conglomerates also need clarity about their own strengths and failings. Pitch Media Brandometer 2014 is a study that has tried to solve this conundrum, by rating important media brands on the basis of 6 parameters.

The survey results have come up with some interesting trends related to the media and also how viewer interests have changed over time. It has thrown light on the burgeoning brands and how fragmentation is coming into play.

Innovation has become par for the course without which no brand can survive in this competitive world. Innovation should form the core of the media offering and the offerings should be customised as per the different requirements. Thinking out-of-the box has become a necessity for the media in question. The brands that have made it to the list know the pulse of the audience, have been able to cater to the different requirements of advertisers and viewers, and have come up with a recipe for success.

It seems those who can adapt to change in

The brands that have made it to the Brandometer list know the pulse of the audience, have been able to cater to the different requirements of advertisers and viewers 80

the environment are the ones that are able to thrive in this market.

The last few years have seen the birth of several new media brands. Most of them cater to a specific audience, a specific market. They are speciality products that know their viewer or reader. They know that attention spans are short, that it’s a cluttered market, that the sensibilities are different and audience exposure to alternate markets is immense. Their offerings therefore, are much targeted and as personalised as possible. Niche products have become the game changers and targeted content is now known to work well.

As viewers, we have evolved and with the onslaught of digital media, our approach towards the other formats has also changed.

Media brands have to do something extra to capture our attention, to keep us engaged.

Compelling content and a stronghold on viewers is the fundamental requirement.

Some extra effort on the part of the brand to give that additional value to both the viewer and the advertiser is needed in this environment. A credible media entity in today’s age does not only provide content but also understands the target group and provides innovative advertising formats , to become appealing to decision-makers.

Media has the ability to touch lives and make a difference both to the individual and the society at large. To become an integral part of our lives, the media must be able to forge a connect with the viewer, become a thought leader, and develop an iconic status. It must also give options to advertisers. Are we expecting too much from it? I think the robust Indian media can meet these expectations.

Pitch | September 2014

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Pitch | September 2014