The Marksman_Summer edition _2017 by The Marksman

Dear Readers,

After a break of three months, we are back with another exciting and exuberating edition of The Marksman. We have curated for you a broad spectrum of interesting articles that would enhance your understanding of marketing. In this edition, we have taken “Competitive Marketing” as the topic for our cover story. It is a marketing phenomenon where the product showcases its strength and weaknesses in comparison to its direct competitors. The special story “Disruptive Marketing", states how the marketers are disrupting the conventional methods of marketing to create new markets. In addition to this, we have a section where our seniors have shared their experiences about their internship and their final placements. This would give you all a fair idea how the real job actually looks like and what expectations does the recruiter holds from you. This will pump you up for how to prepare for your internships and final placements. We got an overwhelming response for Call for Articles. We would like to congratulate Suvinava Basak, IIM Indore and Vikash Kumar Verma , IIM Bodhgaya, whose articles have been featured in this issue. For the remaining entries, we would like to thank you all for your incredible response and encourage you all to keep writing to us with the great enthusiasm. We’d also like to hear back from our esteemed readers on how you find this issue. Your feedback is valuable for us! It helps us improve our magazine. Enjoy Reading! Stay with us on www.interfacesimsr.com/index.php/marksman

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SUMMER EDITION

INDEX Tweets

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s All About Ad-itude

Marketing Faux Pas

Cover Story

Special Story

Pioneer

Hall-Mark Campaign

Brand Markive

Marketing RealTime

InternSpeak

Bookworm

Kickstart

Featured Article

Square Head

Buzz

TWEETS -SUHITA PANT â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Fox Entertainm ent has come up with an innovative way for creating a buzz around this annual event.â&#x20AC;?

#teen choice awards It was slated to be held on 23rd of August but to capture more publicity, hype and mass involvement of youngsters from all around the globe; the Fox Entertainment has come up with an innovative way for creating a buzz around this annual event. They are carrying out nomination for the award using Twitter

People all around the world have joined this buzz wagon. They are tweeting for most deserving candidates ranging from famous music artist to new pop bands. The nominations are open for several categories like best film, best actor, best comic etc. and these show will be held in California this year.

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TWEETS

#one love Manchester After the gruesome tragedy of suicide bombing that happened in Manchester, England during a concert organized by American singer Ariana Grande, a total of twenty-three adults and children were killed, including the attacker, and 119 were injured critically. The singer has been on her toes in extending selfless aids and service to the affected fans and is using Twitter to spread cheer, hope and a way to reach her affected fans in this difficult time. Her production company has joined up with #one love Manchester movement where people are outpouring their support and posting images denoting confidence and aid provided by the singer.

“23 adults and children were killed, including the attacker, and 119 were injured critically ”

#WWDC17 What Apple does the tech-world follow! This year was no different. Starting from 5th to 9th of June, the world’s most awaited technology meet was conducted by Apple in their headquarter. There were sessions, guest lectures, consultations and hands-on meet which was live tweeted by the company. New launches like iOS 11, MacOS Sierra and much more were live tweeted and their unveiling followed by tech enthusiasts. Apple made a statement by pushing the news launches and announcements about things in pipeline directly on Twitter. 2 MARKSMAN

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IT’S ALL ABOUT AD-ITUDE -SHRUTI SHARMA

TELEVISION AD

“Everyone showcased in the ad wears a white t-shirt to symbolize the unity among different races”

What can go wrong, when big celebrities like our own Priyanka Chopra along with rapper Wiz Khalifa, actor Christie Brinkley , model Casil Mcarthur , model Adwoa Aboah, actor Jonathan Groff and a lot others come down in a video with one of the most peppy song ‘Sunny’ by Boney M? The song itself is so catchy that it sticks to your head for a really long time. With the personalities of diverse backgrounds and races; the ad transcends the very thought of differentiating people. Going ahead with the concept of bridging the gap, the brand has

come up with yet another thoughtful advertisement. Everyone showcased in the ad wears a white t-shirt to symbolize the unity among different races. As stated by Craig Brommers, CMO, Gap, said, “Gap is a quintessentially American brand and we strive to embody all of America in everything we do. ‘Bridging the Gap’ is about showing the many faces of what it means to be an American and bringing all of those sides together.” This comes up as yet another social message among the mass to bridge various gaps based on colour, race, and gender.

Enjoy the ad at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDPEztJMFn4

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AD-ITUDE

PRINT AD Adoption is a process of adopting animals who are been abandoned by their previous owners. The brand World for All supports animal adoption. With McCann World Group, they have brought another quirky yet thoughtful message for animal adoption. These ads show how the world is a place for everyone. Adoption of animals is a trending social cause these days. Animals are usually being

brought in as a pet but are most often than not are being left in animal shelters or abandoned. One shouldn’t be treating them as use and throw material but rather adopt such animals. An awareness campaign to support the same has been brought forward by the agency. It’s indeed a creative advertising which showcases that every living thing belongs to the world and everyone deserves love and affection.

“One shouldn’t be treating them as use and throw material but rather adopt such animals.”

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FAUX PAS -ANCHAL PANDEY “What will happen when the brands themselves nurture some taboo instead of erasing them from the roots!”

What will happen when the brands themselves nurture some taboo instead of erasing them from the roots! It's hard to imagine anything more blatant than this. Seoul Secret, a Thai beauty company claims that white skin is the key to success. They have released an ad which stars a smiling light skinned actress asserting, “Just being white you will win.” “Without this pill, the whiteness that I have attained will just disappear”, alerts the model. “I am confident in this beautiful white skin”, she adds.

Thai people have complained that the ad spreads a damaging racist idea. After strong criticism, the company has decided to pull the video from its online platforms and issued a statement. “We would like to apologize for the error and claim full responsibility for this incident. Our company did not have any intention to perpetuate discriminatory or racist messages," it said. "What we wanted to convey was that self-improvement in terms of personality, appearance, and skills is important".

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FAUX PAS

THE UGLY TRUTH In most of the Asian countries, the skin whitening products are popular. This is not the first time that the Thai ad has drawn the accusations of racism. Dunkin Donuts had started a campaign in Bangkok showing a woman with her face inked black with the slogan “ Break every rule of deliciousness”.The company later apologized for the incident. Unilever too joined the league by offering University scholarships to students with fairer skin. If the world can't look beyond the color of the skin in the twentyfirst century then it’s a matter of concern for everyone. Moreover, the companies should do some homework before launching a campaign because no one likes controversies. Right?

“If the world can't look beyond the color of the skin in the twenty-first century then it’s a matter of concern for everyone. “

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COVER STORY - JISHNU R

COMPETITIVE ADVERTISING “This time the ad focuses not on the keys, but on the four key rings kept together to form the famous four ceiling rings, the logo of Audi. ”

If one asks you “What do you want in a car? “, what would be the most likely answer? From the first few options, it could be anything from color, speed, style, luxury or even the brand name. But if the one asking you the question is none other than the premium car manufacturer Audi, there has to be a specific answer or in fact, four specific answers. At least that was what answered by Audi after asking the same question in its famous advertisement, “What do you want in a car?” In the ad, Audi answers the question by keeping four keys of its competitors, Alfa Romeo, Volvo, BMW and Mercedes by asking whether if it’s the Design, Safety, Sport or Comfort you are looking for. Or whether you want all of it in “one car only?” This time the ad focuses not on the keys, but on the four key rings kept together to form the famous four ceiling rings, the logo of Audi.

“What do you want in a car? ”

The ad was not only cost-effective but also strategically placed because it showcased that Audi is the leader by displaying the best features of four of its competitors. It was smart, efficient and crisp. One of the most crucial moves in advertising known as Competitive Advertising was displayed at its best in this advertisement. Competitive advertising is an effort by a company to create a contrast between its product and the same or similar offerings by its competitors. What makes this type of advertising different is that one can identify the comparison and contrast showcased by the company to differentiate itself from its competitors. 7

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COVER STORY

One may wonder if this is a legally valid advertising strategy and if yes, why doesn't many companies take it up. This is where the strategy becomes tricky. The law allows you to say that your products are better, but not to state that the other products are inferior. But the moment you say that your products are better, it indirectly means that the other products are inferior to you. It is nothing but stating whether the glass is half full or half empty. Whatever the statement is, the content remains the same. In a way, companies tend to use this strategy to show how others are inferior in a diplomatic way. The advertisement by Audi was not the first and definitely not the last. The best part about it was that the ad never tries to convey that any of its competitors were actually inferior. In a way, Audi accepted that each of the features mentionedDesign, Safety, Sportiness, and Comfort are the major USP’s of its competitors Alfa Romeo, Volvo, BMW and Mercedes respectively. But saying that, the finishing move was well placed for the benefit of Audi.

“But the moment you say that your products are better, it indirectly means that the other products are inferior to you!”

There had been numerous such instances especially in the automobile industry which is used to such “healthy advertisements wars”. The major “war” goes on between the premium auto manufacturers Audi, BMW, Mercedes, and Jaguar. One famous ad war was between Mercedes and Jaguar where the former conveyed its indisputable stability feature naming it as “Magic Body Control”. Jaguar soon launched a clever reply, mimicking the ad and stating that it would rather prefer “Cat-like Reflexes” rather than “Magic Body Control”. This “Chicken” ad is one interesting to look out for. Even BMW has been smart enough to tackle its competitors through its Ad showing its stability control and the logo of Audi, saying that even this closest competitor-Audi can’t do this. 8 MARKSMAN

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COVER STORY

“Jaguar soon launched a clever reply, mimicking the ad and stating that it would rather prefer “Catlike Reflexes” rather than “Magic Body Control”. .”

One should not be mistaken that only the automobile industry use this type of strategies. Introduced in the year 1886 & 1903 respectively, two famous brands have been rivals trying to dominate the carbonated soft drink market; Coca- Cola and Pepsi. They have been using various modes of media wars from posters, billboards and yes, competitive advertising. One of the earlier ads showcased the interaction between the representatives of Coca-Cola and Pepsi where the rivalry between them was indisputable. In one of the ads released by Pepsi, it can be seen that each representative offers the other one its own drink. The idea was to show that the competitor (Coca-Cola) eventually “liked” the other drink after tasting it. Since soft drink bottles cannot “fight”, the ad later shows how both of them ends in a fist to fist duel to get the bottle of their now favorite drink, Pepsi. Soon Coca-Cola released a similar ad where it was shown as vice versa. There were various other methods used by each of them to establish their superiority over the other. While Pepsi always tried to showcase its brand as a “cool” one, Coca-Cola focused on being classic.

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COVER STORY Both of them are one among the highly successful brands in the world and their rivalry still continues despite being over a century old. But the smartest ad till date is the one by Burger King in which the primary mascot of McDonald’s fast food restaurant chain, Ronald McDonald visits Burger King disguised in a trench coat. “Even Ronald prefers Burger King” was quoted. A real competitive “competitive advertising” indeed. If you happen to research for most of the ads mentioned above, there is a chance that it can be termed as “banned”. It is because Competitive Advertising is not legal in every country. There are high legal implications as well as factors to consider before releasing such an ad. For example, in no way should the audience mistake the ad to be sponsored by the competitor, i.e. the brand cannot use the competitor’s logo and the brand name just to tarnish their image.

“But the smartest ad till date is the one by Burger King in which the primary mascot of McDonald’ s fast food restaurant chain, Ronald McDonald visits Burger King disguised in a trench coat. !”

And also during legal proceedings between two companies, one may try to use the situation to market itself better than the other. Take the example of Apple and Samsung. Did you know that the Samsung Galaxy was initially marketed in Australia as “The tablet Apple tried to stop”? Following the legal proceedings and a bunch of competitive advertising strategies, Samsung’s Galaxy series tried to position itself to be an underdog alternative to Apple. This shows that Competitive Advertising has to be clear, smart and crisp. 10 MARKSMAN

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COVER STORY

“One doesn’t have to be against the competito r to show their superiority. The Avis ad shows that even one can earn from accepting its ‘Defeat.’ ”

Desperate times obviously call for desperate measures, but those cannot be desperate enough to endanger one’s own reputation or financial stability. If the advertisements are not placed right, even their own loyal consumers may turn against them. But competitive Advertising is not only about showing how you are better than the other, at times it also matters to respect your position and accept the competition. Just like Avis, the car rental company who released an ad embracing its 2nd place status against the market leader Hertz in No.1. The Ad said “When you are only No.2, you try harder” Within a year “We Try Harder” ad got them earning over $1.2 million. All they had to do was to say “We Try Harder” by being No.2. Competitive Advertising is about trying harder. One doesn’t have to be against the competitor to show their superiority. The Avis ad shows that even one can earn from accepting its “defeat”. It is like a double edged sword. It could be used to show the superiority of one brand over the other. It could be dangerous to the holder and the opponent as well. But that is also the beauty of it. Because it is not actually the sword but the wielder with skill who actually matters. Those who can effectively place it with precision would be the one to gain the most of it. 11 MARKSMAN

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SPECIAL STORY DISRUPTIVE MARKETING

“If you would have asked anyone in the 1990’s about apple laptops, they would have described it as bland and overpriced garbage”

The intellects at Cambridge define Disruption as, “to prevent something, especially a system, process, or event, from continuing as usual or as expected”. This is exactly what the concept of Disruptive Marketing brings to the table, breaking the monotony of conventional methods, and rejecting the way things are supposed to be. It infuses you to trust your intuition and think about where you want your brand to go and how to get there. The notion stands upon two concepts, Creative Disruption and Disruptive Innovation. Creative disruption refers to breaking existing patterns of behaviour and doing things differently than before in the

-Devarshi Sil

creative process, while disruptive innovation is about creating a new market and a new value network eventually disrupting the existing markets and value networks. Though this idea may have been recognized, termed and defined recently, numerous brands and their mentors have had the foresight to disrupt the usual way of making and marketing things since long back, and the most famous examples, though clichéd, to do that were Apple and Tesla. Ask anyone around in the technological boom of the late 1990’s if they would’ve bought an Apple computer back then. After they finish laughing, they’ll explain to you that Apple products were regarded as bland and overpriced garbage. Not only were they considered overpriced but most

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what they came up with were remodelled clones of products that were superior in terms of processing power, features, price and available software. But then how is Apple doing today? It brings forward products that are sleek, sophisticated and forwardlooking. People wait for hours, even days, in line to score the latest iPhones. What brought about such a shift? The design of an MP3 player in an age when most people were endorsing Discmans as the ultimate in portable music, and the innovation just kept growing from there. That’s the impact disruptive marketing has on not just a brand, but an entire industry and the way we perceive it. People still think marketing is a lot about talking,

conveying and amplifying your communication till the customer takes notice. But what happens post that? It might not always be enough for you to just catch their attention, given the competitiveness in today’s markets. Your ideas must inspire within the customers a feeling of awed respect and delight. You need to startle and stagger them, sweep them off their feet to be precise, and make them wonder if what you’re offering is something that can ever be true. Given the kind of era we’re presently in, with technology and its marvels fascinating us every day, it’s easy to think “disruption” is always centred on technology. However, if you think about it, technology is simply the tool used to deliver the experience. The prime reason of disruption can be attributed to

“to prevent something, especially a system, process, or event, from continuing as usual or as expected”

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SPECIAL STORY

“Although we spend more than half of our lives on the Internet as a society these days, but being social animals we crave shared experience s with people ”

people wanting solutions and disruptive marketers listening in order to help provide them. Many marketers think all they have to do is use Hubspot, Google Analytics and similar tools and they’ll be up to date and do fine. But people don’t live on the web. Tools are mainly useful as measurement devices and help us get a handle on what may be happening online, but they are poor indicators of human behaviour in the real world. This is why fruitful marketing takes place with tangible ideas and items that can be shared amongst groups of people in the physical realm. Although we certainly spend more than half of our lives on the Internet as a society these days, but being social animals we crave shared 14

MARKSMAN

experiences with people, in person. Such face-to-face experiences consequently end up being shared within circles of influence that include many people who were not actually there, but because of their connection to the participants, feel like they share the experience personally. So what exactly makes a disruptive campaign, disruptive? There are many brands today that dare to break the status quo. Most customers love disruptive marketing because it changes the face of how we perceive advertising. If done well enough, it even becomes a part of our vocabulary. Try this. When was the last time you called a cab? Or, when was the last time you called an Uber or an Ola? Disruptive marketing often tells a story in a way that consumers can understand. SUMMER EDITION

SPECIAL STORY

“marketing efforts are rewarding when they are the least conspicuou s in attempting to sway people” In one example from Spain that went viral around the world, an ad against child abuse showed an image of a child with the caption “Sometimes child abuse is only visible to the child suffering from it.”While most adults got the message, but its true impact was understood only by children. Using technology, when viewed from a certain height, the ad’s message changed entirely. From a child’s height, the message showed a boy with bruises and cuts indicative of abuse, and the ad read “If someone hurts you, call us and we’ll help you.” The ad was meant to speak to victims of abuse, even and especially when they’re out with their abuser. Here’s another example, from the Singapore Red Cross. How many times have you thought about donating blood? Probably many times. You know it can save lives and yet very few people take the time to do it, particularly healthy and

young people. The Singapore Red Cross tried changing that with a poster ad that capitalized on young people’s love of selfies and celebrities by doing an ad called “Blood Ties”. The poster showed three famous celebrities, a comedian, blogger and singer quoting, “I’ve got Comedy/Blogging/Music in my blood, what’s in yours?” Music, blogging, and comedy, all things that attract the younger generation and this kind of ad speaks to them exactly in a way that resonates. To conclude, marketing efforts are rewarding when they are the least conspicuous in attempting to sway people, and is instead based on genuine listening, honest responses, transparency, and ultimately, human interactions. So “disruptive marketing” at its core, is a return to the personal with technological support and an online twist. 15

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PIONEER ARNAB GOSWAMI “Goswami’s behaviour with his guest was sometimes questioned. He was said to become judgmental on many topics rather than act as a moderator between the parties. “

-SHIVAM DIXIT

From the beginning of his career as a journalist in The Telegraph in Kolkata , Arnab Goswami has come a long way to cofounding a news channel Republic TV quite recently. He established himself as the face of ‘The Newshour’, a debate show telecasted on Times Now on prime time. Goswami’s distinct style of anchoring made him famous not only in English media but throughout the nation. He established himself as a brand during the debate show and one interview show on Times Now and later used this repo for Republic TV. After working for The Telegraph, he joined NDTV in 1995. He anchored daily newscasts and reported for News Tonight a programme telecasted on DD Metro. He was in the core team of NDTV in 1998 when it became a 24 broadcasting news channel. He later became senior editor for the same and quit NDTV in 2006. It was his tenure in tenure in Times Now after NDTV when he rose to fame. There he worked as an editor in chief and an anchor. His show, Newshour featured many notable personalities such as Parvez Musharraf, Gordon Brown, Late Benazir Bhutto and Hamid Karzai. He also had many Indian personalities featured in ‘Frankly speaking with Arnab’ like Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi. Goswami is known for his witty questions which often perplex the guests. Few

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PIONEER of the debate episodes had high voltage drama and created controversies. Goswami’s behaviour with his guest was sometimes questioned. He was said to become judgmental on many topics rather than act as a moderator between the parties. Goswami's heated discussions during The Newshour invited criticism from newsweekly Outlook running a cover story titled 'The Man Who Killed TV News'. Goswami defended his brand of journalism by stating, "The journalism I follow is journalism of opinion and is not PR driven. If my opinion helps bringing about a change, I will opine and not shy behind the wall of neutrality." On 6th May 2017, Goswami launched his channel Republic TV where he acted as the managing director. Due to his popularity, the channel topped on BARC chart for viewership amongst English News Channel. There again he had controversies with defamation charges by Shashi Tharoor. Despite controversies, Goswami enjoys humongous popularity in the field of journalism. He has always been bold in his views and never bowed down to anyone’s comment. He has created a unique style of journalism and he openly vouches for it. The name ‘Arnab Goswami’ itself is a brand and he himself is a pioneer indeed.

“Despite controversi es, Goswami enjoys humongous popularity in the field of journalism. ”

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Hall-MARK CAMPAIGN

-ABHISHEK BHARDWAJ

NIKE- TWO HOUR SUB MARATHON â&#x20AC;&#x153;But what made this premise credible and genuine was the way in which the campaign was crafted and deliveredâ&#x20AC;?

Nike, this week, tried to re-write history books on what is humanly possible and in that effort tried to break the sub-two-hour marathon barrier. Nike in its bid to solidify its brand image as the leading sports brand globally organized this huge marketing campaign which aimed at blurring the limits of the human body. To make this campaign successful, Nike invested millions and also recruited the best marathon runners in Europe. The premise was simple, but what made this premise credible and genuine was the way in which the campaign was crafted and delivered by Nike Sports Research Lab and its partners. The campaign consisted of high-production-quality video content trailer that was aired across all media channels and a well co-ordinated and executed social media campaign called #breaking2. This was then used on their website and various social channels alongside information about their new long distance running shoes and thus helping them in more than one waysselling more sports products and driving up the market share simultaneously.

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Hall-MARK CAMPAIGN Even though they missed the record, it created a huge hype across sports channels receiving significant praise for their efforts. Even their rivals Adidas praised their efforts on Twitter. Stating that Eluid Kipchoge had put in a fantastic performance. The biggest and best campaigns often take a high degree of risk to implement, and this was no different. But to be an apex sports brand in the current market, you need to have aspirations to break records, rip up rule-books and constantly evolve the limits of human performance. The premise was one of unbridled ambition and the desire to create what has not been achieved before. For ambitious brands in 2017, this is the new expectation; create genuinely engaging campaigns that have a clear and concise premise and truly enrich and strengthen the brand’s image.

“Create genuinely engaging campaigns that have a clear and concise premise and truly enrich and strengthen the brand’s image.”

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BRAND MARKIVE -SAURABH SHARMA -The New Candy Crush of India

“This tangy raw mango flavoured hard-boiled candy has rightly captured the pulse of the nation”

There are brand success stories and then there is the story of Pulse, rightly advertised as the “Pulse of India” and “Pran jaaye par Pulse naa jaaye”. Achieving 300 crore sales mark in a short span of two years is no small feat. That too when you are surpassing blue chip multinational enterprises like Oreo (launched in 2011) and Coke Zero (launched in 2014). This tangy raw mango flavoured hard-boiled candy has rightly captured the pulse of the nation. The makers of Rajnigandha Pan Masala, Pass Pass mouth freshener and Catch spices - DS Group never knew they would be hitting such a huge jackpot in the confectionary

business. In an unorganized sector, which is devoid of terms like “market leader” and “brand loyalty”, Pulse carved a new name for itself. In a country where candies were mostly offered instead of loose change, Pulse created a demand that way exceeded its supply at times. There are multiple reasons for the same. Firstly, its home-grown taste. Venturing in the kaccha aam (raw mango) flavour was understandable considering it already occupied fifty percent of the hard-boiled candy segment. 20 MARKSMAN

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BRAND MARKIVE

But giving it a tangy twist was an innovation which really resonated with its customers. The whole blend took no less than two years of research. Thirdly, its attractive packaging with black and green was an instant hit among the masses. Lastly, the price tag of Re 1 per candy in a time where every other candy was available at 50 paise gave it a sense of exclusivity. All these factors combined transformed an impulsive buying Indian audience to “PulseDriven”. Another peculiar thing considering the success of this brand was its unique marketing strategy or rather the lack of it. Very few know that there was

no formal launch event for this candy. It completely relied on its easy availability and word of mouth publicity to reach 100 crore sales mark in the first eight months of its launch! The key role was played by social media sites including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram in promoting the positive user opinions and pushing the brand nationwide. Overall Pulse candy is a unique example of product marketing done right. With the right kind of product for the desired target group, a company is bound to succeed even without strong advertising and promotions relying solely on a positive word of mouth.

“Forget CandyCrush, India has got a whole new crush over this candy!”

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MARKETING RealTIME Time flies too quickly, and with it comes lot of experiences. Now when I look back those days in college, a feeling of satisfaction comes when I think of what all I have gained as days went by, how I learnt with the responsibilities that were entrusted upon me and how I could handle all the pressure during our placement season. Those times were difficult ones, but with it I learnt being patient, more determined towards my goal. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s being 1.5 months working with Phoenix Market City, Chennai and I have been working here in the leasing department, which takes care of all rental of leasable area. Rent is responsible for around 60% revenue of the malls and I have worked in three departments, leasing, legal and marketing. A whole new learning that I have discovered in these days and yes now I can connect to all the learning we got in our classes. I now know how important Kotler is and how I can now relate to what Issac Sir used to teach us. To summarise marketing is a very important aspect in a mall. Be it responsibility like positioning, Brand Building, new store opening, festive decors, customer relations, in house communications etc. These are all done using various techniques like direct marketing, indirect marketing, and social media events.

ARAVIND L MANAGEMENT TRAINEE â&#x20AC;&#x201C; LEASING PHOENIX MARKETCITY

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MARKETING RealTIME

SHIKHAR DUBEY CONSULTANT – GLOBAL DELIVERY GEP WORLDWIDE

When it came to placements I was probably the most puzzled soul on the campus, I had dabbled in HR which worked out really well during my internship, but then again the heart said let’s go with marketing and so I did, going ahead with placements process the mantra was simple, 3 Boxes are to be checked: The organization should be attractive (in terms of JD, compensation). Can I see myself doing this in future? Do they think I am a right fit for them? With GEP I could easily check the first two boxes, but were they sold on me? Well ‘simple enough! Let’s find out’ I thought and applied, if I am shortlisted and selected then may be I am cut out for consulting. Little did I know that GEP was looking for more than just a cultural fit, they wanted us to prove our value for being a part of the team. The interviews were intensive and exhaustive and yeah it did involve me doing the costing of the episode ‘Battle of the bastards’ from GOT at some point, and after a day of an emotional rollercoaster ride I was hired! This brings us to now, once I joined GEP, from the very first day we were thrown in the mix, introduced to the various facets of our roles and responsibilities and most importantly how it comes together in the grand scheme of things.What I have realized over the past couple of months is that GEP isn’t just a niche consulting firm offering suggestions for cost saving, the organization is 23 MARKSMAN

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MARKETING RealTIME

transforming, getting bigger by the day, is venturing into unexplored territories and the most attractive aspect is you are a part of it all. GEP has clients which are fortune 500 organizations themselves and one of our primary job as a consultant is to look into their expenditure with respect to their non-core activities and suggest ways they could save up and boy does it make your brain go haywire. Each client, each category and every penny you suggest could be saved requires massive brainstorming, exhaustive analysis and above all exceptional communication. If you are looking for a process-oriented job, GEP probably isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t the place for you. The best part about working in GEP are small things, like the way your opinion is valued, how we are encouraged to speak up, have an opinion, the environment that fosters teamwork and a team that supports you and helps you learn. So to sum it up I would just say its the little things that are vital, because they make the big things happen. A little piece of advice for all of you going ahead for the unnerving placement season, keep calm yet always be eager to learn, unlearn and relearn and when itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s your day the right organization will definitely find you!

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InternSpeak

ROHIT BAJORIA

You barely start getting settled in the MBA life and 'bam', summer placements begin. GEP Consulting was one of the first companies to visit on campus and I was lucky enough to get selected through a nerve wrecking selection process.The year passed by like a flash and I began working as a summer intern in GEP. After a week long induction program, we actually got assigned to various accounts and started working. Procurement consulting is a very niche and an equally interesting field to work in. From category market research, risk analysis, spend analysis, opportunity analysis, creating RFP packages, supplier tie ups to negotiation calls, we did it all at GEP. It was a scary but amazing roller coaster ride for all of us with a new learning at every turn and bend. After interning at GEP, I can confidently say that it's one of the best internship programmes offered at SIMSR and if you work well, you may land up with a PPO.

AMAN SHRIVASTAVA

Internship is where we learn to handle challenges, work independently and apply the classroom concepts. Piramal enterprise offered me a very independent environment and a huge responsibility to design their future marketing and sales related strategies. Everyday was a new challenge and learning. Most of the companies including Piramal don't offer the interns with frequent inputs and guidance, they expect us to work independently be proactive and get results , their aim is to test your real character under pressure and understand if the intern is suitable for the organisation in the long run, its very important to understand all the verticals and functions(operations, finance etc) of the organisation as you need to have a holistic view of the organisation as at the end the interns are expected to give some feasible recommendations that can be worked upon, its very important to be updated with classroom concepts and analytical tools as they come handy during in the internship, the final presentation at Piramal was in front of all vertical heads which was followed by a long and drilling Q&A, this stint of 2 months have given a taste of work culture and challenges that the industry expects from the graduates and its very important to be at the top of your game at all times as the competition is immense 25 MARKSMAN

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BOOKWORM THE CONVERSION CODE

â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Conversion Code by Chris Smith explains the use of the internet to convert leads with the use of practical examples.â&#x20AC;?

-URVASHREE BORAH

The Conversion Code is a one of a kind sales book in this era of technology and a much-needed one. The book wonderfully explores every aspect of sales from how to attract online leads with the use of blogs, social media and landing pages to how to convert leads. This book comes across as a manual for all the actions one takes as part of converting leads. The tactics of closing a deal, increasing traffic on websites and bringing changes in leads and sales have been cited.

The book does not depend on fictitious examples and tactics and thus is very practical and effective. The book is more of an instructional guide that will walk you through the steps that can help you to close the deals in a faster and more efficient way. The book helps to stir thinking and to try a different approach apart from the regular traditional practices. As customers are not always interested in offers that are offered to them the book gives an insight into how to convert invaluable customers. 26

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KICKSTART RECYCLE IMPACT Recycle Impact was the brainchild of Mr.Neeraj , who was formulated with a mission to increase India’s low recycling rate. It is also bridging the gap that is essentially between the portion of the population that is using too much and thereby producing recyclable waste, and the portion of the population that is in need of some more. Most of us may have noticed a few NGO workers from organizations such as C.R.Y, “Save the Girl Child”, at the walk over bridges in prominent stations, trying tirelessly to gain some funds for their respective firms. While some succeed, many flounder, and who is to blame? Nobody. You can’t really expect a person to part away with his hard earned money just based on what a representative is saying . Any amount of pictures and receipts doesn’t really

-ROHIT RADHAKRISHNAN

guarantee you the fact that the money is put to good use and the full amount is actually reaching the beneficiary without any commission cuts. It’s in this context that Recycle Impact connects the two and seems significant. While at the core it believes that people still have it in them to help the society, it understands that it must do so in the least painful way- that is turning “Trash To Cash”. So the basis of this is crowd funding wherein each member doesn’t really have to contribute in large amounts. He also has the freedom to choose the NGO he wants to support and can track its progress.

“Crowdfundi ng !...NGO!...Re cycle! , doesn’t it seem quite odd to connect the three, Well there’s a company that is doing just that. .”

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FEATURED ARTICLE THE AGE OF CONTACT MARKETING: “Contact Marketing is the combinatio n of marketing and selling.”

“One must quickly deliver the promise of value focused on the target executive’s specific needs”

Contact Marketing is the combination of marketing and selling. It incorporates specific activities and campaigns designed to get connected with specific high-value prospects. These prospects include CEOs, C-level executives and another top decision maker of the company. We all, at some point in time or the other, do some strange things to get connected with someone. Activities, like the single shoe that shows up with the promise of the other to complete the pair when the proposed meeting takes place. Sending half the gift with the promise of another half when the meeting takes place might help you to get the meeting fix but it might not full fill your real objective. Your idea or proposal might never see the daylight once the gift is complete.

-VIKASH KUMAR VERMA IIM Bodhgaya The contact campaign must impart a feeling of , “I love the way this person thinks. I need to meet this person.” And it must quickly deliver the promise of value focused on the target executive’s specific needs. The contact campaign is completely different from the other form of marketing. In this campaign, our direct target group happens to be very small but the indirect target group remains our original target. It was during my summer internship that I came across this form of marketing technique. We were asked to place one of our new SKU into the canteen of top companies. To get access to the canteen, we required permission from the Facility Manager of the company. My CEO asked me to accompany her to the weekly meeting of a club of entrepreneur which she was a member of and asked me to try to generate leads for the project. It was during one of those meetings where I came across one of the CIO of atop company. I approached him and had a brief introduction. I explained him the benefit of my product. Being impressed, he gave me the contact of his other C-level friends.Within a week I had a

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FEATURED ARTICLE data of around 37 CIOs at my disposal. I started connecting with them and finally, we got responses from 14 of them. We gifted them goodies which also had the SKU which we wanted to place in their canteen. In the next step we asked for their feedback and also asked them the contact for their facility manager. After getting access to the facility manager we repeated the same exercise with them and we successfully placed our product in 4 of the 14 companies contacted. BASIC RULES FOR CONTACT MARKETING •Go Prepared: You must know in & out of the topic that you have to discuss in the meeting. •Always go out very smartly dressed because the first impression is very important •Always have the necessary tools with you, like, pen, a handy notebook to note the important

CIO

Facility Manager

Canteen

points, your business card, brochures and other marketing literature of your company (hard or soft copy) •Positive attitude and positive energy with smile on the face can bring wonders for you. HOW TO START THE CONVERSATION?

In the case of C-Level executives my approach was: “Hello Sir, my name is ------ and I am from XYZ Ltd. We are in this industry since 1887 and we are coming up with our on the go pouch, would

“There are few basic rules which can work wonders for us in Contact Marketing”

•Got the CIOs contact from the source •Send them the goodies along with request to give access to their facility manager

•Once we got access to the facility manager, we gifted them our samples along with other goodies •Requested appointment to get the things moving •Convinced them for allocating shelf space for our product into their canteen

•Assured Facility Manager and other stake holders about the product quality •Successfully placed our SKU into the canteens contacted

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