Marketing Ganga

Author: Shabbir Chunawalla

  • Sabrina Dhawan and Scripting

    When a film works, the director takes all the credit. When it fails, the writer squarely gets the blame for messing up! Directors do not direct blank pages. It begins with the writer. Films critics rarely acknowledge the writers and their contribution.

    Most of the good writers in the US are moving towards TV because of the money. In India, it is exactly opposite.

    Writers by default tend to lead an isolated life. It is necessary to see them in one room sharing ideas and discussing their craft.

    Sabrina Dhawan wrote Monsoon Wedding for Meera Nair. She is New York-based. She co-wrote screenplays for Kaminey and Ishqiya. She was a script consultant for Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola. She keeps visiting India every now and then.

  • Apache Spark — Open Source Data Software

    Big data invites attention along with software such as Apache Hadoop. This software makes it possible to handle and analyse vast volumes of all kinds of data. This technology emerged from pure internet companies such as Google and Yahoo!, but it is increasingly used by mainstream companies. Hadoop handles vast volumes of data. Apache Spark promises speed. For many applications real-time processing is called for. The sensor data streaming from machines is to be analysed. At the same time sales transactions in the markets are to be analysed.

    Spark was developed in University of California as a cloud service. It enables us to get quick insights from data to save times and costs. That further enables us to ferret out opportunities in the areas of sales and product development.

    IBM is known for endorsement effect. It endorsed PCs and Linux. It now endorses an open-source project for real-time data analysis called Apache Spark. It will put its developers and researchers to work on Spark-related projects. It will embed Spark in IBM’s data analysis and commerce software. It will promote Spark-based innovations. This alignment amounts to IBM investing in its own future.

  • Hindustan Lever Brands in Content

    Content creators such as Star, Yash Raj films, Facebook and Google are being roped in by Lever to create content where their brands could tell a story that consumers can relate to. As media is changing, this skill will have to be evolved. There is no question of replacing the advertisement. They would like to ride on the content that is designed to entertain, engage and connect. It is a differentiated communication platform. The consumer here does not remain passive, but is an active participant in the brand’s story telling journey. HUL’s move will break the clutter.

  • BPCL’s Retail Drive

    BPCL has 12,500 fuel outlets where they can potentially open up retail outlets — there were in past In&Out convenience stores and quick service restaurants (QSR). Some of these outlets were earning as much as Rs 400 per square feet, but most were yet to attract footfalls. The company now has tied up with BCG to do the catchment area analysis to decide the merchandise to be stocked, and  the location of the outlet. There would be a separate SBU for this non-fuel business. The outlets can have e-seva kendras, and Aadhaar centres. These outlets will also explore the possibility of being the pick up point for e-commerce sites such as Amazon.

  • Digital Printing

    Of all the innovations in the world, printing is the biggest. To begin with, printing was mechanical. Later, there was a shift to digital printing. Digital printing can be customised. Diet Coke bottles can have different patterns, no two alike. The changes can be made on the go. You can put a customer’s name on the each bottle.Traditional printing is okay for long print runs. When the print runs are small, the digital printing is the only option. It has immense power. You can print anything from wall paper to T-shirts and dresses. A bread company in the UK adds a headlines to their packs every morning. The other technologies take too much preparation time. They are not eco-friendly also.

  • Occulus Rift : FB’s Virtual Reality Goggles

    Occulus Rift goggles have been diccussed by facebook at an event in San Francisco. This is the first commercial version of virtual reality. It will be tethered to begin with a gaming computer. It will work with a gaming controller made by Microsoft for its Xbox One console or Oculus Touch, a pair of half-moons that fit over the hands. It would be convenient to wear the goggles for hours at a time, because of the change in design and software. The users will feel it just as a piece of clothing. Initially it is a gaming device, but in time would employ microphones for communication. It will allow gamers to to talk to each other and eventually might be used for commands. There would be voice recognition software to recognise computing commands and laser-based high-speed wireless data transfers. It then becomes a teleportation device.

    The product will be available in 2016.

  • Net Neutrality

    This concept has legal, social and philosophical dimensions.Net neutrality is about unhindered accessibility on the internet.Here an idea can vie with big money.This coinage came into circulation in 2002. It was coined by Tim Wu, a law professor and an author.According to him, net neutrality means no authority should be able to decide what kind of information is and is not allowed on internet.

    Of course, there are costs of running and maintaining the network hardware. Wu too recognised this. The costs are recovered by charging for usage. People would pay for more bandwidth, not for access to certain sites.

    The FCC has identified net as a public utility.It bars the service providers to charge the content providers for preferential treatment.

    All this leads to question us the ownership of the internet. Does it vest with the service providers? Or the consumers who connect to it ? Or the content companies ? All these have competing interests. Someone has to balance these. Who? Is the government’s intervention necessary to preserve net neutrality ?

  • Women-centric Advertising — Pushing the Boundaries

    Myntra promoted Anouk, a sub-brand of ethnic wear for modern day women by a digital video of a girl in relationship with another girl. They had worn Anouk. Previously, Myntra had two more ads for Anouk — one with a woman alone at the bar and another showing a single mother, and both these were dressed  comfortably in their Anouk. The couple ad has gone viral, where the couple in love does care for family endorsement.

    Myntra is not the first to touch the same sex theme. There was Fast-track ad showing two women emerging out of closet with crumpled clothes and contented grins. Many ads have emphasized women empowerment. Airtel ad showing a woman boss ordering her spouse who was her subordinate at office to finish the task, and then asking him to come home where a favourite meal of her husband cooked by her awaits him. The conversation takes place on Airtel. As digital ads could be customized and finely segmented, such ads can be flashed to the right target audience. They engage the young people in digital space.The campaign has to create a buzz. Ads mirror the world around us, and social shifts.  The old stereotyping of roles is just fading. It is about the choices and freedom. The ads flow with the current of female autonomy.

  • Mobile TV

    Star’s Hotstar app has become so popular. It also aired the cricket series. The trend of watching TV and video content on the go is picking up. So far there was only YouTube. Mobile TV has now matured in terms of streaming technology. YouTube is accessed by 35 per cent of smart phone users. HOOQ and Netflix are in this field. The content is made available on smart phones, tablets and phablets. All major TV channels have their own applications. Apps are available on Google Play, Apple’s Store and Windows Store for free. Digital service providers or DTH players provide free first month apps. Later one can buy a plan. Mobile service providers have launched mobile apps for watching TV channels on the go. There are independent apps too.

    There are 152 million internet users, of which 78 per cent are using the net on mobile. The average spend is around Rs. 235, as much as what one spends on cable TV. There are 70 million smart phone users. India is a huge market to consume entertainment and sports content online. Mobile TV takes TV to where people are. Yupp TV offers 200-plus Indian TV channels.

    Mobile TV is good as ‘catch up ‘ TV. The favourite  shows can be enjoyed at your convenient time. TV can be integrated to social media. Over-the-top ( OTT ) services put control over the content into the user’s hands.

    The VOD or video-on-demand is another service apart from the streaming service that one can enjoy. In future, TV to VOD service ratio will be 50:50. VOD service providers hold a huge library of movies and episodic content. Many new ventures appear on the scene such as #fame which offers live video entertainment app on iOS and Google Play. It proposes to bring several thousand performers on board.

    The biggest concern is the infrastructure. The weak signal kills the joy. The content available should respond to the likes and dislikes of the viewers after research. It should be an affordable service.

     

  • Semi-autonomous Road Cars

    Companies produce Mercedes-Benz S550 sedan, Cadillacs,  Volvos, Tesla Model S which show the future of transportation. Communication systems and sensors installed in the streets (intelligent roads ) and cars have opened new avenues. Getting around will be cheaper, more convenient, and environmentally friendly. Advanced cruise control lets a vehicle drive itself on freeways. Radars and cameras can keep it within a lane. It keeps a safe distance from vehicle ahead. It automatically  brakes and steers to keep pace with the traffic. It cannot handle sharp turns. It responds to emergency situations — say it senses you are off the road into the median or the vehicle ahead is on the brakes. Cars can take advantage of the telemetry data. Tesla will introduce self-driving feature called Autopilot as a software.