Marketing Ganga

Author: Shabbir Chunawalla

  • A Reader Participates in Message Creation

    Advertising message can invite a reader to participate in message creation thus leading to greater assimilation and impact.

    If the aim is to show the effects of the sunlight on the skin, just  consider an image of a sea beach  that features a picture post-card size bikini-clad girl. There are two gaps near the knees in this picture.. Ask the reader to put his/her two fingers into the gaps. Let him/her see the contrast.The superimposed fingers are knotty and wrinkled.That gives an idea of the deleterious effects of the sun-rays on the body. The effects will be visible say 10 years hence.Here the reader participates in message creation.

  • 5G Technology for Internet

    Policymakers in the department of telecommunication are discussing 5G technology which is still at embryonic stage. It is several hundred times faster than 4G networks. High spectrum bands above 6 GHz, say 13 GHz or 18 GHz or 27 Ghz are to transmit data at 5G speeds. They have to evolve standards, as there is no globally agreed 5G standard yet. Ultra-high-speed bands like 27 GHz are equipped to offer far more bandwidth than 4G networks. While high frequencies can carry more data, on the flip side, they can be blocked by buildings and lose intensity over long distances.

    The basic question that we have to answer satisfactorily is what 5G can do more than what 4G is doing already.As we already know spectrum in higher band frequency can carry traffic over shorter distances.Yaa but 5G  will enable a lot of things in close proximity to connect thus paving the way for Internet of Things. There will be networked cars with collision detection, real time navigation and automatic breaking systems. Manufacturing machinery can be managed remotely.By 2020 at least 50 billion devices will get connected.5G promises contradictory things — ultra fast speed and higher data capacity.4G is not a spent force as yet and has has a lot of life left in it.

    The discussions on 5G standards are yet to begin and they will evolve by 2019 so that 5G can start by 2020.

    Hardware for 5G  will begin to develop and a lot of investment and marketing effort will go into it.

    Many other technologies are already handling short distance communications, e.g. Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and NFC or Near Field Communication.This complicates the scenario for 5G technology.

  • Retail Functions

    Merchandiser : A merchandiser is responsible for planning, selecting and buying the product range according to the customer demand and fashion trends. The existing inventory is reviewed, and new designs are sourced. A merchandiser facilitated product development to keep pace with the fashion trends. A fashion merchandiser has creative bent of mind, good analytical  ability and an awareness of  customers needs. He has to interact with the vendors, finalizes the order, decides about packaging. He has to forecast inventory and monitor performance results.

    Visual Merchandiser : He develops the floor plans and the 3 D displays to maximise sales by highlighting product features and benefits. His job is to attract, engage and its self-selection. He facilitates location of merchandise and its self-selection. He uses elements, tools, technology and props in a creative manner. He is creative and innovative in his approach.

    Store Operations : Store Operations Manager is the CEO of the store. He has an operations team. Customer service is assured by ensuring timely availability and delivery of goods, their appropriate pricing and packaging and by resolving customer complaints His job is to manage :

    • cash
    • control of expenditure
    • preparation of budget
    • adherence to the budget
    • maintaining records
    • schedules efficient operations.
    • complies with the corporate policy and plans.

    Retail Marketing : The store brand is promoted to ensure footfalls. The ad message is properly designed and executed.

    Supply Chain Management : Its aim is to ensure a fast turn-around time; keep low inventory and do accurate inventory planning.They interact with the vendors about the supply conditions.

    Retail HR : There is high attrition rate in retail. HR, therefore, is a challenging task. Every week, one has to find new replacements. There are manpower requirements to satisfy an expanding organisation across geographies. There are issues of retaining the staff and training them. A person must have good people skill.

    E-tailing : Online retailing is an upcoming fast developing arm of retailing.

    Speciality Formats : There are areas like electronics, automobile and pharma retail which offer large number of brands in one place. They must have good domain knowledge and retail expertise.

  • Potential of Retailing in India

    Organised retail has huge potential in India.One principal reason is the demographics of India.There is a huge urban population of 377 million (2013). These very people boost the retail sales. There are 100 million working women (2013) in India. Almost 2/3rd of Indian population consists of the youth that is below the age of 35 years. Quick Service Restaurants (QSR), multiplexes and thirst for new experiences are what will define the next generation of retail.

  • Women’s Roles in Films

    In the 1950s and 1960s, she was Sati Savitri. Today she drinks, smokes and speaks her mind. However, she still acts as an item girl — there are vulgar lyrics and indecent camera angles, these do not empower women, they objectify them. There is a difference between celebrating sexuality and surrendering to male gaze. Arjun Rajabali, at Screenwriters’ Conference, 2013 says, ‘ In almost every film, women characters are shaped entirely from men’s point-of-view. They are there to excite his fantasies, fulfill his needs, pose romantic challenges and generally boost the male protagonist.’ Indian films in the 1960s cast women as stereotypes — acquiescing wife, forgiving mother, sacrificing for all the men in the family. There was parallel film making — Shyam Benegal and Mahesh Bhatt. In  the mid-1970s and 1980s, they gave a rebellious streak to the heroines, e.g. Ankur, Bhumika and Arth. Still, women were preferred in the traditional roles — Indian audiences rejected Sharmila Tagore’s Charitraheen, Zaheera in Call Girl or Nanda in Naya Nasha. Reel characters changed with changing times. Anushka Sharma in Band Baja Baraat is closer to today’s woman.

  • Idea Generating Technique — Focus Groups

    It is an unstructured interaction with the consumers by a market researcher. In other words, it is brainstorming with the consumers. It focuses on specific marketing problem, thus eliminating the discussion of irrelevant things. A focus group is formed by inviting 8-12 potential and interested consumers. The group moderators lead the participants through an open and in-depth discussion on the topic on hand. The discussion is non-directive and non-judgmental. Many feel, however, that focus groups have limited utility for generating new product ideas as the consumer needs are latent. These latent needs can be translated into any product. Focus groups are, however, useful in testing existing products and in concept testing.

    Focus groups should be made representative, or else the results cannot be generalised. The interpretation of the focus group idea demands competence.

  • Idea Generating Technique — Buzz Group by J Donald Philips

    Buzz group is an attempt to refine the brainstorming concept. It is developed by Dr. J. Donald Philips. According to him , the aggressive individuals dominate the group sessions and this holds back the colleagues. It hampers the free flow of ideas. To overcome this limitation, he suggests that the group be subdivided into clusters of six. Each cluster is given a limited  time of six minutes to throw up the ideas. Such a subdivision isolates the ‘ bullies ‘ to some extent. The time pressure makes the timid to open up. The buzz group is criticised as it gives only six minutes to generate ideas which may not be enough.

  • Idea Generating Technique — Synectics by William Gordon

    It is a further refinement of brainstorming and has been developed by William J.J. Gordon. It believes that the creative process is not logical. It is more of an accident. Inventions occur when a person has applied his mind to the problem, but no solution is in sight. The solution emerges all of a sudden. It is seemingly an unrelated situation. Archimedes Principle, gravity and penicillin all emerged as sudden solutions to long thought-about problems.

    Synectics encouraged participants to discuss seemingly unrelated topics, and then comeback to the initial problem. An attempt is then made to find original solutions through  ‘force-fit’ discussions. A competent leader with six to eight intelligent participants provide execellent results. A synectic session with un-creative people will , however, be useless.

  • Idea Generation Technique — Alex Osborn’s Brainstorming

    Alex Osborn put forward this idea generating technique called Brainstorming. It is a group exercise undertaken by 5-10 people. They study a problem for sometime. The chairman of the group invites the participants to throw up ideas — any ideas, even the wildest.The objective is to generate as many ideas as possible.The ideas are not examined for their quality at this stage. Participants are encouraged to formulate new ideas on the basis of ideas thrown up by other people. The participants should be drawn carefully for brainstorming session. They should have operational knowledge of the area for which the ideas are being generated and of related areas too. They should not fight shy of expressing their ideas. At the end, the ideas are examined critically, and the more promising ones are separated. The best ideas are then developed further into concepts. Brainstorming is widely used in advertising and new product development.

  • Limitations of Magazine Advertising

    Time limitation : Magazine ads appear after an interval of time. Their production too takes time. Revision and amendments are difficult. There is wastage of art work already done. As the lead time is long, once the advertiser misses a deadline, he has to wait for a long time before the ad appears.

    Inability to localise : Manufacturers in the small ind medium sectors whose distribution is restricted to a limited geographical territory find magazine ads unprofitable. Magazine ads are useful for large manufacturers and advertisers catering to the national market.

    No mass reach : They lack the mass reach of the dailies. They are not the main reach builders in any campaign.

    Slow burn : Dailies build reach quickly. Magazines are slow-burn. They build reach slowly. They are not useful for launches, contests and promotions.