We Feel Fine

A hectic week. Suddenly the agency is buzzing, papers flying, servicing guys screaming at production, creative throwing tantrums over brief, endless call from client, office boys running twenty times to publication for delivery of material. Madness of the festive season. But let me tell you, this is what brings you back every morning.

In between all these chaos, I managed to find "We Feel Fine." This web site offers the exploration of human emotions in six different movements. Madness, Murmurs, Montage, Mobs, Metrics and Mounds. We Feel Fine has been harvesting human feelings from large number of blogs. Every few minutes, the system searches the world's newly posted blog entries for occurrences of the phrases "I feel" and "I am feeling". When it finds such a phrase, it records the full sentence, up to the period, and identifies the "feeling" expressed in that sentence (e.g. sad, happy, depressed, etc.). All of this information is saved. The result is a database of several million human feelings, increasing by 15,000 - 20,000 new feelings per day. Using a series of playful interfaces, the feelings can be searched and sorted across a number of demographic slices, offering responses to specific questions.

If you're not aware 'I feel' :-) you should explore this. This is really amazing and am sure the site will keep you glued for quiet sometime. Wondering if this is the future of communication? Different technologies joining hands to form new ideas and ways of interaction.

Wish you all a very happy, lightening and a cracking Diwali.

Indian Terrain - Characteristics Lost

We do understand, fashion advertising today has become more of a catalogue than advertising, displaying shirts and suits in its fullest glory. Every brand does the same and that's exactly what Indian Terrain has decided to do. let me know if I'm wrong. But hey, what's in it for me? Just because you have Kunal Kapoor as the face of your brand, doesn't mean anything to me nor to anyone. Why will someone buy you? Why will I choose Indian Terrain over other brands? Does Indian Terrain have a belief system, something that consumers believe too? Are you trying to be cool by simply showing his cool attitude. Do you think the photography will do all the talking? Huh. This ad rather reminds me more of Milind Soman in Excalibur - more manly, more macho, more cool.

Wonder what will happen to the brand when Kunal decides to shave and cut his hair short?

Colour Me Red

Vodafone is the talk of town amongst marketing/advertising/communication professionals in India at the moment. Vodafone Red is painted all over the town and you cannot escape it, be it the streets, malls, ring road, airport, patli galli and gawd-only-knows-where-not. True a logistical nightmare and they have done it fast, done it well. But look closely and you'll find a sea of sameness. RED is the preferred brand colour of most brands in India. Be it Airtel, Levis, BBC, Hero Honda, NDTV, Kingfisher, Coca Cola, Britannia or many others trying to stand out in the cluttered visual media. Red also seems to be the colour of season in Wills Fashion Week, recently held in Delhi.

Consumer blind spot, huh?

Evolution of self

In my previous post I mentioned my dissatisfaction on an article written by a noted trend spotter in India. As I kept thinking about individualism, independence and liberation that young India is looking for, I tried to delve deeper and find out the reason "How the Self Expression is Evolving."I feel what's happening in India at the moment is a gradual shift from traditional roles defined by the culture to a self defined role defined by the world and it's mother. As we keep growing as a nation with more experience (our past downturns which is the basic building blocks of traditional ethos and values), better education (rate of literacy increasing every year), economic development, young Indian are seeking to be different. From Inconspicuous Consumption to Expressive Consumption. These expressive consumption can be in any form of technology, fashion, luxury goods, cars or anything that allows young Indians to stand up. Young India is getting ready to reclaim the future.

It is this 'evolution of self' which most others are confusing as Extreme Individualism.

Indian ishtyle individualism, wot crap?

I was reading an article by Hamsini Shivakumar in today's ET . She raises an issue on how increasing globalization and consumerism is helping Individualism grow in India. She uses cultural difference in parental upbringing as a basis of her hypothesis. Parents force kids in America to do it themselves whereas in India parents teach how others do it for you.

Somewhere I found a huge disconnect while I was reading the article. Is young India really looking for individualism? India will be celebrating its 60th year of independence not liberation. Mind you not liberation. Young India is looking for liberation. Liberation of mindset. Liberation of social stigmas. Liberation of traditional values which has no meaning. And technology is the biggest weapon that they have found - they are using gadget as tool and fashion as the image of that liberation they are seeking.

The secret lies in understanding why young Indians are operating the way they are rather than drawing a stupid hypothesis on individualism from growing consumerism, growing affluence, high disposable income, media dominance, expansion of fashion and glamour industry, media driven activities and hectic work life.

She failed to explain the reasons why young Indians are trying so hard to control their destiny...oops...exhibit their individuality. No offense, this is my personal point of view on a topic which I've working hard for sometime now. It is important to understand the origin of a trend first and then rationalise what would be the implication of that trend in the market place.

Cheers.

Changing Behaviour

In advertising we often discuss about how to change consumer behaviour. I found this recent post by Faris Yakob very interesting. The MTV ‘Mera number ayega’ (my number will come) campaign came to my mind immediately. Hey, remember that “Aiwa” commercial, where people greeting and nodding at each other saying, ‘Aiwa.’ Now that was a brilliant example of behavior engineering. I remember how we used to ‘Aiwa’ each other at college.

Honestly, not many brands in India in the recent past have managed to create a campaign which could engineer consumer behaviour. The recent Frito Lay’s “What’s the program” campaign was a move towards that direction but pathetic execution failed to elicit that behavioral response.

Surely it makes sense to give consumers something to copy if you want to influence behavior. With today’s cynical youth it is rather difficult (not impossible, mind you) to achieve. So it’s not true when you say, “Young males are perhaps most prone to adopting learned behavior.” They know marketers are trying hard to change their behaviour hence a growing resistance towards all form of advertising and a ‘We-will-buy-the-brand-but-not-the-advertising’ kind of attitude.

Well, before I end, are we creating enough examples of COPY mechanisms?

Snack'em up

Yes, Yes! It's hot and happening. The snacking category in India is a hot new subject of discussion among marketers at the moment. ITC Foods is all set to storm the Indian snacking market with it's new launch Bingo.

Switch-on any TV channel, you're bound to find at least two-three commercials of different brands trying to grab your attention. Leading the pack is Pepsico's Lays and Kurkure. While Bingo is the new challenger.

The dynamics of the Rs. 2500 Crores snack food market in India is fast changing. 85% of this market constitutes of salty Potato Chips. The market is growing at 25% per annum and that's a healthy sign. In India around 12 million tonnes of potato is grown which is about 4% of the total world production. However, the per capita consumption of potatoes in India is low. And surely there are many more opportunities for brands to tap in this segment. We Indians love our snacks. Jhal Muri, Batata Puri, Pani Puri, Bhel Puri, Delhi Chaat, Kolkata Chaat, Mumbai Chaat, Aloo Bhajji, Dal Puri, Bada Samosa, Chota Samosa, Kachori ...man, snacking itself is a gastronomic delight in India.

Pepsico was the first branded player to offer various products under its Lays, Kurkure, Cheetos, Uncle Chipps brand names. Haldirams, once a small time Halawai (sweet maker) saw huge opportunity and entered the branded packaged snack food market. And they are reaping the benefits of their past effort. P&G's Pringle is a niche brand in this segment. ITC is the latest entrant and am sure they will become a highly successful brand in no time. Remember ITC is one of the most admired companies in India which loves and has the reputation to build successful brands in whichever segment they enter.

Kurkure's Cricket Campaign - 'Jupp for Cup' was withdrawn after India dismal performance in the World Cup. So Kurkure decided to bank on the family summer holiday trips by creating 'Kurkure Express.' Pepsico's train thought started with the 'Blue Billion Express' for Pepsi to support the IndianCricket Team. Since it could not make much hay, Kurkure Express is the new avatar with a little twist. Manish has written a good article on this topic. I kinda share his sentiments too - Visual corruption. As if we don't have much and need another new one. Well, I understand that 50% of Indians travel on Indian Railways and long distance/local trains as an advertising medium is too good to resist. But why make so fuss about it. I would have given a thumbs-up if they were doing some innovative promotion in the platforms and train compartments. But slapping the logo on everything just don't make any sense.

To me Kurkure could have used those 'Garam Chaiwalas' and 'Bhelpuriwalas' effectively. They are the real competition, if you know what I mean, so why not bring them under your fold rather than spend huge money to colour code train compartments.

Well, is Kurkure also taking care to do the cleaning act of left over pouches within the train premise??

Making life easy

Commute Easy is making news for all the good reasons. It's a collective effort to ease commuting to office. Started by a young entrepreneur, Commute Easy is redefining the old concept of Car Pooling. Started at Bangalore and slowly moving to cities like Pune and Mumbai.

Why Commute Easy is a great business concept:
1. Builds a community
2. Forces (though willingly) people to share and care
3. Helps in easing traffic congestion in cities like Bangalore which suffers from basic road infrastructure
4. Creating the right buzz among fellow office-goers

I previously wrote about this and Wassif is on his way to create a niche for himself. I'm looking for other good examples of innovative business/business ideas/entrepreneur doing the right things in India. Share one if you have any.

Transmedia in action

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Web Power

Finally marketers in India realized the potential of worldwide web. “Something interactive karna hai,” is the common cry in all client corridors. Most big agencies have set-up their own interactive department and clients are very excited the moment they hear interactive. Therefore, communities building, post a blog, share a picture, post an opinion, invite or send to a friend etc. are fast picking up, marketers and their advertising agencies have decided to do something meaningful with the medium.

The latest in the bandwagon is Mentos. Quirky but err interesting.

Gang of Girls was a break through piece of interactive work while Being Girl was an immediate answer from P&G since they didn’t want to be left behind.

No doubt, the web is a powerful branding tool. Since there’s lot of information about it on the internet and several books by renowned branding gurus, I thought I’ll let you know few practical things to keep in mind (which I learned while working on an interactive project) while creating a powerful brand experience on web:

• Express the brand’s personality as effectively as possible. Being an interactive medium it actually gives you that freedom
• Think about the content first, technology, html, flash etc. can wait
• No one likes to wait for eternity for your page to open. Try to grab the attention of your visitors while the home page is being downloaded
• The website should reflect the brand’s core values because it gives that opportunity to the visitors to forge a meaningful relationship
• Give out interesting information about the brand which will keep your visitor engaged and allow them to dig deeper
• Try to put photographs of real people. Gives authenticity to the message
• Feedback is important, it provides you with valuable information about what they like and what they not

Axe is one brand which has always been at the forefront of web experience. They have always managed to keep visitors engaged.

Nike is another brand which offers a similar experience. TicTac in USA is another good example.

Marketers in India are truly experimenting in the virtual which is a good sign. Well, will someone also try experimenting in the real world, please?

Crapulence calling

In a recent post at Thot Blurb, Fink commented on how whisky is still seen as the last male bastion. This got me thinking. Its quiet true that whisky is predominantly a male drink (now don’t hold me ransom for this statement). The image that first comes to mind is that of an older gentleman with a cigar in his mouth.

Interestingly, India is a larger producer of whisky than Scotland and sales are really high (100 million cases per year compared to 83 million of Scotland). And India is one of the biggest growing liquor markets in the world.

Look at some of the brand propositions:
“Make it large” – Royal Stag
“Game for life” – Royal Challenge
“It pays to unbelong” – Black & White
“Above it all” – 100 Pipers
“Taste that speaks for itself” – Blender’s Pride
“Genuine quality speaks for itself” – Teacher’s
“The new sign of success” - Signature

A closer look and you’ll notice that most of these brands are positioned around three things: Taste, success, achievement. Taste is a direct product benefit. While Success and Achievement is a derivative of age, accomplishment and the fact that the drinker has arrived in life to appreciate best blends of malt. These brands are premium, mind you. But none of them has managed to create a premium image/aura around them. Is whisky all about taste, success and achievement? Is it really a drink for older people? Is something terribly wrong in whisky which refrain younger people from enjoying it? Is it the lack of innovation or lack of education?

Probably the Scotch industry has been its own worst enemy over the years – the cheaper, less flavorsome blends have been under-marketed, by and large, with most of the advertising focusing on the top-end malts which offer a broader taste spectrum and greater margins.

But single malt is a product which remains extremely difficult to understand – despite the best efforts of the distillers to demystify – and even many regular Scotch drinkers could be hard pressed to distinguish between, say, a Lowland or a Speyside malt.

Furthermore, the emphasis on the taste profile has not helped sell the drink to young consumers – the reason why white spirits such as vodka and rum have been so successful in growing sales through the cocktail (and ready-to-drink) market is that they have relatively little flavour of their own – making them perfect vehicles for all the other cocktail ingredients.

I’m not a whisky connoisseur nor an expert, so it won’t be appropriate for me to comment much about developing a taste or educating consumer. But surely I can write about the image that a brand portraits and the one’s I want to associate with.

Chivas Regal seems to be the only brand right now in India which is doing things right. Promoting the “Chivas Life”. Ice Fishing in Alaska, Meeting without an agenda in a lighthouse or a Ibiza speciality foam party in Superclub Eden.

Am pretty sure over a period of time as the market becomes more lucrative, players like Glenlivet, Glenfiddich, and Macallan will end-up doing the same thing that Chivas is doing at the moment in India. Promoting a better life with a much better style.

This is something which caught my eyes. Probably the key lies in product innovation. If cola’s can go diet why not spirits. Then there’s Easy Drinking Whisky Company which make caricatures of the three founders on the labels.

Now admit you know God is a man.

Well, it’s a fun filled story for white spirits but that’s for some other day.

Cheers!!

Healthy is wise and wealthy

Health consciousness is indeed a cause of concern for us Indians. A closer look at the figures below will explain why:

• 60% of the world’s cardiac patients will be Indian by 2010
• Every fourth diabetic in the world is an Indian
• 120 million urban Indians are seriously obese and Indian ranks among the top 10 obese nations of the world – 70% of diabetes in India is obesity - related
• 800000 Indians are diagnosed with cancer each year
• Strokes kill 2,000 people in India each day
• 5.1 million number of reported HIV/AIDS cases in India, highest in South Asia
• One in three teenagers has a bad eyesight, 30% have decaying teeth and 17% of the country’s 250 million adolescents are overweight

Take a look at the market figures according to a recent CII & McKinsey Study conducted in India:

• Health forms 12% of household expenditure. The third on the consumer’s spend list – higher than apparel and entertainment.
• What’s worrisome is that 76 per cent of the Indian population pays their medical expenses themselves, often wiping out family savings in one stroke.
• Only 20% is covered by health insurance. And the market for potential insurable lives in the country is 315 million.
• The boom in healthcare is slated to rise up to Rs. 208800 crore by 2012.
• The pharma retailing for nutraceuticals - everything from multi-vitamins, diet supplements, sugar substitutes to low fat etc. thepie has crossed Rs. 30000 crore.
• The medical tourism industry in India is currently worth Rs 1,500 crore and the country could well earn Rs 5,000-10,000 crore by the year 2012 and growing at an annualized rate of 30 percent.
• The beauty, fitness and wellness market is estimated to be Rs. 80000 crore in India.
• The fitness equipment industry is clocking an annual growth of 50 per cent.

No wonder modern India is growing conscious and aware about a ‘healthy lifestyle’. Call it wellness or healthy, a sudden upliftment of the old adage “Health is wealth” is hitting us hard. Companies are repositioning themselves to the health platform, new health products are being offered. Dabur, Himalaya, Marico, Nestle, HLL, Britannia, Kellogg’s, Pepsi, Amul, ICICI have joined the band-wagon. Basically, all hustle and bustle around the word ‘well-being.’

• Nestle now stands for Slim Milk.
• Kit Kat went Lite.
• Amul launched probiotic ice creams.
• Mother don’t scold anymore when snack on Kellogg’s.
• Atta Maggi is health bhi, taste bhi.
• Saffola Gold is champion of healthy hearty cooking oils.
• Knorr soup is nourishing souls.
• Sugar Free Natura is on media spend spree.
• Pepsi’s core focus is on Tropicana juices
• Dabur is doing a similar stunt with Real Fruit Juices
• Britannia says ‘eat healthy, think better.’
• ICICI Bank launched the ‘Diabetes Care,’ the first critical illness insurance policy in the world.
  

And the list goes on and on and on.

Why is ‘health’ a healthy brand platform?

The desire to reduce health-care costs is one force behind the rise of the wellness industry; the other is the growing demand from consumers for things that make them feel healthier. Lifestyle disease and disorder is really on the rise. So it makes tremendous sense for marketers to deal with consumer’s health concern to be relevant in-case they start losing their market shares. Hence the need for companies to go beyond physical fitness and enter into mental, emotional and physical wellness in their lives.

These changes were restricted to the F&B category initially, but there is a discernible shift from fairness to healthy skin, from beauty salons to spas that offer holistic health, and more male interest in all these categories. True, much of this is still niche, but waiting eagerly to come into full bloom.

Marketers are only happy to embrace anything that’s happy and healthy. Therefore every brand and category is trying to draw upon the benefits of a healthy living. And over a period of time more companies will try to bank on the health platform with an array of new products to lure the Indian consumers.

Now that you have understood the importance of a healthy lifestyle and how marketers will target you with their next less sugar, low fat, high fiber offering, I’ll go and get my apple before my doctor turn against me.

Enlighten your mood

Yesterday I went to Harima (Japanese Restaurant/Sushi Bar) for lunch with my parents. Dad is going back to Kolkata, so I decided to take my parents out. My dad's a fish freak like most other bongs. But then I had a motive to choose this particular place for lunch. I wanted to observe his sushi eating experience and reaction. His first reaction,"With Wasabi anything can go." Lol.

In the table next to ours was this woman in veil. I was quiet surprised to see a Muslim lady in a Japanese joint. She was doing something with small light bulbs and explaining it to a gentleman. I became curious when she started arranging those small light bulbs into an abstract shape. I went to her and asking what's it all about. In a sweet tone of voice she said, "I enlighten things." Wow. Indeed you do Lady.

Meet the beautiful, Miss Zareena. She's from Dubai. Come to India to exhibit her work "Light Arts." She is an artist cum entrepreneur who works with glass and light. All kinds of glass. All kind of lights. All hue of lights. The room is her canvas and she can transform it within hours through her work of art. She went on to explain me her work. How light plays an important role at workplace, at home, at social gatherings etc. etc. Interesting and insightful conversation. She showed me photographs of her exhibition on her laptop and allowed me to take her picture (which I have put up with her permission.) One of her work is truly fascinating. Called 'Neonile,' it is an arrangement of many medium size neon tube on a huge wall. River Nile was painted beautifully on the tubes where the wave gently ripples when the tubes are 'switched-on' in certain order. Another work that is liked was a cluster of 60W bulbs, painted red, stuck together which looks like a bud. She calls it, 'Blud'. The best part, when the bulbs are switched on, the bud blooms into a flower.

I left my parents to their table and spend almost an hour chatting with her. Amazingly gutsy woman who had to break-away from her in-laws and make a career on her own. And now she is looking forward to expand her light boutique to different places. She plans to get her website done and start writing about her work and her life. I said I might come handy in getting her website done, she invited me to visit her exhibition to see her work of arts.

I'm going to spend my entire day today at her exhibition and see how she does these amazing things. Btw, the latest issue of Economist has a great article on how colour builds language and language builds colour.(You need an id to logging. If not, I can mail you the text.)

Happy Republic Day.

Music for the ears

The Indian music industry is growing through sea-change these days. Traditionally a cassette and CD playing market, India is suddenly waking up to the potential of digital music. Recent example of digital music by films like KANK, DON, Jan-e-Mann, and Salam-e-Ishq are prime example of the growing demand in digital music. The crucial point is that promoting an album in the physical format is expensive, while the money that accrues from digital sales is all profit because it is one file that is downloaded again and again.

Physical sales of CD’s and tapes dwindled to Rs. 720 crore from Rs. 1081 crore in 2001. Though the number of CD’s sold has gone up from 10 million in 2000-01 to 36 million in 2005, the fall in the sales of cassettes has been drastic. On the other hand sales of mobile music – ringtones, true tones, full track downloads and video clips – have zoomed to Rs. 450 crore with 300 million downloads per annum. This figure is set to double over the next 12 – 18 months.

According to a PricewaterhouseCoopers report on entertainment, the mobile music industry in India will be the largest at Rs. 3600 crore by 2009-10.

India, with its mobile consumer base of 130 million, is witnessing a boom in the consumption of mobile music. This segment s likely to contribute Rs. 120 crore to the bottomline of music companies this year, while consumers will pay up to Rs. 450 crore for downloading music on their phones.

This is another reason why marketers should bank on this growing category. No wonder, mobile companies like Nokia, Motorola, and Sony Ericsson are increasingly focusing on music playing mobiles.

And how exactly can they benefit? Maybe start creating more memorable jingles, brand songs, memes, signature tunes etc. which can be downloaded as music on the move. Maybe create a database of consumers who like certain brands and send it as free gift.

Digitization allows music companies to cater to specific needs of consumers. For instance there is a significant market for old classical music by artists and consumers are willing to pay different amounts for multiple devices. Not to forget the advantage digitization allows in combating piracy. To check piracy now phones are designed such that once a track is downloaded, it gets locked on the handset and cannot be forwarded enabling any kind of revenue loss.

Digital music (online and mobile) will outsell physical music in India by the end of this year. It will be largely defined by the growth in the mobile music sector. With new delivery channels of music such as FM stations and WAP sites emerging, entertainment companies, music publishing companies, production houses and equipment manufacturers are waking up to a booming music market. This revenue stream has given lease of life to some very old music companies too.

After music, it will be the digitization of our favorite Bollywood flicks. What’s next? Mobisodes of K serials?? Podcast of Sri Sri and his meditation techniques???

Technology you’re truly transforming.

Cool Hunting - JWT Style

This is great compilation of great ambient media at work. JWT Cool Hunting Team.

Highway Star

Anisha Motwani (Dir Mrkt – GM) on her article in ET mentioned about ‘bringing back the car spirit to life.’ She goes on to explain how marketers are obsessed with car features which often restricts them from exploring stronger brand ideologies out the territory of functional benefits.

The car market in India is evolving. More players are coming and consumers today are flooded with option. From a consumer point of view, they love extra features in their cars for the money that they are spending. Car purchase is an involved process, an indulgence, a reflection of the owner’s personality. But have car brands moved forward to match the car’s personality with that of the consumer’s. Well am not sure. A quick check at the recent car communication revealed this. I’ve photoshopped the brand logo. Can you differentiate?

Features, great car shot from every angle, nice background. Little boxes of feature shots of engines, power steering, alloy wheels, seating arrangement.

Let’s break clutter, bring a celebrity and brand will have a personality. A payoff of ‘Happy car, happy family’. Low EMI, 0% interest, 100% finance. Pffts.

‘Massification’ of catch phrases like “Go Fida” “Josh Machine” “That’s performance” “Daddy’s Biiiiiiiiiiiiiig Car,” “Pure Exhilaration.”

‘Where is the philosophy?’ as Ms. Motwani asks, I’ve just one question to ask her, isn’t your brand doing the same thing what you’re raising question about. TV is often used to build an imagery of the brand, so 'a lovely jingle with a newly wed couple holding hands,' or 'two top notch celebrity dragging their car over a cup of coffee,' do help in grabbing eyeballs and if consumers really buy-in to a philosophy, where is your brand's philosophy?

Worldwide car brands have managed to create a unique philosophy for themselves and millions of consumer has bought into that. Volvo for safety, Honda and the power of dreams, Nissan and shift_, Skoda and its obsession with quality, BMW and stability. Why not in India, are Indian car buyers any different from their western counterparts?

In a journey called life, it is the brands core value that walks hand-in-hand with its consumer. Indians will still buy car, the category will still rally price equity, newer models with more features will gain share but they won’t ever call themselves or their car a Highway Star.

A novel canine idea

This guy, Wasiff Khan is giving sleepless night to companies like Pedigree, Eukanuba, Purina and others a run for their money, well, at least in Mumbai city. He has already made news with NDTV covering him for his novel idea - 'Dabbas for man's best friend.' Home delivery of freshly prepared cooked dog food. A graduate who didn't know what to make of his career is now running a flourishing business in the heart of Mumbai city. His clients include top Bollywood stars and industrialists. He offers customised food as per the wish of the owner and charges anywhere between Rs. 30 - 120 depending on the menu. His future plans include cookies, cakes and cat foods as a part of his product extension.

Watch out for this guy. Single handedly Wassif has taken up the task of giving big established pet food brands a run. And with more celebrities joining his list as clients, Wassif surely knows how to bark a success story. Woof!

Platinum in pooR’s country

Today the sentence “A man is known by the company he keeps” can easily be interpreted as “A man is known by the card he keeps.” Yes, credit card is fast becoming an expression of a person’s personality and interest. Premium cards are offering everything from exotic holidays at luxury beach resort, Swiss watches, Mont Blanc pens, exclusive dinner at fine restaurants, and access to premier golf clubs as bait to lure high net-worth individuals.

It is estimated that 700000 individuals in India with liquid wealth of US$ 100000 and this number is expected to grow to 1.1 million by 2009. Platinum is the new platform to woo these high income-high spending consumers. Almost every bank now has a Platinum card in its product portfolio. American Express, Citibank, ICICI, Standard Chartered, HSBC, HDFC, Deutsche Bank is eyeing this growing base of HNI’s to get a share of the pie.

What are the banks doing to justify the high membership fee that they charge? Banks are offering ‘refined lifestyle.’ According to a recent American Express Study on Indian affluent entitled, Inside the Affluent Space: Changing Lifestyle Expectations of the Affluent in India reveals an increase in disposable wealth and access is creating lifestyle competition among the ultra rich. With a keen eye for quality products and experiences, they expect to receive tangible recognition of their product use and value for money. The lifestyle, spending power, needs, desires, aspirations and service expectations of the super-premium customer in India are very similar to that of his or her rich and famous peers around the globe.

In order to get more Platinum members, banks will need to reinvent their approach. And what will that be? Maybe very soon they will start offering Porsche Roadsters, Adam A700 Jets, Kiwi Alloy Yachts, Chateau Mouton Rothschild 1945, Black Dragon Edicion Especial Gurkha, Molasses Reef Villas, Hublot Big Bang, Bvlgari Zero Collection, and Tibaldi Fulgor Nocturnus. Now, even if this cannot satisfy your sparkling new HNI’s, dear bankers shift your focus to micro-credit and rural development.

Crowd Pulling

Over the past few years, the advertising agencies in India are getting sleepless night on the 'talent crunch' issue. When it comes to looking for fresh new talents, agencies are headed nowhere. Everyone has their own perspective about this problem.

While cleaning my desk today, I came across an article in the BusinessWeek magazine dated July 2006 on Crowdsourcing. Crowdsourcing is the unofficial name of an IT enabled business trend in which companies get un-paid or low-paid amateurs to design products, create content even tackle corporate R&D problems in their spare time. According to Eric von Hippel, "user-centered innovation." But unlike open-source software, crowdsourced work is managed and owned by a single company that sells the results. Good example of Crowdsourcing is Gettyimages, CafePress, Goldcorp, P&G's InnoCentive.

Crowdcasting seems to be the new catch phrase of 2007. Sitting between Broadcasting and crowdsourcing is Crowdcasting. The process of crowdcasting uses a combination of push and pull strategies to first engage an audience and build a network of participants and then harness the network for new insights. These insights / concepts can include new product ideas, new service ideas, new branding messages, or even scientific breakthroughs. These insights are extracted from participants' submissions. To be most effective, crowdcasting usually takes the form of a competitive event with a compelling prize.

Can advertising agencies draw example from this to create an internal process/system which can bring in people to volunteer? In the long term can this become a HR policy for advertising agencies to tackle the talent crunch? Advertising agencies do follow another similar path. They hire freelances to do the job, well but that is restricted only to creative. Why not follow the same with other departments like servicing, planning, interactive, media, new media etc.

Here is an article Blaiq has written on the same topic recently. Manish has also shared his thoughts on the crowdcasting here. Do send your comments, would love to hear new methods of crowdcasting which can benefit both you and the agencies.

Pure promotion

Kidstuff Promos & Events conducted a recent survey to find out what role do pr0motions play in influencing buying behaviour. Of the 2612 consumers in 10 cities, 47 per cent of people go for repeat purchase if there are offers. Promotions do help in creating demand for a brand but also help convert a future purchase intention into action.

The retail end of the survey, conducted across 820 stores in 10 cities, shows that promotions work well in modern retail outlets. Interestingly, about 59 percent of mall-goers had participated in a promotion through SMS and over the telephone, 44 percent through a contest, and only 28% used the traditional scratch cards.

Source: Businessworld Magazine