TVS scoots over colours...
...and wows dudettes with 99 of them!

(column by Romsha Singh & Pallavi Srivastava)

Natkhat Neela, Disco Green, Satrangi Narangi... take your pick. On offer are not nail paints or lip colours but a range of scooties to choose from. Nowadays, 99 is a popular number... From a Hutch connection to a McDonald’s Happy Meal offer, marketers across categories are using it as a powerful allure to book their customers. However, TVS Scooty is throwing a different bait around it. The auto major has come out with a catchy range of 99 colours to make it easy (or more difficult!) for the fairer sex to choose the colour they want to go about painting the city roads on.

The latest commercial of the scooty brand is set in a typical bazaar where vendors sell colourful chudee, dupatta and flowers. However, two chirpy girls go about asking for unusual colours from shopkeepers, leaving them amazed and amused at the same time. “Girls are very particular about the choice of colours, and it requires a very large palette to meet their needs,” says S. Srinivas, Assistant General Marketing Manager, TVS Scooty, offering the insight behind the range.

Of late, competition in the scooty space has pepped up and competitors like Hero Honda Pleasure are on prowl announcing daringly - “Why should boys have all the fun?” In the past, bubbly Preity Zinta and charming Minissha Lamba have ridden the scooty brand promoting it as one which promises fun and freedom. However, this time around, its communication strategy rests more on colours and choice. Both Sujit Unni (Senior Creative Director) and Mathanki Kodavasal (Creative Team Leader) of McCann Erickson agree as they say, “Girls use colours as a form of self expression. Therefore, they always look for that particular ‘ONE’ colour which is very difficult to find unless the palette is as wide as Scooty’s.”

The ad is lively and keeps the viewer engrossed till the very end. Moreover, the backdrop of a vibrant bazaar blends perfectly well with the theme. “Fun is integral to Scooty’s brand equity and will remain a core element of all future communication,” offers Srinivas. The inspiration came from innovative lipstick and nail-polish shades like Orange Trap, Electric Red, Purple Mischief, Copper Mystery et al.

Just like the ad in which the girls add sizzle and colours ensure vibrancy, the shooting of the film was not bereft of pep. “Characterisation of the bazaar vendors and selecting the right actors was a very interesting exercise. Also, the way the set was constructed, transforming an empty road into a colourful bazaar was quite unbelievable,” says the creative duo. The new face in the commercial is of Trisha, a leading South Indian actress. But, Preity’s fans needn’t pull up a long face as Trisha hasn’t replaced Bollywood’s ebullient queen Preity, who’s just another sparkling beauty associated with the brand for this campaign. “Like Preity, Trisha has a very perky, bubbly image that goes with the brand personality of TVS Scooty,” adds Srinivas. Despite the congested setting, the shooting of this film was a trouble-free experience. Yes, a teenie-weenie problem did arise at the editing stage, as the post-production team had a little too many brilliant shots to choose from. Guess, having too many choices is not always a great thing.

(End of Romsha Singh & Pallavi Srivastava column)

The Radio Star...
...goes jingle jingle all the way!

Rang barse, barse barse, rang barse..., Sabka thanda ek, Kuch meetha ho jaye, these are some of the jingles that radio listeners across the country tune into every day or every hour these days. They sound familiar... Yes, for they are the radio adaptations of popular TV commercials of Reliance phones, Coca-Cola and Cadbury, respectively. Just over two years back, radio was an unattractive category in the country. Cut to 2007 and the radio FM wave is spreading far and wide.

According to a report by PwC, the medium is growing at a CAGR of 28% and the Rs.5 billion industry is expected to touch Rs.17 billion by 2011. Tarun Katial, CEO of BIG 92.7 FM is helpful with more figures, “Radio had a share of approximately 3% in 2006, up from 2.4% in 2005 and is expected to go up to 5% by 2008-09”.

Ever since things for radio started looking up in the country, small and medium sized organisations, real estate companies, Bollywood movies, et al have lapped it up. However, the presence of MNCs on the medium was scarce. But, that’s only till now! While corporates like Unilever, Marico are among the firsts, giants like Coca-Cola, Cadbury, HLL (Lux) are also queuing up to tap its potential.

While the reigning trend is to slightly modify the existing ads to suit the medium (as it’s the cheapest and the best), products like Marico’s Saffola, Hutch and lately Cadbury have already pressed the innovation button to cut through the growing clutter on the channels. Anand Chakravarthy, National Marketing Head, BIG 92.7 FM refers to BIG FM’s work for the Premier Hockey League where their jocks acted as ambassadors for various teams.

While the future surely looks bright, there are also major challenges facing it. While, marketers are falling over each other to tap stations in metros and mini metros, channels in smaller cities are still scouting for advertisers. Considering that advertising revenues are the only source of revenue, such stations are finding themselves on a sticky wicket. “Another challenge that the industry faces is that many products do not know how to use this medium. Moreover, even advertising agencies don’t have specialists to deal with it yet,” says Josy Paul, National Creative Director, JWT.

Till then, enjoy the jingle filled airways. Even as we make this statement, a few more of them would have been added!

People Movements

(column by Aditi Soni)

• To drive the growth of its financial services, Aditya Birla Group has appointed Ajay Srinivasan as Chief Executive (financial services) and Director (corporate strategy and business development). Prior to this, Srinivasan was CEO – Fund Management at Prudential Corp. Asia. Air Deccan has appointed Nick White as its Deputy COO – Technical.

•Global market research company – Synovate has roped in Mulraj Gala as Finance Head, Sjaskrati Sail as HR Head and Pranay Dankedar has re-joined the firm as Senior Project Director. At Electrolux India, Neeraj Kumar has joined as VP – Marketing and Strategy and Vishal Mirchandani has been made the CEO of the lifestyle division at its Piramyd Retail.

•In the media world, Pankaj Paul has moved to The Hindustan Times as the Managing Editor. Shankar Rao Shinde has been promoted to the post of Group Brand Head of The Indian Express. Zee TV’s Programming Head, Ashwini Yardi has joined Viacom-18 as Head of Content & Creative. Also, Sandip Sikand, Chief Creative Officer of Sony Entertainment Television, has called it quits with the channel.

•Raju Santhanam has put in his papers as Zee News Editor after working for a little over a month there. Neville Bastawalla has been appointed as Marketing Head at Mid-Day.

•The advertising world is as usual bustling with movements with Pratap Suthan bidding goodbye to Grey Worldwide as the National CD. OgilvyOne has roped in Mihir Unakar has Business Director, Bangalore and Harshad Hardikar as Business Director, Mumbai. Also Kunal Jamuar has joined Media Direction as VP – West, South and East.

(End of Aditi Soni column)

It’s all Grass you see...
...and of course there is think tank, spark plus and the visual eye doing the trick!

(column by Romsha Singh & Surbhi Chawla)

Driving through the narrow streets of Lajpat Nagar in New Delhi, one could never guess that in a dull white building could dwell a bright and budding creative powerhouse. Its office on the third floor also has a somewhat crammed look. But, for ‘Team Grasshopper’ the place is big enough to let their minds fly and their imaginations run wild!

A newcomer by industry standards, Grasshoppers is a five year old baby. A young mind behind the agency – its CEO – Arjun Bannerjee reveals to 4Ps B&M the secret behind the unusual name – as per the Hindu mythology, Grasshoppers are money minting insects. So, what’s or who’s behind the logo, which sports a marijuana leaf? “I was more of a bohemian character earlier, and that’s how the idea of a marijuana leaf came by,” winks Arjun.

Like many other small agencies of the country, Grasshoppers too has a healthy list of NGOs in its grip. However, unlike others, for Grasshoppers, the scenario is not a forced one. They believe that the Indian ad scene is very client dominated and NGO advertising provides a freehand and is therefore one way to gain creative satisfaction. Not, just advertising, Grasshoppers has gone the whole hog to prove its commitment to the cause: last year they hosted an exhibition called, Achieve, showcasing 150 creatives and 50 banners depicting issues like child labour, trafficking, et al.

Though NGOs happen to be Grasshoppers’ forte, it also has corporate names like Jay Pee Group of Hotels, Café Coffee Day (Northern Zone), Technova and Honeywell Security Systems in its kitty. The agency has also worked with clients like Hindware and Pearlpet in the past along with the cosmetics giant, Revlon, for a short while.

Lucky with clients, but not lucky with awards yet – that’s Grasshop - pers’ sweet and sour tale. “For me, the greatest award is – despite being new in Delhi, I have been able to carve a niche for Grasshoppers in such a short while. We are working towards it but not working hard towards it,” emphasises Arjun.

The agency is also house to some of the youngest talent giving them opportunity to experiment and explore. “There is no one above the age of twenty nine in the organisation which I believe is our core competence. The reasons for handpicking fresh talent from institutes are that they are full of innovative ideas,” opines Arjun. He is candid when he says that an experienced bunch knows the tricks of the trade and that’s what clients prefer just like they prefer tried and tested formulas in advertising.

This bunch of bohemian, young and creative minds has not only come out with creative ads but has also christened each of their departments with names like Think Tank, Bizz Mark, Visual Eyes, Spark Plug.... Sure, all of that must be giving that extra kick, stronger than that of marijuana and enough to forget the dullness of building that houses its office in the stuffy lanes of Lajpat Nagar.

(End of Romsha Singh & Surbhi Chawla column)