In a video interview with Social Samosa, Barry Wacksman, Vice-Chairman & Global Chief Strategy Officer – R/GA sheds some light on the causevertising culture in the ad world, cultural data, and much more.

“What we are focused on today is ‘Transformation at Speed’ – we offer integrated solutions that help our clients with business problems, how to create new products and services,” shared Barry Wacksman, Vice-Chairman & Global Chief Strategy Officer – R/GA while introducing us to R/GA.

The agency competes in a lot of different industries against more traditional competitors like consulting, in design with the element of technology and in marketing communication. It was founded in 1977 by two brothers who were pioneers in the industry for feature film and visual facts; ver the years R/GA has moved into a lot of other businesses and as Wachsman claims, has emerged as one of the leaders in the digital agency space.

When quizzed about the current trends storming up the ad world, Wacksman informed that a lot of R/GA’s  clients particularly the ones who were born before the digital revolution are experiencing this big disruption in their business and many of them are on the record saying that our business is being disrupted and that we need to figure out how to make big changes. “I think what most of them mean is that they are looking at innovative ways, not just in advertising but they’re trying to innovate the business by trying to invent new products and services”.

He further comments on how to build modern brands at a time when consumers are finding more and more ways to not spend in media that is ad-supported.

Wacksman added, “So how do you create traction nowadays because technically this is more challenging with a young consumer who is spending their least amount of time on traditional media where it was very easy to build brands with TVCs, print ads, and radio spots. How do we build modern brands than when we don’t have access to these consumers because they are not consuming media in the same way”.

Also Read: #SamosaTalks: Look at your consumer with love and not fear: Gordon Bowen, McGarryBowen

Further moving to the content creation space, Wacksman shares that he is not a big believer of causevertising or the storytelling format in advertising. He thinks there is a lot of purpose-driven advertising in festivals such as Cannes – though not sure how much of that actually helps to sell the product in the end.

“So a big challenge stands there. I don’t know about India- but in the US whats driving content viral is the social media  – an idea that somebody can post a video and then other people start sharing. Most of the platforms have blocked ads so the idea that a brand can go viral nowadays is almost impossible without paying media fees to the publishers like Facebook or companies like that. So there was an opportunity maybe five years ago but I don’t think so it’s the same case today,” he opined.

Wacksman also doesn’t believe that content creation is the be all and all of the industry. It is also the most important problem that R/GA can solve for its clients. He thinks that even though we create the most beautiful piece of advertising but we were not able to connect with the audience and solve the marketing or the business problem that the particular clients were expecting. “Hence we need to expand the creative opportunity beyond storytelling to business transformation driven by innovation, by experience transformation which we did in design with the element fo technology and by marketing transformation which is how we create engagement and sharing in a modern way”.

On bigger networks acquiring independent and small agencies, Wacksman does see a trend towards companies trying to expand their capabilities whether it is a consulting company buying creative shops or a data company. He feels that this might be the new trend of acquisition to expand and create broader capabilities more responsive to a marketplace where the needs of clients are much broader than they were in the past.

Also what it takes for a campaign to become viral in this digital age and to know more about Wacksman’s take on the Indian creative industry, watch the full interview here.

The post #SamosaTalks: I am not a big believer of causevertising or storytelling: Barry Wacksman, R/GA appeared first on Social Samosa.

User-Generated Content is known to boost lead generation with authenticity and creates impactful impressions. Check out a few of the best UGC campaigns.

Any form of content, such as images, videos, text, and audio posted on social media platforms by users can make a positive impact on consumers influencing their decision. In fact, consumers find UGC 9.8x more impactful than influencer content when making a purchasing decision, as accounted by Stackla. Further, social campaigns that incorporate UGC have seen a 50% lift in engagement.

User-Generated Content represents democratization of content production. UGC is said to have entered the mainstream usage after BBC adopted it in 2005, when they opted for a UGC platform for their website. According to statistics, sites with featured UGC saw a 20% increase in return visitors.

Besides, UGC creates a more personal relationship between the user and the brand. Sporadically, brands also share UGC on their own social media handles, letting their audience know about the love they receive from their customers. Moreover, 51% of consumers say they’d be more likely to engage with and/or purchase from a brand if it shared their photo, video or social post across its marketing channels. So, along with inducing new leads, UGC can also help form a more concrete relation to their customer base.

Millenials, the age group that is transforming marketing strategies across spectrums and changing consumer habits are major contributors in UGC campaigns that have surfaced in recent years. Millennials (ages 25 and above) are the biggest content drivers — contributing over 70% of all UGC. Millennials also believe that UGC is 35% more memorable than other media.

Almost all brands have a social media presence in today’s date. Hence, it’s important to break the clutter with the content that you put out to stand out in your sector. UGC helps you break that clutter as UGC posts shared to social channels see 28% higher engagement than standard brand posts. And, social campaigns that incorporate UGC are said to witness a 50% lift in engagement.

Let’s glance through few of the best UGC campaigns that came out with flying colours and soaring content.

Also Read:Featuring a music artist can make your campaign a mega hit

Starbucks – Starbucks White Cup Contest

Starbucks took cues from the customers who had been doodling on the iconic Starbucks cup for years and launched a White Cup Contest.

The contest encouraged customers in the US & Canada to draw customized art on a Starbucks cup, click a photo of it and submit it through social media using the #WhiteCupContest. The winning design was printed on a limited edition Starbucks reusable plastic cup. Starbucks received almost 4,000 entries in just three weeks.

On the similar lines, Starbucks also hosts a #RedCupContest during the holiday season to promote it’s seasonal beverages.

Apple – Shot on iPhone Challenge

In a quest to create awareness around iPhone’s stunning camera quality, Apple invited iPhone users to submit their best shots.

For instance, this year the contest took place between January 22, 2019 to February 7, 2019 and was reviewed by a panel of judges consisting of Pete Souza, Luísa Dörr, Chen Man, Kaiann Drance and more.

Users were asked to post their best photo taken on iPhone to Instagram or Twitter with the #ShotOniPhone hashtag. 10 winning photos were selected out of worldwide submissions and were featured on billboards in select cities, Apple retail stores and online.

Over the years, #ShotOniPhone has become an online movement in itself, with the hashtag been looked at as a mark of pride and quality work. The transparency maintained by the brand, when it comes to #ShotOnIphone has only encouraged the campaign further.

UN Environment – #BeatAirPollution

In a pursuit to beat air pollution, UN Environment asked users to share a creative mask photo & a commitment to #BeatAirPollution and challenge friends to join in to make a difference.

The campaign kicked off with Dia Mirza, Actress posting a picture with her face masked and conveying her commitment towards beating the silent killer.

Soon concerned citizens from around the world shared their support.

Coca Cola – Share a Coke

Coca Cola executed a marketing campaign by debranding itself and replacing the company’s name with the most popular names and the phrase “Share A Coke”. The campaign began in Australia in 2011 and was later rolled out in over 80 countries.

Customers were asked to share a picture of their bottle on social media with the #ShareACoke. The campaign seemingly increased Coca Cola’s consumption among young adults by 7% and received multiple awards at the Creative Effectiveness Lion Awards at Cannes.

Hootsuite – Hootsuite Life

Hootsuite promotes the #HootsuiteLife to encourage employees and members using the social media management tool to uplift the work culture and reinforce the community.

All India Bakchod – Dank Irfan Memes

In May 2017, All India Bakchod in association with the renowned actor Irfan Khan came up with the campaign,’Dank Irfan Memes’ for the promotion of his film Hindi Medium.

AIB through their social media handle, distributed the internet’s most famous meme templates recreated by featuring Irfan. They stated, “Here, take these templates and meme away!” The campaign conceived a ton of memes and few of the templates remian relevant till date.

Pepsi – Crash the Pepsi IPL

In 2015, during the IPL Season, Pepsi India executed a campaign, wherein the company asked the viewers to script an IPL ad and upload it through a website. The winning ad replaced the official Pepsi ad and was showcased on TV and other platforms. They performed the activity through the advert below ft. Ranbir Kapoor & Virat Kohli.

Pepsi also ran a contest called #PepsiAdInATweet on Twitter, where users were asked to share a story through 140 characters. The winning prize was passes to the YouTube Fan Fest.

Did we miss out on your favorite UGC campaign? Write to us at content@socialsamosa.com or let us know in the comments below.

If you take pride in creating a great UGC Campaign, now is your time to shine. Best Social Media Brands 2019 is here to celebrate the best campaigns & the most social brands. Nominate now.

The post UGC Campaigns that produced plenty of engagement and why they work! appeared first on Social Samosa.

Brands like UberEats, Domino’s, Hajmola, and more were not far behind in latching onto the moment when ‘JCB ki khudaayi’ went viral across social media. These JCB topical posts by brands will amaze your creative minds.

On Tuesday while the 2019 Election Results fever was just going down, brands were gifted with yet another rigorously trending meme template- ‘JCB India ki khudaayi’ and this led to JCB topical posts.

While the source of this trend was rather vague, some speculations pointed at the picture of a groom in Chattisgarh who rode on JCB instead of a horse for his wedding baarat whereas most others pointed at the JCB machine digging into the ground simply having gone viral from increasingly multiple YouTube videos going online. These showed Indians being rather amused as they stop to wait and watch the JCB machine simply doing its digging work, hence the #JCBkikhudaayi. Yet another source attributes the trend to a reference to JCB in a political speech by an MP.

Interestingly, on meme pages also JCB went viral a popular meme with Sunny Leone posing with a JCB machine and she sportingly replied to the trend on her official Twitter handle saying, “Career change, LOL.”

The momentum reached such a peak that, JCB India addressed the trend officially:

It sure is a real treat when these memes are not only hitched with relevance to the brand but also real-time events. Some brands successfully filled in IPL, movies, elections etc. as an aid to further push this trend ahead. Let’s dig in now?

Also Read: With BJP’s #5yearchallenge, 2019 General Elections to see political war of memes

If you too landed upon such impressive moment marketing on JCB, mention them in the comments section below or write to us at content@socialsamosa.com

The post #TopicalSpot: How Brands dug into ‘JCB ki khudaayi’ memes to weave trending creativity appeared first on Social Samosa.

In one word – far. Very far. Social media is probably the most intimate way of connecting with your customers, next only to actually meeting them in person. Here is a 101 guide to social media marketing for ecommerce

No matter who your customers are, chances are that they’ve either found you on social media or checked you out on it before buying from you. They are keenly tuned into what other customers are saying about you and they assess your business worth by your social media presence.

With about 2 billion active monthly users, Facebook has more people than the entire population of China. In fact, there are a total of 3.48 billion social media users in the world in 2019.

According to a survey by Constant Contact, brands that engage with customers on social media take away 20 to 40% higher revenue per customer as compared to brands that don’t. Facebook acts as a major catalyst in product discovery, partnering with Instagram influencers has often brought viral success, live video has become a force to reckon with and social media reviews are the ultimate social proof today.

Customers who have a positive brand interaction on social media are 3 times more likely to recommend that brand.

Clearly, the impact social media can make on your e-commerce is phenomenal and multifaceted. If your e-commerce business isn’t on social media yet or is on there but rather reluctantly, it’s time to change that.

Let’s take a look at some of the top ways social media can take your e-commerce business to unexpected heights.

1. Discovery

According to one of the most revered reports in Silicon Valley – the Mary Meeker Internet Trends Report, social media is driving a sizeable product discovery in e-commerce. 78% of Americans discovered new products on Facebook and 59% on Pinterest and Instagram. “Social media is enabling more efficient product discovery in e-commerce. A material portion of people that have used social media have found products on social media. A material portion have purchased those products after finding them on social media” said Mary Meeker speaking at the 2018 Code Conference.

Social media can, therefore, be your most profitable strategy for increasing brand exposure, bring traffic to your website and make customers notice your products.

Dollar Shave Club shot to fame with a remarkably witty and fun video that went viral on YouTube. Even after that, the company has consistently kept its audience entertained and engaged with posts like this.

Source:

2. User Generated Content and Social Proof

85% of customers trust the user-generated content more than they trust brand content or paid advertising.

When a customer posts an experience with your brand on social media, such content has the highest resonance with customers. This kind of content is also the most effective digital marketing strategy and a highly underutilized one.

Knowing how important content and digital marketing is today, sharing and promoting UGC on social media is the most authentic source of fresh, unique and highly trusted fresh content for your brand. It reinforces social proof and convinces customers that your products are a good bet for their money when they’ve heard other customers have positive experiences with you.

A great example of this is ASOS. The online fashion and beauty retailer launched its #AsSeenOnMe campaign where customers posted their pictures flaunting ASOS fashion with the hashtag and generating a ton of engagement on Instagram. The campaign is still going strong even after four years and has over a million user-generated posts.

Source: ASOS Instagram

3. Personalized E-commerce

With a highly advanced personalized recommendation system driving much of Netflix’s overreaching success, personalization has become the biggest factor in determining a brand’s success.

Social media enables e-commerce brands to offer the most personalized, curated and tailor-made experience to a customer.

Stitch Fix, an online personal shopping service is a great example of this. It is making its customers’ lives easier by offering personalized styling ideas through Pinterest. “Stitch Fix has struck a chord with consumers because translating style inspiration is easier to do digitally, with the assistance of visuals, than it is in person with a stylist, through your own words.” said Julie Bornstien, COO of Stitch Fix.

Thanks to the degree of personalization social media offers, ad engagement, click-through rates, return on ad spend and customer lifetime value are decidedly rising on social media.

Also Read: Powerful Tips for a Perfect Blogger

4. Customer Service

Exceptional customer service is the key to growth in e-commerce; three out of five customers abandon purchases due to poor customer service, and a major chunk of these disgruntled customers aren’t likely to ever buy from you again.

Social media can help avoid such a debacle as it provides one of the most dependable ways to keep your customers happy. Zappos, one of the world’s most successful e-commerce brands for instance, leverages social media in a huge way to not only extend phenomenal customer service but also represent a hugely customer-centric culture that instantly draws customers to them. Zappos has a Twitter account dedicated to service. They initiate response promptly and use this account to reinforce their reputation in service.

In fact, all 400 employees of Zappos have Twitter accounts and remain accessible to all kinds of customer complaints. Even their social media campaigns revolve around not discounts or flash sales but instead, about showcasing the people at Zappos, emphasizing how they are always working to help their customers.

This highly personal and intimate social media strategy is what has made Zappos a huge brand in a relatively short time.

Conclusion

Social media is simply too powerful to ignore in any industry today. When it comes to e-commerce, social acquires something of a superpower status. The above points are only a broad categorization of all the massive benefits social media brings to e-commerce. A finely nuanced social media strategy can catapult your e-commerce business from an underdog to a top performer in a very short span of time and keep the momentum going for an eternity.

The article is penned by Gaurav Belani, a SEO analyst with 8 plus years of experience under his kitty.

The post How far can Social Media take your E-commerce sales? appeared first on Social Samosa.

With numbers driving the game and platforms promoting ad-free experiences, here’s how brands can still win the digital storytelling game.

For P.G. Aditiya, pitches being rejected due to bad probable numbers is a weekly tale. Story ideas often have to be adjusted to ensure they result in good numbers. Though this has always been the norm in the creative world of advertising, digital has added a new dimension to it — real-time changes.

“It is tricky to use them well. Sometimes, ideas have to be killed. On others, pitches are strengthened many times over with the help of numbers that suggest they will work,” he said. Aditiya is the Executive Creative Director of Dentsu Webchutney and was a part of a Zee Melt panel discussion on ‘Has digital killed storytelling?’ in Mumbai this Monday.

In sync with Aditiya, the opinion shared by Amarjit Batra, Managing Director, Spotify, regarding digital tools indicates that numbers are indeed a blessing. “You can’t blame the tools. It is important to use them to tell stories effectively and enhance the overall experience for audiences,” he said.

What’s ‘correct advertising’?

How much should the creative persons depend on numbers? Would this dependency result in the rise of ‘correct advertising’ instead of ‘great advertising’ that is based on good storytelling? “The ‘correctness’ of the advertisement is not global, it depends on the matrix that you have specified to the tools,” Anant Rangaswami, Editor, Melt explained.

Everyone can tell a story but not everyone knows how to tell a story was one of the most essential points raised in the discussion.

“Most people who say digital has killed storytelling are those who haven’t been able to adapt,” said Siddharth Banerjee, Director – Global Sales Org, Facebook India.

Who should tell the story?

Though there is a lot of discussion on what makes for good advertising, digital platforms providing ad-less interface adds contradictions to the mix. Is there a way out? “Influencers are an option for the brand to collaborate and reach people,” opined Aditiya.

However, he was countered by Batra who pointed out that depending on influencers for a brand is asking them to tell a story instead of the brand telling its own story. This makes a huge difference for a brand needs to be able to tell their own story without a mediator tweaking it.

Quick takeaway

“A good story for a brand is where the plot won’t hold meaning if the brand is removed,” said Batra, adding that it simply shouldn’t work for any other brand. Adding to this, Banerjee explained two levels of how to make it works: The story should move people emotionally should be at the core.

The next level is where filters are put in place by brand marketers, he said. These are the ACBD: Attention, Branding, Communication and Distinctiveness.

The post Digital Storytelling: Are stats your friend or foe? appeared first on Social Samosa.

Facebook has published a new set of guidelines to help Instagram creators make more efficient use of the platform. All you need to know about Instagram Creators Guidelines here.

We know that Instagram and Facebook data is analyzed by more or less the same root teams. In this light, even though the newly published guide has some tips sounding rather common, creators should be paying key attention to the specific details entailed since they are based on internal insight.

“Instagram is all about building connections with your community and showing your authentic self. Get the most out of video-sharing with these tips for IGTV, Stories, Live, and Feed,” Instagram’s official blog read.

1. Keep it real

Keep your content personal and exclusive rather than artificially over-produced, behind-the-scenes is the way to go, especially on stories. Be conversational to push authentic engagement.

2. Post frequently and get creative

Have fresh content? Post consistently and even daily, it keeps your followers going.

Make note of a specifically stated tip here, “Make a goal of posting at least once across Feed, Stories, Live and IGTV per week.” where IGTV is indicated to be given as much importance in promoting your content.

3. Get closer to your fans

Another mention worth paying due attention to is the use of the Question sticker or @mention fans in your stories. Which speaks of how tools should be made best use of.

Regular acknowledgment by giving likes or responses across your feed, live, IGTV and stories can go a long way in creating buzz and more importantly helping nurture loyal fans.

4. Be a storyteller

“Add context to your posts so your fans feel like they’re with you at the moment.”

Exposing your human candid self in daily routines or attending events or even relishing a meal is still a great story that brings your community closer to you.

This tip further elaborates on “posting multiple photos and videos in one feed post or using a countdown sticker to build momentum to a big moment.” Thus indicating once again at exploring their plethora of tools and features.

Also Read: Social Media News Round-Up: Facebook algorithm updates, Twitter Carousel Ads launched, and more

While the above were more or less widely known. Here are the following four tips that will prove a real catch in beneficially tweaking your strategy with definitive details:

5. Upload longer stories

Facebook reveals that you can now post longer videos to stories, “As you record video beyond 15 seconds, a thumbnail tray will appear to indicate how many videos you’ve recorded so far. Every 15 seconds of recorded or uploaded media is turned into its own video, and you can record up to four videos for a total duration of 1 minute in a single session.”

Uploding multiple photos and videos is also made easier, “To upload multiple stories, tap the icon on the top right of your camera roll, then tap to select up to 10 photos or videos.”

These features give more scope for content on stories and also allow brands the flexibility of recording content elsewhere while still being able to easily upload it on Instagram stories as well.A

6. Branded content 1, 2, 3’s

Instagram has become the platform for the rising Influencer content and these tips might help you better your share of Influencer marketing. The guide clearly states:

• Be transparent. Build trust with your audience by tagging businesses you’re partnering with. Our policies require creators and publishers to tag business partners in the branded content posts when there’s an exchange of value between a creator or publisher and a business partner.
• Be relevant. Work with brands whose products you genuinely enjoy working with. It should feel like a fit for your voice and Instagram presence to truly resonate with your fans.
• Be authentic. Ensure that creative looks natural so it resonates most with your organic audience. Fans don’t want to be sold to.

Fans recognise the difference between artificially pushed content on the influencers or content that fits in with their style. The key to naturally flourishing influencer marketing would, therefore, be brands and influencers coming together mindfully to generate content that mutually promotes the style of both.

7. IGTV: Be there first

The guide tips you to- be the first to get a hand of IGTV with videos that are 2-3 minutes long. Maintain a consistent theme across the channel and capture vidoes vertically 9:16 for the best viewing experience.  

Advice is for shorter, every day clips to be kept for stories and feed. Since an IGTV view only count when fans watch at least 3 seconds of the video.

It is indeed the best to recognise a trend before it gets trending and early use of IGTV is going to do just that for you.

8. Steps to promote your IGTV video

• Three days before: Share behind-the-scenes content from your upcoming video on Stories.
• Two days before: Post a countdown sticker to your Stories.
• During upload: Post a preview of your IGTV video in the Feed.
• 1-10 minutes after: Use the IGTV share sticker in your Stories.
• 1-10 minutes after: Post the permalink to your IGTV video across Facebook and other social apps.
• 1 day after: Go Live to discuss reactions to your IGTV video

While these steps take you through how IGTV can be a tool for upcoming events, products, blogs, etc. It is interesting how you can widen the scope of these steps for any upcoming campaign on the rest of your Instagram as well.

This creators guide makes an introduction that best sums up these set of new tips- Instagram is all about building connections with your community and showing your authentic self.

The post Facebook rolls out new guidelines for Instagram Creators appeared first on Social Samosa.

For this team of passionate feminists, Vitamin Stree is quirkily definitive of how they have set out to feed the world with nutritious dose of content for young Indian women.

Vitamin Stree is one of the first video content platforms dedicated to exclusive online content for women creating a much needed safe space online.

The list of regressive norms, tabooed conversations, and patriarchal exploitation for women sure is a long one but Vitamin Stree has extensively worked to put out an even longer list of newly stirred conversations, inspirational storytelling, and the coming of age feminism.

It’s not all in thin air though! In-depth research and analysis play a key role in shaping a narrative for this Stree. Topics they forayed into like PCOS, Intersectionality, The Barbie Effect were definitively what India was waiting to explore at the doorstep of Feminism.

An interesting hashtag #ThatsWhatStreeSays speaks louder for their motto. With newer, bigger plans in 2019, Vitamin Stree is set to educate the world, let’s find out how?

Who are we?

Vitamin Stree is a young, video first, content platform that is focused on reshaping the narrative for young women in India. Through objective analysis, in-depth research and inspirational storytelling, we serve up a healthy dose of nutritious content on themes that matter most to young women.

Our journey

Vitamin Stree was started two years ago, as the first, independent content channel of Supari Studios. It was envisioned as a disruptive channel for urban, Indian women, to talk about issues that are ignored or not talked about enough. To start a safe space online, for women to find information and have conversations, on everything from female sexual pleasure and beauty standards to birth control and laws for women in India. We have grown steadily, with a loyal base of viewers and subscribers across platforms, that now stand at 100,000+ and growing.

Our family

Our small family comprises:

Advait Gupt, Co-founder & CEO, Supari Studios

Akshat Gupt, Co-founder & CCO, Supari Studios

Padmini Vaidyanathan , Editor & Creative Head, Vitamin Stree

Anisha Sharma, Creative Director & Content Head (Video), Vitamin Stree

Anuj Hakked, Sr Associate Producer, Vitamin Stree

Pankhuri Ranjan, Sr Associate Producer, Vitamin Stree

Akshat Gupta , Associate Producer, Vitamin Stree

Here we should mention our Original Strees, Tara Kapur & Ankita Shetty, who brought Vitamin Stree to life and built the platform, before moving on to other adventures.

What’s in the name?

We’re called Vitamin Stree because we offer a healthy dose of nutritious content for the young Indian woman.

Our mission statement

We’re reshaping the narrative for young women in India.

We create content for?

Young, urban, Indian women, who are watching a lot of content online and sharing. We are currently in English, but have plans of expanding into Hindi and eventually into as many regional languages as possible

Also Read: Interview: We define our channel as “Not a category.”: Sejal Kumar, Content Creator

We work with…

Brands and institutions that are aligned with our values.

We are proud of

Every story we are privileged to put out on our platform. We work hard to present well-researched, authentic narratives, that can make a difference. And a big testament of that is the comments we get from our 100,000+ community online. We are self-funded and are very aware that the freedom to tell the stories we want to, the way we want to is, a luxury. And that freedom also makes us more responsible towards our primary audience – young, Indian women.

We are also very proud that we were able to crowdfund three wheelchairs for the Maharashtra Wheelchair Basketball team, when we were really small, with only a 1000 subscribers.

Our WTF moment

Our most watched video online is one on the topic of pubes (pubic hair) and the beauty standards associated around it.

Stay tuned for…

We are super excited for 2019, as we are mixing up our old formats and experimenting with new ones, all at the same time. We just released CENSEX – a video series based on a sex survey we did in 2018. This is the first in a series of deep dive surveys we plan to do this year, watch out for the next one, which is going to be about Periods, female health and hygiene. We are also planning on collaborating with more influencers to talk about a whole host of issues from body positivity to intersectionality in feminism.

Are you hiring?

Not for full time positions, but we’re highly collaborative and always open to explore working with as many curious, passionate and hardworking people as possible.

The post Meet Vitamin Stree, reshaping the narrative of young women appeared first on Social Samosa.

Having an influential brand endorser can positively impact your audience’s choice, but can two successful & influential brand endorsers double the impact? Social Samosa investigates the impact of couple brand ambassadors in the aftermath of some of the biggest celebrity weddings.

Bollywood & Cricket are two widely followed cultures in India. So, when two of the country’s favorite actors or a cricketer & an actor unite for evermore, it opens up opportunities for brands to tap a wider audience, that united with the man & the wife, by having them endorse their products.

Such instances also provoke conversations as people show these couples much love.

The most recent wedding of Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone had escalated #DeepVeer on social media to 0.56 million mentions.

If the country’s favorite cricketer and an established actress tie the knot, it generates an even greater hype.

#Virushka had 0.72 million mentions in the last year on social media, as per Meltwater.

Do couple brand ambassadors double the charm?

A power couple’s influence and reach can give any brand a face that consumers may get attracted to and recall. Most consumers in India are fans of Bollywood and show interest in staying updated with celebrity relationships. Such attraction proves fruitful for a brand when represented by these couples.

Very recently, Lloyd roped in Ranveer Singh & Deepika Padukone after they got hitched as brand ambassadors with the Khayal Rakhenge Khush Rakhenge campaign.

Shashi Arora, CEO, Lloyd shared the idea behind roping in the real-life couple was that both Ranveer & Deepika are an inspiration to Indian millennials and portray a blend of talent, class and popularity that complements the brand’s legacy and brand ethos. As a cherry on top, Ranveer and Deepika have a following of close to 90 million fans on social media.

Prince Khanna, Founder & CEO, Eleve Media says, “Bollywood and Cricket have always been india’s favourite topics. The internet just made it easier for consumers to know more about their favourite celebrities and couples. It is a smart move, leveraging that interest to draw attention to their brand. Especially celebrities like Saif – Kareena, who people know very little about as a couple.”

He explains how it comes across as a glimpse into the lives of the stars, that audience always wants to know more about. It’s a tease for the audience. Be it Kajol and Ajay, Deepika and Ranveer or Virat and Anushka. It may not be that easy for a pair of non-couple actors to connect with the audience at that level when there is a lack of history.

An individual celebrity is influential and popular in their own right. So, the question that arises is how a celebrity couple better than an individual to promote brands and how did it become an acclaimed trend.

Pranay Swarup, CEO & Co-Founder, Chtrbox thinks it’s because people are more curious to know more about their favourite couples and want to see them together, whether it’s on the big screen or the one you’re probably reading this on. He adds. “Thanks to social media where influencers are able to connect with their fans in their natural ways. Advertisement campaigns whether designed for traditional media (TV, Print, Outdoor), all are extended today on digital. Here the fact that as a couple you endorse a brand matters a lot. There is a higher trust and authenticity in that storytelling.”

While Virat had been representing the apparel brand, Manyavar, as soon as he tied the knot with Anushka Sharma, the brand got the couple on board as ambassadors for Manyavar & Mohey (Manyavar’s arm for female apparels).

Earlier this year, Myntra got Virushka on board as brand ambassadors; according to media reports, the brand is investing around INR 10 crore for the couple as a brand endorsement fee. The report further shares that Virushka’s brand value stands at around $200 million.

Karthi Marshan, Chief Marketing Officer, Kotak Mahindra has a different take. He is a tad unsure about it being an acclaimed trend and is also sceptical about it being better than having an individual celebrity. He adds, “Truth be told, celebrities are both expensive as well as challenging to use due to the manifold demands on their time. To complicate this further by using two celebrities instead of one, is not doubling your challenges, its multiplying them. So frankly, hats off to the brands that do pull it off, and pull it off with flying colours.”

Also Read:#CreativeShowreel: Mercedes Benz: Feel the Drive through their ads

Over the years, we have seen many real-life couples come together as celebrity endorsers, Akshay Kumar & Twinkle Khanna for PCJeweller, Shahrukh Khan & Gauri Khan for D’Decor, and Ajay Devgn & Kajol for Lifebuoy. However, these were one-off campaign associations and not necessarily long term brand ambassador deals.

We have seen a lot of reel-life couples being featured in campaigns too, like Gully Boy’s Ranveer & Alia in MakemyTrip’s ads, so what is the difference when a real-life couple appears in an advert? Karthi Marshan asserts it must feel believable, “Like athletes endorsing sports gear or chess masters endorsing an educational brand.”

He feels when the couple is a reel-life one, viewers have already suspended belief because they know the actors are playing pretend. So the reel-life couple gets a hall pass compared to a real-life couple. He comprehends, if the real-life couple feels credible, the impact is also multiplied many times.

Pranay Swarup says it all boils down to relevance, “For example, Virat Kholi & Anushka Sharma were paired together as a reel-couple for Manyavar, while also being a real-couple. The ad was widely received and has had a positive impact on the brand.”

The Digital Extension

The trend isn’t restricted to television campaigns. Airbnb brought on board celebrity couple Saif & Kareena for their digital campaign as a part of which Saifeena spent time in A weekend in Windsor, England.

Swarup further shares that the trend is also being widely seen in the world of Influencer Marketing as well, where digital celebs, influencers & creators who are real-life couple have had opportunities to create content together.

For instance, couple influencer, Bruised Passports, by real-life couple, Savi & Vid and Sherry Shroff & her husband were roped in by UAE tourism.

In India, around 80% of the population between the age of 25 and 34 is married, as of 2018. Such numbers suggest that power couples would be an absolute fit for your brand if you are targeting the youth or young couples. Individuals of the pair may represent a different fan base but when they come together, so do their fan bases.

Brands whose products don’t cater to a particular gender can easily make their campaigns relatable with these power couples by adding the ‘couple’ factor, topped with the cozy feelings of connectivity. Brands who would want to be endorsed by power couples but cater to one specific gender, can still do so by infusing their campaign with a story involving both individuals unless the brand connect seems far-fetched.

This, however, also can be a challenge when couple as individuals endorse competitor brands. For example, Deepika endorses Axis Bank, while Ranveer endorses Kotak Mahindra.

Using power couples as brand endorsers may double the challenges to executing the campaign, but will certainly also double your audience and the impact if implemented effectively.

The post Expert Opinion: Of Virushkas & #DeepVeers! Are Couple Brand Ambassadors worth investing in? appeared first on Social Samosa.

Social Samosa presents a comprehensive list of all the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 sponsors and commercial partners for an understanding of how various brands approach marketing through cricket.

Commercial partnerships optimize revenues on both ends and help build engaging events. Diverse fans united by the love of the sport result in formulating a diverse set of commercial partners for a given event.

ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 provides brands a gigantic global audience to engage with, estimated currently at 2.5 billion with a projected 4.85 billion cumulative broadcast audience across 18 events from 2016-2023, according to ICC.

ICC claims that brand features delivered via various channels like broadcast, digital and social media in over 220 countries have led to 97% ‘recommendation’ and ‘preference’ for brands to sponsor and engage with cricket.

The partnership programme for World Cup 2019 is managed by an in-house team that oversees event delivery, sponsorships, brand licenses, broadcast production, media and digital rights, digital content and channels, marketing and overall commercial sales.

Most of the commercial partnerships are long-term plans that (for example) last five years. Although, several partnerships are tailored at different levels depending on the brand’s strategy, whether they are international or regional sponsors and their target tiers.

Star Sports has been awarded the global broadcast rights for all ICC Events (2015-2023), by being named the official broadcast partner. The channel will broadcast primarily to India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka (India and Indian Sub-Continent) with further reach into East Asia on specific channels. The live coverage would be available to more than 1.5 billion people.

Uber is the first mobility and food delivery app to partner with ICC. Commenting on the partnership, India captain and Uber brand ambassador Virat Kohli, states “I’m delighted that Uber and the ICC are once again partnering to support cricket and what it stands for – inclusion, togetherness, and celebration.”

GoDaddy will be the global platform of ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup. In an interview withMedia Samosa, Nikhil Arora, VP & Managing Director, GoDaddy stated “Our partnership with the ICC for the Men’s Cricket World Cup will give us an opportunity to reach our audiences across Tier I, Tier II and Tier III cities in India, where 77% of the tournament’s viewership is coming from (according to Star Sports stats for 2015 World Cup), and help educate them about the importance of getting their ideas and businesses online.”

ICC’s partnership with ByteDance is aimed at producing unique campaigns and content through ByteDance’s family of apps.

Veuve Clicquot will be the exclusive champagne for the tournament being played across 11 venues in England and Wales from 30 May to 14 July.

Apart from being featured in OOH hoardings, standees, the strip around the boundaries as a part of in-stadium branding, the commercial partners also gain a platform on social media and digital channels.

Over the years, ICC Cricket World Cup has maintained itself as a prominent marketing avenue. The heightened wave of ad spends being segregated into the now widely available multiple channels has not stopped ICC from bagging numerous brands as sponsors.

Also Read: ICC Cricket World Cup campaigns that are still scoring!

Take a look at all the official sponsors of ICC Cricket World Cup 2019.

Nissan

OPPO

MRF Tyres

Booking.com

Emirates

Moneygram

Bira91

Uber

Coca Cola

Star Sports

GoDaddy

Hublot

Wolf Blass Wines

Royal Stag

UBP

Thatchers

Dream11

Smart Cricket

GoLootlo

Britannia

UNICEF

ByteDance

Veuve Clicquot

The post All you need to know about ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 official brand associations appeared first on Social Samosa.

IndiBlogger, a blogging community in India “takes a step back” citing operational obstacles.

In a note by Renie, one of the co-founders of IndiBlogger, the changing industry requirements was cited as one of the reasons that concluded this decision. Secondly, was a decision the company made a long time ago that left them with no means to overcome the operational challenges.

Sections of Indiblogger that don’t require human intervention like IndiVine, Top Posts, IndiSpire, IndiMail, IndiNetwork will continue to run as usual.

Also Read:Facebook to predict Pages and groups you care about

Proof of any accomplishment like IndContests can be accessible by being archived. IndiBlogger claims confidential information will remain secure.

Mozrank will not be updated anymore. IndiBlogger Badges will conntinue to be hosted on CDNs.

They are no longer accepting signups and although the company is not manned they can be contacted via options on their contact page. The IndiForum will be made read-only and archived. The Android app will be taken off the play store and will cease to function.

Founded in 2007 by passionate bloggers, who started off as a community for bloggers, with multiple monetization options.

The post IndiBlogger bids adieu… appeared first on Social Samosa.

Gaze at few of the foremost cause marketing campaigns that grazed through social issues attempting to make the world a better place.

It’s a dark world we live in. Gender inequality, food wastage, terminal diseases, pollution, climate breakdown, unreal beauty standards, stereotypes, natural calamities, scarcity of natural resources, war, religious conflicts, illiteracy, corruption and more are “few” of the ongoing issues that we face at a global level.

While most brands focussed on good old selling, the use of cause marketing has increased in the last few years.

According to a Havas Report, more than 60 percent of consumers in India care about the social impact of products, the effect of the product on society and would like their favorite brands to play a much larger role in society. Such numbers suggest that new age consumers are concerned about the brand image of a product they buy along with their conventional preferences.

One of the prominent reasons cause marketing works is that it makes the consumer feel like they’re a part of something big, that could bring about a positive change in society.

Cause Marketing campaigns are fairly effective. Asian donors are primarily driven by digital communications. Email(29%), social media(26%), and an organization’s website(21%) inspire the most giving, as accounted by the 2018 Global Trends in Giving Report.

While using resources to voice out an issue is a noble cause, it’s important to weigh out all elements. Trust, is the most significant factor deciding the potential impact of a campaign. 78% of consumers reported that a partnership between a non-profit organisation and a company that they trust makes a cause stand out.

Bach home too many brands have adapted to causevertising in a true sense; P&G has partnered with Save the Children India, Army Wives Welfare Association (AWWA), Navy Wives Welfare Association (NWWA) and Round Table India (RTI), amongst others. Hindustan Unilever has partnered with AKRSP, Development Support Centre, SIED and more.

Globally too there have been some great examples,. Hellmann’s recent campaign, The Restaurant With No Food by Ogilvy UK is a fine example of embedded marketing in a cause-focussed campaign. They portrayed how their products can turn leftovers from a fridge into five-star meals while voicing out the fact that citizens around the world need to decrease food wastage.

Also Read:UGC Campaigns that produced plenty of engagement and why they work!

See through some of the best cause marketing campaigns aimed at bettering the world we live in.

Adidas – #RunForTheOceans

Elle UK – MORE WOMEN

Hellmann’s presents The Restaurant With No Food

YouTube – Priyanka Chopra Supports Girl’s Eductaion

TLLL Foundation – #NotAshamed ft. Deepika Padukone

World Health Organization

United Nations

Hit95FM – Masked Man

UNICEF – Go Blue

Mahindra Rise – #RiseAgainstClimateChange

Lifebuoy – Help A Child Reach 5

P&G Shiksha – #DontLetDreamsWait

Tata Tea – Alarm Bajne Se Pehle Jaago Re!

Brooke Bond Red Label – 6 Pack Band

Samsonite – #KeralaIsOpen

Hindustan Unilever Limited – The Shower

Whisper – Touch The Pickle

Payyannur Eye Foundation

Ariel #ShareTheLoad

Akshaya Patra – India Ke Hunger Ki Bajao

Make Love Not Scars – Beauty Tips by Reshma #EndAcidSale

Lenovo & YUWA – #PitchToHer

Did we miss out on your favorite cause marketing campaign? Write to us at content@socialsamosa.com or let us know in the comments below.

If you take pride in creating a great Cause Marketing Campaign, now is your time to shine. Best Social Media Brands 2019 is here to celebrate the best campaigns & the most social brands. Nominate now.

The post Cause Marketing campaigns that gave the cause a purpose appeared first on Social Samosa.

ALL BRANDS MUST SERVE! Aakriti Sinha, Director – Social, Isobar India shares how brands latched on to the Game of Thrones finale fervor, but only a few got it right!

A brand has no name – a brand like GOT has many faces, many names and is unquestionably omnipresent! How can one not be a part of the biggest and the best television show in the world of our times? Game of Thrones and every character including its locations are a brand in themselves. Needless to say that with the show’s finale season which was in waiting for almost 2 years now, the buzz started much in advance. This not only gave a bigger canvas for the brands to play on but also the much obvious FOMO to create any content piece that had a “brand or product integration” somehow.

There is no dearth of GOT and characters’ fan-clubs, accounts, memes (in every cultural context as well!)  on social media. Audio, video, games… you name the format. The last season of Game of Thrones was an extended Super-Bowl game for advertisers, where every brand wanted a pie of attention by owning the conversations around brand GOT. Did everyone succeed? No. Especially when most of them came across as a force-fit.

Amidst the sea of content that was floating across, especially with a brand love and following that this show commands – a weak concept or visual play for the heck-of-it did no good for the brands or their products/ service.

The key to leveraging a powerful association or brand is not your product placement on your creative against a GOT background, it is what have you created out of that brand love for the fans. For them to appreciate the smart connect or trigger an emotion.

Brands like Adidas, Oreo and Johnnie Walker went a notch ahead and launched a series special collection for all the fans. And what do nerds appreciate the most – collectibles! A piece of their favourite show memorabilia for their collection, for them to flaunt and discuss endlessly. The brands have remained topical and true to their brand identity without looking gimmicky. Not only that, they all had a call-to-action on digital to further engage with the fans treating them to content resonating with the Game of Thrones world.

Adidas launched a limited edition inspired by the noble families of the Seven Kingdoms and beyond The Wall. Whereas Oreo in a smart play of the GOT House Sigil’s came up with cookies marked with all the well-known important houses of the GOT world. The best part is that brands like Oreo and closer home brands like Swiggy and Durex did not stop at a one-time communication about the show, they continuously engaged and created contextual content throughout the run of the last season.

Force-fit                                                                        

Apt content

Whereas these brands played on the generic well-known popular elements and characters of the show like “Winter is coming”, “ValarMorghulis,” “Beyond the wall” or a “Girl has no name”, the best ones have been the ones who churned out real-time content based on epic episodic moments or in many cases BTS! The Starbucks cup and the mineral water bottle got the funny-bones to churn out content about the loopholes and how they became the focus amidst all the hoo-ha. Zomato and Starbucks became a favourite“Leader of Westeros” and true heir to the Iron Throne as soon as the pictures of the spotted products (Coffee Cup and Bottle) started doing the rounds of social media.

Also Read:Hotstar Premium celebrates spoilers in the Game of Thrones Finale season campaign

Swiggy and Durex followed all the episodes and sustained the buzz through content right before the launch of the final season till the last episode and brought a smile on the fans’ faces. But it was Hotstar Premium – the host of the show back on this part of the land that was the king of Game of Thrones content – speaking literally and socially! Right from creating teasers with flying dragons over Indian landmarks and how winter took over our turf, to capturing ALL conversations around hue & cry that came with spoilers to creating intrigue for every episode (pre and post) Hotstar Premium was a hit amongst all the fans.

It truly celebrated the hype around the finale season and was in-sync with the mood of the internet and fans. GOT SPOILERS was what the net was abuzz with reaching a peak this season across the Globe, fans, and late-grammers, late-viewers, non-viewers and even the IDGAFers (I don’t give a fuck’ers) everyone had one biggest fear – SPOILERS and brand like Hotstar leveraged it very well providing a lot of laughs along the way (offline – online).

An event as big as the final season of such a big show deserved all the hype it got and even more, where fans stayed divided over the evolving characters and plots this season… some brands were true winners! Mostly because they didn’t budge from what the frenzy was all about – celebration of such a loved show! After all, all brands must serve

The article is authored by Aakriti Sinha of Isobar India.

The post *NO SPOILERS* What true celebration of the biggest show looked like in the social verse appeared first on Social Samosa.

While the Men in Blue sweat it out on the field in England, Social Samosa decodes advertisers’ key World Cup marketing strategy & tactics for ICC World Cup 2019.

The first half of 2019 has been witness to some high profile events including General Elections, Indian Premier League and the ongoing ICC World Cup which is keeping the audiences hooked. With this, we take a look at World Cup marketing strategy & tactics that brands are adopting.

According to a report by the research, advisory and consulting services firm Media Partners Asia (MPA) released in April this year, the Indian Advertising Industry is expected to grow nearly 12% on the back of Elections and cricketing events.

In a country where cricket is no less than a religion, advertisers are betting big on the World Cup fever.

Also, a recent report by ESP Properties stated that in India, cricket beats all other sports hollow when it comes to sponsorships and the World Cup is an opportunity no brand wants to miss. The tournament is reportedly attracting investments on the advertising front to the tune of Rs 1,200 crore across television, digital, print and radio, as per Moneycontrol.com.

The same can be reflected in the marketing tactics adopted by various brand associated with the ICC World Cup. The list of brand associations for the tournament includes PhonePe, One Plus, Havells, Kamala Pasand, Amazon.com, Amazon Pay, Byju’s, Dream11, MRF tyres, Pernod Ricard, AMFI, Coca – Cola, Uber, Uber Eats, Mondelez, Oppo,PolicyBazar.com, Paisa Bazaar.com, Acko General Insurance, Britannia, CEAT Tyres, ICICI Lombard, Royal Challenge Sports Drink, Philips Hue, Tik Tok.  

While Britannia has kept it’s age-old technique ‘Win a  ticket to the World Cup’ alive, there are many others like Uber releasing anthems and launching contests.

With over 80,000 Indian fans expected to attend the ICC World Cup 2019 in England and Wales, we list down 5 key tactics marketers have imbibed in their strategy to up the engagement quotient.

1.Win a ticket to the World Cup

Who would not want to avoid shedding lakhs and fly overseas to watch the matches live and instead win free travel to England and Wales? Marketers are betting big on this very consumer interest and have rolled out their respective baits. Almost every marketer is offering it’s target audience a chance to watch the world cup matches live with a free ticket. For instance, Britannia has tied up with Big Basket in an exclusive e-commerce partnership to launch the Britannia Khao World Cup Jao Campaign on its portal.

Meanwhile, Coca Cola is asking consumers to buy Coke bottles and enter the 14 digit code mentioned on it’s back to win a chance to attend the World Cup.

Brands: GoDaddy, Uber, Coca Cola, Bira 91, Britannia, Red FM, Royal Stag

Also Read: All you need to know about ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 official brand associations

2. World Cup Anthems

Music connects us all, no doubt and when it comes as a concoction of rage, passion, and rigour coupled up with valor- nothing like it. Anthems today are garnished with all these ingredients and brands are banking on them big time. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that this is the era of anthems with every second marketer pitching for it to cheer the Men in Blue. Right from Uber’s official World Cup Anthem ‘Way-O-Way-O’ to Puma’s Chakravyuh me #SockThem featuring rapper Divine and Virat Kohli- fans have liked them.

Brands: Uber, American Tourister, Tik Tok, Puma, Kamla Pasand

3. Cash Prizes, Contests and Meet and Greet

Though this is a tried and tested formula for ages, the continuity of these tactics to lure consumers proves its evergreen relevance. Fans love to meet their idols in person, a common man would want to win Rs 1 crore or mega prizes if UC Browser and Uber say so where only they need to do is take part in quizzes, contests and answer simple questions related to cricket or the ongoing matches.

Brands: UC Browser, Gulf Lubricants, Uber, My11Circle,  EazyDiner, CashKaro, Dish TV, Taco Bell  

4. Star Glamour and Star Cricketers

According to a Marketwatch report, a simple announcement from a brand signing a celebrity or athlete can cause stock prices to rise slightly and increase sales by 4% on average. And it is no news that celebrity endorsement is generally seen as a viable option for brands to increase brand value, awareness, credibility and product promotion. While Coca Cola put it’s bet on the ‘Sanju’ duo – Ranbir Kapoor and Paresh Rawal, American Tourister roped in India women cricket Team’s captain Mithali Raj to bleed blue.

Brands: My11Circle, Dream11, Daniel Wellington, Puma, Uber, GullyLiveFast, UC Browser, Coca Cola, American Tourister

5. E-Cricket and Fantasy gaming

According to India Times, online fantasy sports gaming has become a $1 billion market and predicted to reach new heights with the IPL and World Cup. Dream11, touted to be the market leader in the online fantasy sports category,  set a target to reach over 100 million by the end of 2019 which will be a quarter of the 400 million that consume cricket online in India. The aggressive target is expected to be mostly achieved during the IP while the World Cup will be cherry on top.

‘The Evolving Landscape of Sports Gaming in India’ report by the Indian Federation of Sports Gaming (IFSG) and KPMG India revealed that the demand for online fantasy sports has increased by seven times over 2016-2018, whereas the number of users has grown by over 25 times from June 2016 to February 2019. For a cricket crazy country like India, e-cricket offering serves as the platter where fans form their imaginative teams to battle it out on the field which gives them the much-required gratification, a unique experience and real-time engagement for platforms.

Brands: Dream11, My11Circle

How these strategies ultimately pan out to help the brand in their marketing game will be interesting to see.

The post #CWC2019: 5 Marketing tactics brands are betting big on this World Cup appeared first on Social Samosa.

Here’s looking at some of the Brand tribute posts that successfully captured Yuvraj’s retirement moment. Take a look

Yuvraj Singh announced his retirement from all forms of cricket, yesterday, at a press conference in Mumbai. In a moment which was emotional to one and all, Brands Tribute posts, Yuvi Fans, and his colleagues, all poured in their two cents to salute the ‘living legend’.

Yuvraj mentioned in the press conference that, “I have been playing international cricket on and off for 17 years. Now, it is time to say goodbye, to move on and walk away. It has been a roller coaster ride and a great story but it has to come to an end,”.

Brands from across the sectors came up with some witty and relevant content at this significant juncture of Yuvraj’s career to salute him on his amazing journey.

Here’s looking at some of the Brand tribute posts that successfully captured Yuvraj’s retirement moment-

Fevicol

Zomato

Indigo

Pulse

Mumbai Indians

Jeep

Dunzo

Puma

Under 25 Dictionary

Nearbuy.com

Godrej Cinthol

Tata Sky

Spartan Poker

Living Foodz

Truebil

Also Read: #TopicalSpot: How Brands dug into ‘JCB ki khudai’ memes to weave trending creativity

Candyman Fantastik

Social Offline

Beck’s Ice India

Droom.in

What else can we say, except Yuvraj will be missed and how!

Featured Image Source

The post #TopicalSpot: Brands pay tribute to Yuvi with heart-warming messages… appeared first on Social Samosa.

With thousands of advertisements getting served to the consumers each day, coming up with a unique idea is a challenging task which also comes with the fear of similar campaign ideas. Experts dig deeper into the ‘Campaign Insight clash’ in the creative world.

An average modern person is exposed to around 5,000 ads per day, according to Yankelovich, Inc., a marketing firm. It comes to our notice that this stat is ten years old and the number is estimated to be doubled now, quadrupled if we’re being realistic.

Now imagine 5000 creative minds wrecking their brains behind coming up with a distinctive idea or campaign insight. Not to forget occasion-based marketing including campaigns on a Mother’s Day, Father’s Day or Women’s Day which come with its own set of challenges fuelling concern for brands to not get their idea clashed with anyone in the market, lest the same category.

For instance, recently Comedy Central and McDonald’s India went out with a similar idea for their Elections 2019 campaigns. While Comedy Central’s message read Cast vote or somebody makes a choice on their behalf, McDonald’s ad targeted at youth said if they did not cast their vote, they have lost their right to choose what they want. Although the central act is similar (vote to make your choice) the narrative is subtly different. And this isn’t the only case in 2019 alone.

This brings us to the question – is there a shortage of campaign ideas or is it just another case of sheer co-incidence? Digging a bit into the Indian copyright law led us to understand that while an idea cannot be copyrighted, the tangible form of an idea can be, which includes original works of authorship, photographs, sculptures, choreography, architectural works, sound recordings, motion pictures, and other creative works. It protects the expression of an idea, not the concepts, methods and ideas that are expressed.

But, as they say – advertising is all about creativity and if this very creativity gets duplicated time and again, the source of originality and newness gets lost. There have been various instances (Sunny Lite vs Aashirwad Atta and the very recent Bajaj Alliance vs Kia Motors India),  agencies and marketers have gone on record to accuse each other of plagiarism.

We spoke to a cross section of industry expects to understand the authenticity of the famed adage – ‘Imitation is the best form of flattery’ and does it hold any ground in the ad world.

Plagiarism, Imitation, Copy or Co-Incidence?

Harish Bijoor, Brand Guru & Founder, Harish Bijoor Consults Inc thinks that we tend to overemphasize the issue of ‘plagiarism’. Often it is nothing but what could be called ‘co-incidental creativity’.

“They (ad creators) are keen observers of people and habits. They are also big consumers of various forms of popular culture; television, books, music, cinema, digital content, magazines, newspapers, etc. So, for instance, the movie Gully Boy was a big hit. Chances are a number of copywriters got the idea of doing a Hindi / Hinglish Rap song in an ad. Now, this does not mean that they copied each other or that there is a paucity of ideas or insights”.

On the other hand, another Industry Consultant who chooses to remain anonymous expressed that it isn’t the paucity of ideas or insights but laziness and a copy-paste culture which has always existed but now amplified due to the sheer volume and reach of media.

Paucity of Campaign Insights – A Reality?

Coming from an experienced communications consultant above, we turned to our creative minds to know whether the phenomenon of ‘Paucity of Idea’ for hundreds of creatives and campaigns that go live everyday exists.

Kartikeya Tiwari, AVP – Creative Strategy- Social Kinnect feels that in a way the advertising industry is facing challenges in creating something unique every day for hundreds of clients. He elaborated, “Campaigns are backed by insights, but those insights are getting rather repetitive. Mother’s Day, which recently passed, is a good example. Practically every single brand jumped on the Mother’s Day bandwagon but the campaigns weren’t backed by many original insights.”

From equating moms to superheroes and calling out a mother’s love, insights were common across the board. “I would say we’re suffering from ‘original insight’ deficiency, which is due in large part to the natural human instinct to seek examples and inspiration from around us. We talk about what we know,”

While Mandar Natekar, Chief Business Officer, KidZania India too agreed that the creative industry is suffering from a campaign idea deficiency because everyone is following the “easy first” and “misunderstanding millennial” mindset. That’s why you see most creatives following the same patterns.

Also Read: The Curious Case of Missing Brand Connect…

Meanwhile, Amyn Ghadiali, Director Strategy, Gozoop believes that more than ‘Campaign Insight’ deficiency, the industry is suffering from ‘Insightful Creativity’ deficiency. Brands are trying to establish thought leadership through topical campaigns and capturing trending emotions. By default, the ideas tend to have a breakaway approach, which means that they land up occupying similar spaces as there is a limited range to any deviation considering a brand’s journey.

Ghadiali reminisces that 3 years back Gozoop did a campaign for Gadre for Independence Day and Vodafone did Look Up.

He added, “If one observes closely, the insight for the campaign remains the same whereas the creative expression of both were different. Without drawing parallels if the same insight can be treated creatively in an unexplored manner, it means that ads need to be brand bound and not time bound. And that insight deficiency isn’t the real problem, but creatively exploring fundamental human truths (insightful creativity) is the actual deficit.”

Sahil Gilani, Director – Sales & Marketing, Gits Food does believe that imitation is the best form of flattery. “Deriving inspiration from a thought behind the campaign and then crafting your own concept is yet acceptable but blatantly copying one’s concept and tweaking it with different visuals and characters is just not done,” he shared.

Formula to avoid the ‘Clash of Ideas’

Co-incidences are bound to happen, as they say there is no copyright on ideas. Brains do work differently but what if a similar idea strikes off to two different minds?

Tiwari asserts that more risk-taking at the campaign strategy phase is definitely the need of the hour. Involve more people in the brainstorming process! From client-servicing and design to strategy and copy, the more minds at work, the more differentiated insights you will receive.

The digital world is becoming extremely cluttered, especially on days like Mother’s Day, when all brands shape their communication to suit the same occasion.

The key to being heard in this cacophonous platform, as per Akshay Popawala, Co-founder, Togglehead, is a strong understanding of your brand and of all things labeled regular.

The ‘Big Idea’ deficit – A threat?

Though some might prefer to call it a coincidence or plagiarism or inspiration if the shortage of creative ideas exists – does that pose as a threat to the AdVerse in the future? Aarti Iyer, Marketing Head, Unibic expresses that over the last century many insights have been used to come up with best of campaigns and there could be an overlap sometimes.

Natekar, on the contrary, would like to believe it as a threat. “But the bigger threat is ‘easy first”. We are trying to make “fake” real. And consumers are the first to catch it,” he added.

Human insights at any given point are limited. They are never in abundance, they can only grow more micro in nature as agencies dive further into the human psyche. As much as we would like to believe we are different, somewhere we all are still humans with the same fundamental emotions.

An original insight is worth the time taken to crack, as it laya the foundation for a more crystallised and effective campaign. Human behaviour is always available for marketers to observe, which means insights will not dry up anytime soon!

The post Experts stand divided on ‘Ye toh mera wala IDEA hai’ notion plaguing the Ad World appeared first on Social Samosa.

Narendra Modi is currently holding the Prime Minister’s office for a second term. Here’s a glimpse into how he uses social media for communication.

Narendra Modi — Prime Minister of India

Though most of the interface is in English, Narendra Modi’s website has an access option in 13 languages. All possible information about him, his public appearances and diplomatic relationships can be assessed here. He also has a standalone application where news articles are shared and there is a dashboard for those who wish to volunteer and help with causes in sync with his political goals.

Social media footprint

Modi is very active on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. He is very easy to keep track of using these platforms. Though similar posts are pushed out everywhere, each platform is used in a unique way. While Twitter is used for announcements and interactions with important personalities, Instagram acts as visual documentation of his professional life.

Also Read: 5 Twitter lessons to learn from Narendra Modi

He often takes the vernacular route to reach out to audiences or a more diverse demographics, especially when he meets a prominent personality of a specific region. This strategy is also extended to a political discourse where he usually replies to international politicos with the help of a quote tweet feature instead of replying to their original tweet.

Also Read: 8 takeaways from PM Modi’s Instagram Stories

Facebook and YouTube are put to use in a very interesting way — almost all his speeches and public interactions are shared live. The reactions he gets on these videos are usually messages that reflect from people who adore him as a political leader as well as a person — the connect can almost be termed intense.

Pop culture references

In a recent interview with Akshay Kumar, Modi had commented on the culture of memes stating that he enjoys the common person’s creativity that they reflect. “Earlier the opinions we used to get were like well-crafted five star kind. Now, with memes and internet, we get a more street food kind of perspective that lacks the finishing but tell you the truth.” he had explained.

Modi has always maintained that he reads opinions on the internet and it helps him understand people. He often uses pop culture references in his speeches by mentioning elements like PUBG and ‘How’s the Josh?’. His interactions with Bollywood personalities and travel-blogger-influencer pictures have, at many instances, fueled popular meme templates, bringing him traction.

People connect

Humane Image

Like most social media savvy brands, Modi too leverages social media platforms for their core strength. For instance, Instagram is used to depict his humane side – the one of a tourist who is enjoying with his DSLR at play or posing in the serene hills.

The pictures shared by Modi often show a soft side to his demeanour, working as a pull factor.

Social media users often write to him, expressing their admiration and delight at his actions as well as expressing their woes. None of his profiles replies publicly, which can be understood how it could lead to the setting of a precedent that would be very difficult to sustain.

His overall social media persona is one of a leader who cares and is doing his best to stand by the people who gave him power.

The post Know your leader: Narendra Modi appeared first on Social Samosa.

A look at Branded Content campaigns that delivered with entertaining and purposeful content.

You might remember being dazed by the Sufi music of Coke Studio, conceptualized by The Coca Cola Company. Coke Studio’s extensive success became a part of Coca Cola’s content strategy and turned out to be one of the finest examples of branded content.

Coke Studio has been critically and commercially acclaimed. The ‘Afreen Afreen’ episode of Season 9 has over 263 million views on YouTube (till date). ‘Tajdar-e-Haram’ in Coke Studio 8 was the first video originating in Pakistan to achieve the landmark record of 100 million views.

Brands today have numerous channels to target multiple audiences. However, tolerance levels, skippable ads, attention spans has been harmful to advertising.

84% of viewers skip ads on smartphones. On average, people watch 5.5 seconds of a 15-second ad and 7.4 seconds of a 30-second ad, as accounted by The Brandgym.

As opposed to the popular opinion, Branded Content isn’t entirely a new concept. Back when the television wave hit India with Doordarshan, the broadcaster asked brands to create 30-minute content shows that would be presented by the product they wish to advertise.

It doesn’t matter if your brand has newly entered the market or it is an old-timer. All that matters is the piece of content being put out. If it appeals to the audience, is relevant to the brand and the audience, it can be widely spread and spoken about.

In the words of Tyrion Lannister, “There’s nothing in the world more powerful than stories”.

A recent example of branded content would be AMFI in association with TVF coming up with the web-series ‘Yeh Meri Family‘ for their #MutualFundsSahiHai campaign.

Yeh Meri Family delivered on all of AMFI’s campaign goals: driving a 47% lift in likelihood to invest, and a 43% lift in awareness about mutual funds, as discovered by an independently conducted Nielsen research. Overall, 64% of people who saw the web-series claimed to learn something new about mutual funds through Yeh Meri Family.

Also Read:Content Marketing Case Study: How TVF created Yeh Meri Family to educate 90s kids about Mutual Funds Investment

In yet another example, HERSHEY’S executed the campaign Meethe Bahane, that started in July 2018 with Celebrity Chef Ranveer Brar that explained how parents can give a delicious twist to everyday dishes that children tend to skip. The idea was to create original content around cooking for their TG – Home Makers.

The digital campaign has till date garnered 90 million impressions, reaching more than 12 million consumers with over 2 million engagement.

Views on YouTube were recorded at the average view through rate of 39%. The brand saw a significant uplift on ad recall, consideration and purchase intent. Sales for HERSHEY’S Syrup grew substantially.

In 2017, AIB created Udd Gaye in association with Bacardi. Even in 2019, this DJ Ritviz song is widely consumed. The brand recorded 2500 entries and 1.3 million conversations around #BacardiHousePartySessions through the campaign.

If a brand is able to incorporate an educational or entertaining concept in their digital marketing plan, they tend to gain more traction online.

Also Read: Cause Marketing campaigns that gave the cause a purpose

Let’s glance at few of the foremost branded content campaigns.

HERSHEY’S Meethe Bahane ft. Celebrity Chef Ranveer Brar

Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) – TVF Yeh Meri Family

TrulyMadly with All India Bakchod – Creep Qawwali

Bacradi – AIB: Udd Gaye by RITVIZ #BacardiHousePartySessions

Swiggy – AIB: Honest Bars & Restaurants

Ola – Peeke Mat Chala

Asian Paints Presents Where The Heart Is

AXE Chickipedia – bindass

Kingfisher Ultra Shorts – The Viral Office Rant

Amazon Prime Video India – The Marvelous Ms. Kaneez Surka 

Red Bull – Red Bull Rampage

Kingfisher – TVF Pitchers

Did we miss out on your favorite cause marketing campaign? Write to us at content@socialsamosa.com or let us know in the comments below.

If you take pride in creating a great Branded Content Campaign, now is your time to shine. Best Social Media Brands 2019 is here to celebrate the best campaigns & most social brands. Nominate now.

The post Branded Content campaigns you need to take note of appeared first on Social Samosa.

Moment marketing campaigns have time & again worked for brands! Be it Oreo’s Dunk in the Dark or Paytm’s demonetization tweet

We all know that topical trends and events or moments that attract public attention result in countless conversations and innumerable interactions.

When a consumer scrolls through a trending subject and a brand slides in with a relevant content, it subtly manages to create recall while gaining pop culture prevalence.

Oreo’s ‘Dunk in the Dark’ tweet is a prime example to back that claim. For the unacquainted, Mercedez Benz Superdome in New Orleans faced a 34-minute power outage during the Super Bowl 2013; Oreo latched on to this moment and promptly came up with the tweet.

The tweet has been re-tweeted an estimate of 15,000 times. The plain tweet, tweeted in real-time with a basic creative has been argued upon. While many claim that the tweet was made to it seem more potent than it actually was, it did go viral.

Social Media has made moment marketing easy-breezy. The trending hashtag and a chucklesome creative topped with a captivating caption is enough, although one needs brand relevance.

What really makes moment marketing what it is, to get out there as quickly as possible and in a witty way. The creativity and turnaround time are equally important.

The ad world has seen some of the best moment marketing campaigns – it may be a scene from a popular TV Show or an egg that went viral, or a mere tweet of some Carter asking for free Nuggets –. .

Or a scientific discovery that is being heavily spoken about on Social Media

Or the world’s largest and longest democratic election

Or the retirement of an ace and loved cricketer

Paytm stole the show in 2016 when the Government of India announced demonitisation. Acknowledging the scenario, Paytm simply put out a tweet that included their tagline.

While moment marketing produces engagement, there are a few doodahs you should avoid. For instance, latching onto every trending topic, where the brand connect is not just farfetched but is not connected at all.

In conversation with Social Samosa, Anuradha Aggarwal, Ex-CMO, Marico opined, “I think brands have to find a space which is true to them and what they stand for and only go and talk about those trends. Brands which go and try to talk about every trend all the time, generally don’t associate with anything strongly and don’t make a place in the consumers’ mind, as opposed to brands which are specific and purposeful with their consumer engagement.”

It’s easy to get carried away in the moment and miss out on the brand connect. Not every topical trend or moment will coincide with every brand. Unless you have a solid connect, it’s best to avoid it. Relevance wins over a forced-fit.

Also Read:Branded Content campaigns you need to take note of

Now let’s take a moment to acknowledge a few more examples that used the right moments for marketing.

OREO Cookie

Kit Kat – #BreakFromGravity

Old Spice & Taco Bell

Fevicol

Amazon Prime Video

Mi Home

Swiggy

Arby’s

Did we miss out on your favorite moment marketing campaign? Write to us at content@socialsamosa.com or let us know in the comments below.

If you take pride in creating a great Moment Marketing Campaign, now is your time to shine. Best Social Media Brands 2019 is here to celebrate the best campaigns & most social brands. Nominate now.

The post Done fast, done right! Moment marketing campaigns that got virality right… appeared first on Social Samosa.

Nirmala Sitharaman is the second woman to ever head the office for the Ministry of Finance. Here’s a glimpse into how she uses social media as a communication tool

Nirmala Sitharaman — Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs

Social Media Footprint

Much of Sitharaman’s social media focuses on her work as a Union Minister. Her transition from being a Defence Minister to a Finance Minister, as reflected on these profiles, is much like a department change. The communication patterns have remained primarily the same.

The tone of her communication is that of a team player, especially on Twitter. Much of the conversation are re-tweets of the tweets by her ministry and colleagues. She does not engage in conversations though.

Her Facebook page is an exhaustively documented timeline of her day-to-day travels and meetings in a professional capacity. It is almost a website detailing her life as a Union Minister.

On Instagram, her persona is that of a boss woman giving her followers a glimpse into her work day and professional milestones.

Though there is a lot of duplication of content across platforms, her Instagram gives us better rhetoric of how she seemingly likes to be perceived as — a strong female politician doing her best.

Sharing a slice of work

As a Defence Minister at the time, Sitharaman played a pivotal role in creating strong yet humane imagery in regards to defence personnel, sharing her formal as well as informal moments of interaction with them.

From watching Uri: The Surgical Strike and asking ‘How’s the Josh?’ to sharing images of meeting Wing Commander Abhinandan in the hospital — she was able to put forth a part of her that was relatable for anyone in a leadership position.

People Connect

Ahead of #Budget2019, citizens were asked to share their opinions and suggestions on what they expect from the budget. Later, she tweeted assuring them that she is listening, gaining much appreciation from all.

The post Know Your Leader: Nirmala Sitharaman appeared first on Social Samosa.

Sandeep Balani, Head of India, Outbrain, shares his opinion on the evolving nature of media spends alternatives to break the stereotype and build a digital media plan.

What once was is no more. Agencies across India are now seeking to diversify budgets away from the stereotype and expand the horizons of the digital advertising ecosystem. In order to protect brands and their dollars from brand safety risk, media buy has shifted to platforms that deliver ads in optimal placements alongside other credible and relevant content, with access to the right audiences. With a greater demand for transparency, the two ‘cookie monsters’ – Google and Facebook – have a major fight on their hands, as agencies look for independent data sources to better understand customers and create more personalised engagement.

Native advertising

Right person, right place, right time – that’s the recipe to quality advertising. While display once dominated publisher inventory, this traditional medium separates itself from other content on the page – and not fit to brand image. Native advertising, on the other hand, allows publishers to strike a chord with users through relevant content that runs seamlessly with the page, providing a consistent user experience. Indian publishers have observed an increase in CPMs from native platforms like Outbrain, signalling a changing of the guard when it comes to digital advertising – all in the name of quality.

With 493 million Indians online every day, and with different ways to reach them, native is thriving outside the walled gardens of Facebook and Google. Publishers in editorial environments are increasingly opening up their inventory due to its combination of quality content, reach, efficiency, and brand safety. Contextual targeting with editorial native ads is better controlled, whereas such control is limited with social or search advertising. Relying on this duopoly is not only a missed opportunity elsewhere, but it leaves you susceptible to its unpredictable environment. As audiences seek personalization, there is greater importance to deliver hyper-relevant content across the different channels where they engage without putting your brand at risk. As a result, native ad spend continues to emerge as the most dominating advertising format, and its 18% uplift in purchase intent is just one indicator of that.

OTT platforms  

Once upon a time in a digital era now outdated, publishers were relying on YouTube to upload their content and deliver revenue. The problem with YouTube? Its immense liability when it comes to brand safety, as ads can be easily served within controversial or inappropriate content. Today, publishers have turned to building their own platform – examples being the emergence of Hotstar, Voot, MXplayer, and SonyLiv. Furthermore, video platforms like JW player are now offering technology to publishers on a SaaS model to build their own offering. Video views on OTT channels were  63% year over year in 2016, and this pattern has been growing consistently since then. Hotstar currently stands as the country’s most accessed OTT platform, and ahead of even YouTube, which has about 265 million monthly active users.

Advertisers are now using this opportunity to target premium content via OTT apps and reach out to higher valued audiences. With this alternative, YouTube has taken a bit of a backseat as ad revenue via OTT is set to increase from 40% to 60% in the next decade.

Also Read:Opinion: Of Glorious Campaigns and Tight Budgets…

Social Networking Applications and UGC content apps.

With the popularity of new applications to socialize, the user base is shifting from Facebook – millennials are starting to think it isn’t even “cool” anymore. Other applications, such as Pinterest, have entered the spotlight – 176 million registered users and 110 million of them active daily users – and, in India, Pinterest is the 6th most popular social networking site. Other applications like Snapchat have users that visit 25 times per day, and 63% of Snapchat users access the platform daily. Above all, with over 562 million users, is LinkedIn – the leading social channel for business-to-business (B2B) marketers. In fact, 92% of B2B marketers prefer to use this platform over everything else in the social space.

While YouTube used to be the only UGC app available, many other companies have entered the fray. As a result, the market segment has seen phenomenal growth in terms of user consumption, and has gained much traction for marketers. Today, user-generated apps have more than 5 million users in India, but what was decades ago for YouTube has since changed as media companies, brands, agencies, and publishers have all prioritised contextual relevance.

Utility apps

People have problems they need to be solved, and utility apps are one way to remedy those specific tasks. The market for in-application advertising is quickly developing with more applications becoming indispensable, but it is also important to keep the consumer experience in mind for proper monetization generation. The best way to engage consumers in the app is to incite them to keep coming back. Apps like Shareit, which is a file transferring app, have more than 300 million users in India. Truecaller is another that has more than 100 million active daily users. Such utility apps are useful because they capitalise on the user journey, as they are more need-based and more engaging for consumers to come back again and again. If less advertisers are spending their budget on Facebook and Google as a means to advertise, then revenue coming from the duopoly is soon to follow.

• News Aggregators

Users have increasingly begun to use single apps for all their desired news content consumption. Dailyhunt, as a result of this trend, has quickly become India’s number one in-app news and local language content application, and such news aggregators are an opportunity for advertisers to reach highly engaged users.

Ad tech and media is definitely getting more and more fragmented as users start using different apps for their daily consumption. With the evolution of these trending applications, there are many ad alternatives available, creating a world of opportunity that extends far beyond the duopoly of Google and Facebook.

Sandeep Balani is the Head of India for Outbrain, where he is responsible for advancing the market penetration of the entire range of Outbrain’s product portfolio, managing both the Publisher and Advertiser sides of the business.

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