All About Advertising

Newspapers, magazines, radio, TV, billboards, trains, buses, airplanes and every blank space these days bears an advertisement. So important is this source of publicity that it often becomes the defining factor for shelf lives of brands, products and even organisations. Through this cover story, we scour the workings of advertising agencies from the making of an ad to its final placement in the market Would we have heard about the shampoo that makes hair thick, long and shiny, or the soap that promises baby-soft skin, or the deodorant that will get you any girl in the world if it weren’t for advertisements? The answer, a resounding no! Such is the power of the advertising industry. Chuck Palahniuk in his book Fight Club said, “Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes. Working jobs we hate, so we can buy shit we don’t need.” As much as we might want to disagree to this comment, the need to live fancy lives and drive fancy cars is one of the reasons why we take up jobs. Again, the importance of advertising holds true.

Ever wondered why your favourite magazine or the newspaper that you so ardently read every morning to your cup of coffee is sold at a fraction of its actual cost? Advertising, of course. Advertising agencies today play pivotal roles not only for the promotions of brands and products, but also political parties. The BJP government and its rigorous campaigning across different media and its ultimate win is the product of an advertising agency. Understanding the power and the beauty of this mode of  communication from brand to consumer, analysing its different areas and how each one of them are directly tied to another is what the next few pages will concentrate on. Lara Balsara of Madison World, Avinash Thadani of Please See, Keegan Pinto of DDB Mudra Group and many more such advertising front-runners spoke to us about the different aspects of this diverse career spectrum. From the making of an ad to promoting it adequately, careers in advertising will let you in on one of the most interesting and creative careers that exists today.

A IS FOR ADVERTISING COVER STORY

Lara Balsara, executive director at Madison World reveals the thrills of her job

What has your journey been like?  
I graduated with a Masters in marketing from England and soon after joined Madison as a management trainee. It has been great and exciting ten years,.There’s been lots of learning, some challenges, but on the whole it’s been an amazing experience.

Three things you love about your work
* Every day is a new day, there is no monotony.
* You deal with bright, young and creative minds.
* If you can work in advertising, you can work in any other profession in the world.

What are the perks of your work profile?
As I said, one stands to learn a lot. It really helps you grow as a person.

And the challenges?
Sometimes the work timings can get very long and urgent things may crop up at the last minute.

What is a typical day at work like for you?
The best part about my job is that there is no typical day. Each and every day is different from the others!

What are the skills one must have for the job?
It depends what function you want to get into. As a creative – you can be a copywriter, in which case you need to be good with languages and come up with new and innovative ideas. You can also be an Art person, in which case you will need to know technical software like CorelDraw, Photoshop and have a heightened sense of design and layouts. For Account Management, you need to have a good understanding of marketing concepts and come up with key propositions for brands. For Media Planning and Buying, you need to have a very analytical mindset and should be able to analyse large volume of data and come out with a solution out of numbers. For PR, you need to have very good communication skills and interpersonal skills. You also need to have a good understanding of marketing to come up with creative solutions for a client. Basically, whichever function you work in, you have to be incredibly creative.

Advice for budding advertisers
My advice for people who want to enter advertising would be – it is an exciting world but not ideal for someone who wants to take it easy in life. You are handed an opportunity to build brands and make a difference.

What do you think is the future of advertising in India?
The future of advertising is all about ‘convert-ising’, delivering experience, driving conversations with customers and co-creating content. There is already a lot of collaboration between different functions and there’s plenty of multimedia at play.

Your favourite creative campaign
A couple of them that come to my mind are Asian Paints, ‘Har ghar kuch kehta hai’, where we visited the childhood homes of celebrities and Cadbury Bournville’s ‘Tape a Tweet’

PLEASE SEE WHAT THIS ADVERTISING WIZARD’S IDEAS ARE ALL ABOUT

Avinash Thadani, co-founder of Please See contrasts the advertising industry in India and abroad

What has your journey been like?
Right from my college days in Wisconsin, I was entirely independent so I did all sorts of jobs – from waiter to factory worker to finance. Whilst I was at university, I watched a Saatchi and Saatchi commercial about a father and son and that had a profound impact on me. Upon graduating, I landed a job at Merrill Lynch in DC. That’s precisely when the media bug bit me and I drove out to New York City with only a few dollars in my pocket to pursue my dream job with Saatchi & Saatchi. I slept in my car, and waited outside their door for more than a week till they hired me after multiple rounds of interviews. After working some accounts for a while, I then moved to Ogilvy. Soon, my partner and I decided to return to India and start something of our own.

Three things you love about your work
* That I could start things from scratch and create something impactful.
* My job is incredibly enjoyable.
* I find my job extremely exciting!

What are the perks of your work profile?
I am a ‘people person’ and that’s one of the biggest perks of my job. I get to meet a lot of people and that’s amazing! Since we have offices in Mumbai and New Delhi, and have clients all over the world, it’s always interesting to meet new people. Something that always fascinated me about advertising is its unconventional nature. It isn’t your typical ‘nineto-five’ job where one’s biggest achievement in a day is using Excel without a mouse!

And the challenges?
There are certainly a lot of challenges in terms of advertising in the Indian context. It’s a massive market that’s constantly evolving and it often depends on your client’s needs and demands. Broadly speaking, the ‘boisterous’ type of clichéd advertising still sells here. For example, if Salman Khan were to endorse any brand, it would work, owing to his star value.

What are the skills that one must have for the job?
I strongly believe that one must be very confident and must not be averse to taking risks. I also feel that one must really give it their all, no matter what they pursue. When I left the States, I had only one thought on my mind – “Why should we waste our talent in the USA, when we can put it to better use in India?”

Advice for budding advertisers
You know I’ve noticed that in Indian schools and colleges we aren’t encouraged to think out of the box. I think it must be encouraged in our system as it will only help our youth. As for specific advice to budding advertisers, I am of the opinion that there is no shortcut to hard work! Never restrict yourself to the beaten path.

How do you think advertising in India has evolved?
Earlier, advertising used to be restricted to print and broadcast. With the advent of technology, there is now a lot of importance given to the interactive and engaging aspect of the Internet. Ever since I returned to India, I’ve seen that we have caught up with global trends to a great extent. Now, we make responsive sites for the clients which provide a consistent user experience instead of a mobile site or application. So, some pretty interesting things are happening in the Indian market as well and it’s an exciting time to be here.

Your favourite creative campaign
According to me, the Nirma commercial was iconic in a lot of ways. But surely Shaggy’s Levis boombastic advert takes the cake!

CREATIVITY IS WHEN YOU SEE WHAT OTHERS DON’T

Shagun Seda, Creative Director at DDB Mudra West narrates her enthralling story in the creative ad-mad world

After receiving a brief from the client, the creative department huddles up for days to determine what kind of advertisement would work best for their target audience. They play a crucial role in determining what the advertisement would look like when it hits the market. This department includes art directors, creative directors, copywriters, scriptwriters, visualisers, photographers, typographers and so on. They create and communicate ideas to the consumers. This department is responsible for visualising and verbalising the needs of the client. They are the ones with a flair for writing, a creative bent of mind and artistic creativity.

What has your journey been like?
I did my graduation in English Literature from Lady Shri Ram College, New Delhi, my postgraduation from The Symbiosis Institute of Mass Communication, Pune. My foray into advertising started with a short but immensely illuminating internship at Lowe. Soon, I joined TBWAIndia (then Anthem) as a trainee copywriter, and learned and lived there for nine and a half years. TBWA saw me grow from a trainee to a creative director. And then it was time to leave the proverbial nest. I joined DDB Mudra West a year and a half ago and it’s been great so far.

Three things you love about your work
* Getting paid to do what I love.
* Creating work that will (hopefully) outlast my existence.
* Not having to wear a uniform.

What are the perks of your work profile?
My current work profile according to my business card says Creative Director, DDB Mudra West. But I still am and will always be a copywriter at heart. The only difference is, when you are a copywriter, everyone thinks it’s their right to walk up to your desk and disturb you while you’re thinking. When you become CD, they first knock on your cabin door before disturbing you.

And the challenges?
One of the biggest challenges is time. Anybody can crack a superlative idea after days spent thinking over endless cups of coffee and in between naps. An increasingly competitive business environment has resulted in client pressure and want-it-yesterday deadlines.

What are the skills one must have for the job?
There are no specific skills. As long as you can think clearly and communicate succinctly, you’re home. All you need then is an inquisitive mind, an observing eye, fire in the belly, creative rigour and stamina. Also, a good digestive system to stomach rejection!

Advice for budding advertisers
Be there, do that, watch this and read that. You are a sum of your experiences. It also holds true for the work you create. The richer the input, the more superior the output.

what do you think is the future of advertising in india?
Despite our vast socio-cultural, linguistic and religious diversity, our advertising has always had its pinkie on the pulse of a changing India. The penny-pinching Lalita-ji has evolved into a tough-talking boss-wife who doesn’t think twice before asking her husband to work late. The 30-second TV spot co-exists with its four-minute Internet edit. Today, TV cannot be the only answer to every marketing problem. Brands are increasingly harnessing the power of the Internet to tell their story. But this is just the beginning. We have a long way to go.

Your favourite creative campaign
Apart from the Nescafe ‘Stammering Standup Comedian’ and Kit Kat #MyDiwaliBreak commercials, I can’t think of any recent Indian campaign that moved me enough to talk about it.

FROM THE CREATIVE HORSE’S MOUTH

Keegan Pinto, group director at DDB Mudra West tells us what makes his job so interesting

What has your journey been like? 
It’s been in the fast lane I think. Fullon, crazy and chaotic. But at the end of the day, it is an anti-aging career. It has the power to energise you more than it tires you.

Three things you love about your work
* You get paid to tell stories, write jokes, make music and ‘ sit and think’.
* There is no mould. There is no ‘standardisation of creative work.’ Only you can and will take you forward, which is the best part.
* It’s full of surprises. You will get scandalised, challenged, laugh real hard and always have something new to do every day. That is a very rich life.

What are the perks of your work profile?
It all stops at us. Creative people are at the end of the assembly line. Everybody is an integral part of the process, but we are the final expressionists or craftsman of advertising. We get the stage for the last act, for the big one. All eyes are on us eventually. As Group Creative Director, nothing changes. I’m still a trainee fighting for every good piece of work to happen. I still beg and plead sometimes and say silly things just so good work happens.

And the challenges?
Newness. The quality of ideas and the quality of their expressions. The longer you are in the business, the less novel ideas seem to you. So only you can become your biggest impediment. It’s scary but it could become a strength if used correctly! We should all stick to 20% thinking and 80% doing. Let’s not have futile brainstorms where we merely think. It is better to have mediocre ideas out there, executed, than to have no ideas see the light of day at all, rendering them scribbles in our books and word docs in our portfolios. The internet is full of doers. If they have an idea, they do it. Sometimes it doesn’t look great. But if the idea is powerful, it will fly. Doing brings glory, not thinking. Kolaveri Di was shot in a studio. And the rest is history.

What are the skills one must have for the job?
A sense of reality, of logic and reason. Speed is also essential. A sense of contemporary aesthetics couple with a sense of fearlessness. The desire to be a thought leader, to think solutions but to also think solutions that shake up. The duality of being a total madman while ideating and being a sane salesman while selling an idea. Creativity and imagination must feature somewhere in that list.

Advice for budding advertisers
Be real. There is no space for indulgence. You will have to work within the boundaries of reality and be as creative as you can, within that. It’s creativity with whatever you’ve got. Also, there is a whole new competition and that is ‘internet content’ and the people making that are doing a swell job.

How do you think advertising in India has evolved & what is the future?
It evolved once from work that ironically reflected the lives and times of its affluent creators to a more honest, simple, Indian relatable voice. Another big evolution curve is still waiting to happen I feel. If brands started engaging more than selling, I think the evolution will come. They must start using an engagement platform like the internet and use TV to simply remind because that’s largely what the TV medium has morphed itself into. It took us years after the internet boomed in India to start using the medium correctly. I see that as the next big opportunity to evolve.

Your favourite creative campaign
Real men of genius for Bud Lite.

READ BETWEEN THE CONSUMER’S LINES

Siddhant Lahiri, Account Planning Director at JWT reveals how an account planner needs to mind-read the consumer

A brand’s positioning must always be forward-looking in order to be successful, it must not only tap into the current zeitgeist, but also have relevance in the recent future. A planner’s expertise is in understanding the world around him or her, to derive reasons for mass behaviour, observe the subtly emerging trends and then arrive at a calculated understanding of a brand’s core insight, its need in the market, the role it fulfils and the profile of the consumer. It is also the planner who from time to time initiates research studies, and must then analyse them to derive conclusions relevant to the brand.

What has your journey been like?
As the only son of middle-class Bengali parents, it was always blatantly obvious that I had to find a career that was both stable and fruitful. At the same time, however, having a slightly creative and restless temperament, I was wary of the typical management roles; I still find them very dry and boring. So when I was doing my graduation, I was searching for something that would allow me to walk the tightrope between the stability and respect of the corporate world along with the quirky independence and cerebral satisfaction of an artistic field. MICA, and later advertising, fit into this vortex. I started with DDB Mudra and then have spent nearly three years with JWT.

Three things you love about your work
I get paid to wonder why people are as absurd as they are. Everything is research, from watching movies to chilling with friends to talking to your girlfriend to haggling with the taxi driver. Consumers are all around you. That life-changing idea can hit you at any time.

What are the perks of your work profile?
* The license to be a little eccentric and then justify it by saying, “Haven’t you ever seen the guys on Mad Men?’”
* The freedom to concentrate on creating great work rather than fighting restrictions in the office.
* Meeting a unique set of characters every day.

And the challenges?
It’s a difficult job. Whatever you do, even something like making people choose one brand over another is instigating a change in their behaviour. People don’t like to change. You must be ready to persevere.

What are the skills one must have for the job?
Planning is a vocation that takes place mostly in the mind, therefore, there is no substitute for curiosity. It is paramount that you are forever seeking more and more knowledge – why people do what they do; what are the new, upcoming things that are going to change the world tomorrow?

Advice for budding advertisers
Stay curious. Keep questioning. Use every interaction with people as an opportunity to learn more about the workings of the human mind. Read a lot. Watch everything from Polish films to saas-bahu shows. Drown in pop culture. Be open to experiences. Remember that the India you live in is not the only India out there.

What do you think is the future of advertising in india?
Advertising exists for one purpose only: to convince people they need something they don’t want. In an industry all about selling, planning exists solely to understand the consumer. Understanding consumers’ behaviour, motivations and desires, what makes them tick and therefore ways to convince them to buy. Planning is integral to understanding both the processes as well as the growth of advertising.

SERVICING A CLIENT’S EVERY NEED

Vineeta Tyagi, account supervisor at Please See talks about why the client is king and how important her job is at an agency

An account manager acts as a link between a client and the advertising agency they are tied to. The purpose of an advertising agency is to ensure that their clients’ needs are met keeping in mind details such as finances, targets and audience. The client approaches the agency with a product that needs advertising. The product then goes under various phases before it hits the market. Through these phases the advertising account manager acts as a link between the client and the advertising agency.

 

What has your journey been like?
I was very sure that I wanted to be part of the advertising industry and an integral part of a brand’s journey. When I started reading about various job roles, account management was something that I instantly connected with. The journey has been nothing but amazing. I love working in the creative field. Seeing great work in the market inspires me to be creative and ideate every day.

Three things you love about your work
* It never gets monotonous
* Constant thinking
* Exposure – my job allows me to interact on a daily basis with people from different walks of life

How much money can one expect as an account manager?
As an account manager you should be able to get something between Rs. 30-40 thousand per month

What is a typical day at work like for you?
Meeting with clients, sitting with creative team to ideates, planning the brand ahead, numerous amounts of phone calls, a lot of coffee, working with the rest of the team to think of how an idea can come to life

What are the skills one must have for the job?
You should be able to manage a team because eventually you will be leading a team. Be it planning weekly details or planning a brand’s communication, communicate! An account manager is a combination of a thinker, a doer and a good communicator.

Advice for budding advertisers and account supervisors
* If you are not in for long hours of work, then this is not the job for you.
* Don’t leave any room for miscommunication.
* Be updated with what’s happening in the industry, read as much as you can.
* Work in tandem with the creative team.
* Be passionate about building solid working relationships with your clients and your team.
* Cross industry communication expertise – try and work with agencies that offer various specialisations – ATL, BTL, digital, etc. It gives a better understanding of the industry

How important is the client servicing department in an advertising agency?
If creative teams work directly with clients, they will never reach a mutual consensus. Even if they do, I wonder how many emails and long discussions would have to be exchanged to reach a conclusion. Account managers know what clients want. Believe it or not, they are integral part of an ad agency. Not only that, it comes naturally to account managers to think about how a brand can grow – is it just a good idea or will it benefit a client? Does it have the power to change things for clients? Will it solve the problem? Evaluating comes naturally to account managers and that is what makes all the difference.

THE BUSINESS OF MEDIA PLANNING AND BUYING

Media planner Yash Desai enumerates how he helps brands with maximum exposure, placing advertisements in pivotal areas so that they are seen by all

All those print, digital and outdoor advertisements that you see promoting everything from food to automobiles to clothes come under the purview of media planning and buying. Like finance and real estate consultants guide their clients on investing their money in the right place, media planners and buyers have the same crucial role to play when it comes their clients’ brands and products.

 

 

What has your journey been like?
I was attracted to media planning in my final year of BMM; the aspects of managing the presence of brand communication and reaching out to the right audience was so exciting that I thought I had to explore it. The task to choose the right media platforms to communicate the brand message and achieve marketing objectives has so far never left me bored at work

Three things you love about your work
* Dynamism
* Potential to reach the nation with brand communication
* The creativity involved

How much money can one expect as a planner?
At the entry level, media planning within the advertising industry is not one of the best paid profiles. As you grow in the ad industry things get better. If you are exceptional at your work you can even demand your desired package. In terms of numbers, the salary depends on the ad agency a person works with. One can expect five to eight lakhs per annum for a fresher i.e an MBA graduate.

What are the perks of your work profile?
Being selected for exchange programmes and visiting other countries to understand the media scene while working with media planning professionals of those countries. It gives the opportunity to understand diverse working cultures as well. Also, a media planner is constantly given freebies as there are several media vendors and sales teams out there contesting for your attention

And the challenges?
A media planner has to communicate with various people (clients, vendors, internal teams, etc). The art of communication often becomes a key challenge for most people. After the analysed numbers come in, a planner has to find the right platforms and write the story which will address the marketing objective of the brand. These areas can be challenging for a number of people who choose this career.

What are the skills one must have for the job?
* Strategic outlook
* Eye for numbers
* Communication skills
* Analytical mind
* Adapting nature

Advice for aspiring media planners and buyers
* Don’t make the mistake of thinking that the job has a lot to do with numbers
* Prepare yourself
* Choose the right agency
* Be more keen to learn than to grow
* Don’t shy away from innovation

The importance of a media planner
Advertising plays a very important role in brand building. However, it is the art and science of media planning that tells the advertiser how much to spend, where to spend and how to spend to have the maximum positive impact for the brand. As the biggest task for most advertisers today is to get the right scale for the brand campaign, a media planner thus has utmost importance and is an  integral role to play in an ad agency.

DIGITAL – THE PRESENT & THE FUTURE

Digital advertising is another term for Internet marketing. Digital advertising is when businesses leverage new technologies to deliver promotional advertisements to consumers. Digital advertising includes promotional advertisements, messages delivered through email, social media websites, online advertising on search engines, and banner ads on mobile and web sites. It may be a sunrise industry in India today, but seven years ago, it was associated only with websites and search engines. The digital space has evolved to a large extent and is no longer a thing of the future. Trends in the digital space change by the minute and the social media space is constantly evolving. Agencies like FoxyMoron latched onto this trend at the right time, starting off as a social media agency and later adding search, tech, PR, video and a lot more to their basket. The digital side of the media is such that one needs to constantly adapt with the ever changing trends. WATConsult is another agency doing some great work in this space.
The online advertising market in India is tipped to grow 30% in the current fiscal year. This is being attributed to the fact that more people have begun to warm up to the more quantifiable nature of the digital medium that can aid corporate behemoths in understanding their promotional campaign’s popularity and success in real time. Experts claim that total value of the online advertising market in India is expected to reach nearly Rs. 3,575 crores in this financial year. One of the biggest challenges digital advertisers face is category creation. Several clients do not understand the digital industry, the importance of employing an agency and spending the big bucks on the online space. Creating brand strategies for internet and mobile therefore is an uphill task as they have to keep justifying their stance to clients.
Studies suggest that digital advertising is beginning to move into a direction in which it will soon form 30% of the advertising pie. With the increased usage of mobiles in India and abroad, if any of us is reluctant to adapt, then there’s the risk of becoming redundant in the blink of an eye. That goes to show how this is the turning point for the ad-mad world and how advertisers will have to continuously learn and adapt to newer technologies. That’s why we caught up with those ahead of their times and tried to figure out exactly which way the advertising industry is headed.

SELLING TO CONSUMERS IN THE DIGITAL AGE

Suveer Bajaj, Co-founder of the digital agency FoxyMoron shares his passion for the digital space

What has your journey been like?
The journey has been wondrous. It’s been exasperating and monumental as well! Entrepreneurship is a unique opportunity that a handful of lucky souls run into every now and then. We, of course, had the good fortune of running into this opportunity in the digital advertising and marketing space. Honestly, it’s been challenging but in a good way. We set ourselves unachievable tasks. We commit ourselves to that. We dream it. We do it. And that’s how we have evolved!

Three things you love about your work
* The energy and vibe in the office creates a unique but enthralling work experience. We do not look at ourselves as an organisation but as ‘The Big Foxy Family’.
* The clients and the opportunities received have been overwhelming.
* The ever-evolving nature of the industry has been stimulating.

What are the perks of your work profile?
With digital beginning to eat into a larger slice of the advertising pie, as digital pioneers we are exposed to the top management of our brands and often meet some fascinating entrepreneurs from across the globe. This encourages an entire new diaspora of thinking and shows me how one can potentially change the way we shop, we eat, we live, and we entertain.

What are the challenges?
People believe advertising is an easy job to start with and fresh out of college choose to jump into the welcoming advertising industry. However, after a few years they have educational priorities that come in the way and hence retention as well as training pose to be one of our greatest challenges.

What are the skills one must have for the job?
Primarily, we pillar our agency on three verticals creative, media and technology. In theory, one must have a knack for either of the three in order to be a part of the digital industry. Digital marketing is like advertising on steroids, one has to create a good ad every day. Candidates must do something interesting on Twitter, be a guest blogger, make ads of the world their homepage and make sure to stand out from the crowd!

Advice for budding digital advertisers.
* Always be relentless. Keep evolving. Keep on your toes. If not, the industry will eat you alive as there might be a thousand opportunities but to grasp even one is difficult.
* Also, listen more and speak less. Absorb everything you possibly can from the ecosystem.
* Network, network and network some more!

How do you think advertising in India has evolved?
Back in 2008 when the agency began, the definition of digital was restricted to websites and a little bit of search. Post this it blossomed with the rise of social media where each brand capitalised on the Facebook and Twitter bandwagon; now brands are conceptualising integrated campaigns with Pinterest, Instagram and LinkedIn. The digital industry will bifurcate itself very distinctly between services and products. Agencies like ours will thrive in the services space where we will continue to bridge the gap between creative media and technology by continuously innovating and providing cutting edge services.

Your favourite creative campaign
Staying true to the young, cosmopolitan and contemporary brand that Maybelline India is, FoxyMoron developed a catchy and innovative mode of engaging its fans across all digital platforms in India. That’s my favourite!

THE FUTURE OF ADVERTISING IS HERE

Rajiv Dhingra, CEO at WATConsult explains why digital is the only way forward in advertising

What has your journey been like?
My journey has been long and fruitful but it still feels like yesterday when I started WATConsult. It will be eight years this January but seeing how much we have grown fuels my passion for more. We have gone from one to 150 people and from one to 85 brands that we service and from one to four offices in four cities. It’s been a great ride and I’ve enjoyed every moment of it.

 

Three things you love about your work
Every day is a new day as things in digital never seem to stagnate they just change even faster. That’s the beauty of the digital space. Keeping up can be tough but therein lies the learning experience and the adrenalin rush. When you get ahead of the curve once in a while it gives you a great sense of fulfilment. The rest of the time you stay at it trying harder each day. We like to call ourselves a social and digital agency that thinks big, executes smart and learns fast.

What are the perks of your work profile?
The perks are lots of conferences, working with the best brands in the country and also meeting, working and interacting with people who as passionate as you are about your company. There is no better feeling for an entrepreneur than to see his team totally charged and ready to take on the world.

And the challenges?
* Competition is high and we need to keep upping our game.
* Need to unlearn what we have learnt while we continue learn new things.
* The business grows so fast that one needs to step back and evaluate every now and then as to whether we are on the right path.

What are the skills one must have for the job?
There are two ways of looking at that. Skills from a functional standpoint would have to be a keen interest and knowledge of marketing and brand building. I think both are From a macro standpoint, one needs a whole lot of patience for results and yet needs to continue to be impatient about adapting to change.

Advice for budding digital advertisers
Mobile is where the scale will be. It’s time for all of us to embrace the digital age.

How do you think digital advertising in India has evolved?
It’s grown well on solid foundations in the last five years. The trick is if we are able to make the leap from being digital as a medium to digital as the mainline. Mobile is growing rapidly and we are ensuring we stay ahead of the curve by providing our clients cutting edge branded apps, be it on Android, iOS or Windows for that matter. Now, we deliver innovative mobile media campaigns too through our media partners and I believe that the Indian market has evolved to a large extent.

What is the future of digital advertising?
Whenever I am asked this question, I have one simple reply. Digital is the only future of advertising.

Your favourite digital campaign
Anything done in the past is not best anymore. The digital industry is constantly evolving, so the best campaigns are only in people’s heads for now and will be executed tomorrow but they will stay best just for that moment till someone else does better.

THE ROAD TO ADVERTISING

If you’re planning to pursue a career in advertising, here’s a reference guide on the top courses available and the most reputed recruiters in India and abroad

TOP WORLDWIDE UNIVERSITIES OFFERING ADVERTISING PROGRAMMES
* Northwestern University
* University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
* Stanford University
* Duke University
* Harvard University
* Columbia University
* University of California at Berkeley
* University of Chicago (Booth)
* University of Wisconsin
* New York University

TOP AD AGENCIES WORLDWIDE
* Young and Rubicam Brands
* McCann Erickson
* Dentsu
* BBDO
* Ogilvy and Mather

TOP DIGITAL MARKETING COMPANIES IN INDIA
* webchutney.com
* windchimes.co
* bluedigital.co.in
* foxymoron.in
* sweedigital.co
* flarepath.in
* WATConsult.com
* geekcreativeagecy.com
* softzsolution.com

TOP AD AGENCIES IN INDIA
* Ogilvy and Mather
* McCann – Erickson India Ltd.
* Lowe Lintas
* J. Walter Thompson India (JWT)
* Leo Burnett India Pvt. Ltd.
* Mudra Communication Pvt. Ltd.
* RK Swamy / BBDO Advertising Ltd.
* Maddison World
* DDB Mudra
* Saatchi and Saatchi

COURSES FOR ADVERTISING IN INDIA
* School of Broadcasting and Communication, Mumbai
• Masters in Advertising and Public Relations: Two years

* Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication, Pune
• MBA in Media Management : Two years
• Masters of Business Administration in Communication Management (Specialisation in advertising): Two years

* Amity University, New Delhi
• MA in Advertising and Marketing Management: Two years
• Post Graduate Diploma in Advertising and Marketing Management: One year

* Apeejay Institute of Mass Communication, Delhi
• Post Graduate Diploma in Advertising and Marketing Communication: One year

* The Delhi School of Communication (DSC)
• Post Graduate Diploma Programme in Communication (PGDPC) along with Masters in Mass Communication (MMC): Two years

* School of Advertising and Communication (SAC), Delhi Post Graduate Diploma in Advertising: One year

* National Institute of Advertising (NIA), Noida, Delhi NCR
• Post Graduate Program in Advertising & Communication Management (PGPACM): One year

* Indian Institute of Mass Communication, Delhi
• Post Graduate Diploma Course in Advertising and Public Relations: One year

* Xavier’s Institute of Communication, Mumbai
• Post Graduate Diploma in Advertising and Marketing Communication: One year

* Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmadabad
• Post Graduate Certificate Programme in Advertising Management and Public Relations (PGCPAMPR): One year (online) Certificate Programme in Digital Marketing: (online)

YOUTH INC’S ROUNDUP OF THE BEST ADS

The ads we grew up with and you are growing up with are more integral to the indian way of life than you think

HAMARA BAJAJ
This ad starts with sunrise and yoga, and cuts to every aspect of India from the Gateway of India to lush green villages, ending with the DD National logo. Rocking out the two-wheelers that are compatible with every person of the population and using Indian-ness as a selling point, this two-wheeler had a definite cult following at the time.

LIFEBUOY 
In a nutshell, it’s a snotty boy being disgusted by his seemingly unhygienic friends who don’t wash their hands for a whole minute like his mother has taught him to. Really though, it turns out, his soap is just slow. Libefuoy only needs you to invest 10 seconds in your hands. Also at the end, of course, is the customary doctor giving his approval.

NESCAFE 
A refreshing change from the swirly Deepika Padukone ads, this one finds a funny and creative way to sensitise us to speech defects and remind us of the bliss that is coffee. Don’t complain, you guys, buffering is a good thing.

 

ACTION KA SCHOOL TIME
An entourage of every typically Indian school memory: the uniform checking, the teachers who aren’t allowed to smile and wear really big glasses, the PT classes and the blessed bell. Complete with those specific shoes we had to wear, it’s a walk down memory lane with annoying nasal singing.

CADBURY – KUCH KHAAS
The dancing girl relic! Running on to the field and dancing is the thing to do after a player hits a six. This girl not only shows you how to avoid security like a pro, but also how to make the player blush like a newly-wedded bride. She symbolises a sure classic favourite.

HAPPY DENT
This one was different; it’s a fantastic concept, sure to be stuck in your head for a long time. People with such bright teeth that rich people can employ them on an altogether new level – I wish they would show bedside lamps too. Your memory just sparkled with recollection, did it not?

WHO WAS DIGEN VERMA?
Digen Verma was a fictitious personality created to invoke curiosity in the minds of consumers. Ad after ad exhorted the so-called virtues of this man. Frooti benefited largely from this genius of a campaign which led to Digen Verma hogging our mindspace for a very long time.

FEVI KWIK
One of the funniest and shortest, yet silent and creative ads made. Four dots of glue will always do the trick. Goodbye snobby old man, it’s for the local fisherman to shine, and with only five rupees!

THE AMUL GIRL
The Amul girl is the iconic advertising mascot used by Amul, an Indian dairy brand. She’s a hand-drawn cartoon of a young, chubby Indian girl dressed in a polka dotted frock with blue hair and a half pony tied up. Plus, she’s witty and always updated. Rightly so, she’s been described as the best Indian advertising concepts of all time.

BLACKBERRY BOYS
An obviously successful effort to increase the market of blackberry, this ad was the symbol of the BBM boom, when literally everyone owned, or at least thought of owning, a Blackberry. A shout out to the start of being-on-the-go, unlimited free texting and emoticons.

 

Volume 4 Issue 6