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| Interview with The
Times of India group president and former Ad Club, Bombay president
Pradeep Guha |
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"CAS will segment
the market and finally television will end up doing what print
already does "
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| Posted
on 7 July 2003 |
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From
Calcutta to Cannes! The Times of India group president Pradeep Guha
is the man with a magic touch or should we say wand. Everything
he touches turns into gold.
indiantelevision.com tried to get a sense of "what exactly
is the secret of his success"? In his office situated on the
second floor of the famous "Queen of Boribunder" heritage
building that is the headquarters of the group, one finds photographs
of Mahatma Gandhi with Jinnah; Hrithik Roshan; family photographs
and even one of Jennifer Lopez! Guha definitely has heroes of every
hue and colour.
The
bespectacled professional is one person who has perfected the art
of 'how to ensure that products and services remain contemporary
and how to constantly re-invent them'. During the last two years,
he managed to successfully extrapolate this philosophy to the new
avatar
of Ad Club too.
In June 2003, Guha stepped down as the president of the Advertising
Club, Bombay. His two-year tenure was eventful - as he elevated
the Ad Club, Bombay to greater heights. With his team, he managed
to increase memberships and raise the profile of its activities.
One can safely say that there are several takers today for the "Ad
Club, Bombay" brand.
Guha
is now busy with the greatest event of them all - Ad Asia 2003 that
India will be hosting at Jaipur in November after nearly 21 years.
In a free wheeling conversation with Ashwin
Kotian,
Guha speaks his mind on the Ad Club; CAS and about Indian advertising.
He even gives his view on the concept of placing advertisements
within the sacrosanct editorial space. Excerpts:
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Tell
us about your involvement with The Ad Club, Bombay's managing committee?
Is it very recent?
I was part of the managing committee nearly a decade ago but disassociated
myself in order to give others a chance as part of the rotation
policy. I was reluctant to take on an active role during the intermediate
years. Two years back, when I was approached, I was slightly reluctant
but relented after much persuasion. In hindsight, it was a good
decision to take charge as the president as a lot of work needed
to be done. I am happy that we (the entire team of managing committee
members) have made good progress but a lot of work still has to
be done.
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What
are the reasons for the recent flurry of activities organised by
the Ad Club on a much lavish scale than before?
Two years ago, when I assumed charge as the president of The Advertising
Club, Bombay, I noticed an alarming trend. There was a substantial
drop in membership; renewals were poor. The Ad Club, Bombay was
growing "older"; as the average age of the members was
higher (due to a lot of older members and fewer younger members)
than what it should have been. There was a perception that "being
an Ad Club Bombay" member wasn't the 'in thing'; the value
proposition wasn't clear. I ardently believed that the membership
would increase if we consciously built the "Advertising Club,
Bombay" brand. We had to take remedial measures.
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What
kind of remedial actions were taken by the previous managing committee?
The first thing that we did was to increase the value of sponsorships.
The sponsors were asked to increase the amount of money that they
gave for sponsorships and many of them agreed to do so voluntarily.
Empowered by this, we started holding events in upmarket venues
- five star hotels, discs, pubs and hotspots. We also changed the
look and feel of our mailers. We also changed the logos, stationery
amongst others.
Every year, hundreds of professionals join the media, entertainment
and marketing business - but few of them enroll in the club. We
consciously targetted the youth.
With
an accent on the youth, came events such as Ad Quiz. We also held
events in hotspots such as Mikanos, Insomnia (Mumbai). Basically,
the intention was to find out what would "tick with the hip
hop hep younger generation". After all, any effort directed
at the youth requires these elements as part of the communication
mix.
In order to expand the brand equity of the club, we started glamourising
the events - Abby awards is an example. The intention is to get
everyone - even those that are not in the advertising field - to
talk about the event. We used a mix of celebrities; portrayed advertising
professionals as larger than life amongst others.
In
a way, we succeeded in taking the ad industry to the masses as well
as the classes. This has reflected in the recent enrollments - we
have got marketing professionals and students from management institutions.
Recently, 15-20 people from Hindustan Lever joined the club.
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Where
do you see The Ad Club, Bombay, heading in the future?
In my address delivered at the last AGM, I specifically mentioned
that the next frontier is to position The Advertising Club, Bombay
as The Advertising Club, India. My vision entailed enhancing its
reputation and elevating it to a national stature.
I suppose
we shall have to think in terms of inviting entries from all over
India for the club's annual events - for instance the Abbies could
be a national event.
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| "The
theme for this year is "Break the rules". We firmly
believe that in this age of uncertainty, businesses that adopt
standardised paths or have pre-determined notions will not succeed
in a major way" |
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How
will you make AdAsia 'bigger than the biggest'? What kind of preparations
have been made?
As
far as Ad Asia is concerned, we started off by concentrating on
getting sponsors and quality speakers. I am happy to declare that
80 per cent of the work on both fronts has already been accomplished
now.
We
have managed to rope in some of the best internationally acclaimed
speakers in the world of advertising and marketing. We expect 600
delegates from abroad and an equal number from India. The road shows
are more or less done - we have toured countries such as Japan,
Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Dubai and next on the agenda
is Singapore and Taiwan. The road shows in India will commence this
month with New Delhi.
The
theme for this year is "Break the rules". We firmly believe
that in this age of uncertainty, businesses that adopt standardised
paths or have pre-determined notions will not succeed in a major
way. At Ad Asia, an assembly of experts will suggest ways and means
of breaking the rules. They will offer solutions for diverse fields
and functions in advertising and marketing.
The
welcome dinner is on 10 November and there is a rest day on 12 November.
All the delegates will be taken on a sight-seeing tour and entitled
to participate in a golf tournament. Of course, the lighter aspects
will accompany the serious business deliberations. The delegates
will be treated to entertainment, fashion events and musical shows.
Through these events, we want to showcase India to the rest of the
world. We want to shatter the age-old myths associated with India
and give glimpses of a modern India. The classical/traditional nuances
are passe, experience modern India - will be the message.
In
fact, the information and broadcasting minister RS Prasad has given
us his good wishes.
We
have a very good team - eminent personalities such as Ramesh Narayan,
current president MG Parameswaran, Gautam Rakshit, Alex Kuruvilla,
Sam Balsara are overseeing various aspects of the organisation.
The Ad Club Bombay will be the central coordination committee for
the Ad Council of India. It will even get paid for its services
and for the infrastructure.
We
have approached large corporates such as the Aditya Birla group,
Videocon group and electronic channels such as CNBC. There will
be sponsors for the individual events too.
We
would also expect support from various ministries such as the External
Affairs ministry to help us with visa formalities.
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| "We
have learnt a lot from the industry and it is time to pay back" |
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Do
you feel that more professionals must actively associate themselves
with The Ad Club, Bombay?
I would definitely invite more and more industry professionals to
participate in the club's activities.
We have learnt a lot from the industry and it is time to pay back.
I must
admit that we have got an enthusiastic response from Indian advertising
and marketing professionals whenever we have contacted them. We
invite several people to judge the club's events and these professional
spend a lot of time and effort during the entire process. More
importantly, they do it willingly.
But,
more professionals must come forth and contribute in a positive
way. They must commit to spend time and effort.
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What
are your impressions about Cannes 2003? What do you feel about Indian
creatives?
At Cannes 2003, I could actually sense some kind of a 'duality'.
On the one hand, the global advertising fraternity was 'gung ho'
as this was the 50th anniversary of Cannes. But, the global recession
in the advertising industry - especially the western world - dimmed
spirits to a certain extent. There was a mix of gloom and excitement.
Fortunately, India came out with flying colours.
Indian
creative has certainly come of age. Year after year, Indian creative
directors have learnt from the interactions that they have had at
global events such as Cannes and the Adfest at Pattaya. The Ad Club,
Bombay has played a significant role in facilitating such interactions.
Indian creative minds have been opened and aligned to the global
way of thinking.
However,
the Indian ad fraternity still has to be "glocal". Indian
roots have to be a part and parcel of the communication. Yes, one
has to explain the nuances of Indian ethos and culture to those
who don't understand Indian advertising. We were fortunate that
Balki was on the jury panel this year at Cannes - he explained the
rationale behind many Indian entries and briefed the foreign jury
members.
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| "The
media function is looking smart and has taken centre-stage in
the advertising business" |
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What
about the media function?
In
India, media innovation is more pronounced than in other parts of
the world. This is primarily due to the diversity existing in the
country. However, developed nations excel in technological innovations.
India excels in creative innovation. In that sense, the media function
is growing in importance to unravel the mysteries of a highly segmented
and fragmented market. The arrival of AORs and media independents
on the scene is a step in this direction - an effort to search for
specialised skills that can solve complex problems. I feel that
the media function is looking smart and has taken centre-stage in
the advertising business. The media function has moved away from
the "back-end syndrome" to the fore.
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Do
you feel that print advertising will benefit due to the current
confusion about CAS (conditional access system)?
As a consumer and a general well-wisher of the conditional access
system (CAS), I commend the government for extending the CAS deadline.
Otherwise there would have been chaos. Yes, print medium would have
benefitted in the situation of chaos -especially in the four metros.
But, given the current scenario, I don't see print gaining much.
However,
I am sure that media men would find the solutions for tackling the
situation once things settle down.
However,
the point to be noted is the fact that a lot of advertisers are
looking at print in a fresh and independent manner.
By implication, print reaches out to the top literate end of the
market. Print automatically segments the market. Television doesn't
do so, at least in the pre-CAS phase. However, CAS will segment
the market and television will finally end up doing what print already
does - with premium households opting for all pay channels, FTA
households and others.
Trends
indicate that there is a renewed interest in print. Channels will
have to increase ad spends to communicate their offerings. Ultimately,
it is their own decision to determine the extent of increase in
their ad spends and how much they are willing to invest. Globally,
however, it is an accepted norm that media organisations tends to
use their own in-house vehicles to create awareness.
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| "Advertising
related information is as important as editorial news in this
age of consumerism. Publications - especially newspapers - must
related to readers as consumers first" |
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What
do you feel about The Times of India group's decision to make editorial
space available to advertisers?
It is part of media innovations. Advertising related information
is as important as editorial news in this age of consumerism. Consumerism
is a reality in today's world. Publications - especially newspapers
- must relate to readers as consumers first. If there is a publication
that only gives news, would you buy it? On the other hand, if there
is a publication that is full of ads, there will be some people
(decision makers) who would buy it.
Our
group believes in this philosophy and are innovating constantly
to head in this direction. For instance, The Times of India Classified
section even has the tag line "News you can use". Our
offerings provide a 360 degree spin to advertisers and are therefore
more lucrative.
But,
of course the balance has to be maintained between the readers who
seek consumerism-oriented information and pure news/analysis from
the intellectual point of view. Here is where the editorial control
comes into play. As long as one is not offensive, one can provide
news, views and information that is vital for consumers.
This
trend is more prevalent in India than in other parts of the world.
In fact, the same analogy can be true even for the television industry.
Media must encourage consumer directed communication.
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Do
you watch television?
I watch the news channels, music channels and sports events such
as cricket or tennis Grand Slam events. My favourite destinations
are the places in the south of France - Cannes, Nice, Monte Carlo.
In India, I love Kerala as I manage to discover something totally
new whenever I find time to go there.
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What
is your advice to Indian advertising and marketing professionals?
It is time that we looked at global developments and aspire to make
our businesses aligned to global practices. We must stop thinking
of our businesses as purely as Indian ones. We get so immersed in
looking at the narrow picture - our sales targets, our competition,
our projections - that we miss the big picture. It is very important
to keep tabs on what is happening worldwide; the developments; get
a hang of the direction in which Fortune 500 companies are moving.
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