MAM
Advertising agencies should recalibrate around Covid2019
As Covid2019 continues to sweep through the world, global ad spending is also sliding southwards. With major events being cancelled and slowdown in demands for lifestyle and consumer brands, marketing budgets are being slashed and advertisers are trying to find a silver lining among the gloomy clouds over the urban skyscrapers. USD 4.5 billion a day! That is how much the pandemic is costing the Indian economy! This has trickled down to every sector. With consumption dropping, manufacturing is seeing a halt. This would have been the wedding season in India, with increased spending on jewellery, etc. Sunscreen and myriad skincare-related television commercials would have by now been urging us to fill the online carts. But Covid2019 has impacted marketing and sales negatively. This variable can be fatal to creative agencies who fail to adapt to what we expect will come next.
Given the current scenario, we have to wait until September when things start to ease up. Being nimble is the key to the game. In fact, we the advertising people are a race of humans who are no strangers to disruption and turmoil. We have overcome all kinds of pressures – economic, financial, political, natural, and many more. As the Covid2019 is no longer viewed as a short-lived outbreak and the world is calibrating itself to settle around it and with it, advertising agencies will also have to recalibrate. In fact, many mainline or legacy agencies will have to brace themselves for the slump that is yet to come. With businesses being conducted online now, creative pitches, client meetings, brainstorming and such have all moved online, and remote terminals are our new offices now. Agencies that cater to tech innovations, digital and internal B2B can expect some sort of sustainability.
While agencies understand the need to change, the same is required from clients’ side too. At Hotstuff, we mobilized our resources in March, even before the actual lockdown, setting up new systems and work management protocols that ensured business continuity. We helped our clients to do so too and adapt. During the lockdown we even created TVCs from home that set a precedence and a trend for other marketers to follow suit. Innovation is the key and as Indians, we are known to innovate the best during crises. This has helped us churn out campaigns and create communication pieces in full swing. As an agency we did not stop at that but kept our clients engaged through our huge network of experts who could add value to its world of clients. Our Tattva Knowledge Series of webinars are a huge success and only growing in its reach.
Advertisements are nothing but human stories and one of the key factors that make them touch our hearts is how we interpret and imagine our interaction with each other. In pandemic times, this significant emotion itself is of high risk. Though our social interactions have lessened and are almost at a standstill, we are still humans, capable of managing all that and much more through our subtle perceptions.
Physical expressions have evolved and are evolving to subtle expressions. Creative people are catching that and messages of hope and beauty and a world of subtle emotions will play a pivotal role. Strong ideas will matter more than exuberant productions. The power of storytelling will need to be honed better. We humans have the agility and the tensile strength to overcome anything and as dream merchants we are like the frontline workers who would keep the sanity alive. The templates would need to change – hope, beauty, gratitude, calmness, stoic, prayer, positivity, sombre and empathetic along with technological innovations would be the new norm in the brand new world.
(The author is Hotstuff CEO. The views expressed are his own and Indiantelevision.com may not subscribe to them)
AD Agencies
Collective Creative Labs wins two Silver Effies, ranks top 15
Independent agency shines with strategy-led campaigns that move brands and culture
MUMBAI: Collective Creative Labs (CCL) has bagged two Silver Effies at the 25th Effie India Awards and claimed the 15th spot in the Agency of the Year rankings, marking a standout moment for the independent agency.
For a young agency built without legacy backing, these accolades go beyond trophies. They celebrate a fresh approach: starting with brand truth, sticking to strategy, and creating work that drives business, not just chatter.
Three years ago, Collective Artists Network spotted a gap in the market. Brands had access to creators and cultural moments but lacked cohesive strategy. CCL was born to fill that gap, blending cultural insight with disciplined brand planning to deliver campaigns that truly perform.
Collective Artists Network founder and group CEO Vijay Subramaniam said, “We were already sitting at a rare intersection of culture, creators, entertainment and influence. But brands don’t need access alone; they need alignment. CCL brings strategy to the heart of culture so that it drives real brand growth.”
CCL’s campaigns, including work for Zebronics, Rakesh Masala and Liberty, have travelled far beyond paid media, not chasing virality, but earning it through clarity of insight and purpose. Big names are used to amplify thinking, not replace it.
Collective Creative Labs CEO and partner at Collective Artists Network Sanjana Jain added, “Great work starts with clarity, what the brand stands for, the consumer’s reality, and the business goal. In a world that loves spectacle, we focus on outcomes. These awards validate that approach.”
Both Silver-winning campaigns were built on immersive consumer understanding and sharp strategic thinking, reinforcing CCL as a performance-driven creative partner. Operating where brands, culture, entertainment and emerging media intersect, CCL represents a new kind of agency model, uniting talent, content, influence and strategy under one roof.
For CCL, these wins and the Agency of the Year ranking are just markers of momentum, not the finish line.
