Digital Agencies
Digital Brand Fest 2022: How SMS and mobile marketing can accelerate brand growth
Mumbai: The digitally empowered consumers of today have more choices than ever before. As we enter into 2022 with new technologies propelling the digital transformation, several new age, as well as legacy brands, have jumped onto the digital bandwagon to up their marketing game, and retain connect with consumers.
On day one of the Indian Digital Brand Fest 2022, IndianTelevision.com brought a host of industry experts together on one platform to discuss these trends shaping the future. The week-long virtual summit is presented by Voot, and Interakt, Josh, and Pixis have joined as industry partners.
The session on ‘Panel on SMS, Notifications & Whatsapp Marketing’ held virtually on Monday was moderated by Group M head of mobile and emerging tech Niraj Ruparel and the panelists included Soptle chief business & marketing officer Ritesh Ghosal, PhonePe corporate communications head Priya Patankar, SUGAR chief business officer Suchit Sikaria, ex-WOW Skin Science VP of Marketing Madhur Acharya, Jio-Haptik’s SMB Solutions VP & business head Ahshad Jussawala, and Clever Tap SVP Marketing Jayant Kshirsagar.
The industry executives discussed the latest trends driving the change in mobile marketing and how it has impacted the industry’s growth. SUGAR CBO Suchit Sikaria noted that the digital strategy has to revolve around mobile, and it starts right at the time of designing the asset and it has to be a mobile-first design.
PhonePe corporate communications head Priya Patankar shared that PhonePe considers itself essentially as a utilitarian that begins with payments. “We have realised customers start with the most basic use cases for which they download an app. Once customers start trusting the app, they graduate to the more complex use cases,” she said about new consumer behaviour on the payment platform, while admitting that the pandemic has been a huge inflection point for digital payments.
When it comes to mobile marketing, SMS and WhatsApp are very powerful media to build a connection with the customer, the marketers asserted. However, brand communication to the consumer has to be looked at through the lens of relevance, timing & value in the message, the panelists noted. According to WOW Skin Science VP of marketing Madhur Acharya, mobile marketing gives a better ROI & retention as there is more clarity on how one’s campaign is performing.
The executives emphasised on leveraging WhatsApp for a mobile marketing strategy from the beginning. Jio-Haptik’s Ahshad Jussawala added, “For any small business or SME looking to grow their online sales and improve overall customer support, Whatsapp can be a game-changer.”
On customer acquisition, Clever Tap SVP Marketing Jayant Kshirsagar said, “Retention is more important than acquisition and we help our customers retain their customers.”
Also read: Digital Brand Fest 2022: Decoding digital transformation for tech-led future
The industry executives were also unanimous in their views on the importance of hyper-personalisation in mobile marketing. Clever Tap’s Jayant Kshirsagar observed that the right kind of personalisation involves looking at customers as a ‘cohort’, and not as a ‘one size fits all’ with hyper-personalisation. Soptle’s Ritesh Ghosal agreed that personalisation on WhatsApp & SMS marketing allowed them to create a loyalty program, by crafting a value into the message. To which SUGAR’s Sikaria shared their experience of sending out personalised messages to their most loyal customers on Whatsapp, wherein the responses the brand received from its customers consisted of instant emotive acknowledgments.
Group M’s Niraj Ruparel gave a huge thumbs up to Mondelez’s SRK campaign, citing it as one of the best instances of hyper-personalisation using AI & ML. “Stop selling, start serving. Because if you serve your customers right they’ll refer to your brand and you’ll get new customers!,” said Clever Tap’s Kshirsagar concluding the discussion.
Towards the end of the session, the marketers also addressed the concerns of Spamming in mobile marketing. Putting consumer fears to rest it was pointed out that WhatsApp has all the policies and measures in place to curtail Spamming activities by brands.
For more details on the event, click here
BENGALURU: For years, creative teams have learned to live with ambiguity. Vague comments, last-minute changes, feedback that arrives without context, clarity, or conviction. It became part of the job – something teams worked around rather than getting it solved.
But as we head into 2026, that tolerance is wearing thin.
Creative work today moves faster, scales wider, and involves more stakeholders than before. Teams are producing more content across more formats, often with distributed collaborators and tighter timelines. In this environment, guesswork is no longer a harmless inconvenience. It’s a cost – to time, to budgets, and to creative mindspace.
The real problem isn’t feedback, it’s how it’s given
Most creative professionals you see today will tell you they’re not against feedback. In fact, they rely on it. Good feedback sharpens ideas, strengthens execution, and pushes work forward. The problem is ‘unclear’ feedback. When someone says “this doesn’t feel right” without context, they aren’t just revising – they’re basically decoding. They’re guessing what the problem might be, trying different directions, and burning time in the process. Multiply that by a few stakeholders and a few rounds, and suddenly days disappear.
In 2026, when teams are expected to deliver faster without compromising quality, interpretation is a luxury most can’t afford.
Scale has changed rverything
Creative projects used to be smaller and simpler. A designer, a manager, maybe one client contact. Feedback loops were short, even if they weren’t perfect.
Today, the same project might involve internal marketing teams, agencies, freelancers, brand reviewers, and regional teams. Everyone has a say. Everyone leaves comments. And often, those comments don’t agree. More people reviewing work means alignment matters more than ever. Clear feedback isn’t just about being nice to creative teams, it’s about keeping projects moving when complexity increases.
Guesswork quietly wears teams down
One of the less talked-about impacts of unclear feedback is what it does to people.
When feedback is vague or contradictory, creatives second-guess their decisions. They hesitate. They overwork. They keep extra time buffers “just in case.” Over time, confidence drops. Ownership fades. Work becomes safer, not stronger. Creative energy gets spent on managing uncertainty instead of pushing ideas forward. And in an industry already grappling with burnout, unclear feedback adds unnecessary mental load.
Actionable feedback is a shared skill
Clear feedback doesn’t mean controlling creative decisions or dictating every detail. It means being specific enough that someone knows what to do next.
Actionable feedback answers three basic questions:
What exactly needs attention?
Why does it matter?
What outcome are we aiming for?
This applies whether you’re reviewing a video frame, a design layout, or a copy draft. The clearer the feedback, the fewer follow-ups it creates. In 2026, teams that treat feedback as a skill and not an afterthought, will move faster with less friction.
Tools shape behaviour (whether we admit it or not)
The way feedback is delivered is often dictated by the tools teams use. Comments buried in long email threads, messages split across chat apps, or notes detached from the actual work all contribute to confusion.
When feedback lives outside the work, context often gets lost. When it’s disconnected from versions and timelines, decisions get questioned. When it’s scattered, accountability disappears. More teams are starting to realise that feedback problems aren’t just communication issues, they’re workflow issues. How work moves between people matters just as much as the work itself.
From Opinions To Alignment
One of the biggest shifts happening in creative teams is a move away from purely opinion-driven feedback. Instead of “I like this” or “I don’t,” teams are asking better questions:
● Does this meet the brief?
● Does this solve the problem?
● Does this align with the goal?
This change reduces unnecessary back-and-forth and helps feedback feel less personal and more productive. It also makes decisions easier to explain and defend. As creative work becomes more strategic, feedback has to support that shift.
2026 Is About Fewer Loops, Not Faster Loops
There’s a misconception that speed means moving through feedback cycles faster. In reality, the most creative teams aren’t just accelerating loops, they’re reducing them. Clear, actionable feedback upfront leads to fewer revisions later. Clear approval stages prevent last-minute surprises. Clear decisions stop work from circling endlessly.
In 2026, efficiency won’t come from working harder or longer. It will come from designing workflows that respect creative time and attention.
Ending guesswork is a mindset change
Ultimately, ending creative guesswork isn’t just about better tools or processes. It’s about mindset. It’s about recognising that clarity is an act of respect – for the work, for the people doing it, for the time invested and for the mindspace used. It’s about moving from “figure it out” to “here’s what we’re aiming for.”
Creative teams that embrace this shift will find themselves not only delivering faster, but also enjoying the process more. And in an industry built on imagination, that might be the most valuable outcome of all.
