MAM
Publicis Groupe acquires Longtuo to boost China presence
MUMBAI: Publicis Groupe has acquired Beijing-based Longtuo, a digital marketing company.
Longtup will be part of the Groupe-owned Razorfish network and will be named Razorfish Longtuo China.
The acquisition of Longtuo will give Publicis Groupe more commanding clout in China‘s e-Commerce market, which Forrester projects to be a $94.6 billion business in 2012. eMarketer estimates the market to grow at more than 92 per cent annually for the next three years and forecasts China to become the world‘s largest e-Commerce marketplace by 2015.
The acquisition of Longtuo is another step towards Publicis Groupe‘s objective to double its size in the Chinese market between 2010 and 2013. This is part of an overall strategy of strongly boosting revenue derived from emerging economies and from the digital sector.
Longtup has eCommerce expertise in creative, customer acquisition, marketing solutions and measurement tools.
This is the fourth agency that the Publicis Groupe has acquired in china over the past four months, the other three being UBS (February 2012), King Harvests (March 2012) and Luminous (March 2012). Since 2010, the Groupe has acquired W&K (April 2010) G4 (July 2010) Eastwei Relations (November 2010), Interactive Communications Ltd (February 2011), Dreams (May 2011), Genedigi (June 2011), Wangfan (November 2011), and Gomye (November 2011).
Longtuo was founded in 2000 and today it employs 200 people across its three offices in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. The addition of Longtuo will more than double the size of Razorfish in China, which currently employs 130 people and provides e-Commerce services to clients such as Converse, Hertz, and GM Onstar.
The digital marketing firm has on its roster of clients brands like 360buy, Kohler, Masamaso, Taobao and Yves Rocher. Longtuo has also done work for Renaulton on a contract basis providing website development and content management, as well as traffic measurement and analysis.
Publicis Groupe COO and Publicis Groupe China chairman Jean-Yves Naouri said, “China has the potential to become the world‘s largest e-Commerce market very swiftly, outstripping even the United States. This acquisition means we‘re now perfectly positioned to offer our clients first-in-class local expertise. The Groupe is accelerating our drive to meet our ambitious targets for growth in China.”
Longtuo CEO and founding partner Su Yi will serve as managing director of Razorfish Longtuo China, and will report to Razorfish Asia Pacific president and Razorfish Greater China executive chairman Vincent Digonnet.
“The Longtuo acquisition establishes Razorfish as a Chinese leader in digital marketing services. By integrating Longtuo with Razorfish, we are expanding the e-Commerce services we deliver to our multinational clients, while providing all local and global marketers a comprehensive offer and proprietary tools that extend across the entire e-Commerce consumer journey,” said Razorfish CEO and member of the VivaKi board of directors Bob Lord.
“The alignment of Longtuo and Razorfish in China combines two growing concerns to create a market leading e-Commerce partner for a rapidly expanding roster of clients. We are thrilled to leverage the scale and clout of Publicis Groupe to build a stronger proposition for our clients,” said SU Yi.
Buying family medical insurance online in India has become a common option for individuals who want to secure health coverage for multiple family members under a single policy. However, many buyers are unsure about the exact steps involved in selecting and purchasing the right plan online.
In this guide, you will know the step-by-step process of buying family medical insurance online in India, along with the key factors to review before purchasing a suitable policy.
Step 1: Assess Your Family’s Healthcare Needs
Before buying online health insurance, check the healthcare needs of all family members. Check age, existing illnesses, regular medicines, and the likely need for hospital care later. This helps in selecting a suitable sum insured, policy type, and level of cover. It also reduces the chance of buying a plan that appears suitable but does not meet actual medical needs.
Step 2: Visit the Insurance Company’s Official Website
After understanding the family’s needs, visit the insurer’s official website and read the plan details carefully. Use the official platform to review eligibility, policy wording, waiting periods, cover details, exclusions, and renewal terms.
This step gives a clearer understanding of how the policy works before payment is made. It also helps avoid confusion caused by incomplete summaries on other pages.
Step 3: Compare Available Family Health Insurance Plans
A family medical insurance policy should be compared on factors beyond the premium. Review the sum insured, hospital network, room rent limits, pre- and post-hospitalisation cover, daycare treatment coverage, and waiting periods. It is also important to check treatment sub-limits and specific policy conditions.
Careful comparison helps determine whether a plan provides balanced coverage and whether its terms are suitable for the healthcare needs of the entire family.
Step 4: Choose the Right Policy and Start the Online Purchase
Once the options have been compared, select the policy that best fits the family’s medical needs and budget. Before starting the application, review the covered members, policy term, benefits, and main conditions again. This is an important stage because errors here can lead to the wrong cover amount, an unsuitable variant, or missing details that create problems during policy use.
Step 5: Calculate the Premium Using an Online Calculator
Use the online premium calculator before making the final choice. Enter the correct details, including age, city, number of insured members, and selected cover amount. The result helps in understanding the expected premium and whether the policy fits the annual budget. This step is useful because it allows cost and coverage to be reviewed together, instead of choosing a plan only because the premium looks lower.
Step 6: Fill in Personal and Medical Details
When filling in the proposal form, provide accurate details for each insured member. This includes name, date of birth, contact details, medical history, ongoing treatment, and previous insurance information if required.
Every answer should be complete and truthful. Incorrect or missing details can create difficulty later. Before you submit the form, read every section again and correct any mistakes.
Step 7: Make Payment Through the Secure Payment Gateway
After checking the form, go to the payment page and complete the transaction through the secure payment gateway. Review the premium, policy term, and entered details once more before confirming payment.
After the transaction is completed, save the receipt, reference number, or confirmation message carefully. Keeping this record is useful if you need to track the purchase or follow up on policy issuance later.
Step 8: Download and Keep Your Policy Document Safely
Once the policy is issued, download the policy document, schedule, and any related papers without delay. Read them carefully to confirm member names, policy period, sum insured, and major terms. Save a digital copy in a secure folder and keep a printed copy if needed. Proper record keeping makes future renewals, document checks, and policy servicing easier and more organised when information is required quickly.
Conclusion
Buying health cover online becomes easier when you handle each step with attention. From checking your family’s needs to reading the final document, every stage helps you make an informed choice. A careful approach can reduce mistakes, improve your understanding of policy terms, and help you choose coverage that matches your household’s medical needs, financial capacity, and long-term healthcare planning in a reliable way for your family over the long term.
