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Economic slump – time to introspect marketing function?
Let's face it. Asian Tiger China's GDP growth rate has hit a 27-year low and is likely to end 2019 under 6 per cent. And GDP growth rate of India – the other Asian tiger has also hit a six year low and is expected to fall to 6 per cent in this fiscal year, according to the World Bank. Both these big cats are however, above the Asia Pacific GDP growth rate which is expected to be below 4 per cent.
2019 – year of the falling economies?
While a steep fall in demand, direct trade disputes with the USA & political churn in Hong Kong is responsible for the 27 year low in GDP growth rate of China, to make matters worse, the Chinese government has not yet recovered from the after effects of providing stimulus to the Chinese economy for nearly a decade.
Back home, the real estate industry is still struggling & factory output is slowing down, resulting in slow growth in employment. However, considering the situation in our neighbouring country, while the government has taken a slew of measures – steep cut in corporate tax rate (22 per cent from 30 per cent) and an even lower tax rate for new manufacturing companies (15 per cent) to attract new foreign direct investments (FDI), the same is yet to translate into meaningful outcome and spur growth.
Economy in advertising
With all this economic downturn, advertising was bound to be depressed. And it did, especially in the last two quarters. The Indian advertising industry's estimated worth was Rs 62,000 crore in 2018. Most predictions of Indian ad spend growth hovered between 10 per cent & 12 per cent riding on the wave of ad spends during the 2019 General Elections & the ICC Cricket World Cup. However, the actual growth may be lower at around 9 per cent – 10 per cent (including inflation), taking the total annual ad spend to Rs 67,000 crore. (By the way, the Asia Pacific ad spend growth rate for 2019 is predicted at 4 per cent.)
So what worked & what didn't?
Television medium growth is estimated between 9 per cent and 10 per cent in 2019. Digital medium growth is estimated between 25 per cent and 30 per cent in 2019. Print medium growth is expected to range between 5 per cent and 7 per cent and all the other media growth being under 6 per cent. So while television managed to hold its fort, print medium was marginalised in a real sense. Meanwhile, digital medium hopscotched to pole position from where it is poised to overtake print & challenge television. And the other media chugged along.
Role of marketing dept in slowdown
It's all very well to acknowledge the economic slowdown, demand slump and the marketing slack. Question is, with a full team strength, what should marketing focus on during this slack period?
For one, marketing can start adopting technology seriously. This is a challenging task for the CMO & his team, but if successful, this is the surest way of boosting marketing ROI. How? Because you can only improve what you can measure. And bringing IT into marketing is the first step towards measurement. The objective itself is deceptively simple: bring information technology closer to marketing strategy as well as marketing operations.
The first step can be total process automation for Marketing Depts., where every activity is included. Apart from bringing discipline, process automation will also bring uniformity & transparency.
. Once marketing processes are automated, a central marketing database is automatically created and populated in real time.
. This bridges the "data chasm" between Marketing, Finance & Sales, bringing data transparency.
. This "data transparency" will result in immediate cuts in unnecessary marketing expenditure – as managers will start to spend with more caution. This itself can result in 10% to 15% immediate savings.
. The central marketing database will also provide real time dashboard reporting to Marketing Managers for quick reviews.
. This data can be clubbed with sales, research, share of voice … to get ROI statistics.
. And the clubbed data can be further used for conducting analytics exercises & generating deep marketing insights.
Marketing departments must adopt information technology. And for this, the CMO must lead & exert his influence on his team. And this is the perfect time to solemnise marketing department's marriage with information technology & contribute to the company’s savings for now & the future!
(The author is founder, Brandintelle Services. The views expressed are his own and Indiantelevision.com may not subscribe to them.)
NEW DELHI: Hamdard Laboratories gathered a cross-section of India’s achievers in New Delhi on Friday, handing out the Hakeem Abdul Hameed Excellence Awards to figures who have left their mark across healthcare, education, sport, public service and the arts.
The ceremony, attended by minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth and senior officials from the ministry of Ayush, celebrated individuals whose work blends professional success with a sense of public purpose. It was as much a roll call of achievement as it was a reminder that influence is not measured only in profits or podiums, but in people reached and lives improved.
Among the headline awardees was Alakh Pandey, founder and chief executive of PhysicsWallah, recognised for turning affordable digital learning into a mass movement. On the sporting front, Arjuna Awardee and kabaddi player Sakshi Puniya was honoured for her contribution to the game and for pushing women’s participation onto bigger stages.
The cultural spotlight fell on veteran lyricist and poet Santosh Anand, whose songs have echoed across generations of Hindi cinema. At 97, Anand accepted the honour with characteristic humility, reflecting on a life shaped by perseverance and hope.
Healthcare honours spanned both modern and traditional systems. Manoj N. Nesari was recognised for strengthening Ayurveda’s place in national and global health frameworks. Padma shri Mohammed Abdul Waheed was honoured for his research-backed work in Unani medicine, while padma shri Mohsin Wali received recognition for his long-standing contribution to patient-centred care.
Education and social development also featured prominently. Padma shri Zahir Ishaq Kazi was honoured for decades of work in education, while former Meghalaya superintendent of Police T. C. Chacko was recognised for public service. Goonj founder Anshu Gupta received an award for his dignity-centred rural development initiatives, and the Hunar Shakti Foundation was honoured for empowering women and young girls through skill development.
The Lifetime Achievement Award went to former IAS officer Shailaja Chandra for her long career in public healthcare and governance, particularly in the traditional systems under Ayush.
Speaking at the event, Hamdard chairman Abdul Majeed said the awards were a tribute to those who combine excellence with empathy. “These awardees reflect Hakeem Sahib’s belief that healthcare, education and public service must ultimately serve humanity,” he said.
Minister Seth struck a forward-looking note, saying India’s young population gives the country a unique opportunity to become a global destination for learning, health and wellness by 2047.
The ceremony also featured the trailer launch of Unani Ki Kahaani, an upcoming documentary starring actor Jim Sarbh, set to premiere on Discovery on 11 February.
Instituted in memory of Unani scholar and educationist Hakeem Abdul Hameed, the awards have grown into a national platform that celebrates those building a more inclusive and resilient India. For one evening at least, the spotlight was not just on success, but on service with substance.
