Public Relations India

Trust in business steady in India: Edelman Trust Barometer

2011-01-26T05:19:00.000-08:00

Trust in business is holding steady in India and China, according to Edelman Trust Barometer study conducted by Edelman, the world’s biggest independent PR consultancy, in 23 countries across the world.

Richard Edelman, President & Chief Executive Officer of Edelman, writes in his blog, “The lead of the story must be that trust is transformed. In the wake of the financial market meltdown at the end of 2008, we have gone through a series of corporate crises during 2010 -- from oil spills to product recalls affecting the leading enterprises in five sectors to the near-bankruptcy of five nations in the EU. The result is an even more profound shift in the expectation of companies to operate with increased transparency and in a manner that delivers profit while improving society, captured by my client Indra Nooyi, CEO of Pepsico, in her phrase, ‘Performance with Purpose’.

“We also found unprecedented skepticism, a need to hear, see or watch news as many as 10 times before achieving belief, plus an increased reliance on those with credentials and expertise.”

The key findings of Edelman Trust Barometer study are:

State of trust

Trust in business — There are now three clear country groupings – the Trusters, the Neutrals and the Distrusters. The Trusters, notably Brazil, China, and India, withstood the financial crisis and had positive economic performance this year. There is evidence of rising trust in business over the past two years even in flat-lined economies such as France, the Netherlands and Italy. The key change in 2011 is the switch of Germany and the USA, with the former now in the Neutrals with Japan, while the USA moves to the Distrusters along with Russia and the UK. Business is as or more trusted than government in 19 of the 23 nations we surveyed this year.

Trust in government — There are fewer countries in the Truster category for government, including Brazil, China, Singapore and the UAE. The largest drops in trust in government were in Germany and the USA. Note that in general, trust in business and government is now in sync, a change in the past two years. Though there are exceptions, such as Germany, where rising trust in business is observed despite less confidence in government.

Trust in media — We note that trust in media continues to rise in the developing world and to slide in the developed economies. The most depressing findings for media were in the US and UK, respectively 27% and 22%, which we attribute to increased politicization, aggressive tone and scandals.

Trust in industries — Technology continues to wear the halo as the number one industry in both developed and developing economies (98% trusted in China). Banking and financial Services are now the least trusted industries of the 16 we review annually. The reputation of banks continues to plummet, especially in the US, UK and Ireland, down nearly 50 points in the US in the past three years to a new low of 25%. Automotive has made an amazing recovery, to rank as the #2 trusted industry in the world, attributable to the GM IPO, the launch of electric cars and the association with modernity in the developing world.

Trust in nationality — The companies headquartered in Canada, Germany and Sweden continue to enjoy a trust advantage, while the UK and Switzerland are closing the gap. American companies are much better regarded in the past two years, especially in Germany and Russia, while preserving a strong reputation in such key future markets as Brazil and China. The companies based in the BRIC nations saw rising trust scores in developing nations, but a decline in markets such as the USA.

Earning trust

What drives corporate reputation — The top four factors are: high quality products and services; Company I can trust; transparent business practices; treats employees well. The bottom two are: highly rated leadership and delivers consistent financial returns. This is the second year in a row that we see a reversal of constituent elements of reputation, suggesting a rebalancing of priorities for business.

Shareholder versus stakeholder — We asked specifically about Milton Friedman’s contention that the social responsibility of business is to generate profit; about 50% of respondents agreed. But, we also probed whether companies need to create shareholder value in a way that benefits society even if that causes a reduction in shareholder value; about 80% agreed with that point of view, from developed to developing economies. This indicates a desire for profit and purpose, a stakeholder approach to shared value.

Credible spokespeople — Given the uncertainty in the economy and plethora of sources of information, respondents said that they believe spokespeople with proven expertise, in order academics, technical experts from a company (for first time), financial analysts and chief executive officers. The recovery of the CEO in reputational terms is remarkable; this is the highest score we have seen in nine years, though in the UK and US that means only about one third believe a CEO is credible. We also found that in a crisis, the number one trusted source is the CEO, followed by an outside expert, followed by a technical expert from the company.

Information sources — More people go initially to search engines, then to online sources for information about a company. The brands most noted are the familiar mainstream media stalwarts such as the Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, BBC, Globo and CCTV. Blogs and social networks substantially lag the mainstream brands.

Benefits of trust — If you go into a crisis as a distrusted company, it takes only 1-2 negative stories for a person to believe negative news. If you go in as a trusted company, it takes only 1-2 positive stories for you to achieve belief. Trust is a protective agent, a facilitator of action. We find further evidence of desire to buy products, recommend products/services and buy shares in a trusted enterprise.

Trust is no longer a commodity that is acquired but rather a benefit that is bestowed, earned through action, reinforced by transparency and engagement. Business has the opportunity to build an enduring foundation of trust if its leaders commit to a strategy that brings value to both investors and society -- the What and the Why. However, today it must further explain as to how it makes money, a new level of transparency on business practices -- for instance, ingredients in products. Finally, it must build relationships across the entire stakeholder universe, the Where, by engaging audiences across the four leaf clover of media (Mainstream, New, Social, Owned) and joining the continuing conversation by adding value and learning from the critics.

Forbes expects global firms to redefine PR in India

2011-01-26T04:00:00.000-08:00

Rohin Dharmakumar writes in Forbes India. His report:

A wave of international firms is sweeping over India’s shores. They see the potential to take the business of public relations to a more professional, systematic and pro-active level. They are trying to shake up a smug Indian industry used to treating PR as a minor cost centre focussed on managing a few journalists; and help it prepare for a more assertive and connected consumer base. In the process, PR is becoming a more strategic but expensive affair for companies…

Indian PR firms are at the middle of this change. Before time runs out, they must shape up to fight the onslaught or sell out to foreign brands. Many have indeed sold out — Genesis to Burson-Marstellar, IPAN to Hill & Knowlton, Hanmer & Partners and 20:20 Media to MS&L and Roger Pereira & Associates to Edelman. A few foreign agencies have started from scratch — Text100, Fleishman-Hillard, Waggener-Edstrom and APCO.

But a few Indian firms are holding out. “I don’t need someone to tell me how to compete,” says Madan Bahal, CEO of Adfactors, one of the leading PR firms in the country.

The public relations business in India is fairly young; most firms trace their origin to the years following economic reforms. Using just sheer doggedness in chasing down journalists, a growing bunch of entrepreneurs fueled a mini-boom. For them, public relations meant little more than media relations. “Everybody who spent a few years doing PR opened up their own mom-and-pop shops, selling media execution. They worried about which hotels to hold press conferences in or what gifts to give journalists,” recalls Rishi Seth, founder-CEO of Six Degrees PR who earlier headed multinational PR firm Text100 in India.

The business was soon commoditised. Most worked on wafer-thin retainers and even slighter profits. To control costs, they began hiring inexperienced and cheaper employees. For many, the profession degraded to ‘planting’ nice stories about their clients or blocking negative stories. Journalists they managed to befriend co-operated…

All that changed with the Internet and mobile phone. There are more than 500 million mobile users and about 80 million Internet users in India today. Nearly 70 percent of Web users are on some social network. Their trust in newspapers, TV news and yes, business magazines, is down sharply: 35-40 percent lesser than two years ago, according to a 2010 survey conducted by Edelman. But they’re connected, eager for information and willing to speak their mind.

“This is the age of radical transparency. If you’re a company behaving in an unethical way, then you will be found out and castigated very quickly. And you cannot hope that your relationships with journalists — however good they may be — will protect your reputation then,” says Arun Sudhaman, managing editor of The Holmes Report, a London-based PR trade publication.

The entire market for agency PR in India is estimated to be just around $100 million annually, says Sudhaman. That’s about 35 percent of just Edelman’s 2009 global revenue. Average monthly retainers still hover around the Rs. 100,000-150,000 figure, a pittance compared against companies’ marketing or advertising budgets. “In New York I wouldn’t consider retainers less than $20,000 a month,” says Robert Holdheim, Edelman’s India head…

International agencies bring a whole new way of doing PR in India. Unlike the local firms which follow ad-hoc methods, they work with data, templates and processes. They try to understand the business problems of the clients rather than just look at the marketing problems…

International firms have become ubiquitous on the PR scene in India. The only three exceptions are Vaishnavi Communications, Perfect Relations and Adfactors. Even they are under constant wooing by foreign firms looking for a toehold in India. Dilip Cherian, founder of Perfect Relations, says, “We are constantly courted and are consistently one of the first ports of call for an acquirer. And though we have always believed that any deal that enhances all-round shareholder value is good, we are not in a hurry to sell.”

Bahal of Adfactors, is categorical that he will not sell out to an international agency. He sees Indian agencies selling out as a sign of weakness and a lack of vision or ambition among entrepreneurs to take their firms to a higher level. Worse, most entrepreneurs have sold out for ‘peanuts’, he says. Bahal is open to partnerships ‘by the hundreds’ though.

The fact remains that the top Indian PR companies like Vaishnavi and Adfactors are still the revenue leaders; they are no weak competitors.

At the end of the day, the nationality of the PR agency doesn’t matter, but the quality and ethics behind their work do. As Hill & Knowlton India’s head Radhika Shapoorji says, “Consumers are getting more empowered. They know their rights and will not stand for nonsense. And in sectors like aviation, telecom and hospitality, due to the sheer number of customers and customer touch points, you can almost expect a crisis a day. Therefore companies must treat each complaint as an issue, before it becomes a crisis.”

(With additional reporting by Samar Srivastava)

Mumbai, Stockholm ahead in PR creativity: Global expert

2010-06-23T18:31:00.000-07:00

Smaller countries – also emerging economies like India – are ahead in the PR creativity race, according to global experts.

Colin Byrne, CEO, Weber Shandwick Europe, says, “We tend to think that London and New York are the creative centres of PR, but it is increasingly places like Stockholm and Mumbai. It is a bit of a wake-up call for the industry. A lot of what I saw from the UK was pretty pedestrian.”

Byrne is on the Cannes Lions PR jury this year, where Gatorade’s Replay won the Grand Prix out of 571 entries to the Cannes Lions PR category.

Arun Sudhaman reports that 12 Gold Lions were handed out this year, with advertising agencies again proving more successful than their PR counterparts. Sweden’s Prime PR submitted a strong performance with two golds: for Carwinism on behalf of Audi Sweden, and Kraft Foods’ Save Christmas campaign.

“The other conventional PR agencies to win Gold Lions were Fleishman-Hillard, for a consumer campaign on behalf of the Papa John’s pizza chain in the US, and Italian firm Barabino & Partners, which scored two golds for Heineken’s Auditorium Football campaign,” Sudhaman reports.

The jury, which was rather disappointed with the performance of the more mature PR economies of the US and the UK, praised the work done in Sweden, Brazil, Australia and Spain. While the US won two golds and three silvers in addition to its Grand Prix, the UK bagged just four Silver Lions. The Asia-Pacific region won six silvers while Germany secured three golds and one silver.

“The small countries are giving the large countries a run for their money,” says Paul Taaffe, Jury President and Global Chairman and CEO, Hill & Knowlton. “Those markets have a tradition of risk-taking.”

As “the quality of entries was not enough” in categories like crisis communications, public affairs and internal communications, no awards had been given this year.

Dovetail PR into marketing: Jain

2010-06-23T17:28:00.000-07:00

Archana Jain, Managing Director, PR Pundit, says that “norms rendering PR as distinct from marketing are no longer appropriate in this age of consumerism, in which consumers aggregate all messages in making a decision to interact with the brand or company”.

In an interview with Ashish Pratap Singh of exchange4media, she says, “Since marketing and communication is all about perceptions and not a battle of products, we believe in winning the battle of perceptions creatively. Thus, we pursue a systematic approach to gaining insights that drive ideas and creativity for effective, smart PR campaigns to build brand reputation. We strive to communicate brand promises in a fresh and relevant manner.”

PR boom in 2010 with accent on ethics: Shergill

2010-05-31T20:47:00.000-07:00

Jaideep Shergill, CEO, Hanmer MS&L India, has taken the lead in addressing reputation issues associated with the PR industry.

“Current research supports a historical trend of associating public relations with all things unethical – lying, spin-doctoring, and even espionage,” he says in an exclusive interview to Pallavi Goorha Kashyup of exchange4media. “But today, there are concrete strides made in modern public relations toward becoming ethical advisors in management... A PR professional is in some ways a very important brand manager for a company, brand meaning in this case, a promise a company gives to a customer and keeping that promise. If a PR professional determines that a company is doing something against their promise, it is their role to speak out within the company and ask the company to address that issue. And this trend has been consistently increasing with PR consultancies becoming more structured and process driven.”

Shergill also urges PR professionals to revisit their obsession with media for message delivery. “Public relations has changed significantly over the last few years,” he says. “Even if you don’t buy into the idea that online communities and relationships are part of the public relations function, it’s hard to deny the rising importance of blogs, the gradual decline of traditional media and the impact that online conversations can have on brands.”

Considering the rapid changes in the industry, there is a need for public relations professionals to upgrade their skills while acquiring new ones. “PR pros still need the basic attributes and skills that they’ve always needed such as writing, communications skills, an eye for detail and pro-activeness, and of course, media relations,” he says. “But going forward, we will require talents and personality traits somewhat different from today. It is all about relationships. A PR person who approaches the market from a relationships standpoint will win. Decisions need to be based on data, not gut feelings. Listening and absorbing what the customers, media, influencers, analysts, employees, neighbours and community are saying is important. Professionals should have the ability to understand and design strategies based on the needs and perceptions of the target audience, and value truth and transparency above all.”

Shergill says that “recession has forced PR consultancies to get their houses in order, and evolve or they will be in deep trouble... The challenges the economy had posed for our profession in 2009 was quite bad. Clearly, revenues in our business dipped in 2009, but the news was not all bad. Generally speaking, public relations performed better than other communications disciplines in 2009.”

The Hanmer MS&L CEO is bullish about the Indian PR industry in 2010. “The size of India’s public relations industry is poised to be on a substantial growth curve due to increasing competition among companies to build brands,” he says. “The year has started well for everyone, but going forward, it is important to continue to create value beyond just providing media relations.”

Indian PR industry basks in glory

2010-05-07T20:32:00.000-07:00

Today is probably a red-letter day for the Indian PR industry with the key media acknowledging the invaluable contributions made by the communications campaign leaders of the Ambani brothers in the big gas battle.

Perhaps this is one of the rare occasions when public relations professionals are being single out for praise as ‘key people’ and ‘top generals’. The Economic Times today wrote about both Niira Radia, Chairperson and Managing Director, Vaishnavi Corportate Communications Pvt Ltd whose subsidiary NeUcom Consulting manages PR for Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Limited, and Tony Jesudasan who heads the communications department of Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group.

“The chairperson of Vaishnavi Corporate Communications is possibly the most successful public relations entrepreneur in India, as her company handles the PR business of two of India’s largest business conglomerates — the Tatas and RIL,” writes The Economic Times. “She has emerged as Mukesh Ambani’s key Delhi ally in the past two years.”

The paper continues, “Radia is known for her connections in the government and media and is reputed to be an astute barometer of political and media dynamics, apart from being a charming conversationalist. Her colleagues describe her as thorough, hands on and very demanding.”

“Chief troubleshooter and ace spinmaster of the Anil Ambani establishment, Tony Jesudasan manages the group’s media needs from his second-floor office on 6, Aurangazeb Road,” writes the paper. “His involvement goes back to the days of the undivided Reliance empire.”

Jesudasan has “the rare ability to think and function calmly under great pressure. Chose to join the younger sibling when the brothers split, and has since then remained Anil Ambani’s trusted lieutenant in Delhi as Group President, Corporate Affairs, R-ADAG.”

Pickard sees rapid changes in PR

2010-04-27T21:57:00.000-07:00

Bob Pickard, President and CEO of Burson-Marsteller Asia-Pacific, has been the co-founder and leader of successful award-winning PR consultancies in the US, Japan, Korea and Canada in his PR career spanning over two decades. He has provided consultancy to clients like AstraZeneca, British Airways, De Beers, EMC, GlaxoSmithKline, ING, Johnson & Johnson, Kia Motors, Merck, Microsoft, Nissan, Nomura and Pfizer.

In an exclusive interview with exchange4media’s Preeti Hoon, Pickard speaks about the rapid changes in the communications industry in view of the changing needs of companies. “Clients are now looking to PR agencies for ‘big brain’ consulting in a way that I’ve never seen before,” he says. “As the digital media revolution gathers momentum, PR firms have earned a seat at the table and we are being given every opportunity to showcase an agility and nimble nature that is perfectly suited to mastering the relationship imperative on social networks. Clients are also looking for more tangible proof of PR’s contribution to business success, and that’s good news for us, because digital is by its very nature so measurable. Now, we can showcase the value that PR adds as never before.”

According to Pickard, PR is no longer about “communicating key messages top-down along a vertical axis from corporations to a mass consumer audience by earning editorial coverage. Now, PR is also about stimulating conversations between stakeholders on a peer-to-peer basis, where brands are co-created horizontally. PR these days really stands for ‘Public Relationships’, where we apply our traditional skills with journalists to many more communities of interest. These days, we are increasingly becoming ‘digital storytellers’, where we are becoming content providers, programming information for news streams that scroll on people’s computer and mobile screens.”

As for the biggest challenge facing the PR industry in Asia, Pickard says, “There is a rising tide of expectations for compensation among PR agency workforces, which client budgets are not currently increasing rapidly enough to support. Therefore, to avoid the kind of staff turnover that such a problem presents, PR firms need to focus on the quality of their training and the quality of their service to earn higher demand for professional time that is worth more because clients come to agree that it has a higher value. At the same time, PR firms need to reduce the gigantic generation gaps between digital generation newcomers and analogue generation veterans so that clients benefit from the best blend of traditional and emerging consulting skills.”

Consumer firms ahead in US reputation race

2010-04-27T21:47:00.000-07:00

Johnson & Johnson is the most reputable company in the USA, followed by Kraft Foods, Kellogg, The Walt Disney Company, PepsiCo and Sara Lee. Johnson & Johnson is winning the laurel for the second consecutive year in a study conducted among by Reputation Institute.

The study is based on 24,977 online interviews about the respondents’ perceptions of the USA's top (by annual revenue) 150 companies' products and services, innovation, workplace, governance, citizenship, financial performance and leadership.

All the toppers are in the consumer space. According to Laurie Burkitt of Forbes, “Warm-and-fuzzy household names are most loved in tough times. Consumers are still critical of financial service giants. With big names like Tiger Woods and Toyota Motor stepping into the spotlight of public scrutiny this year, reputation is a hot topic in the media and in corporate boardrooms. No company wants its public image to be the reason it has a hard time rebounding from the recession.”

Burkitt continues, “The secret to Johnson & Johnson's success rings true for all of this year's top reputable companies: Each has direct connections to their consumers and their families.”

India's PR industry full of paradoxes: PRWeek

2010-02-10T19:40:00.000-08:00

“Few people tire of pointing out that India is a country full of paradoxes,” Arun Sudhaman writes in his indepth article on India in PRWeek. “This also applies to the country's PR industry, where pockets of dazzling sophistication co-exist with the most time-honoured of media relations techniques.”

“Often described as undervalued, India's PR market remains difficult to gauge accurately,” adds Sudhaman.

“The ICCO World Report classes India as a 'fast emerging market' and points to energy, healthcare, retail and telecoms as some areas with strong growth prospects. Specific practice areas that are expected to grow include consumer marketing, financial, public affairs and technology.”

On the paucity of talent, Sudhaman says, “Talent remains the critical commodity, with high turnover levels particularly evident among younger PROs. He quotes Genesis Burson-Marsteller CEO Ashwani Singla as saying, “It is the most significant issue both in terms of availability and cost.”

B2B will accelerate growth of digital, mobile, social media in India: Experts

2009-12-18T04:54:00.000-08:00

Digitas Global Chief Creative Officer Mark Beeching and Chief Marketing Officer Seth Solomons feel that the biggest space for growth of digital, mobile or social media in India is in the B2B space.

Digitas is the digital arm of the world’s fourth largest communications group, The Publicis Groupe.

In an exclusive interview with Preethi Chamikutty of The Economic Times, Beeching and Solomons say, “Businesses today are adopting digital much faster than customers…

“India would have to leap frog some of the bad marketing that the West has done and go directly to the ones that give results to the brand. For example, in the West, financial institutions were attracting customer by giving them low rates of interest, which put them in a soup in the long run.

“So, today Indian companies should help the customer in the decision-making process and give them offers that they would value. A 30-second spot cannot alone connect with the customer. There have to be activities before and after the TVC to connect with the customers. Digital and traditional media are like Siamese twins, you cannot separate the two.”

Online banner ad spend growth slows down as clients switch to search marketing, mobile ads

2009-12-17T22:27:00.000-08:00

The growth in online banner ad spend is expected to slow down this financial year as clients have been switching to search marketing and mobile advertising.

In 2008-09, the online banner ad spend grew by 38 per cent to Rs 325 crore. In contrast, the growth rate is expected to drop to 32 per cent (Rs 430 crore) in 2009-10, according to a study by Internet and Mobile Association of India-IMRB.

Search marketing and mobile advertising are expected to reach Rs 325 crore and Rs 50 crore respectively in this financial year, according to afaqs!

Prasanth Mohanachandran, Executive Director, Digital Services, OgilvyOne India, has told afaqs!, “Advertisers have started to experiment, and must have increased their spending on other formats such as search marketing and social media marketing.”

The IAMAI-IMRB study revealed that the growth in banner ad spends in 2009-10 would be driven by sectors such as education (expected to grew by 76 per cent to Rs 34 crore), IT/telecom (41 per cent to Rs 68 crore), FMCG (46 per cent to Rs 47 crore) and auto (40 per cent Rs 39 crore).

The study indicated that the traditional online advertisers - banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) and online publishers - have not increased spends on banner advertisements significantly.

Banner ad spends in the BFSI sector is projected to increase by 17 per cent to Rs 64.5 crore in 2009-10. Online publishers' banner spend is anticipated to reach Rs 107 crore in 2009-10, compared to Rs 84.5 crore in 2008-09.

PR agencies gear up for growth: Survey

2009-12-09T22:56:00.001-08:00

Public relations consultancies are gearing up for robust growth in the years to come. Increasing profits and headcounts are expected in 2010.

Top global PR consultancy heads are convinced the industry has turned the corner, reports Gemma O'Reilly in PRWeek. “The latest PRCA PR Leaders' Panel showed confidence returning to the PR market after a troubled 2009,” according to the report. “Some 84 per cent of agency heads expected an increase in staff numbers, while 88 per cent predicted higher turnover and 82 per cent expected more new business.”

Major marcoms groups WPP, Omnicom and Interpublic all recently reported third-quarter year-on-year revenue drops in their PR divisions. But steep share price rises over the year, especially for the PR-centric groups, indicate that investors retain confidence in the industry. Several experts share their views:

Media analyst Jonathan Barrett at Singer Capital Markets: Share price improvements have been driven by the thought that they are not heading into the abyss like last year. Conditions remain uncertain but people are generally confident.

Hill & Knowlton Global Chairman and CEO Paul Taaffe: 2009 had been a challenging year, but we are optimistic about 2010. Recovery will take place at different speeds across different geographies and sectors. Brand and reputation will be increasingly influenced by online consumers, so we expect a continuing shift in marketing spend from traditional advertising into digital and PR.

Edelman President and CEO Richard Edelman: This is the first recession in which PR outperformed advertising. We are now seen as a critical asset in re-establishing trust in business. 2010 will see more global consolidation such as Ketchum Pleon or MS&L and Publicis.

Weber Shandwick Global CEO Harris Diamond: This year was better than expected. Our largest clients helped us because they did not cut back like they have in previous recessions. We are expecting a good year in technology, consumer and healthcare. We expect business to improve in 2010.

RK Swamy Media Group’s invaluable Media Market Guide

2009-12-09T22:35:00.000-08:00

The 12th edition of RK Swamy Media Group’s Media Market Guide India 2009 has been released. The Guide is a ‘handy reference book for media and advertising professionals”.

“The Market Guide offers all the relevant information on markets and media in a crisp and easy-to-use format,” according to exchange4media. “Be it market demographics, audience description, information on various media, down to even a very succinct section on penetration and usage of products, the Guide has it all. In addition, important information compiled from various sources is given in the form of snippets for quick reference.”

R K Swamy BBDO Senior Advisor P R P Nair is quoted as saying, “The pocket guide is always useful when you need to access information during meetings with your clients and colleagues. With this thought in mind, we came up with the concept of a pocket handbook over a decade ago. The growing demand for the Guide each year has encouraged us to improve on the content and the value it brings to its users. It encompasses our 15 years of deep understanding and experience of the market and media scenario.”

RK Swamy BBDO makes this Media Market Guide available free of cost to clients and media owners. Professionals interested in this may write from their official mail ID with their names, designation and phone number to: prp.nair@mediadirectionindia.com.

Harjiv Singh on changing face of Indian PR

2009-08-20T06:04:00.001-07:00

Harjiv Singh, Co-founder & CEO - International Operations, Gutenberg Communications, spoke to Puneet Bedi Bahri of exchange4media.com. Excerpts:

"In India, it is true that PR is primarily media relations. But, this is changing as Indian companies that aspire to have a global brand are increasingly realising the value of strategic communication counselors in the C-suite and at the board level. The Satyam scandal was a classic example of why communications is now an important imperative for companies even in India and why roles like the Chief Communications Officer need to be seriously looked at by corporate India.

"Companies like Delta Airlines, Yahoo! and SAP have such senior executives who are responsible for managing corporate reputation and aligning such functions as media relations, policy communications, investor relations, internal communications, crisis communications, and branding under a single head.

"In order to change the perception of PR, the industry needs to view communications as an integral part of strategy, rather than a sub-set of marketing. Further, it is crucial to understand the role of both internal and external communications to drive change in organisations, rather than viewing it from the lens of media relations.

"I strongly believe that agencies need to understand the business of our clients much better than is the case currently."

How to make email marketing more effective

2009-08-16T19:13:00.001-07:00

Companies should refrain launching desperate email campaigns in order to meet their financial targets.

This is the advice given by Steven Permuy in his write-up on email marketing and high stakes.

Permuy says the ‘spray-and-pray’ (or ‘batch and blast’) approach of mass mailing customers is counter-productive. “The growth of email marketing has led to an increase in the number of communications sent to customers, due to ease of execution and low-cost of implementation. Ironically, omitting to apply the rigour of established direct marketing principles to online marketing, such as testing, measurement and relevancy of content, results in less leads as customers increasingly unsubscribe, report emails as spam or implement their own spam filters, and use multiple email addresses to guard their privacy.”

Permuy says it’s important to gain a better understanding of the customer through periodically planned analysis that identifies patterns that trigger dynamic content.

5 steps to richer customer experience

2009-08-10T17:50:00.000-07:00

More and more companies are finding value in making customer service experiences multilingual and multicultural: delivered in the business and regulatory context of local markets and tailored to the language and culture of the customer, writes Anand Subramaniam in Harvard Business.

His five-step approach to making customer service experiences multilingual and multicultural focuses on the following: assess the importance of customer service; assess target markets; assess the scope of customer queries; train agents; and adopt culturally-nuanced policies and practices.

Don’t downsize CSR budgets during turmoil, says Harvard Business School professor

2009-08-09T17:41:00.000-07:00

The Malcolm P. McNair Professor of Marketing at Harvard Business School, V Kasturi "Kash" Rangan says that CSR or Corpororate Social Responsibility budgets should not be downsized during turbulent times.

CSR means activities undertaken by businesses that enhance their value in the community and society and thus benefit their reputation and brand, according to the eminent scholar.

“CSR should be treated as a business discipline and practiced with the same professionalism and rigour as other aspects of a firm's strategy,” he says. “Good examples are the early childhood literacy initiative of PNC, a financial services organization based in Pittsburgh, and the 10,000 Women initiative of Goldman Sachs, which facilitates a business education for underserved women.”

Chinese are superior marketing professionals

2009-08-09T17:31:00.000-07:00

Marketing professionals in China would put their counterparts in the US and the UK to shame, according to Mark Ritson, consultant to some of the world's biggest brands, in marketingmagazine.co.uk.

In Shanghai, the evolution of marketing skills in executives trained by Ritson has been very impressive. “Before my eyes they have transformed from anxious graduate students with no practical experience into the best marketers I have ever seen,” says Ritson. “I have been a marketing professor for 12 years and taught all over the world, but it is only in China where I have seen my instruction executed to perfection in the field.”

Narrating an anecdote related to WuMart, the Chinese Wal-Mart, Ritson says that the Chinese should not be understimated. “The 21st century belongs to China, and there is not a lot anyone in the UK or the US can do about it,” says Ritson. “It's time for new leaders. They are on the way.”

International Organization for Standardization’s brand evaluator

2009-08-03T18:07:00.000-07:00

Marketing Magazine reports:

Superbrands, Interbrand and WPP with its BrandZ list are among the companies that are into brand valuation.

The latest effort, headed up by the International Organization for Standardization, differs, as it comes from an internationally respected organisation outside of the marketing industry.

The draft standard specifies three approaches to brand valuation. The first is the income approach, which measures the value of the brand by reference to the present value of its economic benefits. The others are based on what other purchasers in the market have paid for similar assets and the value of the brand based on the cost invested in it.

Brand evaluation specialists have greeted the news with mixed views. Stephen Cheliotis, CEO of The Centre of Brand Analysis and Chairman, Superbrands Council, believes it to be too subjective an area for the ISO to become involved in.
David Haigh, CEO of valuation consultancy Brand Finance, welcomed the standard as an attempt to 'create a consensus on how brands should be valued'.

‘‘Brands are the largest single source of intangible assets, yet historically, brand valuation has been viewed as opaque, subjective and unreliable -- and a bit of a black art,’' he says.

Amit Chaudhery is MD of Text 100 India

2009-07-06T20:52:00.000-07:00

Text 100 India has appointed Amit Chaudhery, Motorola India's former Head of Communications and Corporate Affairs, as its new Managing Director after a six-month search, reports Benjamin Li in Brand Republic. He replaces Rishi Seth, who left the post at the end of last year after nine years of service.

Chaudhery will report to Regional Director Asia-Pacific, Rowan Benecke, and will be responsible for end-to-end operations of Text 100 India, Vox Public Relations, and GRO, Text 100’s global resource optimisation centre in-country.

Benecke said: “Amit was head of communications at Motorola, which was one of our clients in India, we know each other well. We’re very excited to add someone with Amit’s deep experience in corporate communications and broad industry experience in India to our leadership team in Asia. We are confident that Amit will lead our all-important India business and help chart and drive the next phase of growth in India.”

Radical changes foreseen in PR’s role

2009-07-06T06:51:00.000-07:00

Claire Cain Miller reports in New York Times

In Menlo Park, California, Brooke Hammerling (publicist) and Erin McKean (entrepreneur) are in a Sand Hill Road conference room, hashing out plans to unveil McKean’s new website, Wordnik.

Hammerling, while popping green apple Jolly Ranchers into her mouth, suggests a press tour that includes briefing bloggers at influential geek sites like TechCrunch, All Things Digital and GigaOM.

But Roger McNamee, a prominent tech investor who is backing Wordnik, is also in the room, and a look of exasperation passes across his face at the mere mention of the sites.

“Why shouldn’t we avoid them? They’re cynical,” he says, also noting his concern that Wordnik would probably appeal more to wordsmiths than followers of tech blogs. “That’s where I would be most uncomfortable. They don’t know the difference between ‘they’re’ and ‘there.”’

Without missing a beat, Hammerling changes course, instantly agreeing with McNamee’s take. “I love you for that,” she intones. “I’ll leave the tech blogs out. Let them come to me.”

Instead, she decides that she will “whisper in the ears” of Silicon Valley’s Who’s Who — the entrepreneurs behind tech’s hottest start-ups, including Jay Adelson, the chief executive of Digg; Biz Stone, co-founder of Twitter; and Jason Calacanis, the founder of Mahalo. Notably, none are journalists.

This is the new world of promoting start-ups in Silicon Valley, where the lines between journalists and everyone else are blurring and the number of followers a pundit has on Twitter is sometimes viewed as more important than old metrics like the circulation of a newspaper.

Gone are the days when snaring attention for start-ups in the Valley meant mentions in print and on television, or even spotlights on technology websites and blogs. Now PR gurus court influential voices on the social Web to endorse new companies, websites or gadgets—a transformation that analysts and practitioners say is likely to permanently change the role of PR in the business world, and particularly in Silicon Valley.

While public relations is just one arrow in the marketing quiver for most companies, it plays an especially crucial role in a region where dozens of start-ups are born each month.

“Few tech companies with absolutely no PR have built a user base successfully,” said Margit Wennmachers, a co-founder of OutCast Communications, a PR agency in San Francisco. “They need PR to put the booster under that rocket ship.”

In the new world of social media, PR people must know hundreds of writers, bloggers and Twitter users instead of having six top reporters on speed dial.

Dena Cook, Hammerling’s business partner at Brew Media Relations, recalls the boom years when start-ups sent PR firms handsome checks that the firms had to return because they didn’t have room for new clients.

At the time, tools of the trade were largely limited to press releases and pitch letters, embargoes and exclusives and, of course, the legendary and often criticized parties. But the rise of blogs and social networks, and companies’ ability to post information on their own sites, transformed all this.

For new companies’ trying to get the word out, there’s a healthy measure of liberation in all of this. For publicists, the era of email, blogs and Twitter has the potential to turn the entire idea of PR professionals as gatekeepers.

As with so many professions in the digital era, public relations boils down to a juggling act, an effort to weigh and exploit the varied strengths of old media and new.

Sir Martin Sorrell on recession, media, clients and his India plans

2009-07-05T22:33:00.001-07:00

Prajjal Saha of afaqs.com interviewed Sir Martin Sorrell, Chief Executive Officer, WPP Group in Cannes. Excerpts:

On recession: You can argue that this recession has been more severe and shocking. I am not talking about the post-subprime scenario, but particularly the post-Lehman crisis period or the following weekend, which was really frightening. Noted economist Warren Buffet termed this recession as an economic Pearl Harbour.

We also hear that the British government was planning a bank holiday by statutory instrument if it couldn't agree with the bank. Though I am not as old as to go back to the 1920s or 30s, but I must say that it is a pretty tough time.

On whether advertising clients have been tougher this time: Yes, they have been tougher. As I said, the situation was so severe that people were looking at it more as a biss.

We were already facing a tough time since August 2007. However, I must say that the client was more aggressive, particularly on the procurement or financial side. In the time of recession, there are two words that get used a lot – these are effectiveness and efficiency. Effectiveness means quality and efficiency means cost. I think that in the current situation, efficiency is winning over effectiveness.

In the advertising business, the marketing function has also lost primacy or even parity.

On when and how recovery of the economy will shape up: The year 2009 looks like a difficult year but I think it will be relatively better in the second half. However, we will have to wait till 2010 to see a recovery. It will not be anaemic but a recovery of sorts in the shape of italic 'L'. The recovery will depend on what we all have been talking about – long term returns and not short term ones.

On whether recovery would start with emerging markets such as India and China: The conventional wisdom is that the recovery will start with America but I am not sure that's right. The rise in the Indian stock market has been quite interesting. There has been a sort of decoupling of stock markets in emerging economies, though in reality, there is no decoupling as such as we are all dependent on one another. However, India is less dependent on exports and imports.

Even in China, there was a flip up in the stock market in April this year, but that couldn't continue in May. We thought that it was a good sign, but we found out later that it was because of destocking in the post-Lehman scenario.

This actually reflected a belief which I would like to share - that recovery will be first in the emerging markets, China in particular.

Besides, India is in a relatively better condition than the other markets, although it did slow down around the elections.

On what he would like to convey to his 1,00,000 employees: Whether it's right or wrong, the strategy is very simple. First it's the new markets (which include the BRIC countries) and the next 11 markets – that makes 27 per cent of our business.

Next is new media, which is again 25 per cent of our business. The Consumer Insight business is $4 billion out of the $15 billion, which is another 26-27 per cent. So together with the direct half of our business, we are almost there, or rather we are there where we need to be.

Given that strategy, if I am in India, then I am feeling very good. First, India is one of BRIC countries. Second, new media is increasingly important in the Indian context, and third, consumer insight is also very important here, too. So it all fits together from the Indian perspective.

On whether the marketers' spends would continue to move away from mass media advertising: Yes, it's still moving away. The good news is that it's one-to-one, and the bad news is that it's one-to-one. The problem is - it's still one-to-one because it's highly fragmented.

Will Twitter, Facebook, MySpace or YouTube ever make money? The answer is that it's going to be a very volatile environment. And these brands will come and go, just like the magazines which come and go.

In fact, Jeff Zucker (President and CEO, NBC Universal) put it very well – 'We are moving from analog dollars to digital pennies'. Then he modified it to digital dimes.

That's the problem.

Steve Ballmer (CEO, Microsoft) also said – The problem is in monetising these brands. It's a fancy world for making money.

So we have to spot where the opportunities are.

On whether brands like Google worry him: Google worries our clients because there is no balance in the search marketing space, which we all think should be there. Google's disproportionate share is the problem. We work closely with Facebook, My Space, YouTube and Twitter, but in terms of money making business, the giants are Yahoo, AOL, Google and Microsoft. But I must say that they will all have their own challenges, and the core issue is to find a balance in the search marketing space.

On how he profiles digital companies: Last year, during the debate, I asked them – Who are you? They said they are technology companies but I didn't accept that. To my mind, they are media owners.

I don't think they are engineers with spanners trying to tighten the nuts and screws while we send messages to one another.

I think they have responsibilities relating to privacy and editorial contact.

On monetization of digital companies: They are used as advertising platforms, but tell me, if I am having a dialogue with you on Facebook or Twitter, do I want to be invaded with commercial messages. The answer is 'No'. Videos can be different, which is why I think there is more advertising potential in My Space and YouTube. It's much more difficult in the social media.

I know of two occasions when Mark Zuckerberg (founder of Facebook) had fallen fowl. There was another situation besides Beacon.

On the media decline: So, there is a general decline in activity, whether offline or online. Ironically, online looks cheaper, though offline looks even cheaper because there is a lot of radio, TV, magazine and newspaper inventory – all falling like flies.

Who would have thought that the New York Times would be in such a situation, when a few years ago, it was arguably one of the strongest newspaper brands in the world? Similarly, who would have thought that Rupert Murdoch will not be able to buy the Wall Street Journal?

Life is changing and so are the rules. Consolidation is taking place everywhere. For instance, as per a new rule in Spain, one owner cannot control more than 25 per cent of the market in the television business.

Similarly, rules in Brazil and Australia have changed a few years ago. Even in the UK – because a lot of these newspapers and magazines are falling away – they have to change the regulation if they want to maintain a competitive environment and an environment of choice.

Yes, one likes to see a healthy media business and I think fragmentation gives our clients more opportunities.

Until a few years ago, the cost of TV ad space used to increase more than the inflation every year, and in such a scenario, you either buy less of it or look for alternatives.

On PR and Cannes: If there is any criticism on the awards, it's about the way of handling the awards. For instance, this year in the PR Lions, there were no PR agencies. It's a joke and it's ridiculous.

After all, it is expensive to come here and also to put in your entries. So, you, too, learn the way to grab the jury's eye and win.

On his plans for WPP in India: We have a very strong share in advertising and media in India, and we need to maintain that growth. But we have more to do in areas such as PR, information and consultancy business, brand building and identity, healthcare and digital. It will first be organic growth, backed by smaller acquisitions. Unless Anil Ambani agrees to sell off Mudra - but he came from Wharton, so his price is very high (laughs).

Hill & Knowlton enters India

Look east, Sir Martin Sorrell tells global communications industry

Public relations giant Hill & Knowlton to start operations in India

Hill & Knowlton may acquire India’s Perfect Relations

Surge ahead with digital communications

2009-07-03T01:46:00.000-07:00

Kapil Ohri reports in afaqs.com

The Fifth Digital Marketing Conference, organised by the Internet and Mobile Association of India in New Delhi, focused on 'Transformation of digital agencies from technology enablers to brand champions'.

Shantanu Sirohi, Co-Founder and Vice-President, Interactive Avenues, talked about the role of digital agencies. He pointed out that brand champions are media agnostic. To prove this, he gave examples of some of the ad campaigns that Interactive Avenues did for ICICI Prudential, Travelguru.com and Travelocity.com, wherein the core idea was conceptualised for the Internet and then taken forward, either as a print ad, a television commercial or an outdoor campaign.

Mahesh Murthy, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Pinstorm said, "Brands have to become technology savvy in order to derive the benefits of the digital medium." Citing the example of live Twitter posts updated by some of the conference participants, he said, "Technology enables you to carry out live researches, listen to consumers and track performance of your efforts and allows you to react quickly."

Pushkar Sane, Chief Digital Officer, North and South Asia, Global Head of Social Marketing, Starcom MediaVest Group, pointed out that in order to derive better return on investment (RoI), marketers need to become closer to consumers and understand their online behaviour.

Kushal Sanghvi, Managing Director, Media Contacts, said, "The definition of digital agency has changed." He explained that agencies have moved from buying exposure to extracting response from consumers.”

Prasad Shejale, Managing Director, Logicserve, said, "The basics of brand building do not change from one medium to another. It is the same for print, TV and digital medium as well."

Ruchira Raina, Managing Director, Dentsu Communications, and National Business Head, Dentsu Media, said, "Marketers should use the internet to connect, share and discuss with their target audience." She added that marketers should move beyond investing in the digital medium for experimentation only; instead, they should invest in the Internet with more seriousness and conviction.

Hill & Knowlton enters India

2009-07-02T23:09:00.000-07:00

Tasneem Limbdiwala reports in exchange4media:

Global communications consultancy Hill & Knowlton has expanded its operations into India by taking over the management responsibility of IPAN from JWT India effective July 1, 2009. The new entity, to be re-branded IPAN Hill & Knowlton, will become part of Hill & Knowlton’s Asia Pacific region with IPAN President Radhika Shapoorjee reporting to Hill & Knowlton Asia Pacific President & Chief Operating Officer Vivian Lines.

Making the announcement, JWT India’s CEO Colvyn Harris, stated, “There is never a dull moment in JWT India. IPAN and Hill & Knowlton have been associated for nearly two decades now and it was natural progression for us to formalise this link.”

Both JWT and Hill & Knowlton are part of communications services group WPP, and all existing management and staff at IPAN will continue in their existing roles.

“First and foremost, I would like to thank my colleagues at JWT for their confidence that this change of management will work to the benefit of all parties. We have worked with IPAN as an associate for 20 years. Now we have the opportunity to fully integrate them into the Hill & Knowlton network and to grow inbound and outbound business together in what is one of the most vibrant business markets globally,” said Vivian Lines.

Radhika Shapoorjee, President, IPAN, said, “It’s truly a double delight to become part of a specialist global PR network across 43 countries… Hill & Knowlton is one of the most well-known and well-established PR companies in the world. Its unrivalled expertise, extensive network and innovation in public relations best practice will ensure that standards are raised across India and that our clients and our people will benefit from world-class advice, insights and services.”

Look east, Sir Martin Sorrell tells global communications industry

Public relations giant Hill & Knowlton to start operations in India

Hill & Knowlton may acquire India’s Perfect Relations

How PR can help your business

2009-06-22T23:43:00.000-07:00

“When your audiences do what you want them to do, achieving your organizational objectives gets a lot easier,” writes Robert A. Kelly in an article which I just saw while researching on the Internet. Kelly was Director of PR for Pepsi-Cola Co.; AGM-PR, Texaco Inc.; VP-PR, Olin Corp.; VP-PR, Newport News Shipbuilding; Director of Communications, US Department of the Interior, and Deputy Assistant Press Secretary, The White House. An excerpt from his article:

Do you worry about certain behaviors among your most important audiences because those behaviors are crucial to achieving your organization's objectives? If your answer is yes, you need public relations.

The payoff? When those audiences do what you want them to do, achieving your organizational objectives gets a lot easier.
We learned long ago that people act on their own perceptions of the facts, leading to predictable behaviors about which something can be done. We call their cumulative perceptions public opinion.

Public relations tries to create, change or reinforce that opinion by reaching, persuading and moving-to-action the very people whose behaviors affect your organization.

That's why it's quality planning, and the degree of perception and behavioral change it produces, that defines the success or failure of a public relations programme.