Techno brAND syndrome

Technology is no longer an aspiration, and should be included in the Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need!

So why I am saying is because of the recent survey By Afaqs.com on Buzziest Brands of 2011. Out of which The top 15 buzziest brands give out a peculiar trend. There are 6 technical brands and 5 telecommunication brands. This makes one realize how important technology has become in today’s world.

For more read : http://trak.in/tags/business/2011/02/28/top-buzziest-brands-india/

CW ji…

I know it’s a history now … but I thought to bring the dead (topic) to life.

Post Dabaag, it was GWG …I don’t know it was meant to be a HIT or it hit the brand India! However, I believe India is bigger and no event should tarnish the image and the potential of the market as the MNC would see it. It’s part of the business.


Ok …I don’t know the real issue hovering around the CWG all I could gather from the past one month before the CWG launch from the media sources that its certainly gonna dent the brand India. The not so anticipated CWG for many including me was then became the most awaited block-buster topic at almost every corner of many offices, parking areas, the coffee shop, the bloggers lane and the joggers link (sorry pls swap the words). It’s working as detox. And the media covering every inch of it, making life worse for Mr. Kill Madi :P :S anyways you got it right.


But I don’t want to blame Mr. Killer you know…Why? Firstly, the matter of fact is that this guy Mr. Killer is doing the job, the job of spending big amount. So what if the roof was falling and bridge did collapse and treadmills were rented for some fancy numbers. The bigger picture was he was trying …let’s appreciate the guy Mr. Killers whose experience doesn’t allow him to do such jobs. And in public sector you learn things in hard ways…so CWG is/was in the learning process. If we really want to blame, we need to blame the system who appointed Mr. Killer for this job. Secondly, why there was no PPP (Public Private Partnership). Thirdly, why media was jumping around when the D day was nearing creating more panic and negativity. What were they doing a year ago? It should have helped the work to finish fast. Fourthly, there was heavy rain (as Ms Dikshit mentioned); the sky was falling kind stuff. And fifthly, there is certainly a sixth angle in it.


The real issue and the point I want to bring here is, this CWG is a tip of the iceberg of corruption; procrastinated work; the ‘chalta hai’ syndrome; the lousy project planning of government; the tut u mai mai; bla and blue . The CWG situation is present every day of my life, your life, Indian life - the corruption touches us every morning. Today its news for you, tomorrow you will become the news. The matter of fact is what the point of discussion when the system is so corrupted (am I right Mr. Raja). Ever since I had paid road tax, I still haven’t enjoyed much of good roads in Bangalore (and for your knowledge, the road tax in Bangalore is the highest in India). Even the road in Bihar and Jharkhand is better; please visit Jamshedpur to test it. The fact is the common wealth of man in India is never being utilized properly, and it is, and has become the way of our life and system. So why do we need to be so vocal about CWG? However, in the end, there was a happy ending - like a Karan Johar movie. There were balloons flying and A R Rehman rocked on the D day. So chill.


It’s only in days to come that we will find if the brand image of India gets a beating. The world had watched and is watching, but as they say ‘we shall overcome’. I mean we should, what you say Mr. Killer!


All the best … it happens only in ‘Incredible India’

The turnaround man

Yes, Mr. Nitish Kumar, the CM of Bihar…the man in the spot light…so is his effort. Before I fill the post with praise, I would like to bring statistics to ponder. Source: Economic times:

A manifestation of the turnaround in the law and order and infrastructure sectors could be gauged from the fact that the number of foreign tourist arrivals in the state has shot up from 94,446 in 2006 to 3.56 lakh in 2008.

According to the latest Central Statistical Organisation (CSO) data, Bihar’s GDP grew by an astounding 11% in the five years between 2004-05 and 2008-09, much more than the national average of 8.49%, making it the second fastest-growing state in the country. It, of course, has benefited from a low base effect since the state has long been a growth laggard, but governments before Mr. Kumar had been unable to accelerate economic growth.

‘We want the next round of green revolution to happen in Bihar’

Sure we want, and me too, Bihar is a special state for me; most of my growing days (schooling) have been spent in the state. Later became Jharkhand… Keeping away the synonyms of Bihar with kidnappings and abductions, the criminal-politician nexus; let start it new… at-least the thought should be new and hope anticipated …
As we travel through the 2010, we are more hopeful about prospects for 2010 compared to the dismal valuation and performance all these years. It’s not about Bihar or Biharis..It’s a state of the nation which needs to be constructed and re-BRANDED … yeah exactly brand it new!!!

Further, I would be happy if we could get the “litti (s)” branded and retailed…howz the thought …
Mc Litti or BBL (Bihar Baked Littis) anyways …happy new year 

Brand the New Year

With this brand new note we should start the 2010 :)
Wish everyone around the world a happy prosperous brand efficient new year!!!

Brand GANDHI SELL?

Yeah, again Gandhi is obsessing me...and the brand community...I was reading the ET today and a article strike me, was all about the Gandhi.... as a case for in point "Mont Blanc” is going the Gandhi way...however, the only difference is that there is ROI attached for every piece of 241 pen they are going to get sell.

LETS not deviate from the topic....I believe is there a whole new kind of marketing propaganda ushering in the market...call it trendsetter...atleast in India. Propaganda bcoz it is not tested (I believe)...and will it work....man it’s just a pen ... or leave it to self actualization.

From marketing prospective why not extend the human personalities into brand and do the Che Guevara way ...again there are fear of misuse and category killing effect....
I m also not sure how many of these 241 pens would react in the minds of the "the consumers" but one interesting point Mr. Tushar Gandhi made and was quoted in that ET (Brand Equity) article was and I quote again

"He would sell his autograph for Rs 5 which he gave to the khadi fund,” says Tushar Gandhi. Gandhi himself was well aware of his brand value.

Anyways, let the course of time decide how it sells … in a big market called India which is now in itself

brand GANDHI

When we think of a product, we tend to think of a brand and subconsciously our mind gets involved in the brand projected towards the product. To ascertain my thought in the generalized situation ,I am sure; if asked about soap or chocolate probable response would be either Lux or Dove (if asked to a lady) etc, for soap and may be Cadbury for chocolate. Similarly if we need to think of mobile phone in India it’s definitely Nokia which strikes in our mind instantly. Brand gives familiar identity of the product.
As a mater of fact, brand is intangible product which simulates in the mind of a customer before it really gets sold. It is like mind over matters, akin to the Indian politics , where we are put to simulated situation before it converts to reality and the projections are so meticulously and lucratively branded making election feel like a product and people exercise their franchise with lot of enthusiasm as if to realize benefit of the product immediately after election .

The recent result of the Lok Sabha Election 2009 is the greatest testimony to illustrate my argument. Like Zoozoos to Vodafone, its Gandhis to Congress. Brand matters, however,brand building is also an aspect for the brand to come as winner and if we go back to history of Indian politics we have only few prominent charismatic personality in our mind. Prominent among them are Netaji Subash Bose, Gandhiji and the Nehru family which dominated post independence Indian politics. Further, it’s the family lineage that works wonder as in case of Rahul Gandhi win over the psyche of the population. The brand Gandhi was predominant across all ages, castes, and above all among different political parties which joined the bandwagon. It was a sheer victory of brand in the minds of the beneficiaries i.e. constituent domiciles, the people of India, at large. Congress party, just like any company, campaigned the ambisously planned product called Rahul as a youth leader; someone who is willing to understand the generation next of India. The strategy was well above the agenda which the congress party had put forward during the campaign and the result is a clear mandate by the people of the nation. From a brand prospective it is certitude win of priceless brand at the cost of the product i.e Congress party (confusing)

Although it is debatable, “Is Brand Congress usurped by Brand Gandhi?” However, going by the results whether it is Rahul and Sonia or Varun and Menka they all won from their respective constituencies. Irrespective of a winning or the loosing party, brand Gandhi was victories in all politically correct grounds. Moreover, it is nobody’s fault- but as a nation we always look for an idol, a demi–God to follow or worship at every moment which turned out to be unprecedented one. Also if we consider other than Congress they all lack brilliance in the brand value to influence enormous geographical area or the ambassador of deliverable identity even though they all had an agenda well recited and well documented. It was indeed the success of brand and the constant phenomenon called ‘change’.

Cluster Branding

I am sick of the word “Economic Downturn” but I / we can’t abate myself/ our self with the effect of it either directly or indirectly. Branding is critical to both marketing and the company’s budget. To make your brand vocal and communicate the offering of your company one need to brand and re-brand. Succumb to situation companies are cutting down its cost of operations be it branding, this in return affecting the advertising and brand management companies. Advertising companies are finding it difficult maintain the CRM in the low cost strategy. Now how you reduce cost in the already reduced clientele.
What i would suggest and foresee is to open a new channel of brand management strategy. Whatever one may call , well i call it Cluster Branding and I will define it as a symbiotic branding strategy wherein the different companies from same fraternity come together to communicate their offerings. To make sense the ad agencies will offer platform to companies in same industry say IT/ MR/ Consultancy/ Auto etc,. and advertise their offerings.
In a B2B scenario when say, companies into Market Research and Consultancy can participate in the ad/ promotion/ also OOH advertising being in the same ad campaign.
Well this might sound impractical considering the fact these companies are competitors to each other. However, for an outdoor B2B platform where the cost is a factor and economies of scale is a sound good factor, ad agencies could woo them to get printed. Also the Nitti gritty can be argued and need to sort out...hence it’s a WIP plan as of now.
coming to the advantage of this would be definitely to do with cost cutting specially in times of crisis. I will explain by giving example …say a big MNC like HP who is into MR and business intelligence and needs to advertise frequently from the HR prospective and also to brand it best in this business, can find it hard to allocate big sum for advertisement. On the other side small company like Infiniti whose core business is MR/CI/BI finds it difficult to allocate budget to advertise itself which is also necessary to stay into the business. Now Cluster Branding would be the solution to it. How??
Bringing both the companies in the same print / outdoor ad platform where both will leverage in terms of cost and in terms of brand identity making their presence currently in the market. Small company will leverage its brand identity by getting associated with the big brand in the same business and big companies will reduce it cost of advertisement in the long run.