Showing posts with label IIPM Admission Details. Show all posts
Showing posts with label IIPM Admission Details. Show all posts

Saturday, September 01, 2012

MINING ITS WAY AHEAD

Despite a fall in profits in the last fiscal, nmdc is still among the top 20 profit makers in the country. But will the honeymoon continue for the mining giant? Deepak Ranjan Patra finds out...

It operates in the remotest of the areas in the country, surrounded and obstructed by Naxals and struggling with problems that the big bosses of corporate India can hardly imagine. But still, it gives its competitors a run for their money. Backed by such undying zeal, NMDC is one of the best mining companies in the country and it ranks 18 in the B&E Power 100 list, despite having a year that can be called disastrous for the company.

On the face of it, the results announced by NMDC for the last financial year may seem deceptive for many as profits for the particular fiscal year stood at `34.47 billion, down by over 21% from `43.72 reported in the previous year. But then, the fall in profits resulted more due to external disturbances that caused operational roadblocks for NMDC. As Kumar Raghavan, Executive Director (L & CC), NMDC, says, “In the beginning of the financial year (May, 2009), the Essar pipeline was blasted by the Maoists at several places, placing NMDC under great strain on evacuation of iron ore.” The kind of pressure that was created by the event could be understood from the very fact that the particular pipeline was one of the evacuation means for nearly one-third iron ore for the company’s largest projects at Bailadila, Chhatisgarh. Though the company tried its best to run the show smoothly, the event resulted in a drop of around 12% in the company’s iron ore sales to 25 million tonnes from 28.52 million tonnes in the previous fiscal.

However, the management of NMDC showed extreme character to brush aside the external hurdles during the year resulting in one of the best quarterly results in the company’s history during this period of the current fiscal. NMDC’s Q1 profit increased by a mind-boggling 94% to `15.04 billion from `7.74 billion in the year-ago period. Sighting significant rise in domestic sales as the key reason, Rana Som, CMD, NMDC said, “Improved physical performance coupled with higher prices, transparent pricing systems and improvement in evacuation resulted in the company posting a high net profit in the first quarter.”

Another reason for its success in the recent years has been NMDC’s tremendous ability to operate at the lower end of the cost curve. As explained by Paresh Jain, Analyst, Angel Securities, “At $7.2 per tonne, NMDC’s operating cost is one of the lowest in the global iron ore industry. The major reason for such low costs is the proximity of the company’s mines to ports and railways.” Moreover, to strengthen the advantage further, NMDC is now planning to build a 10 million tonne slurry pipeline from its Bacheli project to the Vizag port, which, as expected by Paresh, would help the mining company maintain its margins.



 
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Thursday, August 30, 2012

THE CAPTAIN OF THE SOUTH KOREAN SHIP

AFTER BEING THE CLEAR #2 IN THE INDIAN PASSENGER VEHICLE SEGMENT FOR OVER 11 YEARS, THE TIDE SEEMS TO BE TURNING IN FAVOUR OF ITS CLOSEST COMPETITORS. CAN H. W. PARK, THE CAPTAIN OF THE SOUTH KOREAN SHIP, STEER IT CLEAR OF THE MANY ICEBERGS ON THE WAY? BY PAWAN CHABRA

The market leader has even announced a plan to stage a comeback in the Indian market, starting with the launch of the Alto K10, coupled with five CNG models (of the SX4, the EECO, the WagonR, the Alto and the Estilo models), and the automatic A-Star. But even Shashank Srivastava, CGM – Marketing, Maruti Suzuki India, confesses, “A lot depends on how many units of the Nano does Tata Motors plan to sell in the Indian market.”

The issue of capacity crunch is also keeping many Hyundai investors on tenterhooks. Currently, its Sriperumbudur (Chennai) plant, with an annual manufacturing capacity of 600,000 units, is operating at full capacity. But as insiders quote, the auto major has an option of stretching it to 670,000, by modifying the assembly lines. The worrying fact is – Hyundai has not revealed plans to do that. Hyundai’s Saxena says, “If there is more demand for our products, we will possibly look into it. But I don’t think there will be a need for capacity expansion this year, perhaps not even in 2011.” But despite this, Park has good news for his investors.

Hyundai will land some hard punches on its competitors with the launch of its small car (reportedly scheduled for 2012), that will be positioned in the A2 minus segment, which would then be in direct competition with the Alto. The product is expected to bring high volumes to the company, which will then help it claw back market share in the domestic arena. Park reveals, “We are in the development stage of the model and it is going very well. However, I can’t comment on the time frame of the launch in the Indian market,” says Park. To this, Saxena adds, “While our small car will not compete with the Nano, when we are looking at such a model, we are looking at high numbers...”

Most likely, even though Tata Motors will again displace Hyundai as the #2 player for some more quarters to come, one cannot deny that Park still leads one of Hyundai’s most profitable overseas subsidiaries, which is also the #1 exporter of passenger cars from India, with exports of 285,658 units in FY2009-10 (64% market share in exports, while Maruti and Tata command a much lower 33.1% & 1.5% respectively). In fact, production figures prove how after Hyundai China (production volume of 570,309 units in 2009), the Indian subsidiary, with an output of 559,880 units in 2009, is the most important for the Chaebol.

Whether or not Park manages to retain the silver sceptre, the domestic market will remain key to Hyundai’s future. With the domestic market size growing by the day, fragmentation is inevitable. He has to focus on profitable volumes (and not ranks), with the key adjective being ‘profitable’ (given that currently, for every Nano that Tata Motors manufactures, it makes a loss due to capex depreciations). Park’s job as a CEO is to keep the volumes high and profits thick. For now, he is doing that. Tata Motors may focus hard on the Nano and critics may write volumes about how the product will ensure a second spot for Tata Motors, but experts opine that such low-priced products with wafer-thin margins, can hardly give companies a sustainable lead. There will be much more botheration for Park over the next couple of years in the form of Bajaj-Renault’s ultra low-cost car, FIAT’s model below the Punto and Volkswagen’s small car. But he needs to remember that increasing capacity is key, focusing on the Indian market with good margin products is important and keeping his investors happy (with profits) is religion. And for the sake of this religion, Park should not fret over giving away the runners-up trophy.


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Wednesday, August 08, 2012

From 9,903 to 17,641!

After the euphoric bull run of 2009 it’s the stock pickers who will rock the market in 2010. Gyanendra Kumar Kashyap uncovers the front-runners and dark horses...

The Indian equity markets churned out one of the best annual returns (a whopping 76.35%) in 2009 – a reflection of investor confidence in the Indian economy’s resilience. Nonetheless, even after the euphoric rally, a number of questions remain over the market’s future course, most critically pertaining to the future course. After the unidirectional trends of the previous two years, 2010 is likely to usher in a period of volatility with the market moving in a broad trading range for the better part of the year. The bullish sentiment is likely to continue in 2010, only that it will be more selective than being broad based.

Mid and small cap indices are likely to outperform the key indices in 2010. Analysts expect about 12-15% gain for the key indices in 2010 from the current levels. However, the focus would gradually shift from macro driven unidirectional market moves to stock-specific investment opportunities based on earnings growth and absolute valuations. Given the current scenario wherein there are apprehensions regarding reversal of interest rate cycle led by spike in inflation, adverse impact of the withdrawal of the economic stimulus, the fears of further fiscal slippage and the sustainability test of global recovery; the markets could turn edgy in the first half of 2010.

The benchmark index, Sensex, is in a position of relative safety since it has retraced close to 70% of its prior downtrend making re-test of March lows (8,047 level) highly improbable. And if equity experts are to be believed, then 2010 is well poised to bear good returns. Moreover, the government is likely to mop up more than Rs.240 billion by divesting stakes in several state-owned companies and the primary route for this fund raising will be through initial public offers (IPOs). This will certainly provide the much needed fillip to the market rally in 2010. In fact, there are analysts who believe that if history can form any basis for future and if historic average internal rate of return of 17.25% per annum is maintained, then the Sensex can even reach astonishing levels of 1,00,000 by 2020. Although that’s quite pleasing, one would assume it’s an expectation more belligerent than required.

Like others, Dinesh Thakkar, CMD, Angel Broking, too is of the opinion that banking & infrastructure are the two sectors that will outperform in 2010. His reasoning is based on the pick in economic activity and high spends on infrastructure. Apart from infra, capital goods (as the investment cycle picks up with a lag in demand), media, retail and cement (a dark horse that could surprise positively amid pessimism) stocks could well surprise the investor fraternity in 2010. Clearly, if you have excess money, this is the place for you. If it’s a matter of your life’s savings, stay out!


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Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Dead before they Could Live

Stillbirths are Becoming more Prominent than HIV cases in terms of Casualties. They cannot be Ignored Anymore

The annual number of stillbirths (a baby that dies after the 28th week of gestation, or during the third trimester of pregnancy) around the world is more than the number of people who die from HIV-related causes. Today, it is becoming a serious public health issue globally, especially in developing countries.

Some 2.6 million stillbirths occurred worldwide in 2009, according to the first comprehensive set of estimates published in the Lancet medical journal. As high as 66% (1.8 million) stillbirths in the world occur in just 10 countries. India leads, followed by Pakistan, Nigeria, China, Bangladesh, Congo, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Afghanistan and Tanzania. Stillbirths disproportionately affect the poor, with 98% of deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries. An African woman has a 24 times greater risk of stillbirth than a woman in a high-income country.

These deaths are directly related to lack of skilled care at the critical time for mothers and babies. Two-thirds occur in rural areas, where skilled birth attendants are not always available for essential care during childbirth and for obstetric emergencies, including Caesarean sections.

In rural Nyanza (Kenya’s western province) for instance, health centres are few and far between, and many women lose their babies on the long journey from home to the hospital, while others lose babies by choosing to deliver at home. Unless better facilities for antenatal care are created and awareness about the causes and prevention of stillbirth is spread around effectively, these macabre statistics are only bound to grow further.


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Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Google’s Telecom Power Grab Gambit

Google is Huge. Its m-cap of $201 Billion Proves it. And it can Easily Grow Bigger by Conquering The Communications Industry, in toto, by Becoming a Telecom Operator. Question is – should it take The Chance?

It was Google’s listing day at NASDAQ. The date – August 19, 2004. Google co-founder Larry Page & CEO Eric Schmidt were nervously busy in conversation, and most around them were more than pleased to allow the elaborately laid-out breakfast (with poached eggs perched on shiny pedestals, deliciously placed canapés and flatwares full of crème fraiche, besides others) help ease their anxiousness. The time: 9:24 am. The plan – in few minutes, the Macy’s suit-clad Page would Chair the opening of the market, then drive a few blocks north to Morgan Stanley Building on 1585 Broadway and watch investors play with the Google stock. The bell gonged and for those brief moments, nothing looked more glorious than the $100-valued stock, coded “GOOG”. “Congratulations, congratulations. It’s going to be a great success,” shouted NASDAQ President Rob Greifeld. Everything for Google, seemed to go as per plan. However, 10 minutes later, a commotion broke out. Two women wearing black skirts cried out for water & napkins. Reason: Page had landed himself on a plate full of Crème fraiche! Then flew a remark from Schmidt: “These things happen. We’ve seen worse.” It was as if he was expecting such a Page-act. But even he knew that this one, was not planned.

Not everybody agrees, but Page & Sergey Brin did not have their “Google” all planned out from day 1. And this has served them well. One day it was, in early 1999, when the two co-founders’ offer to sell their brainchild for $750,000 was turned down. Today, Google is worth $201.35 billion (as on Jan 18, 2011). And from investing millions on self-driven Robot cars, to risking $5 billion in a project in late-2010, to put in place a 350-mile-long undersea line to harness wind energy along the Atlantic seaboard, of late, the company has started laying wagers on strange cards. Trouble is – most of these plans appear “over-ambitious” and too futuristic. Question is – can it therefore move away from adventure, and invest in something more “planned”?

The answer – an obvious yes. After giving to the world the most successful mobile OS in recent times – the Android (with 25.6% of global share, powering 0.25 million new devices per day; says Goldman Sachs Analyst Fred Krom to B&E, “Google’s Android climbed from powering 5% of global handsets in 2009 to a high-teens percentage in 2010, outstripping Apple’s iPhone”), and having proved that it can manufacture handsets as well (the Nexus), Google could well be on its way to disrupting dynamics in the mobile industry, thereby becoming your next wireless carrier, and even bigger than the likes of Verizon & AT&T.

Google already has a low-cost voice telephony service in place in US – the Google Voice, where users are given their own unique telephone numbers. The very successful service was launched in May 2009. It spread like wildfire. Five months later, it had 1.4 million users, with 0.57 million using it every day. Experts claim that though the base has already moved into the 10 million plus zone (as of end-2010), only a small fraction of users actually pay for it (for ISD calls to telephones). So does this make for a profitable undertaking? The fact that the profitable Skype (bottomline of +$13.1 million in H1, 2010) has only 6% of “paid users” makes Google Voice’s case strong.


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Thursday, May 17, 2012

Patriotism as the big idea !

Are patriotic ads necessary reminders to today’s consumerist and self-absorbed generation about the history of our great Republic and her Founding Fathers? Or mandatory, annual exercises of lip-service following tradition, in typically sarkari manner? 4Ps B&M’s Consulting Editor Monojit Lahiri attempts a checkout.

It’s really quite interesting … and not at the same time. Every year, each time a birth or death anniversary comes around, the nation suddenly goes freeze frame on all scams and consumerist distractions, and slips into the (studied?) sombre, restrained, sober patriotic mood defining the moment! PSUs and corporations (forever on-the-make) quickly leap on to this bandwagon with ads eulogizing the theme of the day and connecting it – with different degrees of credibility and success – to their organisation’s brand values and vision. Question is: Is this for real? Genuine pieces of communication celebrating the spirit of a momentous day with galvanizing, insightful, uplifting & creative evocation of words and visuals that touch a chord... or merely hollow posturing, doing the done-thing for the sake of political correctness?

“It’s plain, unadulterated waste!” 20-year-old Akhilesh Varma comes on strong, firing on all cylinders convinced that this “humbug has just got to stop!” The Pune-based MBA student’s take is simple. The intent is all wrong. “Do these PSUs and corporations really understand, care and feel the importance of this day? For them it’s a platform to advertise/publicise the connect between the occasion and their organisational product/brand, values any-which-way, and this is clearly evident from the amateurish, predictable, boring sycophantic prose and corny visuals presented. Who commissions them, who creates them, who looks at them, reads them and remembers them must remain a closely guarded secret between them... And does anyone give a damn about these ads the next day when they grace the-dustbin?!” says Varma.

Celebrated dancer and passionate champion of Indian art, culture and tradition, Sonal Mansingh however refuses to be cynical or irreverent and brings her own spin to the table. In fact, she raises a counter-question. “Why do we remember or commemorate birth/death anniversaries of our parents, grand parents and loved ones? Do we remember them, everyday? Why do we celebrate festivals relating to Lord Rama, Krishna, Ganesha and the entire pantheon? Are they on our radar, all the time? No… but there are two simple reasons. One, because it is a part and parcel of our rich, cultural heritage and ethos… something that is an intrinsic part of our DNA. It comes naturally to us, Indians. More importantly, in an increasingly Google-driven and technology-led time with consumerism’s signature tune of I-me-myself blasting away, these ads epitomize the values and vision of our great departed leaders, what they lived… and died for. They serve as role models and inspirational benchmarks so critical in today’s materialistic and confused times. It tells us that human values of love, courage, truth and pluralism make for a rewarding life. I believe they should be viewed positively and there is much to be learnt from these ads,” Sonal tells 4Ps B&M. Filmmaker Muzaffar Ali agrees. While he concedes – being an ex ad-man himself! – that many of these species may not quite make the cut as torchbearers of great advertising “the heart is in the right place and the intent is spot-on. That matters most. What’s wrong in using these events to showcase our amazing composite culture and all that a true great Republic and Democracy symbolizes? I know patriotism may not be as cool as Kolaveri D, but to mock and ridicule these ads is poor form.”

Neither veteran advertising professional Tara Sinha nor Ogilvy’s Executive Creative Director Sumanto Chatterjee unfortunately are on the same page – or book – with the arty twosome. While Tara believes “it is a colossal waste of taxpayers’ money and reams of newsprint with zero returns,” Sumanto admits, “it is silly posturing and shadow boxing with communication capsules that strain, mostly unsuccessfully, to achieve a cosmetic connect between the organisation/brand and the event of the day. Totally unconvincing and irrelevant, they usually end up devaluing the entire meaning of the occasion.” Both believe that it would be far more effective if the money spent could be used for people-specific, community-related programmes addressing key causes and concerns to better their quality of life and god knows, there are scores of them! “Event management not brain-dead advertising is the need of the hour,” says Tara.

So what gives? While it is unfair to totally dismiss all ads and communication appearing on these days as garbage, a serious rethink and review by the powers that are is definitely in order. After all, surely these ads have an agenda beyond blindly following herd-mentality, as suggested by their acerbic critics? Mile Sur Mera Tumhara… Hamara Bajaj, Pepsi’s amazing freedom ads commemorating India’s 50th year of Independence are some outstanding examples of how to achieve a memorable brand-fit that enhances brand equity of the product while not devaluing the essence of the occasion. The critical task is to convert this challenge into an opportunity that resonates with the reader in an engaging way. After all, don’t special days warrant special ads?

Can they do it? Will they do it? Let’s wait and watch...

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM B-School
Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri
Planman Consulting
IIPM in the league of best management institutes of India.....IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism
Arindam Chaudhuri: We need Hazare's leadership
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
Planman Technologies
IIPM Contact Info
IIPM History
IIPM Think Tank
IIPM Infrastructure
IIPM Info
IIPM: Selection Process
IIPM: Research and Publications
IIPM MBA Institute India
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Friday, April 13, 2012

Emerging Online Retail Trends

Smartphones, Tablets and Internet...all of them are changing the consumer’s shopping experience for ever. As gadgets find more takers, shopping through devices is hitting new highs. While 17% of the U.S. tablet users check out products through their devices on a daily basis, close to 13% of the U.K.’s smartphone users have started doing a real-time price comparison on their handsets. And 36% of smartphone users in the U.S. buy products through their phones while present at stores.

Phone shopping on the rise

A survey conducted on UK-based consumers, who use smartphones, found that the most common use is to find out a store location, while taking a picture of the product remained the second most popular retail-related activity performed on smartphones. A look at the top 10 activities indicates that users are increasingly using their smartphones to gather information and key details of products before purchasing products and services. This is evident from the fact that activities like contacting friends and family via text, comparing prices and finding best buying deals via smartphones are on the rise.

Using tablets for shopping

Nearly half of the tablet owners in the U.S. made a purchase on their tablet indicating the growing importance of this media channel to the e-commerce market. For that matter, tablet users exhibited considerable use of their devices through out the purchasing process. While 56% looked up for product and price information for a specific store, close to 54% read consumer reviews and ratings before they purchased. Considering the increasing use of tablets, for retail brands, the platform may soon become a very critical part of their comprehensive digital marketing strategy.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM B-School
Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri
Planman Consulting
IIPM in the league of best management institutes of India.....IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism
Arindam Chaudhuri: We need Hazare's leadership
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
Planman Technologies
IIPM Contact Info
IIPM History
IIPM Think Tank
IIPM Infrastructure
IIPM Info
IIPM: Selection Process
IIPM: Research and Publications
IIPM MBA Institute India
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Thursday, March 22, 2012

How Customers Influence the Evolution of New Products

Innovation is happening all around. But companies that are careful in understanding how consumers use a particular product are the ones which succeed in the long run.

How customers use a technology generates important information about its performance, design, and operational characteristics. As customers began to use the automobile in hilly and wet terrains, for example, they learned about issues with waterproofing and engine power. What customers learn plays an important role in the technological development of the product.

However, customers may use the technology in different ways. Previous research observed that urban customers used the car primarily for transportation, but some farmers used it as a stationary source of power on the farm. Often, these various applications converge to a dominant use of the technology – transportation still is the primary use of automobiles. Nevertheless, variation and dominance in use influence what is learned and expected of the technology, influencing subsequent technological changes.

Prevailing theories on innovation and industry change explain technological development as an evolutionary process in which certain technological designs get selected and retained. Early on in the automobile industry there were several different engine designs, but the combustible engine emerged as the dominant design within the industry. The selection and retention of certain technological designs significantly impacts competition within the industry and influences which companies thrive or fail. However, these theories focus on the technological development within an industry without paying much attention to the learning processes associated with customers applying the technology.

In my research titled “Dominant Use, Technology, and Industry Evolution,” I consider the role customer learning plays in this evolutionary process, in particular, the effects of variation or dominance in use. Establishing a dominant use during the early introduction of a technology helps establish its agenda and stimulates industry growth. If the dominant use persists, it further reinforces the technological standard. However, extended use of a technology can facilitate customers learning new uses that change how they evaluate it, leading to new market opportunities. Finally, the competitive impact of a radical new technology depends in part on how customers actually use it. If customers use the new technology as they did the old, then established firms have an advantage even if they have difficulties developing the new technology.

To illustrate his point, I extensively analyse the history of how the manufacturing industry used manufacturing planning software – applications that help these firms plan and manage the production of their products. Records of meetings of industry professionals and contemporary surveys, as well as data from industry analysts, software firms, and consultants, makes a case for why competition within industries like software is best explained by looking more broadly at how customers actually use the products.

Dominant Use and Software Industry Growth

The manufacturing industry’s use of planning software can be divided into three evolutionary periods: 1954 to the 1970s, when software was first introduced and culminated with Material Requirements Planning (MRP) becoming the dominant use; the 1980s, when manufacturers expanded their use; and the early 1990s, when a radical technological change occurred and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) emerged as a dominant new use.

When the computer was commercially introduced, large manufacturers were some of its earliest adopters. To make these machines useful, they developed many different software applications, including manufacturing-oriented applications. These early adopters were concerned about managers thinking that these programmes would replace them, so they purposely focused on automating existing routine tasks. General Electric’s well-publicised implementation at its Major Appliance plant in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1954 exemplified this perspective – it focused on “eliminating the drudgery of office work” and avoided automating managerial decision processes in fear that the manager would “throw his hands up in despair.”

Surveys during this time indicate that manufacturers implemented a wide variety of software applications, ranging from inventory control to machine planning to production planning systems. By the early 1970s, however, this variation started converging toward the dominant use of MRP, largely because of the efforts of the “MRP Crusade” by the American Production and Inventory Control Society. MRP represented a new methodology to manage inventory requirements, and the software systems integrated managerial decision-making with the routine tasks. By 1975, it was estimated that 700 manufacturing firms had implemented an MRP solution.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM B-School
Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri
Planman Consulting
IIPM in the league of best management institutes of India.....IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism
Arindam Chaudhuri: We need Hazare's leadership
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
Planman Technologies
IIPM Contact Info
IIPM History
IIPM Think Tank
IIPM Infrastructure
IIPM Info
IIPM: Selection Process
IIPM: Research and Publications
IIPM MBA Institute India
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Thursday, February 16, 2012

Advertising - Hotspots and Rankings - They came, we saw and everybody reviewed!

An ad is a product of painstaking craftsmanship. Various elements, ranging from positioning of the product, clarity of the idea behind the product to visibility of the brand, its persona and the power of communication have to be intelligently weaved together. But while some ads manage to rewrite preset creative benchmarks, some go the wrong way, fall by the side and fail to excite viewers. In this section, we review three ads that came out tops, for the right and also for the wrong reasons.

Almost there

Advertiser: Indigo Airlines
Baseline: On time
Agency: Wieden+Kennedy

4Ps B&M Take: To be honest, we really didn’t want this ad to be on this side of the table. Having fawned over it for a week, not ranking it as one of the top three hurts us. But there is a reason behind this decision; we might like the creative, but then it has to also be ranked from the perspective of how well it was comprehended by the target audience. You see, for the whole first week we coincidentally saw this ad on muted TV sets (in our office), thus getting attracted by the visuals and visuals alone; with which we still don’t find any fault. In fact, the concept of a flight crew doing a charged up Broadway musical to explain the vision and mission of the airline along with its working procedure, advantages, expertise and a subtle brief on the services that it provides makes for a very interesting watch (but of course, copied from the Facebook ad). Wieden has adopted a very fresh approach to airline advertising; moving away from the industry standard of showcasing the aircraft fleet with the crew donning a very professional and boring run of the mill demeanor. Not only is it drawing everybody’s attention, but it has also managed to reach out to its target audience – the well bred frequent fliers – and convince them to at least give them a chance. It scores huge on brand recall; but some would argue that the commercial is a tad too long. And if you happen to be in front of the TV for more than an hour a day, chances are you would have seen this commercial several times and that is when it starts to lose its appeal – although the girls featured look as attractive the nth time as they did the first time (duh! but yes, we love them!). Add to it the fact that there’s practically no levity. Outstanding cinematography, super positioning, zero humour, and they missed the top 3!

Watch out for that rock

Advertiser: Big Rock
Baseline: Fashion, Budget Shaadi
Agency: Ideas@Work]

4Ps B&M Take: Our views on this advertisement are not a result of an urge to whine. The complaints are inspired solely by the advertisement. Starting with a bad concept followed by poor execution, the ad is further marred by a poor sense of humour/unappealing cast. No matter how hard you try, it becomes extremely difficult to justify the logic behind this commercial. Why would you be interested in watching someone styling the chest hair of his customers on TV, no matter how imaginative the designs might be? And just how does it connect to the brand to be promoted? For almost the entire campaign, you are left wondering about the purpose of the advertisement, if not to sell some new form of hair trimmers that style only your chest hair. The only way the ad connects with Big Rock is that the viewer is hit by a big rock when he learns of the true intent and purpose of the advertisement. Equally bad is it’s sister commercial themed on budget shaadi. In this one, you can’t even comprehend that there is a budget shaadi going on, let alone realise why such a wedding was depicted. The idea of showing weird businesses is really to convince viewers that any business can work with a website (like it did earlier). But chances are high that you will change the channel before the message can be driven home.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM B-School
Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri
Planman Consulting
IIPM in the league of best management institutes of India.....
IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism
Arindam Chaudhuri: We need Hazare's leadership
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
Planman Technologies
IIPM Contact Info
IIPM History
IIPM Think Tank
IIPM Infrastructure
IIPM Info
IIPM: Selection Process
IIPM: Research and Publications
IIPM MBA Institute India
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Tuesday, July 19, 2011

MARUTI AND VW TWEEK SMS MARKETING WITH AN INTERACTIVE TINGE TO MAKE IT WORK BETTER

SMS Marketing is enjoying its time in the sun for indian firms. But the Dark ‘Spam’ Clouds on the Horizon Persist

There is an obscenely high probability that the last text message you received, which purported to market some product or service for your brilliant benefit, was summarily deleted from your mobile’s inbox within two seconds of your reading the initial lines. If the response rates are so low, how is it that companies – and leading ones for that – are still opting for sms marketing? Does sms marketing hold promise as a relevant marketing tool?

“Cost is one big factor which is attracting many companies to use SMS as a medium to connect with the consumer,” says Monik Mehra, founder of My SMS Mantra, a New Delhi based sms list broking company, which provides sms push engines for companies like Cantabil India. List brokers like My SMS Mantra have now mushroomed like nobody’s business as they have large verifiable databases of mobile subscribers. The better ones even have demographic data on such subscribers, making the SMS marketing engine more target effective.

Irrespective, with the increasing use of this medium by the real estate, retail and stock broking industries, SMS Marketing has taken in the tinge of spam marketing. “Often, the consumers simply delete the text even without reading,” shares Anuj Kumar, ED-South Asia at Affle, one of the leading mobile media and marketing solutions companies.

Industry watchers expect the spam trend to continue, more so as demographic filtering of the subscriber data is not of the highest quality. The realty sector has been one of the perpetrators of this spam issue. Accepts Ravi Saund, Head-Business Development, CHD Developers, “Out of the total texts we send, only 10% consumers revert and out of those, close to 10% convert into a final sales,” adding that people have clearly started getting irritated with the concept of SMS marketing. Saund laments the absence of demographic profiling, mentioning how globally, database selling is such a huge business proposition because of the simple fact that the data is available based on various parameters. “India too, will have such a scenario, but only in years to come,” says Saund.

Still, several players from the automobile industry, like Hyundai, Tata Motors, Volkswagen, Maruti Suzuki etc back SMS marketing to the hilt as even one conversion is a bonus for them. While Volkswagen used SMS marketing to increase awareness about the Polo on a huge scale, market leader Maruti Suzuki has also started marketing via texts recently. “The response of SMS marketing activities have been better than expected. In fact, it can be explained by the high cell phone penetration and its frequent usage for all kind of information and interaction,” says Lutz Kothe, CGM – Marketing, Volkswagen Group Sales India. Maruti Suzuki on its part launched an SMS contest for Eeco, which generated a record 2.4 lakh entries. “As it offers a decent cost-value relationship, we also use it for our after sales services,” mentions Shashank Srivastava, CGM – Marketing, Maruti Suzuki India.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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