10 things I have learnt on Captain Candid’s Adventure Ride…

– By Amrita Kumar, Managing Partner, Candid Marketing.

1.     Always be prepared for a crisis. If there is no crisis or fire on any front, there is something wrong.

2.     All our work is divided into elements we can control and ones we can’t. It’s always better to have all the elements we can control done way before time, so that when it comes down to crunch time – all your time and bandwidth is free to handle elements you can’t control.

3.     The client is not always right. Sometimes, even they do not know what they really need. It is a sign of a mature and honest agency to know this.

4.     A good idea is not always a good revert. Being honest at this stage is important. One may still choose to go ahead with the good idea, but let’s not kid ourselves that the brand comes first.

5.     If we don't respect ourselves, no one else will. We should respect our time, our work and our legacy.

6.     Having said that, legacy will not get you anywhere. Consistent and dependable good work will take you everywhere.

7.     If you lose a pitch, it is usually for a very valid reason. Again let’s not kid ourselves. Even perception of the winning agency in the client’s eyes is a good reason.

8.     Never claim or promise error-free work – in an industry where vendors, temporary manpower etc make up more than 70% of the execution, one cannot and should not.

9.     Promise to be the client’s eyes.  That means more. Identify problems, update client and do your best to fix it. That is what gets client’s trust.

10.  Always be hungry. To learn, to try, and to adapt to new things and ways.

Candid turns 20!

August 15, 1995. As India celebrated its 48^th Independence Day, an idea was being hatched. An idea called Candid Marketing, which had the potential to set brands free. To liberate them from the tedium of traditional media. 

Yes, there was B2C communication, but it was passive and one-way, at best. Where was the personal connect and interaction with consumers? How could brands gauge the efficacy of campaigns,  how could they measure consumer responses or their emotions?

Consumers simply read, watched and listened to ads, without really having a way to respond or give feedback. If they did not like the communication, they would simply turn the page, or turn the TV or radio off. KAPUT! And all the marketing bucks would go down the drain.

Candid Marketing leapt into this gap by becoming India’s first-ever strategic brand activation agency, promising (and delivering on that promise) to bring brands to life and enabling a one-on-one connect with consumers.

 Candid won over many companions along the way – Unilever, Microsoft, Pepsi, Nissan, Sony TV, Oakley, Vodafone, Pidilite, Grant Thornton, GSK, Cadbury, Godrej, Pogo, Star TV & Kingfisher, to name just a few – always finding newer ways to surprise and delight consumers.

 An indefatigable passion for innovation and originality clearly reflects in Candid's regular appearance at various industry awards shows, where we have been consistently winning across categories for our various properties & activations.

 With a laser-like focus on its core business, Candid has also broadened its horizon with two new initiatives –

- Candid Play, which heralds the sports activation business in India and paves the way for franchises, teams and leagues to have a positive, engaging impact on fans across various sports and get the maximum bang for their marketing bucks; and

- Candid Events, which sets the stage for events of all kinds: Celebrity Events, HR Events, Sales Meets, Exhibitions & Conventions, Bloggers’ Meets, Award Shows, etc.

Today, as we turn 20, we look back proudly at our exciting journey, dotted with more than 40,000 activation campaigns (…and counting!). 

Candid Marketing invites you for a walk down memory lane as we revisit our journey – the many challenges, the hits and misses, the accolades and the awards we have picked up along the path to where we are today.

The power of over-communication

Nowadays I feel like I belong to the old school. The school which believed that the client and agency talk to each other everyday in active periods and at least once a week in the not so active periods. I believe that one should send minutes of a meeting or discussion so nothing falls from the cracks. I believe even if it takes a few days to get back with information or costs or a rework that a client has asked for, it's as important to also keep updating the client on status and progress. 

I hear teams specially from creative and client servicing complain about briefs changing on them or too many reworks or a brief losing priority. This to some extent can be avoided by communication. 

I physically feel uncomfortable when I see briefs being taken and no conversation with the client for the next week to ten days till the revert is ready. In an industry where we still to a large extent live project to project, I think it's important to tell the client, we want your business, we are working on your brief. 

I also believe  that it adds to story telling and eventually selling if we also keep the client updated on difficulties and barriers once faces while putting together the revert. It definitely helps in bonding. 

In this day and age where everything is getting commoditised thanks to the dreaded procurement teams, it's relationships which will help in value added engagements and hence work.  And relationships are built through over communication. Call me old fashioned. 

"How to lose an activation agency in 10 days"

Day 1: While briefing them, given them vague details of the brand you are working on and call them a vendor. Give them two days to respond with a presentation. Promise them more details will be sent later on an email. At the end of the meeting, also mention you have run out of your cards.

Day 2: Not pick up the agency's calls or respond to smses asking for your email ID and the information you had promised to send.

Day 3: Pick up the call and send the information and ask them to present the next day.

Day 4: You can choose. Either make them present after making them wait for forty minutes and then tell them the brief has changed. Or like a few ideas but then tell them they are way out of your budget. Either ways, ask them to rework and also come back with costs.

Day 7: Not respond to calls or smses for setting up a meeting.

Day 9: Call the agency and be inflexible about setting up a meeting time next day.

Day 10: After seeing the presentation, appreciate it loads. But tell them plans have changed for now and this will be executed next quarter. End the meeting requesting the presentation to be emailed. The .ppt version.

Amrita Kumar
@amrita_kumar

Experiential. Digital. Activate! If you throw peanuts, you get monkeys.

I’ve been doing this for almost 20 years and like many in our industry, I am sick and tired of having to justify the value activation and events deliver! It’s true that many clients not only get it, but also get it enough to reap the benefits of the results. But many other clients don't.

By many a yardstick, our business is the toughest business in the marketing communication gamut… yeah, yeah, everyone thinks they have a tough life but seriously, from a business perspective, running an activation/events business is pretty damn tough. If you were to analyze our business with Michael Porter’s 5-forces model, you’d pretty much decide to shut down the agency and open a kirana store. Everyone who can put pressure on the agency, and many can, to get their pound of flesh does.

Agencies and the industry are unable to invest heavily in key elements like quality of people (creative, strategy, planning, technology), creative resources, technology, SAFETY, vendor development, quality of materials, training of temporary manpower…. the list is endless.

Unfortunately, what is playing out is a sad game of short termism that is leading to deep long term damage to the industry. With the almighty squeeze that the 5 forces are playing out on agencies in the business, its becoming harder and harder for agencies to invest in what’s good for the business and for clients’ brands.

In such a scenario, the stakeholder who should support and bolster the agency is the client; because it's the client whose brand and asset is at stake and who stands to gain the most from the agency thriving and delivering better results. Many clients, unfortunately, are looking at quick gains to get the most out of their money NOW, rather than looking at investing in the agency and its resources to be able to get value for their brand in the medium term.

How can clients help activation/event agencies?

First, develop ‘non-short-term’ relationships with agencies, and make some level of financial commitment to such relationships. Such commitments allow the agency to have a medium term view and invest in resources that would then contribute positively to clients’ brand building.

Second, Instead of calling for multi-agency pitches, which is counter productive because agencies are investing in pitching rather than the process of building clients’ brands. Trust in your agency’s ability, give them more information and ‘gyaan’ about the brand, and make them a strategic partner. It will pay back in dollops!

Third, respect intellectual property of the agency. Just because an idea has no physical form does not mean it belongs to nobody. If your agency does not have the ability to execute the idea you have presented, “buy” the idea and get another agency to execute it (if you like). Investing in intellectual property develops stronger relationships and develops the industry at large.

Fourth, pay fairly for the value you are getting. Negotiation and driving value is all very well, but no agency or business is going to take on projects that make a loss. If the client is going to beat the price down, the difference will show in quality, for sure. You may get a great value deal 1 time out 10 but you will end up paying for it the other 9 times.

HELP us help you, I say to all clients, help us to deliver better, deliver more, deliver faster for your brands.

3 Types of Experiential Consumers and How To Woo Them - Jennifer Houston

The beauty of experiential marketing is that you get to interact with consumer directly, in real life, face-to-face. Few other channels afford that luxury and it’s what makes our business exciting. There are three types of experiential consumers, whose strengths are actually also their weaknesses. Just as in the ancient Japanese martial art of Jujutsu, you can win them over by using their strengths to your marketing advantage. Here’s a look at the three types and how you can woo them.

1. The Non-Loyalist

AKA: “Oooh, samples!” or “I’ll try anything if it’s free”

Non-loyalists tend to be price sensitive, undeterred by fancy packaging or bundled upsells, and unimpressed with new product features or promises. There are thousands of products to choose from, but this consumer will always take the tried and true brand-name price leader. In fact, non-loyalists might be a bit of a misnomer, as we know they’re at least loyal to one thing—the deal. They span every kind of demographic including moms, college students, baby boomers and even some millennials and they realize that sometimes the best deal is that free sample you’re giving away.

The Challenge: With their go-to product in mind, why should they consider your more expensive, less familiar version? They’re happy to try a freebie but may have little intention of considering the actual product itself.

How To Woo Them: The good news is that non-loyalists are actually willing to approach your ambassadors and interact in order to get a sample, which is half the battle won already. Your task is to engage them in a language they’ll appreciate—the honest comparison. Non-loyalists are well versed in the market and they know the ins and outs of your competitor’s products, so talk to them about it. Show them that you’ve also considered it from their point of view and lay it all out on the table. Not only will this gain their trust, it will force them to consider your brand alongside others by more than price alone. You’re taking a great risk if you only showcase your product in a silo, especially if you’re looking to woo this consumer.

2. Underground Eye-rollers

AKA: Too Cool For School, Independent Spirit, “I liked it before it was mainstream.”

If you like what they like, they don’t like you, or, what they just liked for that matter. That’s putting it in extreme terms, but Underground Eye-rollers love being different and invest their time in all things undiscovered. They live for exclusivity and prefer their brands and products under the radar. They’re a coveted consumer because they fuel the word-of-mouth machine and take recommendations from trusted friends to heart. Underground Eye-rollers are in fact your most die-hard fans.

The Challenge: So what happens when your brand decides to reach a larger experiential audience? Now that all the Average Joes of the world are trying it out, your Underground Eye-rollers are likely to be turned off.  So how do you retain satisfaction beyond exclusivity?

How To Woo Them: These consumers care about their brands because they know and value them. They pride themselves on being the authority, so go ahead and speak directly to that sense of authority. Find ways to seek out their expertise, to get their feedback and incorporate them in the experiential activation process (or even the planning itself). Show that you still cherish the fundamental qualities that bound them to the brand in the first place, and are still offering them an exclusive expertise-based experience that Average Joe isn’t getting. It will build respect and get them to truly believe in a brand they will stick by.

3. The Tastemaker

AKA: Early Adopters, Your brother-in-law who always has a new tech gadget

Tastemakers care about the product and that’s why they’re willing to pay a premium to have it first. You might see people that overlap both Tastemakers and Underground Eye-rollers, or you may see someone start as one and turn into the other, but the main thing to note is that Tastemakers live for the thrill of being ahead of the curve. It’s a special place they love to exist in, requiring a higher risk tolerance and bigger salary.

The Challenge: How do you distinguish yourself when your product is second to market, less technologically advanced, or one of many similar options?

How To Woo Them: We all wish our rosters were filled with market-leading brands, but the truth is that oftentimes the most exciting experiential programs don’t happen with the biggest brands on the block. Smaller brands know that what they’re missing in market share needs to be made up in marketing—riskier programs, cutting edge hybrid campaigns, and groundbreaking creative concepts. It’s about blurring the lines between marketing and product, and creating a halo effect that will carry the brand upward. Tastemakers demand that you push the marketing limits.

http://www.chiefmarketer.com/promotional-marketing/3-types-of-experiential-consumers-and-how-to-woo-them-27082013

 Jennifer Houston is vice president of client services at Attack! Marketing. She can be reached at jhouston@attackmarketing.com.