Double or Quit

Experts believe that the firmly entrenched popularity of cruisers in targeted developed markets have contributed to Enfield’s success overseas, but volume play on the home turf may require some mass marketing measures from the niche bike maker. Not that the core team at Royal Enfield have been twiddling their thumbs. They are already expanding their target segment from the present 25+ age group to bring more of youngistan into their brand franchise. Analysts say that Bullet’s club activities, which will give the youth a sense of belonging, are set to play a significant role in expanding the Enfield brand promise for India’s youthful demographic. Proactive marketers at Enfield have already started capitalising on this asset. Their latest activities like ‘Log Out’ (focused on corporate sales) and ‘Keep Riding’ (wherein Bullet riders go on a small tour together) are specifically designed to bring a new set of young consumers under the Royal Enfield umbrella. So is there a plan to launch a two-wheeler version of Maruti’s Raid-de-Himalaya?

“Not really. Our intention is to promote Enfield riders riding together, rather than competing with each other,” clarifies Chavan.

Apart from expanding its consumer base, Enfield also has a portfolio line up to achieve the proposed doubling of its sales turnover. The company that has recently rolled out its Classic 350 and Classic 500 models (with single spring-saddle seats and vintage body coloured bumpers), will soon be launching its new and much-awaited Machismo in the Indian market. With its latest UCE technology (introduced in the Classic range), Enfield has narrowed the space for its critics to crib about Bullet’s engine issues. The new technology offers a host of advantages to the consumer namely, engine oil change after 6,000 kms instead of the earlier 3,000 kms; little or no engine adjustments, et al – changes introduced to make more heads turn in Bullet’s direction. “The company will also be launching concept models and variants at the Auto Expo next year which will make consumers more familiar about benefits of UCE technology,” avers Ravichandran.

Despite these subtle overtures to woo new target segments, Enfield is careful about not over stepping the mark in any way that could hurt its intrinsic brand association with cruise biking. Little surprise that they are sticking with their traditional media plan and continue to opt for their regular niche marketing channels. “We have no plans to turn our products into mass appealing ones. Enfield will continue marketing activities via niche media channels only,” explains Ravichandran, emphasising the company’s need to not upset the brand’s apple cart anytime soon.

Our Take: Royal Enfield’s efforts to net in India’s youngistan franchise via its clubs may fetch long-term returns. Their short term plan of netting 60,000 unit sales in 2010 are also well in sight. But, with every bike maker in India hungering to expand their target segment, doubling Bullet sales by 2013, without any major tweaking of marketing strategies, may not be the best bet for this niche player.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here

Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎
IIPM Related Links

Detail of all IIPM branches
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON
IIPM 3-year full-time Integrated (MBA BBA) Programme
IIPM 2-year full time Programme (leading to the award of the MBA degree from IMI)

Monojit Lahiri spoke to a bunch of celebs who made sparks fly – before toasting to a ban of this absurd rule!

We live in strange and troubled times, brother …

We are allowed the manufacture and consumption of liquor – but, sorry – (hic) no advertising! Unlike the US of A where alcohol advertising has “regulatory bodies” that create standards for ethical advertising and where the concern is ‘where’ the ads are placed (mostly in media streams viewed by 70% of the audience over the drinking age) here it’s a blanket ban with no ifs, buts, why’s … When pressed, the general response (please don’t have a cardiac arrest, laughing!) is: it’s unconstitutional to propagate evil habits injurious to health and a bad influence to society. All the celebs interviewed – with the exception of the cool and gorgeously opinionated Pooja Bedi – were of the collective belief that this move was the biggest farce ever; a totally hollow, ludicrous, cosmetic and cockeyed, completely self-defeating in both intent and purpose. In today’s liberated and globalised times, with India celebrating economic prowess and quality of life at par with the West, this brain dead vetoing of publicity of a product category which is a way of life for India’s well-healed, sophisticated, aspirational constituency but freely allowing manufa

cture to scoop up titanic amounts of revenue for the exchequer, tantamounts to an epic hypocritical joke! Here’s what the heavy weights have to say …

Ad-Guru & Theatre Maestro Alyque Padamse is first off the block and takes off with all cylinders firing! “Either make Prohibition work or allow the advertising of liquor. The Government must stop this childish and absurd dilly-dallying and decide one way or the other. In today’s life and times, liquor is a part of young people’s lives and no social event is complete without it. How many kids have tea, coffee or cola’s after 8 pm? C’mon wake up and taste the … stuff! The same goes for Cigarettes. If the powers that are had any guts they would ban the manufacture of these products – not the advertising. Isn’t it amazing that they have messages like SMOKING KILLS on cigarette packs and yet these products roll out in billions of units everyday? But then Delhi is notorious for its double-think!” Film-maker Shyam Benegal agrees. “It’s so hypocritical and doesn’t make any sense at all! They don’t ban the name or the brand but just the idea it is liquor and do a quick surrogate advertising number – Kingfisher Mineral Water, Bagpiper Soda … whatever. And the argument that it will tempt the poor is silly because this segment does not connect with IMFL brands and hence advertising affecting them is a non-starter argument”. Actor & Anchor Kabir Bedi goes along this line of thinking, but with a tiny proviso. “I agree with Alyque & Shyam that while advertising should certainly be allowed, one should ensure that it shouldn’t be consciously created in a manner that it makes drinking a fashion statement or a glamorous recreation for the kids and have-nots. We know the power of clever advertising and the influence it can wield as a force of seduction. So, basically I am advocating Responsible Advertising”.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years

TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎
IIPM Related Links
Detail of all IIPM branches
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON

Globally, companies are earning huge revenues by licensing out their brands, but in india the trend is just about beginning to shape up.

Be it licensing for merchandise or bringing international reality TV shows to india, there is still a lot to happen on the domestic circuit. will the future unfold just as beautifully as predicted by marketers? 4Ps B&M’s Pawan Chabra presents his findings...

In 2003, ITC placed a huge order of 4.5 crore comics with Diamond Comics for Sunfeast’s brand launch campaign. The comics were to be distributed free as part of the Sunfeast promotional campaign among kids. It was then that Gulshan Rai spotted a golden opportunity. The Managing Director of Diamond Comics realised that his paper heroes had it in them to ring-in mammoth additional revenues through brand licensing. Rai recalls, “We realised then that there can be a brand licensing program that can be exercised. Our comics have been used by many companies for promotional purposes since then...” An obvious refrain would be that popular characters from the company’s stable – Chacha Choudhary, Pinki and Billu – are way less popular than Walt Disney’s characters or even American super heros like Superman and Batman and therefore would command less goodwill. But Rai believes differently. He argues, “Foreign characters are only popular in metros, but we have a pan-India reach and even people living in remote areas have been reading our comics for years.”

Diamond Comics is also planning a TV Channel named Diamond TV in the next 8-9 months, which will make its popular comic characters all the more familiar with the target audience. Though Rai declined to comment on his revenue targets, but he seemed certain that, “Diamond TV’s launch will phenomenally increase the brand equity of its comic characters...” Besides the TV venture, the company also has plans to launch stationary items, chewing gums, et al, in the coming months, in a bid to extend its brand licensing and merchandising programme. At a time when power brands seem to be singing their way to the banks, the news for regional brands is also not too bad. Marketers believe that even brands with recognition in Tier-II and Tier-III towns will come to assume equal importance as those of the big players, as brand licensing is fast acquiring the shape and form of a mind-boggling $190 billion-worth global phenomenon! It’s the new obsession of the new-age marketers across the world. And the potential for India is tremendous, given the small inroads that have been made so far.

For the uninitiated, brand licensing is worth more than $71.25 billion in countries like US and Canada; Western Europe is catching up with annual earnings of $26 billion from brand licensing. But where exactly does India stand in this fight to make the most by allowing others to exploit your brand? First, the bad news – India, with an annual global licensing market share of just 1% is still a laggard. The good part – despite that, India Inc. has sensed the huge opportunity lying ahead, both for marketers as well as brand licensing experts, who are salivating at prospects of multi-fold growth in this industry in the coming years.

In fact, Gaurav Marya, President, License India (one of the largest Indian companies that has a structured and focused approach toward licensing), estimates the current size of this industry to be around Rs.500 crore with the potential of a strong 40-50% CAGR over the next couple of years. “The biggest advantage that India has is the huge number of world-class manufacturers available in the country,” adds Marya. But what does it take to make a brand licensing program successful in a vast and diverse country like India?

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here

Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎
IIPM Related Links
IIPM - Admission Procedure
IIPM, GURGAON
IIPM 3-year full-time Integrated (MBA BBA) Programme
IIPM 2-year full time Programme (leading to the award of the MBA degree from IMI)
Exclusive In chat with Society Magazine - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri

BEND IT IN BHARAT

India’s 700 million villages, housing almost 70% of the nation’s consuming population, have had marketers salivating after them for almost half a decade. But the real boom is coming only now, with rural demand for durable and non-durable products far outpacing consumerism in saturated urban markets. Villagers now account for the majority of consumer spending in the country, more than $100 billion a year. And if you thought that this spending is limited to essentials and necessities, here’s the eye opener. Rural India buys 46% of all soft drinks sold, 49% of motorcycles and 59% of cigarettes. FMCG conglomerates like HUL and CavinKare get more than 30% and 50% respectively of their revenues from rural India. It is not that overnight rural India has become prosperous and consumerism is booming. The devil is in the detail. A decade ago, India had only 400 microfinance institutions covering merely 200,000 customers between them. Today, more than a thousand microfinance institutions crisscross India’s rural lanes and serve over 17 million people. Easy finance availability has added fuel to the fire created by the flush of media created awareness that has seeped into ‘Bharat’ over the last decade. So while till a few years ago, a video on wheels, branded vans and a song and dance show were enough to push your brands amidst rural folks, an overexposure to TV has killed that appeal today. Product customisation no longer means just reducing the bottle to the sachet; and promotions do not merely mean painting the village sarpanch’s house to entice others to buy your paint. The time is ripe for more focused and relevant messaging and well-thought-out specific strategies to woo these simpletons. Some brands have already cracked the new mantras to succeed in rural India. For those who are still bemused, here’s your chance to learn and earn.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

The Sunday Indian:- B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Don't trust the Indian Media!
IIPM exposes Career 360 and Mahesh Peri scam
IIPM - We will change your outlook : Career 360 and Mahesh Peri scam is exposed

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎
IIPM Related Links
IIPM 3-year full-time Integrated (MBA BBA) Programme
IIPM 2-year full time Programme (leading to the award of the MBA degree from IMI)
B-schools expect higher rate of campus placements this year
Exclusive In chat with Society Magazine - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri

After a long silence, Yahoo! has gonged the rebranding bell. But will this be enough to save the online giant?

STEVEN PHILIP WARNER, post his interactions with industry experts, does a reality check…

“It was not something that we realised when we suddenly woke up in the morning. The Yahoo! team had been at it for over 9 months now and it was a pure collaborative effort, led by our CEO Carol Bartz,” began Nitin Mathur, Director - Marketing, Yahoo! India. So what is he really referring to here? Yahoo’s latest “It’s Y!ou” rebranding campaign that was rolled out on October 5, 2009, in India after its launch in US a week prior to that. So while many online Yahoo fans are pleased with the repainting of the Yahoo! brand with some new and fresh third-party applications, the question that remains to be answered is – will this $100 million-worth global plan help save this brand which many critics now even call debilitated and anemic? One such individual is Richard L. Ptak, a noted Silicon Valley-based analyst, who opines, “I can’t think of any successful re-branding efforts to date when it comes to online services. Die-hard Yahoo! aficionados may go to the site and spend time trying to figure out the benefits. But simply revising the graphics and an unfocussed message is not going to drive people to its site. Marketing is definitely important to gain attention but you need to be able to demonstrate a clear differentiation from the competition. Yahoo! looks the same as any of their competitors on the web. When you go to their site, it’s still the same old Yahoo!” Well, we certainly do not agree with Ptak here, for Yahoo! has brought in more than just a simple change in graphics. “It is more like understanding the rebranding efforts with the change in content and innovation in other offerings as the real backdrop,” states Mathur.

Then there are others who agree that Yahoo! is doing much more than simply being a navel-gazing narcissist! One Jagdeep Kapoor, a noted brand analyst, positively propounds a three-advantage theory, “First, is that it would rejuvenate the Yahoo! brand and make it more vibrant. Secondly, the ‘Y!ou’ part is significant, which attempts to connect with the consumers old and new on an individual level. Thirdly, the media spend and visibility will also bring Yahoo! will bring into the consideration set for potential consumers...” Considered that an optimistic Kapoor talks about the increased visibility for Yahoo!, but how often do you see a Gmail or Google search advertisement on print? Or for that matter, even Microsoft, which is sitting on about $49 billion of cash reserves, bothers least about highlighting its ‘newly’ launched Bing search engine brand, in newspapers or magazines, globally! But as media gurus around the world shunned the need for online giants to advertise on print media, Yahoo! sprung a surprise. It was Yahoo! and its new found vigour for re-branding that were splashed across front pages of six leading national dailies in India on October 5, 2009. And this is actually some indication from the online service giant that it is waking-up to the call of the wild online world. As far as India is concerned, this is all set to become the latest 360-degree re-branding effort by the giant, spanning vehicles like print, social media, TV, radio, cellular services and online (which of course will remain the main vehicle during the months to come, as the ads are planned to hit your temples till the end of 2010)! “We’ve had the Yoodle campaign in Mumbai, which generated a lot of interest amongst youngsters, and this campaign will continue for the next 16-18 months, till the end of 2010,” adds Mathur. Yahoo! is also looking at many below-the-line campaigns, the next one of which will be centred around the cyber-cafes. It is interesting that despite being a global player, Yahoo! is showing a special interest in the Indian market. Talking about the same, Ptak avers, “Given the attention to India-specific images in the generic intro video, I would expect that Yahoo! would have ads targeted on and highlighting India-specific interests, concerns and events. Yahoo! will regionalise & make it easier to get more local content and make the information offered more local.”

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

The Sunday Indian:- B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Don't trust the Indian Media!
IIPM exposes Career 360 and Mahesh Peri scam
IIPM - We will change your outlook : Career 360 and Mahesh Peri scam is exposed

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎
IIPM Related Links
IIPM ISBE Programmes
Follow Arindam Chaudhuri on Twitter
IIPM B School on Twitter
Exclusive In chat with Society Magazine - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri

Unfolding the dark side of Jail

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

He’s explored and exposed the underbelly of the media, corporate and fashion worlds; Now Madhur Bhandarkar is all set to reveal the truth behind bars. By Pallavi Srivastava

Madhur Bhandarkar is known for bringing reality live on silver screen. In a similar endeavor for his movie Jail, the director has actually sourced the prisoners’ clothes, mugs and a lot of other goodies shown in the movie from the Pune Jail.

Neil Nitin Mukesh has lended his voice for a song in the movie: The actor recorded the song Saiyan ve (Rock version) at the Krishna Studio in Mumbai. Neil flaunted his vocal talents for five hours at the recording. The song is used as a promotional song for the movie. And yes, this is the second playback song from Neil. He had earlier sung a song for his film Aa Dekhen Zara.

On Neil’s request, director Madhur Bhandarkar decided to shoot the entire movie in a chronological order. Neil says that as a person he couldn’t identify with the four walls of the jail. So, for him to play the role better, it was important to live the character. Shooting the movie chronologically helped him in doing so. Hence, Neil was able to portray Parag Dixit (his character) more realistically.

During the shoot of the movie Neil Nitin Mukesh and Manoj Bajpai were staying in a resort in Karjat (extended suburb of Mumbai). Neil and Manoj were the only guests at the resort, along with some of the staff. And guess what? Both felt that the resort was haunted! So to keep the ghosts out of sight the two actors covered the huge windowpanes in their rooms with newspapers. Oops! Are ghosts scared of newspapers? Or are they scared of journalists?

Much has already being talked about the nude scene that Neil has done for Jail. But Neil doesn’t feel that the issue has been blown out of proportion. He says, “Since its the first time in Indian cinematic history that an actor is shedding all the clothes... this much media attention is natural. However, the only reason that the scene is there in the movie is because it was necessary to portray the reality.” And yes, the actor did feel shy stripping for a billion people...

Pallavi Srivastava

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

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

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

The Sunday Indian:- B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Don't trust the Indian Media!
IIPM exposes Career 360 and Mahesh Peri scam
IIPM - We will change your outlook : Career 360 and Mahesh Peri scam is exposed

Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎
IIPM Related Links
Follow Arindam Chaudhuri on Twitter
IIPM B School on Twitter
Exclusive In chat with Society Magazine - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri