Mindshare is enjoying the glow of a year, marked by new contracts and awards. Global CEO Adam Gerhart believes this is just the beginning and that the company’s “smart expansion” proposal will continue to drive expansion for all parties involved: society, planet and businesses. . Gerhart talks to exchange4media editor-in-chief Naziya Alvi Rahman about India as a key market, its concept of “smart expansion,” and Mindshare’s smart year in 2023.
Q] What brings the CEO of Mindshare Global to India?I have had the opportunity to make a stopover in India several times during my career. It’s a critical market for us and for the world, and it’s only growing. The last time I was here was before COVID, and this is the first time here in my new role as global CEO. India’s role in the coming days will be more pronounced, and for me it’s about two things: opportunity and speed. The scale of opportunity is limitless, and the speed of expansion and foresight is accelerating at a speed we have never noticed before. The combination of those two means you’re on the verge of something amazing, and to be here, there’s a power and an optimism that you’ve never noticed. Before that it’s inspiring.
Q] It’s been a smart year for Mindshare. You won the Netpaintings of the Year name in Cannes and some major accounts in India. What has painted for you as a media agency? This year we had 99 shortlists and 33 shared metals in thirteen countries at Cannes, so smart cadres from the built-in teams. He has a wonderful talent mix, with solid clients who are in a position to make ambitious decisions. In general, it’s also about being able to spot trends faster than the competition, whether it’s in terms of conversion landscapes and customer desires. Client functions are born from that first idea, and our task is to be in front of our clients, to see what happens next. A massive shift is taking place in the industry, from scale to precision, from permission to predictive media, and from campaigns to experiences. It also has new trends and features, from retail media to generative AI. By seeing media as more than a channel, as a means to reshape or address critical business challenges, we can stay where our customers want us to be: ahead of the curve, seeing what they want, and then fueling their growth.
Q] How do you rate the functionality of Mindshare India compared to other markets?What unique methods differentiate it from other markets? India is one of our main markets with immense potential, so we have high expectations here. It’s not just about making an investment in growing the business, but also in creating new features and scaling what works. We want to harness this wisdom and drive growth. The dynamism of the market makes it exciting and allows us to experiment and innovate faster than elsewhere. We will have to continue to win and grow and also inspire investment in more diversified facilities that allow us to grow and exceed the expected growth.
Q] Regarding Mindshare India, what are some of the features that you think will be further developed or strengthened? When we look specifically at India, we see over 400 million active social media users and 650 million mobile gamers. Both are well above the population of the maximum primary countries. Or look at the rise of influencers, which is building at over 25% in India. Although those criteria are not unique to India, its scale and speed make it unique. As those trends accelerate, the facilities we will provide will need to diversify. Yet at the same time, the convergence of those trends—how things like social sentiment can be used to tell users on the site to have fun or shape business strategies—means they want to be more connected than ever. decision making. Our ambition to drive “good expansion” is fundamentally based on designing the most productive paths to expansion for our clients and achieving both. This means delivering more varied installations at a variety of speeds, from MarTech implementation to commerce, from analytics to influencers, and everything in between.
Q] From a global perspective, where would you rank India in terms of precedence for you?India is an incredibly vital market. As I said before, it’s developing faster than any other Top 10 market discussed in GroupM’s “This Year, Next Year” ad spend report. So yes, India is an incredibly vital market, not only for Mindshare, GroupM and WPP, but also for the global one. The country continues its journey of progression, fitting into an even greater, creative and avant-garde economic power, with an impact at the global level. Our Indian team has been one of the most creative and cutting-edge markets in the world. You can tell through how many rewards they earn. This year, they won globally at Cannes with the “Dove Thumbstopping Beauty Bias” campaign, which I consider the first of many to come.
Q] You have expressed a strong position on the concept of “smart expansion. ” What is your definition of this term? The short answer is that the nature of expansion is becoming and expectations are becoming because all stakeholders are now concerned with defining expansion. There are shareholders, stakeholders, a society/planet, partners and the list goes on. Even within an organization, some would likely chart expansion systems through the old-fashioned short-term prism, while others would long-term. Some might view it through the prism of the logo rather than sales. But, even within that, it gets more complex as some might prioritize DTC expansion over retail because of the knowledge you gain from DTC and the ability to create lifetime value. This only scratches the surface. From a customer perspective, other people have more strength to demand more authenticity and action from logos because they are more connected through global platforms. Look at how temporarily a logo misstep can scale across global platforms now, compared to in the past, and how temporarily logos want to respond. “Good Growth” takes this new customer force into account and tries to harness it for the intelligence of all stakeholders (society, planet and business) through the use of intentional media. The longer answer is that we live in the age of platforms, with multiple stakeholders. The matrix is the catalyst for the emergence of good growth. Platshapes is not just another media channel where other people see ads like TV or print media. These are the new countries where other people live their lives, with more users than maximum countries. They are posts where other people share their comments on life and logos, shape comments, transact and find entertainment. They forced customers to ask for more from the logos: more value, more authenticity, and more action. Platshapes collapsed the sales funnel, consolidating other people, media, experience, and purchases into a single platshape. Therefore, geographic expansion is no longer the main driving force of expansion; Their ability to tap into the platform age, their ecosystems, and their influence are the real driving forces behind today’s expansion.
Q] You recently discussed that ad spend continues to grow despite a challenging environment. Could you elaborate on the express demanding situations encountered in this context?Also, what was the rate of expansion?GroupM’s “This Year, Next Year” ad spending report, which starts in the middle of the year, forecasts global expansion of 5. 8% for the year, with India expected to succeed at around 12%. In other words, India will potentially delight in an AdEx expansion of 2-3 times the global average. With more than 70% of new expansion coming from virtual channels, compared to virtual’s existing percentage of overall ad spend, the market is reshaping itself. So as the COVID rebound continues and India is a fast-growing market, in many markets around the world, customers are feeling the pressure due to a unique set of macroeconomic circumstances. It’s a pretty dynamic environment right now, with brands navigating customer sentiment in markets while looking for their ad spend to drive expansion.
Q] You have pleaded with your Jstomers to use AI with caution. Could you give us some perspective, perhaps with an example? Much has been said about AI and device learning, from the belief that it will make as many humans as possible redundant in the office to the belief that it will win attention and destroy us all. The fact of AI and ML is that they have the potential to be a must-have team to make us more effective and more importantly free us from mundane responsibilities to make better use of our time and load more money inside of us. focus on more valuable strategic responsibilities. In addition to just focusing on media, AI and ML have allowed us to build better predictive models and react faster to changes around us. For example, we work with many partners on AI/ML, including Datarobot which recently helped a company forecast logo sales due to source chain disruptions and chip shortages. It’s not that they know how much money to spend on media, but how much rubber to buy for tires. This illustrates how we use those teams to solve bigger problems and genuine business problems for our Jstomers. AI can also be a great friend to help us deliver better multimedia and Jstomer experiences. In the United States, we work with our Jstomer Tyson to expand the “Impact Index,” an artificial intelligence tool to perceive how destructive safe editorial content is to Black netpaintings in the United States, then optimize media spend for the non-destructive content. But it deserves to be used with caution. The option for things like prejudice to creep in is there. Take, for example, the fact that according to a global software survey in 2022, 90% of PC programmers are men. Whether you’re aware of it or not, gender bias is more likely to manifest itself when you’re not best friends with other people.
Q] In the media sector, what is your opinion on the opportunities of emerging segments in influencer marketing, retail media, gaming, etc. ? ? Change is constant in our industry, so we expect new platforms, new channels, and new approaches. Influencer marketing is a result of the rise of the platform era that I mentioned earlier. Consolidating other people on one platform collapses the sales funnel. It puts a huge force in the hands of a small number of other people who can engage with consumers around the world through a single platform – the platforms could not have been better designed for the rise of influencer marketing. GroupM recently invested in data-driven influencer marketing company Goat, so I believe we are well placed to help our clients get the most out of influencer marketing. Other regions have also taken off, such as retail media. It’s the result of a similar “platforming” approach, they came here from another angle. Retail outlets have become more vital as retail itself has become more platform-oriented, be it Amazon, TMall, or Flipkart. These retail giants have a unique ability to succeed with consumers in the face of their platforms and their retail media offerings are growing. In many ways, there are parallels to the early days of the search, with media and sales/commerce groups moving into the same area and spend, rarely in opposition to each other. So there is a need for unification in the visitor aspect so that retail media can be effective and effective. Our role is to help our clients make the most of this synergy, as well as help them perceive the broader ecosystem and how productive it is to use it. This includes, how and where they deserve to work with platforms, use their platforms and also work with more classic retailers, based on their product portfolio and logos.
Q] As the world leader of one of the largest media agencies, what do you think of the media business as a whole? How have things been replaced in the last two years and what are the key spaces for expansion that we want to keep in mind? “Good expansion” is the future. I know I’m biased, but I’m a firm believer that we’re only at the beginning of the adventure with the “right expansion. ” The disorders facing the world will not be resolved quickly, many will only get worse and worse. As the effect is felt across a diversity of voters, agendas will shift and compete. As the importance of platforms grows, the impact on society and Americans means that consumers will increasingly take control to pressure regulators and governments to make adjustments to improve the world and defend the brands they are on. trust, keep promises and call. brands that think they are not. “Good growth” drives visitor expansion in a variety of ways, through understanding and harnessing this new consumer force, to the intelligence of all stakeholders (society, planet, and business) using media with intent. I hope more brands use media intentionally, aligning with the values and passions of their consumers, delivering better results for society and the planet, and enhancing their own effects in the process.
Exchange4media Group is back with the Indian Digital Marketing Awards (IDMA), highlighting and celebrating the remarkable work being done in the virtual media space. IDMA 2023 will take place on August 10 in Mumbai in the presence of the most sensitive industry leaders and advertising experts. and the marketing industry.
The jury assembly for the awards is scheduled for today, August 2. This year, the IDMA jury will be led by Harish Bhat, Brand Custodian, Tata Sons. The winners of the India Digital Marketing Awards are decided from among the jury members from among the entries submitted as a component of the all-India call for submissions.
IDMA has 8 broad categories, adding Web; Mobiles and Tablets; Social media; Research campaigns and PPC, for corporations (SMEs); For start-ups; Hall of Fame Awards and Special Awards. These categories are then divided into several subcategories. Award nominees are decided strictly on the nomination and not on the entries.
Winners are decided through a thorough selection process. The members of the jury will independently examine the applications and compare them according to their respective evaluation criteria. The event will be held through ABP News, the expansion partner is Mobavenue, while Radio City is the co-husband.
Here is a detail of the members of our jury:
e4m-TechManch, the long-awaited virtual marketing convention, returns this year for its seventh edition! The two-day symposium will be held on August 9-10 in Mumbai. This unique occasion will bring together media experts, logo managers and marketers under one roof to explore the long term of virtual marketing and how logos interact with the dynamic diversity of virtual consumers. ‘Today. The event schedule is packed with freelance speakers, fireside chats, and panel talks. At TechManch 2023, industry experts will dive into the endless possibilities of emerging virtual technologies in advertising and marketing, share their insights, and discuss the long haul of the virtual age. The convention will see the most productive minds in the sphere of virtual and partner marketing come together. marketing leader corporations to discuss a wide variety of topics. Our keynote speakers at TechMach this year are Daniel Hulme, Director of AI, WPP and CEO of Satalia; Catherine D. Henry, SVP of Web3 and Metaverse Strategy, Media Monks; Dr. Arvind Gupta, Co-Founder and Director of Digital India Foundation and ONDC Board Member; Sandip Patel, MD, IBM; Dharmarajan K, Commercial Director, Tata CliQ Beauty; Ankush Grover, co-founder of Rebel Foods; Pankaj Rai, Group Director of Data and Analytics, Aditya Birla Group; Geetika Mehta, MD India, Hershey and Karthik Ganesan, Partner, Bain & Company. At TechManch 2023, marketers will navigate through big odds, insight percentages, and cutting-edge concepts for the virtual age, shedding light on how emerging technologies would impact marketers. This is an exciting opportunity for marketers and logo managers to connect with like-minded people, gain data-driven insights, and cutting-edge insights into business marketing and functionality. electronic. While the Co-Gold Partner of the occasion is Acoustic, Lokal is the Co-Sponsor and Traffic Guard is the Co-Partner.
At World Breastfeeding Week 2023, Philips Avent partnered with actress and mother Neha Dhupia and her parent initiative, Freedom to Feed.
According to a press release, this collaboration aims to destigmatize conversations about breastfeeding and provide meaningful information to women in their breastfeeding adventure. Building on the good fortune of its previous campaigns, Philips Avent is committed to empowering new moms in their breastfeeding adventure through the partnership with Neha Dhupia.
As a component of this significant campaign, “Freedom to Feed”, directed by Neha Dhupia, will feature a series of LIVE conversations with celebrities and new moms like Bipasha Basu, Gauahar Khan, Dia Mirza and India’s most sensible influencer and content creator, Masoom Minawala. and Deepali Agarwal Head, Personal Health, Philips Indian Subcontinent and Dr. Shagufta Parveen, lactation consultant. These conversations will serve to normalize discussions about breastfeeding and provide valuable insight into the demanding situations and joys that come with motherhood.
The crusade will conclude with a grand gala in Mumbai on August 7, where prominent mothers such as Soha Ali Khan, famed journalist Faye D’Souza, Indian wrestler Geeta Phogat and Philips spokesperson Deepali Agarwal will sign up for a panel discussion moderated by Neha Dhupia. . . The occasion will highlight the breastfeeding adventure of new moms, highlighting the barriers they face and highlighting tactics to provide meaningful support.
Commenting on the initiative, Deepali Agarwal, Head of Personal Health for the Indian Subcontinent at Philips, said: “At Philips Avent, we perceive breastfeeding as a moment in the life of each and every new mother. However, we also recognize the demanding situations and uncertainties that go with it. We are committed to putting moms, toddlers and their well-being at the forefront of all our efforts. Through this initiative, we aim to destigmatize conversations about baby feeding, allowing more moms to #Amamanten their way with Philips Avent.
Neha Dhupia, an accomplished actress and mother of two, shared her enthusiasm for the crusade saying, “To highlight the issues faced by breastfeeding mothers, I created Freedom to Feed, my own initiative for breastfeeding mothers in India. This year, I’m excited to bring the verbal exchange about breastfeeding to more moms with an amazing panel of inspiring women. Together, we seek to normalize discussions about breastfeeding and parenting. The partnership with Philips Avent, which places equal confidence in the cause of breastfeeding and parenting, makes this initiative indeed significant. “
Myntra has announced the integration of young actors Khushi Kapoor and Vedang Raina as new FWD logo ambassadors. As part of this partnership, the actors will stand out in a cross-film, the role of effortless tastemakers.
Speaking about the integration of Khushi Kapoor and Vedang Raina as FWD logo ambassadors, Vijay Sharma, Senior Marketing Director, said, “With Myntra FWD, we are building the destination for India’s Generation Z. We are very happy to have the young trendsetters: Khushi Kapoor and Vedang Raina, as the faces of FWD. Their completely new and ambitious fashion choices, “with him” attitude, younger aesthetic, and original representation of Gen Z fashion expectations make Khushi and Vedang FWD’s best ambassadors.
Commenting on his agreement with FWD, Kapoor said: “I am very pleased to be a component of Myntra FWD and it could not be more fitting than the approval of my first logo. FWD is based on the basic principles of freshness, individuality and trend, and those are the principles that perfectly summarize the essence of fashion as I see it. Myntra is at the forefront of merging fashion and generation for an immersive grocery shopping experience, and FWD is an extension of that. I look forward to connecting more deeply with my enthusiasts who share mutual admiration for all things fashion through this arrangement.
In addition, Gen-Z poster and actor Vedang Raina said, “Fashion is an undeniable but difficult way for other people to express their true selves. More confidence to be original themselves. I am thrilled to sign up for the Myntra logo ambassador team and look forward to a stellar arrangement where individuality is celebrated.